A Big Purchase, A Small Purchase, A Freebie

Besides moving into the farm house that weekend, I made a visit to see a used tractor which I'd read about on Craigslist. It was about 20 minutes east of my place and was parked out front by the road when I arrived:

I didn't stop at first, but drove right on back to the house you see behind the trees. They had a great big "Beware Of Dog" sign posted, but the dog turned out to be a sweetheart:

The seller was a retired dairy farmer who now spends his time fixing up old tractors and reselling them. He showed me this one, and then took me back to see what else he was working on that I might like. This was an old (and I do mean old!) Ford 660, gas powered. It ran and shifted like a champ:

It had a power take off and, he assured me, rubber which would live longer than I would (I wasn't experienced enough to tell, so I took his word for it). He agreed to install a block heater and find me a brush hog and hay bale spear which I can use with the tractor. So I bought it with the further agreement that he'd deliver it on my next visit and give me lessons in its use:

Then I drove the other direction to see a used dresser, also from Craigslist. After much trouble finding the place, I purchased it, loaded it into the back of my car and hauled it home. I brought the drawers and mirror in first:

And then I hauled in the dresser with the aid of a hand truck. By then it was dark and I was exhausted, so I took a brief rest:

But once I got it upstairs, it looked terrific in my new bedroom:

The neighbors had given me an old set of drawers which they had no use for.  It'd come from a relative who'd been a scientist at one of the local universities and had kept some sort of records and/or specimens in it. I'd had it a couple of weeks, stored out in the barn:

There were card file drawers stored inside and I threw them out:

Then I carried in the drawers, all except one which appeared to be locked (I have no key), and set it on a tarp in the living room. I planned to clean and paint it some bright color. Some day, when I have lots of free time: