Post by BillG on Mar 25, 2018 19:38:52 GMT -5
It started with scenery and now has acquired a life of it's own...
From A to Z and over again...
List things you can see on Chuck's farm and a comment to explain if you want...
("teachertim" on Gas Buddy started this story in January of 2006. I copied the story from the last several months from Gas Buddy. Here is the story from 11-20-17 up to today…)
Quickly working, Chuck and Yancy got the hopper loaded in about ten minutes.
"Ready when you are!" said Yancy. "What do we put in next?" he asked.
"It's either water or yeast or sugar!" said Chuck.
"Maybe it's in the manual," stated Yancy.
"Where's Eugene, he appeared to know the recipe!" said Chuck.
“Seems like days since Eugene has been around. Where is that kid?”, asks Yancy.
“He left to go talk to Ginger Vitis, and he hasn’t been seen since!”, replied Becky.
“Wow that’s strange”, says Chuck.
"Time to mount a search party?" asked Becky.
"Might be, we kind of need him!" stated Chuck.
"When will Jack be home?" asked Yancy. "He can help, too!"
"Ultimately, Jack will be home, just don't know when!" stated Becky. "He's out on a date!" she added.
"Probably won't be much use until tomorrow," said Yancy.
Velma chimed in, “Eugene’s disappearance is most troubling. He wouldn’t just run off without at least saying something”.
“Oh I don’t know, that girlfriend of his has always been a bad influence”, replies Becky.
Wobble Wobble! ,,,maybe that should be gobble gobble
Happy Thanks Giving Chuck and friends! (11-30-17)
Xtremely large turkey on Becky's table.
"Guess the still will have to wait until tomorrow!" said Chuck.
"Maybe the smell of turkey will bring Jack and Eugene home!" added Becky.
“Yippee! Turkey and stuffin’ and cranberries and everything!”, shouted Eugene and Ginger Vitis as they came blasting thru the front door.
Zonked out on the couch, Chuck, Yancy and Jack. All ate too much turkey and all had a nap. Becky and Velma cleaned up as usual. "Hope you all enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner!" yelled Becky.
“And what’s for dessert?”, asked Chuck when he awoke from his tryptophan–induced nap.
"Big chocolate cake!" announced Becky.
"Well then, I will have a big piece!" announced Yancy.
"Me too!" added Chuck.
“Chocolate cake? But where is the pumpkin pie?”, asks Eugene.
"Down in the fridge!" said Becky. "Velma, go get that pie!"
"These guys always want chocolate cake! Now they want pumpkin pie!" added Velma.
Eugene says, "Don't forget the whipped cream!"
Following Velma down the stairs were Chuck, Yancy and Eugene.
"Why are you guys coming?" asked Velma.
"Coming to help carry stuff!" replied Chuck.
"Well that's a first!" stated Becky.
“Grab those boxes over there and bring them up with you”, asks Becky.
“Why? What’s in them?”, asks Yancy.
"Help me with this box, Yancy. It's heavy!", exclaimed Chuck. "Holy Cow! What's in here? A rock collection?!"
"I don't know what is in it, boy it's heavy!" said Yancy.
"You boys look after that box, I'll take this lighter one!" said Eugene.
“Just bring the boxes up and stop complaining! Then you can have your desserts. You’re like a bunch of little kids!”, says Becky.
"Keeping that still operating is a lot of work!" complains Eugene.
"Eugene!" shouts Becky. "These boxes are for Christmas!"
"Nothing to do with the still!" adds Velma.
“Late start on decorating this year. December kind of snuck up on us”, says Becky.
“Yep. We better get a move on!”, agrees Velma.
Making their way up the stairs, Chuck, Yancy and Eugene put down the boxes and sat on the couch.
"C'mon boys!" said Velma, "Times a wastin'!"
"Need to get decorations outside and in!" said Becky. "We have company coming and entertaining to do!" she added.
“Not quite yet! We got dessert eatin’ to do first!”, replies Chuck.
"OK," said Becky. "I guess you guys worked hard for the last 10 minutes!" "Let's see what we have, pumpkin pie, ice cream, there was something else," Becky said to Velma.
“Pecan pie?”,asked Eugene.
“No, Sheriff Vince ate all that a couple days ago, replies Becky.
Quickly thinking, Becky said to Velma, "Push the pumpkin pie!" "That usually keeps them quiet!"
"There's not much of that left," said Velma, "Sheriff Vince likes that too!" she added.
“Right. Pumpkin pie it is”, said Velma.
“But you said you had chocolate cake. I want some of that too!”, said Yancy.
"Soft spot for chocolate cake?" said Chuck to Yancy. "I'll have both!" announced Chuck.
"I'm going to fire up a still!" said Eugene.
“This is crazy! Here, I’m putting everything out on the table. Pumpkin pie, whipped cream, chocolate cake, and one small piece of pecan pie that I just found. Serve yourselves!”, said Becky.
Urging Yancy to have a second piece of cake, Chuck said, "Becky sure makes a great chocolate cake!"
"And Velma makes a great pecan pie!" said Yancy, reaching for the lone piece.
"Anybody see Eugene?" asked Becky.
"He said something about lying still, on the couch!" said Yancy.
Velma chimes in, “Yancy, don’t you take that piece of pecan pie. I heard Eugene ask fot that special!”
"Well, he's sleepin' on the couch!" said Yancy.
"You snooze, you loose!" said Chuck.
Xitty jumped on the table and started eating the pumpkin pie while nobody was paying attention.
Yelling at Xitty from a distance, Yancy stated, "Xitty that's my pie!"
"Thought you were sharing," stated Becky.
"Zitty get off the dang table!", shouted Eugene.
"What do you mean 'Zitty'? That is not her name. It's Xitty!", says Becky.
"What's the difference. Zitty, or Xitty?", asks Eugene.
Agreeing with Becky, Chuck says, "Big difference. Eat some pie. Maybe it'll make you smarter."
"Ahhhh," said Eugene. "Excellent pumpkin pie!" said Eugene. "Even if I shared a little with Xitty!" he added.
"So has anyone thought about the still?" asked Chuck.
"After digestion," stated Yancy.
Becky said, “Yes, I think you guys can take a few hours off. Besides, it’s cold and snowing out there.”
Chuck, now sitting in a chair in the living room, snored.
Yancy sat in another chair and played with Xitty.
Eugene, trying to figure out how to work the remote control said, "I can live with that!"
"Dang! It's really coming down!" said Yancy.
Eugene says, “Hey, since when do you guys get Netflix? Look, here is a Christmas movie we can all watch.” “Oh yeah, what’s it called?”, asks Jack. “El Camino Christmas”, replies Eugene.
"Fine with me!" says Chuck. "I could use a break!"
"He's been on break since 2016!" said Becky.
"Yancy's been on break since 2014!" said Velma.
Ginger Vitis said to Eugene, “This is kind of nice Eugene. The whole family together for the holidays.”
"Have some pumpkin pie?" asked Becky of Ginger Vitis, trying to make her feel welcome.
"Or chocolate cake!" added Velma, "we still have some left!"
“I’d like a tiny slice of both, please”, replied Ginger Vitis.
Jack asked, "Eugene, did you get the remote going yet?" "If we are all sitting here, might as well watch a movie!" he added.
Klancy ran into the room and grabbed the TV remote off the table where Eugene had left it. Klancy took it over to Chuck, dropping it on his lap. Startled out of his deep sleep, Chuck said, “What the heck do you want you crazy dog?”
"Look!" said Eugene. "Klancy wants to watch a movie too!"
"Chuck, find something good," said Yancy.
“Might I suggest El Camino Christmas on Netflix?”, asks Eugene, once again.
“I don’t care. I’m napping anyways”, says Chuck. “Here Klancy, give the remote to Eugene”, continues Chuck.
"Nice of you to offer, Chuck," said Eugene. "I still need some instruction on how to use it!" he added.
"Olivia!" yelled Chuck; his 6 year old daughter came into the room. "Show Eugene how to operate the remote!"
Olivia proceeded to explain the workings of the Sony Blue-Ray player to Eugene, who asked, “Wow how did you get so smart?”
"Pre-requisite for being a kid nowadays!" said Olivia.
"That's a lot of knowledge you have!" commented Eugene.
