Saturday, September 21, 2024

The Struggle is Real

 I am losing my faith in humanity. I had an experience this week that left me depressed and frustrated. It was at all places.....McDonalds. When was the last time you went to McDonalds? I used to love McDonalds, I prefer their fries over their competitors, their coke seems better than other places and it was one of my first jobs. I think I was 16, I was a cook. I have not been inside a McDonalds in a long time and was shocked when I walked into the Minot McDonalds the other day. 

No "Welcome to McDonald's how can I help you?". I was greeted with silence. There were plenty of customers in there all silently standing there with tickets in their hands. No employees to be seen, just 4 kiosks where customers were expected to place their orders. I turned to where the counter used to be. It was blocked off with a plywood wall and a sign asking the customers to use the kiosks. 

I hate these kiosks. I start punching buttons. I have in mind what I want, but do you think I can find it on that damn thing? Nope. I just want to double hamburger meal; one burger, two patties, fries and a drink. Should not be that hard, but I cannot find it. I ended up with a cheeseburger, small fry, small drink and 4 chicken nuggets. The machine pops out my ticket and I stand there like all the other zombie customers holding my ticket. I can see employees moving around back there, but still no customer interaction. 

Then it happens, one of the employees comes out and speaks "159" she says, plops a bag on a rolling rack, turns around and walks away. Zombie 159 walks up to the rolling rack, grabs the bag and walks out. Eventually my number was called, and I too did the zombie walk and left never having any interaction with an employee or customer. I seriously felt like I was in the Twilight Zone! 

But that is not what this post is about. Just a random observation from the week. What this post is about is some of the trials and tribulations we encountered while harvesting this fall. I already talked about a couple of them like the combine tire falling off and the combine fire. Talking to a Case service employee recently, we learned that Bob's was the 3rd combine wheel to fall off this fall and the 11th combine fire in this area. 3 of those combines were total losses. 

But wait, there's more! Remember that day when it was so dusty and windy that you could barely see this cart and combine through the dust? As hard as it was to see during the daylight, think about how hard it was to see after dark in the wind and dust? Well, Chris found out that you cannot see at all. You certainly cannot see that big hay bale on the edge of the field that Chris ran into bending a couple parts of his header. 

No parts needed to be replaced, but a couple had to be straightened. Then there was the gear box that went out. Sounds easy? 1 day and $8,500 (parts only) later, we had it replaced with us doing the work. A week or so later, in a totally unrelated event, Chris noticed a vibration in his combine. It was diagnosed to a cracked pulley and bent shaft. $2,000 in parts have been ordered, we have yet to fix that one. 

There were several tire incidents while harrowing. One by me, one by someone who is not me but will remain nameless. I will only tell you this much about the nameless person, the first letter in his name is T and the last letter Y. I will leave it up to you to figure it out. 

 So here I am harrowing away with a 70' harrow going across the field. You generally do not look behind you too often as you are going across the field, just a glance as you turn corners and a glance or two over your shoulder as you go straight across the field. A glance over each shoulder lets you see the edges of the harrow, you really have to turn around to see the center of it. So, you can imagine my shock when I turned totally around to see the center and saw a totally shredded tire flopping around behind me!

I honestly cannot tell you if that happened one minute earlier or 10 minutes earlier. I am thinking the latter based on the condition of the tire. 

The nameless person was harrowing the edge of the field when all of a sudden, the tire broke right off. Not fell right off, broke right off as in metal broke away from the frame. He says he didn't hit anything, but color me skeptical as that tire "happened" to break off in very close proximity of a power pole! In all fairness, it is hard to tell how close you are to an object with something that wide and I may have hit objects in my previous years as well. 

Then there is the spilled grain. So frustrating, so avoidable. As a truck driver, you drive from field to farm unload and drive back to the field to do it all over again. And again, and again, and again. 10-14 hours a day. It is easy to become lax and forget a step. For me, that included not fully closing the bottom trap on the truck, not only once, but twice on two different days resulting in grain going right through the truck onto the ground. So avoidable, so frustrating. 

To clean this up, you need to go back to the farm, get a conveyor, bring it out to the field and shovel it by hand back into the truck.

There were a couple of getting stuck incidents, one with me in the skidsteer where I had to be pulled out and another by that same nameless person with the hay wagon. 

