Yesterday, Father's Day, was like most other days off. Work around the farm trying to catch up on everything that did not get done this spring as we were off farm most days shearing for others. Hubby hooked the hay trailer up to the truck after lunch and we headed to the hay field to pick up hay. (Yes. This year we went straight from shearing to haying. No rest for the weary.) We stopped for gas and got set up in the field.
I drove the truck while he picked up hay in the field. 5-6 bales in I see smoke coming from the passenger wheel area. I stop the truck, put it in park and shut it off. I go around to see if maybe we locked up a brake. Smoke is not coming from there but from under the hood. I yell for Jerry, go back to the truck and pop the hood. He gets it open and black smoke pours out from under the hood. And, then there are flames!!!
I get out of the field and up onto the dirt road to call 911 for fire and police trying to stay calm through this ordeal. I then call AAA to come get the truck when the fire department is done with it and then I called my insurance company.
I never gave a thought to going back to the truck to collect any of my belongings. My husband did go back after my wallet though. For that I am most grateful as all of my contact info for AAA and the insurance was in there. I had a bag in the front of the truck with my Rolodex and a new address book, as well as my digital camera. I've been taking the address book with me most every time we are on the road trying to update all of our shearing customers, and to get them in a safer location than the Rolodex. The cards keep coming out of it and I felt it was time to do something different. But. that meant I lost every bit of information on our shearing customers. Every single detail.
So, no we did not sleep much last night. I was thinking about the contact book and he about the truck and different contents that we need to replace. Today and tomorrow will be a flurry of activity with phone calls with the insurance people and trying to come up with a list of items lost in the truck.
I am so glad that I had total coverage on the truck, as well as this rest of our vehicles, and that we pay for AAA. And, that no one was hurt.
Getting up at 3 am to get hubby to work by 4 am sucks, but it is a small price to pay. I have to get grain this morning before the phone calls start, and then we are off this afternoon to shear 5 llamas and to go to another hay field to pick up more hay.
I want to give a big shout out to our friend John Wylie for coming out to the hay field when I called to hook his truck up to the trailer and to help hubby load the trailer. He then brought us, and it, home and then proceeded to help hubby unload the trailer into the hay loft. He will then stop by this morning to pick up the trailer on his way to the hay field and take it with him.
Our next big undertaking will be to find another 1/2-1 ton truck. I don't know yet what they will pay us for totalling the truck, so I need to be cautious about what I look at. The neighbor has a 1 ton that needs some work. We will go look at that tomorrow, or Wednesday. We also stopped and looked at one in Danbury a couple of weeks ago that has possibilities. Right now it is a waiting game...
I will end this post saying that I thank God for His hand in everything yesterday. It could have happened when we were getting gas. It could have happened on the road with the trailer fully loaded with hay. It could have happened any where. But God's hand was on it to happen in the field away from everyone and every thing. All we lost was 'stuff' that can be replaces. No one was hurt. And, the insurance and AAA were all paid up. Despite losing all that, God is still good!!
Off to get this day started. Hopefully we sleep tonight!
TTFN.
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