"We are programmed to operate cell phones, tablets and TV controls!" said Olivia. "I turned on my first TV when I was 2!" she added.
"Quite the little genius, my daughter", said Chuck.
Running the remote, Eugene brought up a list of movies. 'El Camino Christmas' was highlighted.
"Are we ready to watch?" asked Eugene.
“Sure, let’s go!”, said Yancy.
“This has some big stars in it”, commented Ginger Vitis.
"Tell me about this movie!" said Velma. "Never heard of it!" she added.
“Unnecessary! Just start watching it. It’s on Instant Netflix so it’s already paid for. You won’t like it anyways, you never like new movies!”, replied Yancy.
“Geez, you’re in a crabby mood”, replied Velma.
Velma said, "I'm going out to the kitchen for snacks!"
Becky asked, "So what's with Yancy, he's a little upset!"
"More than a little!" said Velma.
“Well, we’ve been trying to decide what to watch forever. It seems like days!”, said Yancy.
Xitty came into the living room and sat down. She looked at each of the boys, sort of like saying,
"Are we going to get on with this? Time for me to take a nap!"
"Come sit on my lap," said Chuck, looking at Xitty.
Yancy said, “I think I’ll go check on the still. We have been ignoring it for too long!”
Zipping across the floor, Xitty took a flying leap and landed squarely on Chuck's lap.
"You do that, Yancy," said Chuck. "I'll stay here and make sure Xitty is OK!"
"I'll come with you!" added Eugene. "Can't figure out that remote anyway!"
“Apple pie! Fresh out of the oven! Who wants some?”, said Becky.
"Big piece for me!" said Eugene from the back door, now taking off his coat.
"I might as well stay and have some too!" said Yancy.
Chuck shouted, “I’ll have some too!”
Down at the still, Jack worked alone. "Wonder where all my help went?" he said out loud. Klancy came in to keep him company. "We got orders to fill and we have to keep Sheriff Vince happy!" said Jack.
“Eugene told me you were out here all alone, working, and that maybe you could use some help”, said Barb Dwyer.
“Oh yeah, that would be great!”, said Jack.
"Funny," said Jack. I haven't seen you down here before!" “Who do you belong to?" he asked.
“Golly Jack, we just went out on date a few weeks ago! Do you date so many girls that you already forgot about me? Saturday November 18th to be exact!”, asks Barb Dwyer , as she takes another puff on her pipe.
Holy Smokes... I think that was Santa! (12-25-17)
"I think it was Santa too!" said Barb Dwyer.
"He sure left us a lot of ingredients for the still!" said Jack. "All we have to do is fill it up, start the process and wait!" he added.
“Jack, did you really forget about me?”, asks Barb Dwyer.
“Are you kidding me? No! I was just joking!”, replies Jack.
"Keeping the still operating is kind of a priority right around Christmas!" said Jack. "I didn't forget, I was teasing and I had a lot on my mind!" he added.
"Good, 'cause I had a really good time!" said Barb Dwyer. "When can we go out again?" she asked.
“Lets go out New Year’s Eve”, replies Jack.
"May be a good idea!" said Barb Dwyer. "We'll have a good time!" she added.
"While we are here, let's get a batch going in the still!" said Jack.
“No time to lose! It’s so cold out here, let’s light the fire. Maybe that way we won’t freeze to death!”, says Jack.
"OK," said Barb Dwyer, reaching for the ignitor. "Turn the gas on!" she said to Jack.
"Poof", the fire was lit.
"Quick!" said Jack, "we have to add water!"
"I'm getting the hose!" said Barb Dwyer.
Right about then, they realized that the hose was filled with solid ice, and no water was coming out.
"What'll we do now?", they asked each other.
"Sure I saw a tiger torch around here somewhere!" said Jack.
"What's a tiger torch?" asked Barb Dwyer.
"Connects to a propane tank, used for heating road tar or water pipes," announced Jack. "Here it is!" he stated, under the workbench.
“Torch on the hose? You know rubber burns, right?”, says Eugene, poking his head in to see what was going on.
Yeah, yeah, but we need water. I know how to be careful!”, replies Jack.
"Un-huh, I'm going to find a fire extinguisher just in case."
Voilà... Happy New Year to Chuck and family and visitors... Oh and all the animals too!! (1-1-18)
“What are you guys doing? I smelled something burning!”, says Chuck, “The smell woke me up from my nap. I figured I better check”, he continued.
Xtremely hot fire coming out of the tiger torch.
"We may have heated something up too much!" said Jack.
"But the still is operating!" stated Barb Dwyer triumphantly.
“You can live with a melted hose. As long as you have water!”, says Chuck.
"Zowie!" says Barb Dwyer, "Look at the water coming out of leaks in the hose!"
"We'll get the still full of water, then we will worry about the hose!" states Jack, now in a panic.
"There's more water leaking out of the hose than coming out the end!" adds Chuck.
“Are you guys having problems?”, asked Yancy, who had also been awakened by all the ruckus.
“Yeah! Go get the duct tape so we can patch up this hose!”, ordered Chuck.
Barb Dwyer said, "The still is almost full!"
"I have duct tape!" announced Yancy.
"Start wrapping the hose!" ordered Chuck.
“Can’t we just get a new hose?”, asks Eugene, who heard the noise and had come out to investigate.
“Nope. I’m not buying a new hose just so one of you jokers can light it on fire again!”, replies Chuck.
"Duct tape is almost all on!" stated Yancy.
"There are still leaks in the hose!" said Chuck.
"I'm working as fast as I can!" stated Yancy.
Eugene says, “You can turn the water off now, the tank is full!”
Yancy replies, “Yeah. Maybe the duct tape will work better if everything was drier!”
“Good thinking!”, replies Jack.
“I’m working with geniuses here!”, replies Chuck.
"Full!" announces Yancy, looking into the still.
"Already done that!" says Eugene.
"So what is next?" asks Yancy.
"The grain is already in the still, so light the fire," states Chuck.
"Not lookin'good," says Eugene. "Everything here is wet!" he states.
Barb Dwyer says, "We still have a tiger torch!"
“Golly, we lit that fire a long time ago! Are you sure it is out?”, says Barb Dwyer.
Jack says, “Yes it was lit. I guess the leaky hose must have put it out.”
"Holy smokes!" announces Eugene. "The hose from the propane tank is leaking too!"
"Thought I smelled propane in here!" says Chuck.
"I've got the duct tape!" announces Yancy.
“I don’t think you can duct tape a gas hose. Quick, turn off the valve at the tank!”, says Chuck.
“I got it! We don’t need to blow ourselves up!”, says Jack.
Jack went over to the propane tank and turned it off. "So how are we going to light the fire now?" he asked. "I think I have another hose in the shed!" said Chuck.
"OK," said Jack, grabbing a hammer and putting a nail in the wall. "Probably going to need this duct tape for something else. I'll put it up here where we all can find it!"
Klancy walked in to the still shack. He was carrying something in his mouth.
“Hi Klancy. What do you have there?”, asked Chuck.
“Look. It’s the new propane hose!”, exclaimed Yancy. “Told you he could understand everything we were saying!”
Looking for a wrench, and taking the hose from Klancy, Jack started undoing the old hose. "Rather tight!" he said.
"Left hand thread!" said Chuck.
“Maybe so. But where’s the left-hand wrench?”, replied Jack.
"Nice try!" said Chuck. "Turn it the other way!" "Left hand threads are reversed!" he added.
"O.K., I'm going clockwise but it isn't coming loose. Now what?", asks Jack.
"Push harder!" said Chuck. "Those propane nuts are tight!" he added.
"You are turning the right way!" added Barb Dwyer.
Quickly, Yancy grabbed a can of PB-Blaster and sprayed the nut thoroughly. “There, let that penetrate for a few minutes and try it again”, he told Jack.
"Rusty?" asked Eugene.
"They are brass fittings, they don't rust!" said Chuck.
"Sometimes the brass gets corroded, and they get stuck", replied Yancy.
"Try turning the wrench, now." said Chuck.
Jack pushed on the wrench and the fitting let go.
"You are stronger than I thought!" said Chuck.
“Unless I’m mistaken, now you need to disconnect the other end”, stated Eugene.
“Yes ‘professor’, that is a marvelous observation. You are correct!”, replied Chuck.
"Very tight at this end too," stated Jack.