These are a few of things that are all part of what happens on any farm U.S.A. If anyone tells you different, they are lying. 

What else did we do this week? Took down fences, cleaned some outbuildings, cleaned some peas getting them ready to sell for other farmers in the spring. Cleaning takes out all of the bugs, split peas and other debris, leaving only (well, pretty much only) plantable seeds. Cleaning and filling a bin like the one in the background takes about 6 hours. 

DeAnne and I spent a day in town at their rental which is where Ty and Stephanie are living right now. We sided the front of their porch and covered a couple of windows. It looks much better if I do have to say so myself! 

Two weeks left up here, one week of work and one week of fun. I am kinda hoping they both go quick; I am ready to get home!

76 comments:

  1. Sounds like a rough patch-we don't eat out anymore especially fast food places-like Mcdonald's sounds a bit too futurist for me sad to see the company going in this direction. I wouldn't go back if it was me hopefully there are nicer restaurants to chck out

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    1. McDonald's is the only company where I have seen these kiosks. The only other fast food we typically go to is Culvers. I have never seen them there. Culvers it is for me in the future!

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  2. Always stuff to fix or repair on the farm...oh and tires are expensive these days:) I have not been inside a McDonalds for years...guess I won't go there either...but you are right they used to have the best fries:)

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    1. The fix on the combine was free since it was a manufacturers defect. The harrow tire was also somewhat free as they found a replacement tire on a piece of equipment that was abandoned years ago.

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  3. You have been busy once again. It's good to have something to do between going camping, extra pocket money.
    Gosh, the pitfalls of farming, money goes out for repairs and that of course comes off the profits.
    The rental looks ok, well worth doing that, not so many widows.
    Haven't been to Maccas for a long time, but we used to go through the drive-through and never ever stopped into the front area. Wouldn't know what to do now!

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    1. It they charged me for all the things I broke or spilled over the years, I am sure I would have to file bankruptcy and get a job at McDonalds!

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  4. Wow, it sounds like one of those weeks when everything goes wrong. The dust storm looks spooky. Hubby and I try to avoid McDonalds but we have seen their new system with the kiosk. The entrance on the house looks pretty with the new siding.
    Take care, have a great day and a wonderful week!

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    1. Luckily, this was a compilation of a month's worth of mishaps, had this happened in one week, it would have been a horrible week! We go to McDonald's a couple times a year, but Barb usually goes in. Now, I am even more thankful when she does that avoiding that frustration for me!

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  5. My goodness, so many stressful incidents - it is a wonder you still have any hair!
    McDonalds here also use kiosks (which I hate), so the rare time I buy one now I always go through drive-through (and get to talk to a person hiding in a machine!).

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    1. Have you seen Farmer Bob lately? He lost his hair long ago; I need to get out of here before that happens to me!

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  6. It's such an intensive and extensive operation. As for McDs, we still have the option. I note that the kids gravitate to the kiosks and the adults, or at least older adults, to the counter. I think it goes faster at the counter rather than searching through the menus.

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    1. When there is an option, I always go to the live person as they should be trained to find what I am looking for on their computer instead of me hunting for it and eventually buying something I really did not want.

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  7. Enjoyed your rant about the kiosks at McDonalds. Some of the more rural locations do not yet use the kiosks. I will just immediately walk out of the store if I see a kiosk. McDonalds is trying to escape higher minimum wage laws with the kiosks.

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    1. You are probably right about them trying to avoid the higher minimum wage laws, I do not blame them for that. Since when did minimum wage turn into living wage? It used to be that minimum wage jobs were for teenagers just starting out or retired folk, not needing a living wage. The kiosk are not the answer in my opinion.

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  8. I didn't realize all the mishaps that could happen on big acreage farming. Wow. I guess the big equipment breaks down as much as anything else, but it sure is a lot more expensive to repair. (And I thought the new wate rpump/thermostat on my car was expensive.) And I went to McDonald's the other day to get a soda on ice (because they are the best) and I noticed their self-serve is gone. Is soda breaking their bank that much? Hope your week(s) go by fast so you can get home. Erika

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    1. Planting and harvesting is really hard on equipment. I too was surprised at how much breaks during the season, but now I have learned that that is just the nature of the beast, and you have to roll with the punches.

