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My Mother passed away mid August. She was 95 and had a good life. We were blessed she lived at home until her last 6 weeks. My brother and I are Executors of her Estate.. She had a Funeral Insurance Policy independent of the local funeral home. The funeral home had to have full payment up front, no waiting on any insurance. Wow are traditional funerals expensive. My wife and I have decide to be cremated and have a Celebration of Live when its our time to go. Cut out as much Funeral Home services / expenses as possible. She had two hospital stays and a short Nursing Home stay before passing. Multiple inhouse providers, ambulance transport, etc. So multiple bills. Thankfully she had some money in some CD's Investment's and Life Insurance. The good thing was she had set us up as Beneficiaries on these accounts, so we do not have to wait on "Probating her Estate", which takes time, to access them. The not so good, is all the company representative told us it takes time to process these Beneficiary claims. For us to have immediate access she would have had to make us Joint owners of the accounts. A few months ago she made us Joint owners of her checking account, so at least we had access to that money. But it has gone fast paying her house bills, 6 week Nursing Home bills, and hospital medical bills . So having money but not accessible to us for 60 or 90 days is a challenge. When you consider it will probable take 6-12 months to sell her house, the basic electric, gas, insurance and property tax bills keep coming. I feel like I'm a " Money Grabber as soon as she's in the ground" But it's really not for me! I've spent a lot of phone time and in person turning off her cell phone, house phone, cable TV etc. They all want a copy of her death certificate before they will talk to us. The Death Certificate took 5 weeks to receive, so that's another month of house bills. Medical Bills and Insurance The 2 hospitals didn't do a good job of passing her Insurance Information along to internal providers, or just passed her Medicare Supplement and not her actual Medicare account number. So I've been calling every company we receive a medical bill from to make sure they have BOTH Medicare and Supplement insurance information. One good thing about my calling is a few medical companies have told me to send them a copy of her Death Certificate and they will write off any expenses not paid by insurance. A big Thank You for that. Her Primary Care Clinic has a "Medicare Navigator" That individual has been extremely helpful through her hospital, nursing home and now final medical bills. Off the record, she indicate to not pay any medical bills for up to 90 days to let all insurances do their part first. Lessons Learned I'm really not complaining about taking care of her final expenses, but I want to share some of this process that we normally don't talk about. She had set up my brother and I up with a HIPPA, Medical and Financial Power of Attorney. But all of those are not applicable/go away at her Death. Find the persons Medicare Navigator and ask them lots of questions! Work with your loved one and their Financial Adviser to figure out how to make some money available for immediate expenses. Meet with their lawyer ASAP, to discuss how/when to Probate the Will, and advice on other final bills and processes. Share that she has passed with insurance, medical billing companies as soon as possible Contact the 3 Credit Bureau companies and freeze her credit so no one can span and use her credit. When you cancel future payments on their health Insurance make sure "Bills in Process" will continue to be paid. It can be a loop hole in some policies. Request lots of Death Certificates from the state. We started with 20 and will probable need to request/pay for a few more. If your state has a property tax, know that they will remove her Homestead Exemption at the date of death, so the rest of the year taxes will be prorated higher. Dividing house hold goods is an emotional family process. Lots of individual memories and who wants what, trying to divide equally etc. To me, the memories will always be there, the rest is just "stuff" As you work through the process, think of your loved one often. they worked hard to raise you, so handling their final estate is the least you can do.

Sent the C-165-8 three hours North to enjoy a beautiful Maine Lake. Sold it to a friend and gave him the lowdown on what WheelHorse tractors are all about. By the look of his face I think we hooked another one. Included a 42'' SD mower as well. He already asked about a second one, yep, he's hooked. The 2 Peco baggers went to another RS member.