"At least you can get a wrench on the other side to hold the fitting," said Chuck.
"Put some PB-Blaster on this one too!" ordered Jack.
“Wait just a second, I’ll go get it!”, says Yancy.
“Where did you put it?”, asks Chuck.
“Oh, I put it away. Everything in it’s place”, answers Yancy.
Xitty wandered in to get in the way and see what was going on. She sat down in the middle of the floor.
Yancy came back in, petted Xitty, and said, “I’m back!”
“That’s nice Yancy. Where is the PB-Blaster?”, asked Chuck.
"Zip tied on a high shelf near the ceiling!" said Yancy. "It was a joke I was playing on Jack so he couldn't find it."
He got a ladder and a pair of cutters to retrieve the can from the rafters. Xitty curled up on the workbench.
“All right, enough foolin’ around. Get over here and spray this fitting!”, orders Chuck.
"Busted knuckles are no fun! Put a lot on it."
Clipping the zip tie with the cutters, Jack brought down the PB-Blaster. "OK," he said spraying the brass nut, "Try it now!"
“Does anyone know who put this together? It sure is a lot tighter than it needs to be!”, exclaims Jack.
"Everybody has access to that propane tank!" states Chuck.
"Yes, but who has access to the shed?" asked Yancy.
“For your information, I put it together”, says Eugene.
“You? Why so tight Eugene?”, asks Chuck.
“Didn’t want any leaks! Remember the time the shed exploded? Did you ever find out why?”, asks Eugene.
"Good question!" said Yancy.
"I didn't want it to be a propane leak," stated Eugene.
"Don't think anything is leaking out of here, Eugene!" said Jack.
“Hey, it’s finally letting go!”, exclaims Jack.
"I can see the wrench moving!" said Yancy.
"Bout time," said Chuck. "We still have orders to fill!"
Jack got the hose unhooked. “Okay Chuck, give me the new hose and I’ll put it right on.”
Klancy came into the barn. He had a propane hose in his mouth.
"Klancy!" said Jack. "How did you know what I needed?"
“Like I said before, he understands everything we say!”, replied Yancy.
"My, you are a smart dog!" said Jack, taking the hose from Klancy's mouth. "Thank you Klancy," he added. He started installing the new hose on the propane tank.
“Now don’t forget, turn them counter-clockwise to tighten them. And don’t go King-Kong on them like someone else did!”, says Chuck.
"OK," said Jack.
"The nut should be snug, not tight!" ordered Chuck.
"Use soap on the connection to make sure it isn't leaking." added Eugene.
“Propane has a distinct smell. I can smell if it’s leaking! Besides, where do we keep dish soap out here?”, replies Jack.
Quickly reaching under the work bench, Chuck brought out a bottle of dish soap. "We have glasses out here, too!" announces Chuck. "We use them for sampling the product." he states. "We have to wash them with something."
“Retrieve some water, and mix some soap with it in this glass. Then we can pour it over the connections and check for gas bubbles”, says Chuck.
"Sure thing!" said Eugene.
"Look, there are bubbles!" said Yancy.
"A little tighter!" said Chuck.
"Just a minute," said Jack, "there might be dirt on the threads."
“Tighter! Tighter I say!”, replies Chuck.
"Unusually tight, Chuck," says Yancy. "Something's wrong here!" He adds.
Victory signs for Superbowl... Chuck likes the Eagles... GO EAGLES! (2-2-18)
“Wow! It’s coming up Sunday. I can’t wait!”, said Eugene.
“X on February fourth on the calendar. Now I know why that is there!”, says Yancy.
“I know I won’t be out here working at six thirty today!”, replies Eugene.
Yancy ran back into the house to check on the big game. "Knew that X was for something!" He added.
“Zowie! My Eagles won!”, exclaimed Chuck.
“That was fun. But now, it’s back to work!”, answered Yancy.
Answering his cellphone in the barn, Chuck accepted another order. "We should be able to get that out early next week!" said Chuck.
Barb Dwyer came into the shed, as she had some news for Chuck: "Hey, Sheriff Vince just pulled in the driveway down at the house!"
Chuck said, "We'll have to tell him his order will have to wait!"
"He's not going to like that!" answered Barb Dwyer.
"We are having trouble with our still!" said Eugene.
“Do you want him to come out here to see for himself? Because you know he will. Think up a better excuse!”, says Chuck.
Exiting his cruiser at the farmhouse, Sheriff Vince spotted Becky and demanded, "Where's Chuck? I have something to pick up!"
"Haven't seen him for a while," stated Becky. "He was here a couple of hours ago," she added.
“For gosh sakes Becky, don’t you remember, they all went ice fishing”, says Velma.
“Oh yes. And they won’t be back until tomorrow sometime”, replied Becky.
“Where’d they go? I need to see this for myself!”, replied Sheriff Vince.
“Secret fishing hole!”, answered Barb Dwyer, who had been listening from the other room.
"Got to catch up to them!" yelled Sheriff Vince. "Thanks for the tip!" he hollered, jumping back into his cruiser.
"You know where the secret fishin' hole is?" asked Becky. "I don't," she added.
“Hey you guys, we got rid of Sheriff Vince. Told him you were ice fishing at your secret fishing hole!”, yells Barb Dwyer as she approaches the hooch shack.
“Does Vince know where our secret fishin’ hole is?”, asks Yancy.
"I don't think so!" said Becky. "I don't know where the secret fishin' hole is!" she stated.
"Should give us 4 or 5 hours, if he thinks he knows where he is going!" said Chuck.
Jack said, “Well, we got the propane all hooked up, so now there is no reason not to fire this thing up and make some hooch!”
"Keep that fire going!" said Chuck, "We got orders to fill and we have Sheriff Vince!" he added.
"Someday we will catch up!" stated Yancy.
“Let’s make sure we have Sheriff Vince’s batch ready for when he finally comes back. Otherwise, there will be big trouble!”, says Chuck.
“Yeah, we don’t need him breathing down our necks!”, exclaims Yancy.
"Mash is ready," said Eugene.
"Good!" said Yancy.
"Get out the bottles!" said Chuck.
They all watched the slow drips coming out of the still.
“Now, put these jugs over there in the corner, and mark them ‘For Sherrif Vince’. They can’t be sold or given to anyone else!”, says Chuck.
"OK!" said Eugene.
"Let's get another batch going!" said Yancy. "Now that we have this thing working, we have work to do and orders to fill!" he added.
Patrol car pulled into the driveway. Sheriff Vince got out and stomped onto Chuck’s front porch. Becky answered the door.
"Quite a nice day, isn't it Sheriff", smiled Becky.
"Rotten day!" said Sheriff Vince.
"Drove for 2 hours on a wild fishin' hole chase!" he said"I think the boys have got something for you at the barn!" said Becky. "Might cheer you up a bit!" she added.
Sheriff Vince asked Chuck, “So where is this secret ice fishin’ hole you guys were at?”
Chuck replied, “Well… If I told you, it wouldn’t be secret, now would it?”
"To tell you the truth, boys, I really don't care!" said Sheriff Vince. "I understand you have something for me to pick up?" asked the Sheriff.
"We do!" said Yancy. "Here, in the back corner!" he added.
“Uh-huh. This is what I came for!”, says Sheriff Vince when he sees his hooch. Picking up an bottle and examining it, Sheriff Vince said,"So this batch was quick!" he stated."Can I get another batch tomorrow?"
“Vince old buddy, that just isn’t possible. How about Tuesday?”, replies Chuck.
"Well, that can work," said the Sheriff.
"OK," said Chuck. "We will get on it!"
Sheriff Vince stormed out of the shed and got into his cruiser.
"Let's see if we can get another batch done before the Sheriff's batch!" said Yancy.
Xitty came in and placed a dead mouse at Chuck's feet. "Good girl!", said Chuck.
Yancy asked, "So do we have ingredients for this next batch?"
"We should have!" said Chuck, "Look in the back."
“Zoinks! Look, there’s mice in the corn!”, says Eugene.
“They didn’t eat much. But we better set some traps. Looks like too many mice for Xitty to catch.”, says Yancy.
"All the corn is ruined!" said Eugene.
"Can we not salvage some?" asked Chuck.
"Maybe we better make a trip to that store that has everything!" offered Yancy.“
But you have plenty of corn in the silo. Let’s use that!”, said Jack.