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  9. Shame shame on CASE!! That's the only equipment we would buy ... and never had THOSE problems. As for the tire ... don't you have eyes on the back of your head?? Oh ... and shame on YOU for the seed dump. Been there, done that, but at least you didn't get yelled at ... or maybe you did! As for Micky D's ... I refuse to go there. On the other hand, two others closed down so they didn't have to pay the wages. Better watch out when you go in there ... walking dead and all that!!!

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    1. I am sure there are times they would like to yell at me, but I think they are afraid that I would leave. I was harder on myself then anything, especially the second time.
      I think the McDonald's around here pay $15-17/hr. I could not imagine having to pay what they have to in California. No wonder they are closing!

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  10. I had no idea McDonalds had gotten so automated. (I, also, always liked their french fries the best.) Sounds creepy.
    All the issues that have popped up at the farm are completely new to me so it is interesting to hear about them. Goodness! Besides annoying--scary and expensive, that's for sure. You will be home again soon! Glad of that. :)

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    1. It is a world that most people know little or nothing about.

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  11. We ran into those kinds of kiosks in a Dunkin Donuts in the U.S. before we left, but there were still people behind the counter - so it was optional. I definitely don't like the idea of having to use them. I feel like so many of these things are designed to save time and money, but just cause aggravation.

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    1. Woah, so good to hear from you! Miss your blog posts. Hope things are going well over there. Farmer Bob is over there right now, look for him as you walk around town!

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    2. Haha... I've been here all along. For some reason, I couldn't post comments for a while, so I stopped trying. I decided to try again yesterday and, lo and behold, it worked! No idea why. Also, sometimes your blog doesn't show up in my inbox for a couple weeks, then it shows up again. It's all very strange.... but I'm still here!! Small world that Farmer Bob is here of all places! Tell him to reach out of he needs anything. Stay well!

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    3. He is there on a religious pilgrimage. The architecture of the churches there are incredible!

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  12. I went into a MacDonald's a few months ago with much of the same set up. However, the counter wasn't blocked off and occasionally a person would appear by the register. If you get a hankering for Mickey D's again, I'd go through the drive through.
    Farming is hard expensive work. I am very thankful that there are still people out there who are willing to do it.

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    1. If you look at the farming trends, the family farm is disappearing at an alarming rate. You need to get big or get swallowed up.

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  13. Those dang kiosks are very common out here where minimum wage is approaching $20, they're more cost effective than a high school kid.
    Man, not only do farmers have to work hard ... so does their equipment.

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    1. I wonder where high school kids nowadays find their first jobs. My grandchildren are still too young for find jobs, but I should find the answer to this question in the next year or two.

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  14. Yikes! I hate kiosks! I hate them everywhere, especially at the end of long, long lines at the airport! I, too, never find the thing I'm looking for and there's no one around to help. If it was at a McDonalds, I'd just give up and go elsewhere. I think it's time to take off your farmer hat and go home for a little relaxation!

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    1. You last sentence is sound advice; I think I shall take it! (in 9 more days)

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  15. Personally I find McDonalds to be the bottom of the food chain and also dislike the kiosks and self serve checkouts. All those breakdowns on the farm must really cut into profits and time. As long as y’all finish the season with all your fingers and toes it will be a good thing. Stay safe!

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    1. I crave McDonald's a couple times a year. Usually right after a long stay somewhere remote. It is one of our first stops when we return from a long Canadian fishing trip. Otherwise, we go for some of the other fast-food places.

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  16. What a lot of big broken stuff! And expensive! I well remember back when we put up hay. Always something was breaking at just the crucial moment. It was so frustrating.
    That McDonald's story, wow. I have been to McDonald's so rarely in recent years, and have to admit I hate their food. Last time we got something from there it made me sick, so never again. Especially that kiosk setup, not for me.
    Here's to a good week ahead for you guys, and an awesome week of r&r! You earned it.

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    1. Haying is such a hassle. The weather has to be perfect for several days to put up a nice crop. Throw in some equipment malfunctions and you will for sure get rain!

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  17. I am also not a fan of those kiosks. Drive thru for this kid.

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    1. I wonder how long it will be until even the drive thru's are automated? Next thing you know, singers and other artists will be nonhuman!

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  18. This is Dino by the way. If I didn't know better, I was thinking that you are trying to get fired. You seem to be a liability. Their insurance rates must really go up when you are there. As far as McDonald's. Welcome to the future. I don't mind the kiosks. One less pathetic person to look at. Like if you were to take my order, I know it would be wrong. Don't even get me started on you touching my food.

