Above 1200 Sq/FT The Salvage Garage

[F451]

Forgive me if I'm overstepping boundaries here, but it sounds like you need to focus on taking care of yourself first, and let everything else go.

If you're not well and feeling positive, or at least not completely overwhelmed, you will not be able to take care of anything effectively.

I've been trying to get my grown daughter to learn this lesson. She is drowning herself in distractions, is constantly stressed out, spinning her wheels on things that she is convinced are important and urgent, but looking at her world from outside, it looks like she is constantly, and repeatedly self sabotaging herself. She has all kinds of hobbies and pets that she gets into very deeply, but often can't take care of her basic daily needs, can't see the forest for the trees.

She is always helping out her friends who seem to be constantly in dire need, but does not take care of herself.

The worst part is it makes her miserable, and the spill over makes us (her parents) miserable.

There is always some emergency that MUST be attended to.

You seem like a great guy, very hard worker, love your family, etc. I hope your day goes better and that you find some peace in all of this.

 

[Strouty]

F451, that is probably about summing things up.

I just got back to the Hill, Dad was arriving at exactly the same time. He blocks my path and gets out of his truck, starts in about some deal he made with another Cousin, started asking me what the terms were, then this and that. I told him I had no idea, he then said I had made the deal, I was not pleased, I told him I had nothing to do with it except that I didn’t want the money to be paid into the company this year. In hindsight that would have been nice about now, except for the tax bill, he then tells me to “just write up a contract”, I lost it.

There was a bit (ok, maybe a lot) of yelling, he still doesn’t get it. Afterwards he just said, “do you feel better now?” I walked away. Before I did that, I did tell him the last couple things he requested were impossible for me to do right now and he would get them sometime next year. That part did make me feel good.

 

[Strouty]

Reviewing my to do list, it seems like 90% is something that can't easily be done in one step or in one sit down. I think I may have to break things down a bit more in order to make progress instead of just making stress. I generally like lists, but when nothing gets "done" or "checked off" it just feels terrible after a couple days of things accumulating.

One thing I have been toying with, but haven't had the ambition to implement is to start having the tasks based on location or application. I think one setup for SG, another for the Hill, one for the House, then you get to applications, with that I mean things that need to be done on the phone, or with a computer, I would love to further break things down by how long I expect it to take, so if it is something quick, I can do it while waiting for something else to be completed. I think this is a sort of David Allen and GTD setup, it works for others, I have never really implemented it. I do use the app TODOIST and it helps quite a bit, but I also use several other apps and Think those are all messing with me, too many places for things to slip through the cracks. I am an Apple user, so a lot of things are fairly seamless with the integrated apps, I use notes all the time.

Apps that I currently use:

Dropbox (actually pay for a pro subscription)
Todoist
Evernote (don't use this as much as I used to)
Notes (apple native)
Mailbutler (been using this for only a little while, but it offers some cool features that have been helpful)
Notability (good for signing documents and making quick edits)
Fantastical (apple calendar app)

I am working towards using a couple more one is omnifocus and they have a project management program called omniplan.

 

[bimmer1980]

Good advice by a few if the guys here....

Candidly, just tell your Dad, yes, yes, I'll get right on it.... Then proceed to do what you were going to do in the first place.

Basically, give him platitudes and move on... His mind will change anyhow, so don't give it too much credence...

But this is easy to say from my house... Altho, I do have a mother in law across the street that I have to manage....

The key phase, yup, I'll get to it....I just don't commit to a time... ;-)

 

[Kev442]

Time to concentrate on two things: paperwork and the tower site.
As you often say, nothing else actually makes you money, so just ignore the rest next week.
That means no spending hours on marketplace and Cl because you're afraid you might miss out on a deal for **** you won't even use.

 

[Strouty]

Time to concentrate on two things: paperwork and the tower site.
As you often say, nothing else actually makes you money, so just ignore the rest next week.
That means no spending hours on marketplace and Cl because you're afraid you might miss out on a deal for **** you won't even use.

I would like to say that I have not bought anything from Marketplace in weeks, November 1st was my last purchase from there. I took delivery of the two Cascadia trucks in that time frame, but those were deals that were made more than 6 months ago. I have purchased a few things online, but very little. I have really been concentrating on getting things done and dealing with the too much that I already have.

I appreciate all the comments guys and gals, it is nice to be able to bounce things off the wall and get responses.