“No, that’s for the cows and pigs. We need special corn to make moonshine!”, replies Eugene.
Chuck says, “Get the truck warmed up, we gotta take a trip to Henry Patrick's”.
"Couldn't remember the name, Henry Patrick's!" said Yancy.
"We bought sugar there last time!" stated Eugene.
"So let's go!" said Chuck, "we want to keep that still bubbling!"
Driving wasn’t something Eugene did often. And driving Chuck’s good truck was something he’d never done before. But for some reason, Chuck suddenly decided it was time for Eugene to drive.
(3 days pass…)
Evacuation of Chuck's Farm has occurred. Nobody's home.
"Farm is empty!" said Sheriff Vince. He had knocked on the door, and, receiving no answer, jumped back in his cruiser. "I was hoping to get an early delivery!" he stated.
"Gosh, where did they all go?", said Deputy Enos.
"Well, someone must be here. Look, Klancy's sleeping over there in his usual spot", declared Sheriff Vince.
"You don't suppose they've been abducted by a UFO, do ya sheriff?", asked Enos.
"Hope not," said Sheriff Vince. "They must be somewhere!" he added. "Let's drive over to Henry Patrick's!" "I need some tools!" stated the Sheriff.
“I need tools too! Let’s go!”, replied Deputy Enos.
Jumping into the cruiser, they were off. "Haven't been to Henry Patrick's in a while!" said Deputy Enos.
"Neither have I, but there is always somethin' to look at!" stated Sheriff Vince. He put the lights on so they could drive faster.
Klancy barked at Sheriff Vince’s police cruiser as it roared out of the driveway.
Lights on, roaring down the highway, they arrived at Henry Patrick's in 10 minutes.
"Wonder whose truck that is?" asked Sheriff Vince, noticing a beat up pickup truck.
“Man! You don’t see too many old Dodge trucks like that around anymore!”, exclaimed Deputy Enos.
“You’re right about that. And I think I know whose it is too”, replied Sheriff Vince.
"Nice to finally see you, Chuck!" said Sheriff Vince as he walked through the door of Henry Patrick's everything store.
"Have you been looking for me?" Chuck asked innocently.
"Yes, I have something to pick up!"
“Oh, yeah. Well we have mice in the corn, so we had to stop production. You don’t want mouse poop in your hooch do you sherrif?”, asked Chuck.
"Poop in the hooch!" "Certainly NOT!" said the Sheriff. "When can you have that next batch ready for me?" he asked.
“Quite sure we will have some by Saturday. Gotta get this new corn back to the farm and start over”, said Chuck.
Rolling out several bags of corn, Henry, of Henry Patrick's, said to Chuck, "This is the last of it, will it all fit in your truck?"
"Sure!" said Chuck.
"Truck is pretty low to the ground now!" said Henry. "You sure you shouldn't make 2 trips?" he asked. "That is a lotta corn!" he added.
“Saggy springs, that’s all it is. We’ll be fine”, replies Chuck.
"Tough to fix it if you get a flat", observed Henry.
"Um, that's a good point," said Yancy.
"We'll drive slow!" said Chuck, ever the optimist.
"I'll give you an escort!" offered Sheriff Vince. "I don't want any delays in my order!" he stated.
Very slowly, Chuck drove his truck back to the farm, with Vince’s police cruiser leading the way.
Wheels loaded to the max, Chuck's truck made it to the farm.
"We made it!" said Eugene.
"Well, I will leave you to your project!" said the Sheriff. He jumped into the cruiser and hollered out, "C'mon deputy Enos!" "We have things to do!"
Xitty came out to greet everyone. “Meeeeow”, she said.
Yancy was first out of the truck and picked up Xitty. "You're not doing your job!" he told her. "There were mice in our corn!" he stated. "We are going to bring you down to the shed and you can look around," he added.
Zipping maniacally around the still shed, Xitty found, captured, tortured, and “eliminated” a half dozen mice in about fifteen minutes.
Yancy exclaimed. “She knows exactly what I’m saying! Wow!”
Always fun to see what the Gasbuddy posters come up with in the continuing saga of Chuck's Farm. I'll miss you! (GB TeacherTim 3-12-18)
Big mouse, sitting quietly. Xitty sneaking up from behind. (GB mustang68scout 3-12-18)
(WE COULD CONTINUE THE SAGA HERE:
gbo.freeforums.net/)
"Could this be the Big Daddy of them all?", thought Xitty, in her little cat brain. (GB BillG 3-13-18)
"Doggone that's a big cat!" thought the mouse. (GB mustang68scout 3-13-18)
Eugene burst through the door, startling both Xitty and the mouse. The mouse went through a hole in the wall, where Xitty could not fit. “Grrrrrrrrr….” , said Xitty. (GB BillG 3-14-18)
Flying out the door, Eugene picked up a rock and threw it at the mouse. It slowed the mouse down enough that Xitty caught it. "That's a good start, Xitty!" said Eugene. "Keep up the good work!" (GB mustang68scout 3-14-18)
"Gas Buddy is gonna leave us hanging", said Becky.
"Can we continue this discussion somewhere else?', asked Chuck.
"Sure. My friend Bill G. says he'll start it over at gbo.freeforums.net/, if you guys want to try it. Starting March 26th", replied Eugene.
"But neither teacher_tim or mustang68scout are members there", said Velma.
And, nobody could figure out why. If you want this to continue, join the new GBO site. I'll try to restart the story over there. But if you guys don't join, there is no point. –Bill (GB BillG 3-15-18)
"Hanging?" asked Eugene. "All we need now is to set up a topic for discussion." he added.
"How about Chuck's farm?" stated Becky.
"Mustang68scout is now a member!" said Yancy. (GB mustang68scout 3-16-18)
I'm working on archiving the story. I'll set up the topic over at GBO next week. We can't let this die, it's been going for over 12 years! (GB BillG 3-17-18)
Just then, Luke Bizzy came driving up to the house. "Hey is Chuck around?", he yelled at no one in particular.
"I think they are down at the shine shack", replied Velma.
"Oh good, I have a business proposition for him", replied Luke. (GB BillG 3-18-18)
Klancy woke up from a nap. "Woof" said Klancy. He went outside and followed Luke Bizzy down the drive to the farm. (GB mustang68scout 3-19-18)
Luke opened the door of the shine shed. "Chuck!" he said, "I have a proposition for you!"
"We're a little busy right now!" said Chuck. "We're filling jugs for a very important customer!"
"Well, I can fill jugs a lot faster!" said Luke Bizzy. "I have something to show you in the back of my truck!" he added. (GB mustang68scout 3-19-18)
“Maybe I’ll look at it later”, answered Chuck.
“Just take a minute. You’ll like what I have out in the truck!”, replies Luke. (GB BillG 3-19-18)
"Nice job Luke!" stated Eugene. He had already looked in the truck.
"What is it?" asked Chuck.
"I don't know quite how to describe it, Chuck!" said Eugene. "But it sure is cool."
"I think it would help production, it has 3 cooling tubes and a flamix mixer!" said Luke Bizzy. (GB mustang68scout 3-19-18)
“Oiling system is automatic too! Very low maintenance!”, exclaims Luke Bizzy. (GB BillG 3-20-18)
"Perhaps one of you will help me unload it?" asks Luke Bizzy.
"You help, Yancy. You're not doing anything!" said Eugene.
"OK," said Luke Bizzy. "Careful you don't bend the offer pipe!" "It is quite fragile," added Luke.
"This thing is heavy!" said Yancy. (GB mustang68scout 3-20-18)
“Question for you Luke. What does this thing do?”, asks Yancy. (GB BillG 3-21-18)
"Really don't know? Well, let me tell you." (GB teacher_tim 3-21-18)
"Supplements production!" said Luke Bizzy. "See this flamix mixer, here, it increases cooling and exposes more mash to the air!" said Luke Bizzy.
"But, we want alcohol," said Eugene.
"Oh, that comes out here," said Luke Bizzy. "See the dripolator," pointing lower towards the bottom.
"Well, maybe you can demonstrate it for us, Luke!" said Chuck.
