There is no crying in farming

I haven't talked much about harvest this year.  That's because it has been really bad.  Yes, it rained a lot this summer & yes, we have grain out there to get... but our combine is 13 years old...& she's tired, people.  Like sick & tired of us apparently...

The boys had to do some extensive repairs to it before they were able to get started this year that cost around $15,000.  Yea, that sucks - but we gotta do it.  They were hoping that would be the only snag but unfortunately it wasn't.  It seems like every time B-rad goes out to run, it breaks.  Whether it be the rain (which I NEVER curse) or the combine being broken he can't seem to get anything done.  

B-rad's pretty good about handling this sort of thing.  He's calm.  He's cool.  He's collected.  (See why we work?  I am NONE of those things!)  But yesterday, I think even he was at his breaking point.

I haven't been able to fit into my busy social schedule had a chance to around with him yet this year & usually I do that once or twice a season.  My plan was to take him lunch yesterday & ride with him for a few hours.  How boring do you think it is going back & forth & back & forth over the same ground over & over all.by.yourself?  It has to be so boring...I would die.

 I texted him at 12:15 to see if he was ready for lunch.  My texts are in blue, he is in white.  (And yes, I used a bad word... sorry...)  Also notice the time stamp after the f bomb.  It's almost 5 hours later...that's important to the story...

OK- so here's what happened:  he was running beans & they're supposed to just snap & break & go into the machine like good little beans.  These beans weren't breaking.  The stems were more like rubber & they were pliable & somehow got tangled up in themselves & created a huge 'plug' in the rotor of the machine & it wouldn't move.  (Imagine a branch on a dead tree - when you snap it, it breaks.  If the tree is alive, the branch just bends & doesn't break from the trunk...same concept...)  And where the plug was there was no easy way to get to it.  

B-rad tried over & over to stick his hand in there to pull bits & pieces out.

I just wanted to help so I was all like, "Could we get Cole or Brady out here?  They're little.  Maybe they can fit up there better?"  "What about me-my hand is smaller than yours - maybe I could try to pull stuff out."  (I was being selfless - I would've RUINED my nails people!)  But B-rad was pretty irritated (which is totally understandable) & he wasn't really liking any of my suggestions & the tone of his voice was my clue that he didn't really want need my ideas...

The rotor has a forward & reverse switch & he had been trying to see if the plug would eventually 'give' if he kept toggling it back & forth.  (Similar to getting your car un-stuck in mud by going forward, then backward.)  Then he had yours truly sit in the seat & flip the switch while he was back under the machine to watch & see if it was working.  Uhm, it wasn't working...

    

See those pulley thingies above B-rad's head?  When I took this pic he still had the engine running so they were turning & the belts were moving FAST.  His head is really, really close to them.  This shit makes me nervous but it's just another day at the office for him.

Ya'll-I just wanted to cry.  Like seriously.  This has been such a frustrating year.  And B-rad was super frustrated too.  I think he probably wanted to cry too...

He had tools out & pieces of the machine pulled off trying to find a place underneath to access the plug better.  

 An hour or so later, his brother showed up to help.

 

I had to leave to pick up Brady in another field & then went home.  He texted me again around 5:00 to bring him eye drops because of all the dust.  That's 5 hours...  I didn't ask if they got it fixed because if they hadn't I didn't want to irritate him more... but I got to the field & saw everything still sitting there... I knew...

Both of their hands were killing them & B-rad had smashed his hand with something they were using.  They sent Brady to get some tool thingie (I know-I'm so good with the technical terms) to put inside the machine to put pressure against some of the insides to move it slightly to see if it would get them better access.  

Ya'll it got dark & cold fast.  B-rad worked on one side & Brian on the other.  They could see where the problem was but it was just out of their reach.  All they cold do was pull small bits out over & over & over again. B-rad's brother lost his temper & started griping & yelling.  This was the worst plug either of the boys had ever seen & they said (several times) how this year is the worst harvest EVER.  

And they've been doing this a long time...

Finally around 6:00 (6 hours after I had first texted him) B-rad got back into the combine & started it up to try & move the rotor again.  Brady & I stood & watched & all of a sudden we could see (& hear) the combine start to shake & I started to scream & clap.  Just like that 6 hours later - it broke loose.

This was the tangled up mess that caused them to be down for a whole day.  

If you're wondering why we wouldn't just buy a new combine since ours is old & pissed at us worn out - a new one is probably in the $250,000-$300,000 ball park.  Then we'd have to buy new heads as well - one for corn & one for beans.  I don't even know how much those cost.  So yea it's a really big purchase.  Right now we don't have the ability to finance it & make payments because we have other things we are paying for.  I've told ya'll we're young farmers & their parents stuff was all worn out so we've had to buy other things that we're still making payments on.  I would say a combine has definitely moved to the top of the list after this fiasco.  

 You may also be thinking, "Man-your farmers complain a lot!"  Well, it may seem like that.. The thing that people don't understand is that farming is all about timing & elements.  I always tease B-rad & say, "It's too hot, too cold, too wet & too dry." but that's the truth.  Some of our corn blew down last week in the stormy weather.  That's bad because it takes longer to harvest & we may not be able to get as much corn as we would have because it fell on the ground.  No corn = no money.   The longer the beans are in the field & get rained on & then dry out - the pods break open & the bean falls onto the ground.   No beans = no money.    Truly we are completely at the mercy of things beyond our control. (And for a control freak like me it's super annoying!)

 While after a couple of hours I would've sat on the ground & cried & felt sorry for myself, my poor B-rad will be back out there today - running those damn beans.  There's no time to cry in farming...