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    1. That's funny. You took the words right out of my mouth.

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  19. Damn I hate those self service boards at Macca's at least here you can still go up to the counter and place and order with a real person. Bloody hell how would a tired just break off like that sounds somewhat suss to me

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    1. I had a tire like that break off just like that a few years ago, but I slammed it into a tree at 20mph, that I at least know what caused my breakdown!

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  20. I hate those kiosks with a passion. I do know that if you go to the counter and wait (hopefully patiently) a real person comes out to take the order. But otherwise, they're all in the kitchen. (At least here in Michigan.) I always mess them up. Seeing the farmiing photos makes me feel whiny about cutting back my mess of a garden!

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    1. I doubt it. I think they would just ignore you until you went away. Although I only crave McDonalds a couple of times a year, I think I will try to fight that urge and head over to Culvers where they are much friendlier.

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  21. The fast food experience has changed, not for the better.

    Farm work is endless, dangerous and hard work. I can understand you being ready to go home!

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    1. I usually do not come up this long, but with Chris and Holly expecting he asked me to come up a little earlier than I usually would to get as much done as possible before baby Tessa was born.

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  22. The McDonald's thing just blows my mind. Very robotic, which I don't like. We use the drive-thru when my son just has to have it. I've just even noticed that general politeness is a thing of the past as well it seems. I can't tell you how many times they just shove a bag out of the window and slam the window shut. Not a thank you or kiss my foot! Hmmph! I sure hate y'all have had issues this harvesting season. I guess it's to be expected, but those seem big. Our farmers had to work super hard to dodge the rains from this last hurricane. I think most of them did ok. The siding on the house looks great!

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    1. You are right, a few of those mechanical breakdowns are above and beyond when typically occurs, but what do you do? Some have it even worse, so you count the blessings you do have and move on.

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  23. So now fast food is going to be like using a vending machine...Perhaps the robots will learn to work the harvest next...no more missed hatches that weren't closed, no more hitting poles with tires...LOL

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    1. Oh, there are already prototypes out there for planting, harvesting and carting. We probably will not see it in our lifetime, but it is coming! I am sure there are already prototypes of every position in McDonald's as well. Soon there will only be one technician at these facilities.

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  24. I saw my first short order kiosk a couple of days ago. I wonder whose bright idea that was, but I guess it makes it so that they can hire fewer workers and save on labor. Meanwhile, the CEO takes in tons of money.

    Sounds like y'all have had a hard and expensive week 😢

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    1. I am thinking this is just a generational phase and someday (not in our lifetime) they will go back to a customer service-oriented culture. At least that is my utopian dream at least.

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  25. I will gladly testify that it sounded like a typical harvest season on any farm. My dad would always get upset at us when we hurt some of his farm equipment running into things. These days he is more forgiving since my brother and I are no longer on the farm and those incidents still occur. It is hard to work those long hours for weeks on end and maintain the focus necessary to never have such an incident. I suppose that is why farming is more dangerous than a desk job.

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    1. That is a really great way to put it, although in my head I concentrate on every task that I am doing, it is very, very hard to maintain focus while doing something so repetitive for hours on end.

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  26. So not everything goes smoothly while harvesting. However, the repairs seem to be rather costly so would insurance cover some or is it just tear and wear cost of everyday processing? Too bad of the spills, but I bet the birds and other creatures are happy to clean up afterwards. As to McD, I try to get to the counter as it seems to be quicker than scrolling through menus. Maybe next we will have to pick up the ordered food from a dispensing slot of an automat as all preparation is done by robots :-)

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    1. There is insurance for some things, but not for these. Now had Bob's combine actually caught on fire, I am sure that would have been covered.

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  27. Reality of farm life. I still think every kid should be required to spend at least a couple of weeks on a farm or ranch before graduating high school. Teach 'em where food actually comes from and give them an idea of what "work" looks like.

    Your experience at Micky-D's, unfortunately, is not so uncommon. Several stores are trying to force us to use "automatic checkout". I refuse. My thinking is every time that "convenient and speedy" method is used, it's putting a nail in a human's employment coffin. We need a course reversal on that policy.

    Having read about all your travails this past week, Gini's split pea soup will taste extra special tonight.