"Be happy to!" said Luke Bizzy. "I will get it set up." (GB mustang68scout 3-22-18)
“This all seems too complicated. Supplements???”, replies Eugene. (GB BillG 3-22-18)
"Unless you have a better idea, that's what we're doing," replied Luke. (GB rkh 3-22-18)
"Very crude, Luke," says Chuck.
"But it just might add enough production to keep up with orders," ads Yancy.
"Maybe it is worth a try!" said Eugene. (GB mustang68scout 3-22-18)
“Wait a second! What’s this all gonna cost me?”, asks Chuck. (GB BillG 3-23-18)
Xitty walked into the moonshine shed. She sat down and watched.
"Cost!" said Luke Bizzy. "I want a piece of your action!" he added. "This is my contribution." (GB mustang68scout 3-23-18)
“You want a piece of the action? Really?”, asks Chuck.
“Yes, only a very small percentage. Say five percent of the profits!”, replies Luke Bizzy. (GB BillG 3-24-18)
"Zowie!" said Eugene. "We are just getting started!" "We are feeding the lawman Sheriff and there are no profits right now!" he added.
"Well, my device just might push you over the top!" said Luke Bizzy. (GB mustang68scout 3-24-18)
“All right, here’s what we’ll do. Run a few batches and see what the results are”, says Chuck.
“So how do I get my cut?”, asks Luke Bizzy. (GB BillG 3-25-18)
Buddies... I archived all I could from this site. The new thread is here: I saw it on Chuck's Farm... A thru Z... I don't know if tomorrow is the last day or not but I did not want to take a chance of losing everything. Hope to see you on the other site. -BG (GB BillG 3-25-18)
Congratulations and thanks to Bill G. for doing all the work to archive Chuck's farm. It has been kind of fun to evolve the story over the years.
Chuck said, "We still have to work out the details, Luke!" "In the meantime, we will try and get caught up on orders!" he added. (GB mustang68scout 3-25-18)
“Details, shmetails! Who cares? This new technology will save you 10% on your production costs. All I want is 5% of the profits. You’ll come out ahead!”, replied Luke Bizzy. (GB BillG 3-26-18)
Continue the story with the letter "E"...
Cast of major characters:
Chuck (he owns the farm). Becky (Chuck’s wife). Yancy (Chuck’s uncle). Velma (Yancy’s wife). Jack (Chuck’s son). Eugene (Chuck’s nephew). Xitty (the magical barnyard cat). Klancy (Chuck’s hound dog). Sheriff Vince (the local constable & large moonshine customer). Deputy Enos (Vinces deputy). Olivia (Chuck’s 6 year old daughter). Luke Bizzy (the local still expert). Barb Dwyer(Jack’s girlfriend). Ginger Vitis (Eugene’s girlfriend). Gorton Gloucester (local welder). Henry Patrick (proprietor of the general store). Bo Lingball (loser friend of Jack’s). Godwin (a neighbor). Lou Stooth and Mick Stup (moonshine customers and general ne’er do wells). Ken Opner (the CIA agent, maybe). Haywood Jabuzov (a weird “bidwatcher”).
From A to Z and over again...
List things you can see on Chuck's farm and a comment to explain if you want...
("teachertim" on Gas Buddy started this story in January of 2006. I copied the story from the last several months from Gas Buddy. Here is the story from 11-20-17 up to today…)
Quickly working, Chuck and Yancy got the hopper loaded in about ten minutes.
"Ready when you are!" said Yancy. "What do we put in next?" he asked.
"It's either water or yeast or sugar!" said Chuck.
"Maybe it's in the manual," stated Yancy.
"Where's Eugene, he appeared to know the recipe!" said Chuck.
“Seems like days since Eugene has been around. Where is that kid?”, asks Yancy.
“He left to go talk to Ginger Vitis, and he hasn’t been seen since!”, replied Becky.
“Wow that’s strange”, says Chuck.
"Time to mount a search party?" asked Becky.
"Might be, we kind of need him!" stated Chuck.
"When will Jack be home?" asked Yancy. "He can help, too!"
"Ultimately, Jack will be home, just don't know when!" stated Becky. "He's out on a date!" she added.
"Probably won't be much use until tomorrow," said Yancy.
Velma chimed in, “Eugene’s disappearance is most troubling. He wouldn’t just run off without at least saying something”.
“Oh I don’t know, that girlfriend of his has always been a bad influence”, replies Becky.
Wobble Wobble! ,,,maybe that should be gobble gobble
Happy Thanks Giving Chuck and friends! (11-30-17)Xtremely large turkey on Becky's table.
"Guess the still will have to wait until tomorrow!" said Chuck.
"Maybe the smell of turkey will bring Jack and Eugene home!" added Becky.
“Yippee! Turkey and stuffin’ and cranberries and everything!”, shouted Eugene and Ginger Vitis as they came blasting thru the front door.
Zonked out on the couch, Chuck, Yancy and Jack. All ate too much turkey and all had a nap. Becky and Velma cleaned up as usual. "Hope you all enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner!" yelled Becky.
“And what’s for dessert?”, asked Chuck when he awoke from his tryptophan–induced nap.
"Big chocolate cake!" announced Becky.
"Well then, I will have a big piece!" announced Yancy.
"Me too!" added Chuck.
“Chocolate cake? But where is the pumpkin pie?”, asks Eugene.
"Down in the fridge!" said Becky. "Velma, go get that pie!"
"These guys always want chocolate cake! Now they want pumpkin pie!" added Velma.
Eugene says, "Don't forget the whipped cream!"
Following Velma down the stairs were Chuck, Yancy and Eugene.
"Why are you guys coming?" asked Velma.
"Coming to help carry stuff!" replied Chuck.
"Well that's a first!" stated Becky.
“Grab those boxes over there and bring them up with you”, asks Becky.
“Why? What’s in them?”, asks Yancy.
"Help me with this box, Yancy. It's heavy!", exclaimed Chuck. "Holy Cow! What's in here? A rock collection?!"
"I don't know what is in it, boy it's heavy!" said Yancy.
"You boys look after that box, I'll take this lighter one!" said Eugene.
“Just bring the boxes up and stop complaining! Then you can have your desserts. You’re like a bunch of little kids!”, says Becky.
"Keeping that still operating is a lot of work!" complains Eugene.
"Eugene!" shouts Becky. "These boxes are for Christmas!"
"Nothing to do with the still!" adds Velma.
“Late start on decorating this year. December kind of snuck up on us”, says Becky.
“Yep. We better get a move on!”, agrees Velma.
Making their way up the stairs, Chuck, Yancy and Eugene put down the boxes and sat on the couch.
"C'mon boys!" said Velma, "Times a wastin'!"
"Need to get decorations outside and in!" said Becky. "We have company coming and entertaining to do!" she added.
“Not quite yet! We got dessert eatin’ to do first!”, replies Chuck.
"OK," said Becky. "I guess you guys worked hard for the last 10 minutes!" "Let's see what we have, pumpkin pie, ice cream, there was something else," Becky said to Velma.
“Pecan pie?”,asked Eugene.
“No, Sheriff Vince ate all that a couple days ago, replies Becky.
Quickly thinking, Becky said to Velma, "Push the pumpkin pie!" "That usually keeps them quiet!"
"There's not much of that left," said Velma, "Sheriff Vince likes that too!" she added.
“Right. Pumpkin pie it is”, said Velma.
“But you said you had chocolate cake. I want some of that too!”, said Yancy.
"Soft spot for chocolate cake?" said Chuck to Yancy. "I'll have both!" announced Chuck.
"I'm going to fire up a still!" said Eugene.
“This is crazy! Here, I’m putting everything out on the table. Pumpkin pie, whipped cream, chocolate cake, and one small piece of pecan pie that I just found. Serve yourselves!”, said Becky.
Urging Yancy to have a second piece of cake, Chuck said, "Becky sure makes a great chocolate cake!"
"And Velma makes a great pecan pie!" said Yancy, reaching for the lone piece.
"Anybody see Eugene?" asked Becky.
"He said something about lying still, on the couch!" said Yancy.
Velma chimes in, “Yancy, don’t you take that piece of pecan pie. I heard Eugene ask fot that special!”
"Well, he's sleepin' on the couch!" said Yancy.
"You snooze, you loose!" said Chuck.
Xitty jumped on the table and started eating the pumpkin pie while nobody was paying attention.
Yelling at Xitty from a distance, Yancy stated, "Xitty that's my pie!"
