FARGO, ND
DAY 40 JULY 6 REST DAY(7.8MI)
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a cash advance.
Someone's Father
Today was to be a rest day. By that, they meant we did not have to cycle to another town. We did have to work! But we were happy to do it.
This morning, we rode to the home of a man suffering from MS to accomplish some things that he was not able to do himself. He was more mobile than the woman of last week but these things required seriously heavy lifting.
A wood fence needed to be constructed along his property line and that probably was the easiest task. The front steps to his home needed to be removed so a ramp could be built in their place. They were poured concrete! They required a jackhammer to break them up. All of us took turns on the machine and finally, after several hours, it was removed. Although some of the kids very much enjoyed the work, it is noteworthy that, in the fall, none of them plans to change their major to jack-hammering.
The herculean task was to turn a 12 foot square outbuilding 90 degrees and position it closer to his rear patio so he could access it across a short ramp. Can you imagine what a building weighs? It was a real building and not just a shed and you do not simply lift it. We had to use several large pieces of lumber, positioned as levers to move it a few inches at a time. After several hours work, it finally was in the desired spot and now he can access it quite easily.
We were glad that we could help and probably even more so that we did not break anything. By being ultra careful, we did not even step on his tomato plants.
There was a relatively new aviation museum directly across the street from my hotel so I checked it out late this afternoon. It is less than one-fourth the size of our Valiant Air Command Museum in Titusville, Florida but they did have some interesting aircraft. My favorite was a WW I Jenny. It must have been fun to fly that little bird with its open cockpit and 70 mph top speed. It would have been nicer, however, if they had GPS back in those days.
Tomorrow, we are back on the road to check on the height of the corn, the direction of the wind and other important tasks.
Tip: In summer, wear light-colored clothing to reflect the sun's rays. Many cycling jerseys are made of a material that wicks away perspiration and enhances cooling. Some also have mesh panels for additional cooling.
