Curve Balls

In 2005 I wrote an op-ed about the curve balls I get on the farm. The opening paragraph said-

"We all get curve balls in life. We're busy enough dealing with the fast balls that come our way. It's the surprises, the curve balls that make life challenging. Some times they come so fast and so close we think they are all bean balls.
Just like in your life I get curve balls on the farm. It takes just one broken bolt or one flat tire to change my whole day."

Well, it is still true about curve balls on the farm. While I was driving cross country two weeks ago I got a call from Ruben that there was a noise in the tractor engine. I got the news late this last Friday- the crankshaft bearings on pistons one and three are both spun. That probably means an engine overhaul.
I can't tell you how much I would rather not have to do that right now. Engine overhauls are expensive and I need that tractor in the field this week. Actually, I needed it two weeks ago, I needed it last week and I need it this week. We have been on Plan B for two weeks now. At this rate I will get the tractor back about the time we are done with tractor work until October. Arrrgh. I hate curve balls.

Actually some of the best shop advice I ever got was from my Uncle Charlie who was a retired New York City Transit Cop and a great mechanic. He laughed one time and said you didn't have to be a great mechanic, just be good at service your vehicles. He said oil was cheaper than parts. I have been very diligent about servicing my cars, trucks and tractors since he said that years ago. Ask my kids- part of their getting their driver's licenses was learning how to change the oil in their cars and learning how to change a flat tire.
I guess I can't avoid curve balls like a down tractor when I really need it to be in the field. I am frustrated about the downtime and the expense right now. But, I did learn my lesson from Uncle Charlie and I am confident that all the servicing we do on our equipment has helped prevent more problems than we will ever know.

So, what are we doing on the farm this week? We'll keep water on the cotton. We'll also spray growth regulators on the cotton to help it mature a little faster since everything is so late this year. We'll kill grass in the blackeyes and water them again. Now that the wheat has been harvested we'll start working the wheat ground and get that ready for next year.

We did have our first cotton bloom this past week. That is always a good thing. The next month is when we really set the cotton crop. Cotton is two to three weeks behind average in our area. It was nice to see blooms in one field almost on schedule. We also had hull split int he almonds. That was only about a week late. All that beautiful cool weather this Spring did delay the crops. We should be harvesting almonds by the middle of next month.

Well, be careful out there- watch out for curve balls.