"Thought you were sharing," stated Becky.
"Zitty get off the dang table!", shouted Eugene.
"What do you mean 'Zitty'? That is not her name. It's Xitty!", says Becky.
"What's the difference. Zitty, or Xitty?", asks Eugene.
Agreeing with Becky, Chuck says, "Big difference. Eat some pie. Maybe it'll make you smarter."
"Ahhhh," said Eugene. "Excellent pumpkin pie!" said Eugene. "Even if I shared a little with Xitty!" he added.
"So has anyone thought about the still?" asked Chuck.
"After digestion," stated Yancy.
Becky said, “Yes, I think you guys can take a few hours off. Besides, it’s cold and snowing out there.”
Chuck, now sitting in a chair in the living room, snored.
Yancy sat in another chair and played with Xitty.
Eugene, trying to figure out how to work the remote control said, "I can live with that!"
"Dang! It's really coming down!" said Yancy.
Eugene says, “Hey, since when do you guys get Netflix? Look, here is a Christmas movie we can all watch.” “Oh yeah, what’s it called?”, asks Jack. “El Camino Christmas”, replies Eugene.
"Fine with me!" says Chuck. "I could use a break!"
"He's been on break since 2016!" said Becky.
"Yancy's been on break since 2014!" said Velma.
Ginger Vitis said to Eugene, “This is kind of nice Eugene. The whole family together for the holidays.”
"Have some pumpkin pie?" asked Becky of Ginger Vitis, trying to make her feel welcome.
"Or chocolate cake!" added Velma, "we still have some left!"
“I’d like a tiny slice of both, please”, replied Ginger Vitis.
Jack asked, "Eugene, did you get the remote going yet?" "If we are all sitting here, might as well watch a movie!" he added.
Klancy ran into the room and grabbed the TV remote off the table where Eugene had left it. Klancy took it over to Chuck, dropping it on his lap. Startled out of his deep sleep, Chuck said, “What the heck do you want you crazy dog?”
"Look!" said Eugene. "Klancy wants to watch a movie too!"
"Chuck, find something good," said Yancy.
“Might I suggest El Camino Christmas on Netflix?”, asks Eugene, once again.
“I don’t care. I’m napping anyways”, says Chuck. “Here Klancy, give the remote to Eugene”, continues Chuck.
"Nice of you to offer, Chuck," said Eugene. "I still need some instruction on how to use it!" he added.
"Olivia!" yelled Chuck; his 6 year old daughter came into the room. "Show Eugene how to operate the remote!"
Olivia proceeded to explain the workings of the Sony Blue-Ray player to Eugene, who asked, “Wow how did you get so smart?”
"Pre-requisite for being a kid nowadays!" said Olivia.
"That's a lot of knowledge you have!" commented Eugene.
"We are programmed to operate cell phones, tablets and TV controls!" said Olivia. "I turned on my first TV when I was 2!" she added.
"Quite the little genius, my daughter", said Chuck.
Running the remote, Eugene brought up a list of movies. 'El Camino Christmas' was highlighted.
"Are we ready to watch?" asked Eugene.
“Sure, let’s go!”, said Yancy.
“This has some big stars in it”, commented Ginger Vitis.
"Tell me about this movie!" said Velma. "Never heard of it!" she added.
“Unnecessary! Just start watching it. It’s on Instant Netflix so it’s already paid for. You won’t like it anyways, you never like new movies!”, replied Yancy.
“Geez, you’re in a crabby mood”, replied Velma.
Velma said, "I'm going out to the kitchen for snacks!"
Becky asked, "So what's with Yancy, he's a little upset!"
"More than a little!" said Velma.
“Well, we’ve been trying to decide what to watch forever. It seems like days!”, said Yancy.
Xitty came into the living room and sat down. She looked at each of the boys, sort of like saying,
"Are we going to get on with this? Time for me to take a nap!"
"Come sit on my lap," said Chuck, looking at Xitty.
Yancy said, “I think I’ll go check on the still. We have been ignoring it for too long!”
Zipping across the floor, Xitty took a flying leap and landed squarely on Chuck's lap.
"You do that, Yancy," said Chuck. "I'll stay here and make sure Xitty is OK!"
"I'll come with you!" added Eugene. "Can't figure out that remote anyway!"
“Apple pie! Fresh out of the oven! Who wants some?”, said Becky.
"Big piece for me!" said Eugene from the back door, now taking off his coat.
"I might as well stay and have some too!" said Yancy.
Chuck shouted, “I’ll have some too!”
Down at the still, Jack worked alone. "Wonder where all my help went?" he said out loud. Klancy came in to keep him company. "We got orders to fill and we have to keep Sheriff Vince happy!" said Jack.
“Eugene told me you were out here all alone, working, and that maybe you could use some help”, said Barb Dwyer.
“Oh yeah, that would be great!”, said Jack.
"Funny," said Jack. I haven't seen you down here before!" “Who do you belong to?" he asked.
“Golly Jack, we just went out on date a few weeks ago! Do you date so many girls that you already forgot about me? Saturday November 18th to be exact!”, asks Barb Dwyer , as she takes another puff on her pipe.
Holy Smokes... I think that was Santa! (12-25-17)
"I think it was Santa too!" said Barb Dwyer.
"He sure left us a lot of ingredients for the still!" said Jack. "All we have to do is fill it up, start the process and wait!" he added.
“Jack, did you really forget about me?”, asks Barb Dwyer.
“Are you kidding me? No! I was just joking!”, replies Jack.
"Keeping the still operating is kind of a priority right around Christmas!" said Jack. "I didn't forget, I was teasing and I had a lot on my mind!" he added.
"Good, 'cause I had a really good time!" said Barb Dwyer. "When can we go out again?" she asked.
“Lets go out New Year’s Eve”, replies Jack.
"May be a good idea!" said Barb Dwyer. "We'll have a good time!" she added.
"While we are here, let's get a batch going in the still!" said Jack.
“No time to lose! It’s so cold out here, let’s light the fire. Maybe that way we won’t freeze to death!”, says Jack.
"OK," said Barb Dwyer, reaching for the ignitor. "Turn the gas on!" she said to Jack.
"Poof", the fire was lit.
"Quick!" said Jack, "we have to add water!"
"I'm getting the hose!" said Barb Dwyer.
Right about then, they realized that the hose was filled with solid ice, and no water was coming out.
"What'll we do now?", they asked each other.
"Sure I saw a tiger torch around here somewhere!" said Jack.
"What's a tiger torch?" asked Barb Dwyer.
"Connects to a propane tank, used for heating road tar or water pipes," announced Jack. "Here it is!" he stated, under the workbench.
“Torch on the hose? You know rubber burns, right?”, says Eugene, poking his head in to see what was going on.
Yeah, yeah, but we need water. I know how to be careful!”, replies Jack.
"Un-huh, I'm going to find a fire extinguisher just in case."
Voilà... Happy New Year to Chuck and family and visitors... Oh and all the animals too!! (1-1-18)
“What are you guys doing? I smelled something burning!”, says Chuck, “The smell woke me up from my nap. I figured I better check”, he continued.
Xtremely hot fire coming out of the tiger torch.
"We may have heated something up too much!" said Jack.
"But the still is operating!" stated Barb Dwyer triumphantly.
“You can live with a melted hose. As long as you have water!”, says Chuck.
"Zowie!" says Barb Dwyer, "Look at the water coming out of leaks in the hose!"
"We'll get the still full of water, then we will worry about the hose!" states Jack, now in a panic.
"There's more water leaking out of the hose than coming out the end!" adds Chuck.
“Are you guys having problems?”, asked Yancy, who had also been awakened by all the ruckus.
“Yeah! Go get the duct tape so we can patch up this hose!”, ordered Chuck.
Barb Dwyer said, "The still is almost full!"
"I have duct tape!" announced Yancy.
"Start wrapping the hose!" ordered Chuck.
“Can’t we just get a new hose?”, asks Eugene, who heard the noise and had come out to investigate.
“Nope. I’m not buying a new hose just so one of you jokers can light it on fire again!”, replies Chuck.
"Duct tape is almost all on!" stated Yancy.
"There are still leaks in the hose!" said Chuck.
"I'm working as fast as I can!" stated Yancy.
Eugene says, “You can turn the water off now, the tank is full!”