 

[xtremek]

I had a similar issue with work. The boss didn't realize how much he put on my plate and kept wondering why I wasn't keeping up. So I started doing the other job stuff during working hours and replying to his e-mails when my wife and I sat down to watch TV, or when I was eating breakfast. He got the hint.

 

[Strouty]

Dad doesn't "get" anything, he just is a PITA and wants it now, not later, if it is later, you are not doing your job. I told him tonight that the whole swapping banks was my idea, almost a year ago, but now that he sprung it on me and made it a priority it was causing me all kinds of grief. He thinks everything is no big deal, you just sign a document and it is done, he forgets what it takes to get a document to the point that it can be signed. I want to quit, but honestly, I feel like I created a mess that I need to at least get squared away before I do that. I am seriously thinking I may just start telling him "NO" for everything he asks until I get caught up. It is definitely frustrating, I feel like a normal business would have more than one person handling the things I do, or at the very least the people would work together to get projects done, not actively sabotage each other.

I am currently watching a few videos about omnifocus, I think it is the app that I have been looking for. One of the videos I am watching discusses Todoist and how the tasks generated an overwhelming feeling and that in omnifocus you can pause tasks, and defer them to later, this will essentially hide them for the time being and then you can concentrate on what is important instead of looking at 100 tasks all at once. I really love to use paper, but I hate the mess I end up making, this is why I like apps, easy to fix mistakes and they tend to look clean, my mind likes clean. Probably why the messes I see are driving me crazy.

I don't do alphabetic filing systems, they are a pain to add to as you go, I have used the Paper Tiger program in the past, so I think it is time to implement it again. I don't see any other way to get the files organized and still be able to find things without using this type of system. If I had a huge office, I might be able to sort and label as I go, but for now, I just need something workable within the mess that will be flexible as I get cleaned up.

 

[kaymccampbell]

Strouty, I'll insert myself here. I had a father like yours. I learned to yes him to death, do what I wanted. When he lost his ****, yes him to death.....
You get the drift.
I cost him a fortune in making big plans for me. It was great. I think he finally woke up. Too bad I was already in the wind by then.

 

[Strouty]

Kay, not quite sure how to respond, I read it a couple times.

At the Hill, going to pull out the ladder section (or try) that I need for the paying job. I think I can reach it from up by the Quonset hut, if so, it will save a bunch of effort, would need tire chains for Perk and a trailer down back where it hasn’t been plowed. Rain is supposed to start around noon, I would like to have the shop cleaned up with access to the lift on one side and Perk in the other bay. Then I can work on the filing setup in the office for a while.

I do feel better today, I think my sleep has been less than optimal for the last week, part of it is cumulative and part is having my schedule changed. I hope to have things figured out by next week.

On top of all that, sounds like my Brother may leave me hanging on the ladder job, not sure if Buck can reach high enough, but I may have to try. Frustrating all around.

It is a really nice morning though, just about 30 degrees and rising fairly quick.

 

[xtremek]

Just went out to kick the heat on in the shop, pouring down hard. Ruins my day. As much as you hate the snow, I hate the rain. Can't work outside in the rain

 

[Strouty]

Technically we can both work in the rain or the snow, we chose not to.

Ladder section was over the embankment.



Got Perk situated, looked like it would work even though it was quite right.



Had a couple trees to trim out of the way when I went down around to the lower level.



It was about 5’ shorter than I would like, but I was there, so it was worth a shot.



Up and out it went, had a couple struggles where it was kind of tangled into some of the **** piled on it.



Now I have to remove a big chunk of the steel, I just need the ladder itself.

 

[Strouty]

Got the pieces I need, put the rest back, now I need to load it onto the 550 or I will need a trailer, I vote 550, just means I have to unload it and my trailer, clean the snow off, put the trailer somewhere........







Having the remote would be really handy for this type of work, got to add that to the list!

 

[xtremek]

Yes, we choose not to, when the option is available. I hate wet feet and working in mud. On a different note, it's really nice when you have tools that let you do the job, Perk to the rescue.

 

[Strouty]

Yes, this would have been a three or four hour ordeal instead of an hour, so that helped immensely, especially when rushing against an impending storm of doom (they all seem to be that way now, weather guessers must be trying to up their ratings?).

I have the 550 cleared off, unloaded the waste oil tank, got the gate sections ripped up through the icy snow (thank you 550 boom and remote!), just shoveled off the trailer, now I am going to put the gate sections back on there, then move them out back to my tower. I saved these for the eventual fence that will surround the tower, another project on the list.