Hi all, trying to get the steering wheel of the shaft, won't fit on press. (don't know if this modification has been before) So tried to block it up, not happening, broke the block, so cut the cross beam and bolted it back together. Worked great, sounded like a gun going off when it popped

I guess it comes as a surprise and shock to us all that we are not invincible and our strength wanes over the years, despite having watched previous generations follow similar declines. My dad always read the obituaries in the local paper, seeing who of his peer group had died. It became like an obsession, counting down to his own demise. I'm not as bad as that but I do find the perilous state of the world to be a pretty dark place. In the past we humans seemed to be able to look forward, to better times and a better world. Now it looks like all we can see is calamity and war on virtually every continent. I can't turn my back on the news, like some people advocate. I need to see what's happening in the world. But I know that can have a negative impact on my mental wellbeing. I try to shrink the world down to my immediate bubble, making sure we are OK and hang the rest of them. But it is hard not to worry about the bigger picture, even though I have zero control over it. The wider world impacts on my little world in so many ways. But life is good here, no war, very little civil unrest, a fairly settled political scene. My health is good and Mrs.W is also fit and well. So we have so very much to be thankful for. I just worry about stuff that I can't influence and I guess get angry that the people in charge can be such absolute idiots about things that can potentially end our world. The Cuban missile crisis is nothing compared to the kind of stuff that seems to be happening on several fronts in today's news. Lots of very good advice and support here from my Red Square friends, as always.

Drain what's there in it now and give it a look see. If it's clean and not milky just fill'er back up with new gear oil and watch for leaks around all of the shafts. Milky means water and you can fill some diesel into it and run it. Then drain that out and fill with gear oil.

This day has been a while coming. While there a few minor things I’ll probably update or change, it is finally finished!!

Sounds like someone needs to turn in their man card.

Loaded the buckets. I'll be there Fri. and Sat. The show details are in the calendar. If you see anything you need, send me a PM before Friday. Or come to the show!

Mainly just a hobby. I make some stuff, test some things and learn things along the way. I can make other things depending on what you might want. I’ll answer your pm and we can go from there. Thanks again for being here. 👍

A lot of great info there. Thank you for sharing your lessons... I/we were lucky my father had planned his last few and post passing days well. We were also very appreciative to the local folk. My father being a well liked local business man helped. A LOT. I'll share your post with my sister who's the Executor of our parent's estate. Mom is alive and doing well... Hopefully there will be good learning here, for them.

I sure do miss having him around here and our Skype chats . I think of him often as he was the definition of a gear head. Not to many people have the stones to race a 1000 cc bike around the Isle of Man TT . R.I.P. Norm

Day nine of rain. Got the 312H ready for snow plowing and deer recovery duty. 48" plow, front and rear weight, blade centering support, rubber chains.

Well ummm ahhh... she's the one who wants 30,000 crock pots full of food... I tell her these clowns will eat $h*% sammiches with the right ketchup... Turned and burned long ago....

Honey do lists not complete??? Oh you brave and silly men... My personal approach is to always have the list caught up... cuts down on the

The pull behind leaf sweeper is even more challenging. Hitch to axle length is about half the width of the sweeper, jack-knifes in a heartbeat. About the time you become proficient at backing it all the leaves are gone and it is time to put it away for another year.

Mic, as I see it previous generations had a big advantage over ours. Our parents and generations before had to wait until tomorrow to obtain information about what was going on today. They then had to sit down and read a carefully crafted editorial covering the subject matter that was of primary concern to them at that time. Good editors would limit sensationalization to the headline and opinions were clearly delineated as such on the editorial page. Today we are bombarded 24/7 with rather skewed versions of the happenings of the day while it occurs. The more sensational it is the better and if it isn't clear at the moment what caused the event then speculation on the part of one nearby person is presented as undisputable FACT. As long as the news can attribute the statement to someone there isn't time enough to validate it, got to move on to the next scintillating story. It seems to be imposable to find a balanced, factual, presentation of important information we need to know. The United Kingdom has had a rather tumultuous election and even after the votes were tallied the turmoil continues. The same scenario is playing out here in the USA and most of us will be glad when it is over though half will be terribly concerned the end is near because their candidate (patty) did not prevail. This constant emphasis on immediacy and projecting doom and gloom with an emphasis on the sensational is unhealthy. We have limited our news intake substantially and feel much better. The wars will continue without us and knowing what the reporters think of what is happening will not change our lives. I watch reruns of TV shows like MASH and a couple of carefully selected business programs that focus on market activity rather than political influences on the world. My wife has a few game show she likes and we both like to watch science programming. Slow down, get away from the TV and go out to the garden to pull some weeds or whatever will leave you with a feeling of having improved YOUR surroundings. There is little or nothing you personally can do to solve the world's problems. As frustrating as that seems, it is a fact that we must deal with or it will drive us crazy. Find one joyful thing and let it become your focal point.

