GOOD-BYE BIG RED…HELLO BIG ORANGE

Toro522E
husqvarna-snow-thrower-1130sbexp
After 25 years of faithful service, I replaced our trusty Toro snowblower, Big Red, with a new snow blower, the Husqvarna Big Orange. The weather guessers are predicting a Bad Winter for Western NY so I figured we needed to be prepared. Plenty of our friends have snow plowing services but the truth be told, I actually enjoy going out and snowblowing. Of course, if the wind is blowing the Wrong Way I end up eating snow. The crispness of a snowy winter day lights up my life. And, of course, I’m built for snow and cold. I had a lump in my throat as my fix-it guy took Big Red away (he wanted Big Red for parts). Saying good-bye to a reliable, dependable machine isn’t easy. I’ll let you know how Big Orange deals with the first big snowfall.

17 thoughts on “GOOD-BYE BIG RED…HELLO BIG ORANGE

  1. Patti Abbott

    I hate winter, every day of it. Maybe Buffalo, despite getting more snow than Detroit, is not as gray. It’s the gray that bothers me most.

    Reply
  2. Roy Bobbin Hovey

    Well, it’s black and orange George, like the colors of my SF Giants, so I like it!
    Roy Bobbin Hovey/Old DAPA Dude
    (yes, I’m peeking in on you now after all these years – go Bills! (not! – go Niners!)
    😉

    Reply
  3. Jeff Meyerson

    I’m with Patti. The older I get the more I hate winter. For me it’s the early sundown as much as anything else, though the cold and the wind suck too.

    Way to keep stimulating the economy, George! You are Jackie’s #1 role model. Enjoy it.

    Reply
  4. Art Scott

    At least you’re expecting precipitation. Here in all too sunny N. Cal. they’re predicting a dry winter, water shortages to follow. Man, that’s a scary looking machine; bet it eats leaf blowers for breakfast.

    Reply
  5. George Kelley

    Jeff, everyone at our latitude should be taking Vitamin-D because we have so little sunshine (especially in the winter). Diane and I did some more stimulating of the economy yesterday when we bought a new Samsung 39″ HDTV for a Christmas present for Diane’s mother. Patrick will install it when he’s home.

    Reply
  6. Richard

    Congrats, George, on that mighty fine looking machine. Well, Big Orange. You’re a Syracuse fan.

    It’s 29 here as I type this (8:15 a.m.) and was four or five degrees colder during the night. Dry today, but yesterday we had hard frost. It will stay dry and cold the rest of the week, but when the next storm comes in we’ll likely have the first, light, snow of the season. It snowed around Thanksgiving the year we moved here, so we start expecting some by the end of November. Last year the first snow was much later, and we never get heavy enough to need one of those monsters you bought.

    Reply
  7. Jeff Meyerson

    We do take Vitamin D too.
    It’s been really up and down here but definitely has been colder than normal lately. We are way down in rainfall from the normal totals since September 1 but the reservoirs are 10% higher than normal because upstate has gotten the heavy rains that missed us. That’s good for the drinking supply but bad for the lawns.

    Reply
  8. George Kelley

    Rick, Western NY usually averages about 100 inches of snow. Some years we get a few inches at a time, other years we get hit with a couple of feet of snow. I’m ready for the Worst Case Scenario.

    Reply
  9. George Kelley

    Jeff, we’ve had a wet 2013. We’re about six inches of precipitation above Normal. Lake Erie is the warmest it’s ever been. An arctic blast could create a massive lake-effect snow event! The conditions are ideal.

    Reply
  10. Cap'n Bob

    I’ve got your number, George. You’re going to make a fortune clearing neighbors’ driveways and sidewalks with that industrial grade monster. NTTAWWI.

    Reply

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