I also can see I need to clear off the stairs going to the old office or they will be near impassable after the rain/freezing rain. Then the ladder section can go on the 550, probably just put it on the blue trailer at the top of the hill for now, looks like we are going to try and do the job the week before Christmas, I only need to drill a couple holes in it, but in order to do that I need to take a few more measurements. If it wasn't so heavy, I would put it inside the quonset hut, but it is heavier than I can carry without destroying my back.

Before the storm I also need to get Perk filled up with fuel, been running low for a while and now it is almost empty. You know, I have the fuel tank on the Cascadia that is full, maybe I can pump some of that into Perk, that would help by emptying the tank. We will see how much time I have before the rain starts.

 

[Strouty]

Looks like we have about four or so hours before anything hits, should allow me to get a bunch done, actually thinking about a quick trip to the SG with some things from the Quonset hut, I will work on the important things first, then we can see what happens from there.

Gates put away and trailer is all cleaned off.

 

[xtremek]

Keep plugging away. Good luck.

 

[Strouty]

Got a bunch of miscellaneous stuff out of the Quonset hut, ladder is on the 550, Perk is picked up. I have a few more things to shuffle around up top, then I think I am going to the SG to drop off some stuff. Burb is already half loaded, will be good, there will be lots more space in the shop at the Hill and I will be a couple steps closer to being “ready” for winter.

 

[legenddc]

Your dad is rough, no way around it. I hope you're able to figure out a better way to work with him or deal with your frustrations. It sounds like you've tried just about everything. Reminds me of a boss I used to have who just kept throwing more work at me. Would go to him with a list and ask him to prioritize it for me to try and get him to open his eyes.

Thanks for all the apps to check out. From the sound of it Omnifocus is exactly what I need.

 

[Strouty]

I think OmniFocus is going to be a game changer for me, hope it works for you as well.

Got some more things to load, going to try and get the JD 318 onto the trailer, but it may have to wait for another trip. The bulky stuff is on the trailer and the smaller stuff is in the back of the burb. Need to get Perk back inside before I leave. I decided to just leave the ladder on the 550 for right now, I can slide it off if needed, but I will probably just have to load it on the rack again anyways.

I still have my share of the pallet racking, an air compressor, an auger, and a couple small things still in the Quonset hut, if the weather doesn’t make a mess of things, I may be able to get that stuff out tomorrow, then I can just flip the switch on the Quonset hut and not have to think about it again.

 

[Strouty]

The 318 was too much effort.

Almost forgot to shovel off the stairs to the old office.

Perk and Clark are both inside and I am headed to the SG, hopefully I can beat the rain, definitely cutting it close.

 

[Strouty]

Got everything unloaded, had started drizzling, but it is over 40 degrees, so it didn’t feel too bad. Using the trailers as a make shift cover for the winter, seems like it will work well.



While the bait stations work, I have a feeling there are going to be some funny smells for a while.



Saw this on the side of a FedEx truck, thought it was funny.

 

[steaks&anvils]

Good to hear that today is a better day.

I also find that problems look different the next day. GEEZ I have freaked out one day, yet totally been able to set things right the next day.

I also remind myself: "we are not going to Mars", meaning that what ever is going wrong is most likely not going to get me killed or be permanent.

I will caveat that by saying: "I have to remind myself of that repeatedly and ALL THE TIME"

 

[ttpete]

Got everything unloaded, had started drizzling, but it is over 40 degrees, so it didn’t feel too bad. Using the trailers as a make shift cover for the winter, seems like it will work well.


Saw this on the side of a FedEx truck, thought it was funny.

Owner-operator. He buys a van, brings it up to FedEx standards, and delivers Ground packages only.

I had a friend who bought Lay's potato chip vans, painted, and set them up.

Then, he sold them to the drivers. They had a 4BT Cummins and a TH400 trans.

 

[steaks&anvils]

While the bait stations work, I have a feeling there are going to be some funny smells for a while.

It's amazing how much smell one mouse can generate.

The cold weather only extends the smell season.

 

[Strouty]

Owner-operator. He buys a van, brings it up to FedEx standards, and delivers Ground packages only.

I had a friend who bought Lay's potato chip vans, painted, and set them up.

Then, he sold them to the drivers. They had a 4BT Cummins and a TH400 trans.

