A Nice Surprise, The Farm Show and Company Coming

Rantoul, IL.

62 deg. clear, N. wind@ 8 mph.

Forecast = Sunny. Highs in the lower 80s. North winds 5 to 10 mph.


About 10:00 yesterday morning, Louise stopped by and asked Jim if he and Linda would like to go over to the Farm Show? The show operators and the city had arranged for her to have 4 golf carts to use and also some VIP passes that she could give out to anyone who wanted to come and see the show.

Jim told her that he and Linda would like to go, so she let Jim and Linda use this cart along with 2 passes to the show.

Wasn't that nice of her?

So, as soon as Linda got ready they took the cart and headed over to the show to see what was going on.

On the way over there, they saw some field demonstration. Here, there's a bunch of old corn pickers picking corn. Click on the pictures to enlarge them so you can see them better.

In this patch of ground there were a couple old tractors plowing. This picture is of an old 2 cylinder John Deer pulling a 1 bottom plow.

Once they got over to the main show area it was kind of like a carnival or fair. There were people everywhere and tents and booths set up in rows with people selling everything from tractor and implement parts to food.

This old manure spreader and a Standard Oil tanker wagon were on display along with many, many other pieces of farm equipment.

This is billed as the "Largest Flying Flag In The USA It's 120 x 65 feet, weighs 200 lbs and costs about $7500. Because there is not a flag pole large enough to support it at the farm show site, it is suspended between 2 cranes. All money raised from donations go to toward the United Veteran Projects.

Jim and Linda were over at the show for about an hour and a half. Most of the time was spent riding around on the golf cart and looking at things, but they did stop at one stand to buy a corn dog. ; )

A little while after they returned here, Jim and Linda got a call from Mike and Jodi who live down in Champaign.

Now, Mike and Jodi are not to be confused with Mike and Jena or Mike and Sandy, or Mike and Terri. ; ) 

Jim and Linda met Mike and Jodi at a CG up in Michigan last year, found out they were from Champaign, had dinner with them when they all got back here to this area, and have become good friends. Some of you long time readers of Myrddin's Blog may recall that Mike worked here in Rantoul, and he has a Ural motorcycle with a sidecar that he and Jodi had ridden up to Michigan.

Anyway, Linda had called Mike about a week or so ago and asked him if he and Jodi would like to get together some time while we were here. Jodi was gone on a business trip but Mike told Linda he'd call back when she returned. So, yesterday he called and it was decided that they would come here to the CG today for a cook-out. : )

They should be here about 4:00 or 4:30 today and I'm really looking forward to meeting them. Jim is planning on cooking hamburgers, hot dogs and brats on the grill and Mike said that they'd bring something to go with them.

Hmmmm!! I wonder if they'll be coming on their motorcycle?

Did you know that the first rubber-tired tractor wasn't introduced until 1930?