Norm may no longer be with us in body, but his memory will always remain with those who knew him. God bless you Norman. Rest in Peace mate! Yet another sad reminder of our own mortality! God bless and Stay Safe everyone.

I’ve spent the last 5 years backing a 53’ dry van trailer, and I have put it in some pretty difficult places. But put me on a tractor with garden cart or small trailer and I look like I just started CDL school. Lol

I bet it was, I wish I'd been a part of that conversation.

The perspective nORM had that day from the other side of the pond was enlightening!

Norm was Special People. We would talk for hours on Skype. I learned a lot about England and their customs. We just happened to be on Skype on January 6th a few years ago on the day the Capital got stormed. I pointed my Skype camera toward the TV so Norm could watch it with me. We watched and chatted during that whole afternoon. To be able to watch that "Live" from England with Norm is something that will stay with me as long as I live. It was an unbelievable experience. Rest in Peace my Friend.

I think of Norm too, never met him but felt I knew him through this fine institution. Makes me sad to think of fine folk like him passing. Time is cruel.

I was thinking about Norm Thursday afternoon when I got my Covid Jab . He provided ideas when I needed to mess with @squonk . He was a great Chap.

Hi all. As the title says, I've been feeling down a bit over the last few weeks. Nothing I can put my finger on, but a definite low mood. My appetite took a dive and I've lost about a stone in weight over three weeks. So Mrs. W trots me to the GP for a chat. He wrote me up for every blood test known to man, or woman for that matter. Chest xray, poo test, psa test, etc. Etc. All came back OK except for psa which now has to be tested again in a month and the xray which showed possible enlarged heart. So had to go for an ECG today. Total cost so far?...£0.00 thanks to the NHS. He's also prescribed citalopram which will help with the mood issues. God this getting older malarkey is no fun at all. Why did I not do more when I was younger lol.

Today would have been @Stormin Norman’s birthday. It sure is a different Red Square without his Brit wit, joking manner and road rally posts…

That property is adjacent to the 2 camps I sold in 2018. On the property pictured there are 2 camps, garage and 29 acres up behind it that I have permission to use anytime. Plus I get to mow the lawn too. Very nice Deer hunting also. Lake is good for Lakers. Salmon and big Smallies.

is it going in the Living Room or corner of bedroom?

My father passed almost 40 years ago. His name has not been on anything for many years. But we have had to get "original" not copies of his death certificate for 2 things. The State of Texas provides them, but its a slow process. Something I will add for anyone shopping for Life Insurance. Ask to see a record of how long it takes them to "Pay a Claim" Thanks for the additional comments and condolences.

Post 11 & more mods here Best Mod is this right here ... https://www.swagoffroad.com/products/swag-3-d-printed-thumb-knob-for-flared-or-cast-cross-pin-bottle-jack-s

What scares me is with AI now not only can you not believe what you hear, but also what you see. My wife and I both worry about the world our kids and grandkids are going to be living in. Glad we are on the way out and not on the way in. Try to control/influence what you can for the better and let the rest go.

Eric I would never think that of you, I posted this thread knowing I would get replies that showed how other people's experiences have helped them. Hearing how people are feeling similar things a whole continent away is certainly very sobering. And it points to the fact that the news can be a toxic brew when taken in excess. I don't do any social media other than Red Square so I'm happy that I don't have all that rubbish I my life. But cutting down on my news intake can only be a good thing. When I was a cop it was important to be aware of the news, but now not so much. I guess it's just habit and curiosity. Richard, everything you say is so true. The information age has crashed into us so quickly we simply can't deal with the overload. And the news cycle is so focused on the sensational, full of a story one day then moved on to the next thing, leaving those involved to their fate. I will give it a go. My smart phone is the main way I get my news, BBC 24, but if remove the app I can ignore it. Tv for us is entertainment shows or movies. Knowing what is happening in the world is just too much to handle, when every story is heartbreaking and tragic. Better to do as you say and draw my focus in to my immediate circle. Finding those things that make us happy and concentrating on those. I value every opinion and piece of advice or experience that is shared here on Red Square, a problem shared is a problem halved after all. I will of course keep you up to date as I go along. Very best wishes to all. Mick.

I've seen that also. If they are bent, they can wear thru rubbing on a gear. If it is empty, I would take the opportunity to flush with diesel before filling with gear oil. Be sure to raise the front of the tractor as high as possible to get the drainings over the hump.