It was the OMO Transportation that I thought was funny.

My big fire truck is called OMO “Ocho Minus One” or number 7.

 

[Strouty]

Forecast for tomorrow now says about 50, so I may get the majority of the Hill cleaned up. Would love to move that blue trailer, maybe I can get that figured it out.

 

[ttpete]

Forecast for tomorrow now says about 50, so I may get the majority of the Hill cleaned up. Would love to move that blue trailer, maybe I can get that figured it out.

We had about 54F here today, so it's on its way to you.

 

[Richard Cranium]

What does SG stand for?

 

[Strouty]

Salvage Garage

 

[harley jim]

Strouty you need an acronym thread of your own or maybe just a page here to bring folks up to speed.
I read the omo on the side of the truck and it went right over my head. I remember when you picked up omo and named it.

Sent from my SM-A102U using The Garage Journal mobile app

 

[xtremek]

Yesterday was constant rain here. Guessing you'll get the same? It was warmish though. Hopefully you'll get some more done today.

 

[Strouty]

We had the rain from about 2:30 yesterday afternoon, it stopped early this morning, now we are set for a mid to upper 40s day. I am starting slow, didn’t sleep really well, but I am hopeful I can get some more things done. Really want to get everything out of the Quonset hut so I don’t have to think or deal with it again.

The maroon burb has a slow leak in one tire, the power steering cooler or some line is leaking badly, that effects brakes too (hydroboost). I may end up driving the 550 for a bit, not too happy about it, but I don’t have any other good options. I almost have enough room to use the lift, but I don’t want to waste a good day on getting that done. Maybe when it gets dark this afternoon I can finish clearing things out and get the burb inside.

 

[Strouty]

One thing done.



Now I still have to decide what I am doing about the pallet racking.



I really think I need to bring my banding cart and tools up here, then I can just break it apart and rebrand the stuff, but I am not sure I want to waste that much time. The other thought was to bring everything to the SG and just wait until he wants his racking, then deal with it. That way it doesn’t get unbranded until we need it. Only issue is that I have to handle it a couple more times and that kind of *****.

 

[Strouty]

I am just going to do nothing about the pallet racking for now, when Dad decides he wants to do something I will come get my share, I can’t waste any effort on it until probably spring anyways.

Got things moved back around the big camel back drill press, fit pretty nice in there.

 

[xtremek]

Sounds like a good plan for the pallet racking. When you or your dad need it, then deal with it. Not touching it multiple times sounds like an efficient use of your time.

 

[Strouty]

The only issue will be he could bury it, making it very difficult to get to when I need it. I am hopeful that I will know if and when they are working on cleaning the Quonset hut, at that point I could intervene and take my share of the racking out.

 

[Strouty]

I met with Dad just a little while ago, he started talking about the quonset hut and says, "it looks like there is room for you to put things down there". I told him that with all the things going on, I didn't want to have anything to do with the quonset hut except my big drill press. He basically said he wants to put his Freightliner in there and that is it for this year, next year is when he wants to put more stuff in there, so maybe, just maybe there will be a bit of a quonset hut reprieve.

 

[F451]

While the bait stations work, I have a feeling there are going to be some funny smells for a while.

Found this poor little guy the other day. Was at my daughter's cabin she is renting, the landlord, an acquaintance has a number of old vehicles stored there. I couldn't resist looking at his old 280z as I've had a number of Z cars over the years. I figured he wouldn't mind me taking a peek.

Three things on my mind, 1. how much rust (its not bad at all), 2. how much mice damage to the wiring, and nests, 3. how much mold and mildew in the interior (minimal but by spring it will look like a Chia pet with all the moisture in the cabin).

Saw the intake was open, oh no, couldn't see in there, so reached my hand in to see if I could feel a nest, felt a clump, pulled it out, this little guy was in there.

I sealed up the intake with some screen scraps, figured there's no more mice in there or they would have eaten this little guy.

Wife and daughters FREAKED out when I told them I pulled the little guy out. "WITH YOUR BARE HANDS!" Lol

 

[Strouty]

Mice are awful, they destroy everything we love.

I got the 318 picked up, putting it out of the way for the rest of the winter. I have some things to unload from the burb, then one more trip from the Quonset hut and all that will be left is the drill press and two compressor heads, those need to go to the SG, don’t have time right now, so I put them off to the side but where I can get to them easy enough.