| Home |
Guestbook! | Archives |
Sign My Guestbook!When it
rainssnows, itpoursblows...
Friday seemed nice enough.... It was sunny, though a bit cold, getting ready for the promised 2 inches of snow predicted for Saturday night. We already had the horses' water tanks "winterized" with de-icing rings and filled to the brims. (They always put a very short cord on de-icers, and warn you "don't use an extension cord" - like we are going to get an electrical outlet within 2 feet of the water tank! I use a very heavy rated extension cord, and make a cover for the plugs to keep snow and rain from shorting it out.) We also got an electric water dish for the dogs, since they spend most of their time in the barn these days. And we had filled some jugs with water for the dogs and cats - the only running water is near the house.So far as us humans were concerned, we had all the dishes done (no straglers!), the laundry was all caught up, the floors mopped - we were ready for winter to appear!
Meanwhile, I had been planning to go with some friends and their horses to a dressage clinc being given by my friends' club on Saturday. My friends live about 35 miles east of me, and the clinic was to be given in an arena another 35 miles north of them. I called my friend to see if we actually got in the clinic, as it had filled and we were on the waiting list. Luckily, some people had cancelled and we were scheduled to ride in the afternoon. I mentioned the snow forcast - "Oh," she said, "the forcast has changed, the snow will miss us altogether and maybe we'll get some on Monday."
Friday afternoon, I noticed the water pressure was a little low. It does that sometimes, so I didn't think too much about it. Friday evening, the tap water was flowing at a mere trickle. We checked the outside faucets - only a trickle there, too! Uh, oh! Must not be just the plumbing in the house, this sounds like a well or a pump problem!!! Our well is only 4 years old, so we knew who had drilled it and they were still in business, so we left a message with them Friday night.
Saturday morning - Finally, word from the well guys. They were trying to get water to a herd of about 1,000 cattle, but we were next on the list. They'd try to get to us sometime Sunday. Meanwhile, the horses have drunk some water and would certainly need more. Dick loaded up the six-gallon water jugs in the truck and went to the neighbors to get livestock water. So, the critters have water, and we have some water to flush the toilet, but drinking and washing water is pretty scarce. I took some smaller household jugs with me to my friends' place and would bring water back after our dressage class. There was nothing I could help by hanging around at home!
The dressage clinic went well, the clinician reminded me of things I knew a long time ago but had forgotten, and the horse I rode was named "most improved"! I also learned from watching my friend ride, and felt good that I had made the same suggestions to my friend that the clinician was making! It was also great to see other riders and how they solved problems or how nicely they were going already.
The clinic was held at an indoor arena, and it had been sleeting a little all afternoon. By the time we drove back with the horses, there were a few snow flurries, but nothing sticking or signifigant. I wanted to get home to get chores done before it was too late. After unloading horses, we had a little coffee, I filled my jugs, and it was time to go. I went outstide and WOW! there was already an inch of snow on the ground, and it was blowing. I cleaned off the car and got it warmed up and left. I could barely see for all the blowing snow. It was hard to tell where the centerline and edge of the road was. I was only driving 30- 35 mph - I felt the tires slip from time to time and really didn't want to go into a full slide. And people were passing me! They were in 4x4 trucks or cars. (note to self: must get a 4x4 vehicle)
After about 8 miles of this, I realized we had some friends (actually friends of my father-in-law's) just off the highway another mile or two ahead. Last I had seen them was back in July, and then ran into them a few months ago at WalMart, but we'd emailed a couple of weeks ago, so I figured I'd take a chance and see if I could spend the night with them. I made it to the house - they go on hunting trips frequently, so I wasn't sure they'd be home - but they were!! Yay! they fed me and put me up in a spare room.
I left Sunday morning - it had quit snowing, it was up to 20 degrees with some wind. There was still packed snow on stretches of road, but also big stretches of bare road. The snow trucks had come through and scraped and salted/graveled the bridges, so I just went slow on the snow and fast where I could. I made it home in one piece and in good time.
Just after I got home, the well guys showed up. The pump seems to be running, but is sucking air - meaning that the water table must've lowered. They did some more measurements, then decided it was something else, they didn't know what. Today they will bring 1600 gallons of water to flush out the lines and see what they can see. One had mentioned that with all the irrigating in the area, he was seeing lots of wells running dry. Hopefully, we can just lower the pump and we'll be ok. The well is 330 feet and the pump is at 300, so we have a little room to play with before having to re-drill.
Today is Monday, we are waiting to hear from the well guys. I'd love to have a shower!
PS It's Monday evening now, and the well guys were out this afternoon and I got to talk to them. There is plenty of water, we mis-understood the earlier info about the water table going down - it isn't. We have a bunch of either mud or "drilling compound" in the pipe, and it's not allowing water to flow into the pump. They did measurements today and there's about 23 feet of stuff in there. So the plan is to bring out a heavy-duty air compressor and blow out all the stuff. The water isn't forceful enough to get that much stuff out.
Stay tuned....
New Year's 2004 - Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2003
Ch-ch-ch-changes - Monday, Dec. 29, 2003
Catching up - Saturday, Dec. 20, 2003
When it rains snows, it pours blows... - Monday, Nov. 24, 2003
This and that... - Monday, Nov. 17, 2003