Dumb question, does it have the correct dipstick in it. If it had a dipstick for a hydro it wouldn't show as having any oil. Also, any chance the dipstick snapped off. I've seen that as well. Looks like there isn't any oil until you realize what happened. If it's not making any weird noises, and everything seems to be working, then I say fill it and run it.

Get the front end high and drain it. Make certain you are removing the drain plug and do as stated earlier.

Seconded. The diesel will show leaks easier than gear oil too.

Surely you jest ... In all fairness she does... she just fails to see the things that really need to get done. Like cleaning up for plow day...

Still miss nORM and his SKYPE sessions with @stevasaurus. I have a picture of him waving on his tractor above my desk. See it every morning.

Very nice. As long as it doesn't smell like gas, what's the problem 😁.

I put the mulching plate on Morgan, the 14-8, this afternoon and muted the lawn. I noticed that about 1/3 of the leaves were being blown out of the right front of the deck, making me make extra passes to reduce the leaves into bits and pieces. When I started the engine, some shredded blue paper shop towel came blowing out of the right side of the engine. Since I still had good cooling airflow and the temperature was 60degrees, I went ahead and mowed. Before I put the tractor away, I pulled a couple of the engine tins and cleaned everything out with an air hose. Think I'll putsome mouse traps around the roll of shop towels. We took the pontoon out for the last 'cruise' of the season around the lake. October looks to be busy enough that we've got to pull the boat and dock early this year - that means some dock hauling work for Morgan tomorrow.

I can't say that I am surprised, but the more I dig in, the more I realize that I need to dig in more. While the transmission shifts freely, I discovered the brake was frozen and the main top pulley was in pretty bad shape so out it came. I stripped my first rusted bolt while removing the caliper (documentation is pretty fuzzy so not 100% sure that's what it's called), probably won't be the last. To my surprise I found a worm in it! LOL! I have no clue how the brake works, and found some replacement pads at A-Z Tractor but can't figure out if they'll work... part of tomorrow's learning. Current state for the poor old guy, hoping I can save him!

I received the magnets yesterday. With 4 different laser engraved designs! Really nice, too! Thank you!!! @19richie66 Do you do this type of work for a living? More than Wheel Horse designs? What other awesome merch do you produce? Thanks again!

Also used the press to remove the rear pin. I put the transmission on a engine stand, tuned to the side, removed cross bar pushed in to press, got a long piece of pipe (bigger around than the rear pin) put it on down side of case, used a small pin and pressed it out.

I stay away from conversations involving religion, politics & heath. The latter being my denial that I am getting old...

So who cleans up AFTER plow day?

My excuses are never "legitimate" but the beauty of it is, she don't know that

I worked on my new acquisition after work. It got a pressure wash, and I got the pto a bit tighter so it starts better. What I thought was a battery seems to be the pto safety switch as the linkage is a bit worn and out of adjustment. I swapped out the right front tire as it was super weather cracked and had a concerning bulge in it. I also took the headlights out as they were toast. I’ve got a couple days off so I’ll pick away at it.

Imagine a huge pile of those in a dump. It would be like a beacon for planes at night.

Proving once again that no good deed goes unpunished.

Our road utility trailer has been knocking and rattling for awhile. Last trip in Sept down to @JCM 's for the Meet n Greet in N. Berwick things got real loud, real fast. Luckily I was almost literally across the street from my house. After some investipokingation I found that the spring eyelet bushings were worn right through. Also noticed the ball coupler was beyond worn to ain't usable anymore. Got most of the new parts. Now just need the time. This evening's fun was to begin removing the old coupler. I'm going from an OE 1970s welded on unit to a new bolt-on type. Increasing capacity. Also getting a quick attach. While there I'm changing the tongue jack from the standard screw down forever type to a quick drop/ then screw down type.

Agreed with above. Definitely take care of yourself. I've been on kind of a strange Road myself over the last few years trying to figure out all these unexplained body pains and lack of ability to move some days. I've been feeling a fair amount better this year which is interesting because I haven't really made any changes. As for wishing you had done more earlier. Don't. My other half and I were blabbing about that a few years ago. I'm paraphrasing some here but she said, it's okay to think that you should have done things differently but the fact is, everything you've done up until this exact point in time made you who you are right now. Be strong. Be happy. Do what makes you in a positive space as long as it doesn't hurt others.