    Y'all take good care up there.

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    1. I was thinking that about split pea soup! I don't know where they get the split peas for that soup, but I highly doubt it comes from our clean out.
      I think most of our clean out goes to chicken food.

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  28. I hate those kiosks too and if that’s the only choice to order, we leave hungry! The cost of repairs at the farm is mind boggling. Happy hunting Jim…and safe travels home!

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    1. The next 10 days or so should go fairly quickly. It always does when you are doing something fun!

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  29. I despise those kiosks--except at Costco--but theirs are easy to use! You would think having to shovel that grain would make you remember to close the dump value! :) :) I bet you are ready to go home!

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    1. Right? To tell the truth, someone distracted me while I was dumping that truck. Not an excuse, but I am going with it!

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  30. Sorry to hear about the harvesting woe and hope you do get home soon. I hate these kiosk and self checkouts. One hand people are complaining about there not being enough jobs and then they are replacing on the jobs with computers. Bring back the humans.

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    1. Hear, hear, I am with you on bringing back the humans! Sadly, I feel we are a generation or two away from that actually happening. Something drastic has to happen before the reset button is hit

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  31. Whoa. One farming yikes after another. So frustrating! And yes, AI at fast-food places is a good example of inefficiency & corporate greed.

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    1. Let's hope the yikes are over for the season. We have 500 or so acres left, then harvest is a wrap!

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  32. I don't go to McDonald's but when TG and I were in Chicago last week he needed a snack from Taco Bell, and it was exactly as you described. If leftists get their way, the whole world will be like this. Everything done by machines, little human interaction, and people behaving like mindless zombies. Programmed. Fight against it! A strong work ethic and Individuality and freedom are what made this country great. I know I'm preaching to the choir but sometimes I just have to spout off. And as heartbreaking as some of your recent experiences on the farm have been, reading an account of daily activities by someone who doesn't sugar-coat everything to make it palatable for social media, is refreshing. Props to you for that! xoxo

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    1. Oh, I have been guilty of making life sound like butterflies and unicorns, but as the title says, the struggle is real and it's not always sunny in North Dakota.

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  33. It certainly has been a lot of mishaps with the farming this season from broken equipment to spilled grain. I knew there were tough days, but you and the others have had a lot to deal with recently. The McDonald kiosk situation was sad to read about. Admittedly, it’s been years since we’ve been to one so not sure if it’s the same here. Like yourself, I prefer human interaction which is why I do not use the supermarket self service checkouts. I have never minded helping with bagging, but stop at having to scan everything. It’s even worse at a big box store like BJs where customers are encouraged to scan their own items and many buy in large quantities, unlike ourselves.

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    1. There is one exception to this humanless checkout experience. That is Sam's Club. Although I do not use it, Barb loves the Scan and Go app where she scans items with her phone as she shops. This is a huge time saver as she is able to avoid the long lines at the checkout.

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  34. It’s sad to see how things have changed at McDonald's—those kiosks can be so frustrating! Your farming adventures sound wild, too. From combine issues to tire mishaps, it’s never a dull moment! Props for handling all that chaos with a sense of humor. Hope the next couple of weeks fly by for you, and you get some fun time after all that hard work!

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    1. Waterfowl season opens tomorrow! The weather is not cooperating, (way to nice) but hopefully the ducks will!

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  35. I enjoyed your McDonald's story, as I love a good Big Mac once in awhile. I'm sorry you had that experience. Up here in the mountains, they had a drive-through, and you could walk in also, but I always used the drive-through. They were pretty friendly, so that was sad to hear there was no interaction with the customers. I hope your burger was good at least. We don't have McDonald's up here anymore, they closed, but I sure hope something good will replace it. The rental house looks a lot better. You all did a nice job on that.

    I hope you have pleasant October days.

    ~Sheri

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    1. I have never heard of a McDonald's closing. What is this world coming to?!?!

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  36. ps.....sorry to hear about your harvesting experience too. I can't believe those parts alone cost $8,500. What a day you had.

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    1. This is by far, the most expensive harvest I have ever been involved in. Let's hope we don't see something like this again.

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  37. Hello Jim )
    hanks fo sopping by. My omputr is not working proprly Th:E, C, T, H, and R don't work wll I'll be bak whn I gt a new omputr
    All h best

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