Still here, still home

Progress reports:

The refinishing project for some of the kitchen area cabinets is done. I didn't take a picture, but when I do I'll come back to this post and edit it and the picture will go about here:

[insert picture]

Progress on the tire maintenance/repair project:  I resolved the questions about a compressor.  The only 12V air pumps I could find were really expensive.  So I opened for a small 120V compressor, which was on sale at Amazon.  I've been playing with it on and off and it does the job, although it does take a long time to take the rear tires all the way up to 80# like they want. This means I do have to run the generator in the rig to make AC for it, but I figure that's OK.  The genset should get more regular use anyway. So the only remaining part of the tire projects is a log wrench.  The universal problem is that shops use pneumatic impact wrenches and almost always put the lug nuts on way to tight.  The rated lug-nut torque for my Ford E450 Superduty chassis is about 150 foot-pounds, and apparently it's not unusual for tire guys to put them on with something like 400 foot-pounds.

So I'm picturing myself in a pouring rain, trying to remove one of the inside tires on my dually  rear axle.  Yuck!  There are lots of alternatives, ranging from a monster lug wrench to a breaker bar to my own pneumatic lug wrench (I've got the compressor, right?)  Some of these are expensive, some not.  This project has consumed a chunk of travel change already, but I'm almost done. With the compressor, it should be easier to keep the tires properly inflated, which will keep them happier and last longer and make it less likely that one will fail on the road.

It's looking less likely that I'll get on the road before Christmas.  Scattered appointments and holiday social events and some damn cold weather are interfering.  We had a stretch of nice warm weather which I talked about in the previous post; now we're having a stretch of record cold, with overnight temps in the 20s. And there's no place much warmer closer than, say, Florida.  Not going there.

So maybe it's time for ...

Merry Christmas!