The Tractor Has Landed

Whew! Never thought I'd see the day. In typical Willoughby fashion the feat wasn't accomplished without a false start and a couple of close calls. It was all going so well. That should've been my first clue. We were scheduled to pick up the tractor at 10am. I have to be at work at 11am so this timing didn't leave much wiggle room. We left the house in plenty of time, drove to North Tacoma (actually more like Hilltop), and found the house. I made it all the way to the front porch before uttering a bad word when I realized I forgot to bring the MONEY. Duh. So I assured the seller that we'd be right back, apologized profusely to the husband and we made the round trip back to the house, grabbed the cash, and back to where the tractor awaited. And there it was....in all its metal roofed, chicken wire sided glory. It was a sight for these sore eyes, indeed. As the 3 of us hefted its bulk onto the top of hubby's roof rack my elation turned to horror. It wasn't going to fit. Or was it? If it had been even a half inch wider I would've come back empty handed. It just...barely....fit. Another huge whew. We managed to strap it down and headed for home taking the back streets, avoiding potholes at all cost, and driving at a snail's pace. We made it home safely, with the tractor still perched precariously atop the Subaru. Now to get it down.....and around the side of the house to the backyard. This is a big, heavy, wide tractor. There were 3 adults lifting it up to the roof. We couldn't kidnap the seller and force her to come home with us to unload. We needed to scare up another body or 2. Our daughter was home but she was pretending to be crippled and none too thrilled to have to help. We also grabbed our son as he arrived at the yarn shop for work. It took all 4 of us to lift it down and then carry it down the side of the house (again is JUST fit) and set it down in the grass of its final destination, our backyard. And here it is. Ta da!



Reggie is VERY curious about this strange thing in his yard. He can smell the chickens but can't see any.



I stopped by our incredibly lame local feed store. Can you believe they were all out of chicken feeders? They also had farm fresh eggs advertised for $3 per dozen. But were out of those, as well. Major lameness. But I picked up 50# of feed and a water er. Will try to find a feeder tomorrow.

And sweetie, you know that gutter thing? I think we're even.