Yancy replies, “Yeah. Maybe the duct tape will work better if everything was drier!”
“Good thinking!”, replies Jack.
“I’m working with geniuses here!”, replies Chuck.
"Full!" announces Yancy, looking into the still.
"Already done that!" says Eugene.
"So what is next?" asks Yancy.
"The grain is already in the still, so light the fire," states Chuck.
"Not lookin'good," says Eugene. "Everything here is wet!" he states.
Barb Dwyer says, "We still have a tiger torch!"
“Golly, we lit that fire a long time ago! Are you sure it is out?”, says Barb Dwyer.
Jack says, “Yes it was lit. I guess the leaky hose must have put it out.”
"Holy smokes!" announces Eugene. "The hose from the propane tank is leaking too!"
"Thought I smelled propane in here!" says Chuck.
"I've got the duct tape!" announces Yancy.
“I don’t think you can duct tape a gas hose. Quick, turn off the valve at the tank!”, says Chuck.
“I got it! We don’t need to blow ourselves up!”, says Jack.
Jack went over to the propane tank and turned it off. "So how are we going to light the fire now?" he asked. "I think I have another hose in the shed!" said Chuck.
"OK," said Jack, grabbing a hammer and putting a nail in the wall. "Probably going to need this duct tape for something else. I'll put it up here where we all can find it!"
Klancy walked in to the still shack. He was carrying something in his mouth.
“Hi Klancy. What do you have there?”, asked Chuck.
“Look. It’s the new propane hose!”, exclaimed Yancy. “Told you he could understand everything we were saying!”
Looking for a wrench, and taking the hose from Klancy, Jack started undoing the old hose. "Rather tight!" he said.
"Left hand thread!" said Chuck.
“Maybe so. But where’s the left-hand wrench?”, replied Jack.
"Nice try!" said Chuck. "Turn it the other way!" "Left hand threads are reversed!" he added.
"O.K., I'm going clockwise but it isn't coming loose. Now what?", asks Jack.
"Push harder!" said Chuck. "Those propane nuts are tight!" he added.
"You are turning the right way!" added Barb Dwyer.
Quickly, Yancy grabbed a can of PB-Blaster and sprayed the nut thoroughly. “There, let that penetrate for a few minutes and try it again”, he told Jack.
"Rusty?" asked Eugene.
"They are brass fittings, they don't rust!" said Chuck.
"Sometimes the brass gets corroded, and they get stuck", replied Yancy.
"Try turning the wrench, now." said Chuck.
Jack pushed on the wrench and the fitting let go.
"You are stronger than I thought!" said Chuck.
“Unless I’m mistaken, now you need to disconnect the other end”, stated Eugene.
“Yes ‘professor’, that is a marvelous observation. You are correct!”, replied Chuck.
"Very tight at this end too," stated Jack.
"At least you can get a wrench on the other side to hold the fitting," said Chuck.
"Put some PB-Blaster on this one too!" ordered Jack.
“Wait just a second, I’ll go get it!”, says Yancy.
“Where did you put it?”, asks Chuck.
“Oh, I put it away. Everything in it’s place”, answers Yancy.
Xitty wandered in to get in the way and see what was going on. She sat down in the middle of the floor.
Yancy came back in, petted Xitty, and said, “I’m back!”
“That’s nice Yancy. Where is the PB-Blaster?”, asked Chuck.
"Zip tied on a high shelf near the ceiling!" said Yancy. "It was a joke I was playing on Jack so he couldn't find it."
He got a ladder and a pair of cutters to retrieve the can from the rafters. Xitty curled up on the workbench.
“All right, enough foolin’ around. Get over here and spray this fitting!”, orders Chuck.
"Busted knuckles are no fun! Put a lot on it."
Clipping the zip tie with the cutters, Jack brought down the PB-Blaster. "OK," he said spraying the brass nut, "Try it now!"
“Does anyone know who put this together? It sure is a lot tighter than it needs to be!”, exclaims Jack.
"Everybody has access to that propane tank!" states Chuck.
"Yes, but who has access to the shed?" asked Yancy.
“For your information, I put it together”, says Eugene.
“You? Why so tight Eugene?”, asks Chuck.
“Didn’t want any leaks! Remember the time the shed exploded? Did you ever find out why?”, asks Eugene.
"Good question!" said Yancy.
"I didn't want it to be a propane leak," stated Eugene.
"Don't think anything is leaking out of here, Eugene!" said Jack.
“Hey, it’s finally letting go!”, exclaims Jack.
"I can see the wrench moving!" said Yancy.
"Bout time," said Chuck. "We still have orders to fill!"
Jack got the hose unhooked. “Okay Chuck, give me the new hose and I’ll put it right on.”
Klancy came into the barn. He had a propane hose in his mouth.
"Klancy!" said Jack. "How did you know what I needed?"
“Like I said before, he understands everything we say!”, replied Yancy.
"My, you are a smart dog!" said Jack, taking the hose from Klancy's mouth. "Thank you Klancy," he added. He started installing the new hose on the propane tank.
“Now don’t forget, turn them counter-clockwise to tighten them. And don’t go King-Kong on them like someone else did!”, says Chuck.
"OK," said Jack.
"The nut should be snug, not tight!" ordered Chuck.
"Use soap on the connection to make sure it isn't leaking." added Eugene.
“Propane has a distinct smell. I can smell if it’s leaking! Besides, where do we keep dish soap out here?”, replies Jack.
Quickly reaching under the work bench, Chuck brought out a bottle of dish soap. "We have glasses out here, too!" announces Chuck. "We use them for sampling the product." he states. "We have to wash them with something."
“Retrieve some water, and mix some soap with it in this glass. Then we can pour it over the connections and check for gas bubbles”, says Chuck.
"Sure thing!" said Eugene.
"Look, there are bubbles!" said Yancy.
"A little tighter!" said Chuck.
"Just a minute," said Jack, "there might be dirt on the threads."
“Tighter! Tighter I say!”, replies Chuck.
"Unusually tight, Chuck," says Yancy. "Something's wrong here!" He adds.
Victory signs for Superbowl... Chuck likes the Eagles... GO EAGLES! (2-2-18)
“Wow! It’s coming up Sunday. I can’t wait!”, said Eugene.
“X on February fourth on the calendar. Now I know why that is there!”, says Yancy.
“I know I won’t be out here working at six thirty today!”, replies Eugene.
Yancy ran back into the house to check on the big game. "Knew that X was for something!" He added.
“Zowie! My Eagles won!”, exclaimed Chuck.
“That was fun. But now, it’s back to work!”, answered Yancy.
Answering his cellphone in the barn, Chuck accepted another order. "We should be able to get that out early next week!" said Chuck.
Barb Dwyer came into the shed, as she had some news for Chuck: "Hey, Sheriff Vince just pulled in the driveway down at the house!"
Chuck said, "We'll have to tell him his order will have to wait!"
"He's not going to like that!" answered Barb Dwyer.
"We are having trouble with our still!" said Eugene.
“Do you want him to come out here to see for himself? Because you know he will. Think up a better excuse!”, says Chuck.
Exiting his cruiser at the farmhouse, Sheriff Vince spotted Becky and demanded, "Where's Chuck? I have something to pick up!"
"Haven't seen him for a while," stated Becky. "He was here a couple of hours ago," she added.
“For gosh sakes Becky, don’t you remember, they all went ice fishing”, says Velma.
“Oh yes. And they won’t be back until tomorrow sometime”, replied Becky.
“Where’d they go? I need to see this for myself!”, replied Sheriff Vince.
“Secret fishing hole!”, answered Barb Dwyer, who had been listening from the other room.
"Got to catch up to them!" yelled Sheriff Vince. "Thanks for the tip!" he hollered, jumping back into his cruiser.
"You know where the secret fishin' hole is?" asked Becky. "I don't," she added.
“Hey you guys, we got rid of Sheriff Vince. Told him you were ice fishing at your secret fishing hole!”, yells Barb Dwyer as she approaches the hooch shack.
“Does Vince know where our secret fishin’ hole is?”, asks Yancy.
"I don't think so!" said Becky. "I don't know where the secret fishin' hole is!" she stated.
"Should give us 4 or 5 hours, if he thinks he knows where he is going!" said Chuck.
Jack said, “Well, we got the propane all hooked up, so now there is no reason not to fire this thing up and make some hooch!”
"Keep that fire going!" said Chuck, "We got orders to fill and we have Sheriff Vince!" he added.
"Someday we will catch up!" stated Yancy.
“Let’s make sure we have Sheriff Vince’s batch ready for when he finally comes back. Otherwise, there will be big trouble!”, says Chuck.
“Yeah, we don’t need him breathing down our necks!”, exclaims Yancy.
"Mash is ready," said Eugene.
"Good!" said Yancy.
"Get out the bottles!" said Chuck.
They all watched the slow drips coming out of the still.
“Now, put these jugs over there in the corner, and mark them ‘For Sherrif Vince’. They can’t be sold or given to anyone else!”, says Chuck.
"OK!" said Eugene.
"Let's get another batch going!" said Yancy. "Now that we have this thing working, we have work to do and orders to fill!" he added.
Patrol car pulled into the driveway. Sheriff Vince got out and stomped onto Chuck’s front porch. Becky answered the door.
"Quite a nice day, isn't it Sheriff", smiled Becky.
"Rotten day!" said Sheriff Vince.
"Drove for 2 hours on a wild fishin' hole chase!" he said"I think the boys have got something for you at the barn!" said Becky. "Might cheer you up a bit!" she added.
Sheriff Vince asked Chuck, “So where is this secret ice fishin’ hole you guys were at?”
Chuck replied, “Well… If I told you, it wouldn’t be secret, now would it?”
"To tell you the truth, boys, I really don't care!" said Sheriff Vince. "I understand you have something for me to pick up?" asked the Sheriff.
"We do!" said Yancy. "Here, in the back corner!" he added.
“Uh-huh. This is what I came for!”, says Sheriff Vince when he sees his hooch. Picking up an bottle and examining it, Sheriff Vince said,"So this batch was quick!" he stated."Can I get another batch tomorrow?"
“Vince old buddy, that just isn’t possible. How about Tuesday?”, replies Chuck.
"Well, that can work," said the Sheriff.
"OK," said Chuck. "We will get on it!"
Sheriff Vince stormed out of the shed and got into his cruiser.
"Let's see if we can get another batch done before the Sheriff's batch!" said Yancy.
Xitty came in and placed a dead mouse at Chuck's feet. "Good girl!", said Chuck.
Yancy asked, "So do we have ingredients for this next batch?"
"We should have!" said Chuck, "Look in the back."
“Zoinks! Look, there’s mice in the corn!”, says Eugene.
“They didn’t eat much. But we better set some traps. Looks like too many mice for Xitty to catch.”, says Yancy.
"All the corn is ruined!" said Eugene.
"Can we not salvage some?" asked Chuck.
"Maybe we better make a trip to that store that has everything!" offered Yancy.“
But you have plenty of corn in the silo. Let’s use that!”, said Jack.
“No, that’s for the cows and pigs. We need special corn to make moonshine!”, replies Eugene.
Chuck says, “Get the truck warmed up, we gotta take a trip to Henry Patrick's”.
"Couldn't remember the name, Henry Patrick's!" said Yancy.
"We bought sugar there last time!" stated Eugene.
"So let's go!" said Chuck, "we want to keep that still bubbling!"
Driving wasn’t something Eugene did often. And driving Chuck’s good truck was something he’d never done before. But for some reason, Chuck suddenly decided it was time for Eugene to drive.
(3 days pass…)
Evacuation of Chuck's Farm has occurred. Nobody's home.
"Farm is empty!" said Sheriff Vince. He had knocked on the door, and, receiving no answer, jumped back in his cruiser. "I was hoping to get an early delivery!" he stated.
"Gosh, where did they all go?", said Deputy Enos.
"Well, someone must be here. Look, Klancy's sleeping over there in his usual spot", declared Sheriff Vince.
"You don't suppose they've been abducted by a UFO, do ya sheriff?", asked Enos.
"Hope not," said Sheriff Vince. "They must be somewhere!" he added. "Let's drive over to Henry Patrick's!" "I need some tools!" stated the Sheriff.
“I need tools too! Let’s go!”, replied Deputy Enos.
Jumping into the cruiser, they were off. "Haven't been to Henry Patrick's in a while!" said Deputy Enos.
"Neither have I, but there is always somethin' to look at!" stated Sheriff Vince. He put the lights on so they could drive faster.
Klancy barked at Sheriff Vince’s police cruiser as it roared out of the driveway.
Lights on, roaring down the highway, they arrived at Henry Patrick's in 10 minutes.
"Wonder whose truck that is?" asked Sheriff Vince, noticing a beat up pickup truck.
“Man! You don’t see too many old Dodge trucks like that around anymore!”, exclaimed Deputy Enos.
“You’re right about that. And I think I know whose it is too”, replied Sheriff Vince.
"Nice to finally see you, Chuck!" said Sheriff Vince as he walked through the door of Henry Patrick's everything store.
"Have you been looking for me?" Chuck asked innocently.
"Yes, I have something to pick up!"
“Oh, yeah. Well we have mice in the corn, so we had to stop production. You don’t want mouse poop in your hooch do you sherrif?”, asked Chuck.
"Poop in the hooch!" "Certainly NOT!" said the Sheriff. "When can you have that next batch ready for me?" he asked.
“Quite sure we will have some by Saturday. Gotta get this new corn back to the farm and start over”, said Chuck.
Rolling out several bags of corn, Henry, of Henry Patrick's, said to Chuck, "This is the last of it, will it all fit in your truck?"
"Sure!" said Chuck.
"Truck is pretty low to the ground now!" said Henry. "You sure you shouldn't make 2 trips?" he asked. "That is a lotta corn!" he added.
“Saggy springs, that’s all it is. We’ll be fine”, replies Chuck.
"Tough to fix it if you get a flat", observed Henry.
"Um, that's a good point," said Yancy.
"We'll drive slow!" said Chuck, ever the optimist.
"I'll give you an escort!" offered Sheriff Vince. "I don't want any delays in my order!" he stated.
Very slowly, Chuck drove his truck back to the farm, with Vince’s police cruiser leading the way.
Wheels loaded to the max, Chuck's truck made it to the farm.
"We made it!" said Eugene.
"Well, I will leave you to your project!" said the Sheriff. He jumped into the cruiser and hollered out, "C'mon deputy Enos!" "We have things to do!"
Xitty came out to greet everyone. “Meeeeow”, she said.
Yancy was first out of the truck and picked up Xitty. "You're not doing your job!" he told her. "There were mice in our corn!" he stated. "We are going to bring you down to the shed and you can look around," he added.
Zipping maniacally around the still shed, Xitty found, captured, tortured, and “eliminated” a half dozen mice in about fifteen minutes.
Yancy exclaimed. “She knows exactly what I’m saying! Wow!”
Always fun to see what the Gasbuddy posters come up with in the continuing saga of Chuck's Farm. I'll miss you! (GB TeacherTim 3-12-18)
Big mouse, sitting quietly. Xitty sneaking up from behind. (GB mustang68scout 3-12-18)
(WE COULD CONTINUE THE SAGA HERE:
gbo.freeforums.net/)
"Could this be the Big Daddy of them all?", thought Xitty, in her little cat brain. (GB BillG 3-13-18)
"Doggone that's a big cat!" thought the mouse. (GB mustang68scout 3-13-18)
Eugene burst through the door, startling both Xitty and the mouse. The mouse went through a hole in the wall, where Xitty could not fit. “Grrrrrrrrr….” , said Xitty. (GB BillG 3-14-18)
Flying out the door, Eugene picked up a rock and threw it at the mouse. It slowed the mouse down enough that Xitty caught it. "That's a good start, Xitty!" said Eugene. "Keep up the good work!" (GB mustang68scout 3-14-18)
"Gas Buddy is gonna leave us hanging", said Becky.
"Can we continue this discussion somewhere else?', asked Chuck.
"Sure. My friend Bill G. says he'll start it over at gbo.freeforums.net/, if you guys want to try it. Starting March 26th", replied Eugene.
"But neither teacher_tim or mustang68scout are members there", said Velma.
And, nobody could figure out why. If you want this to continue, join the new GBO site. I'll try to restart the story over there. But if you guys don't join, there is no point. –Bill (GB BillG 3-15-18)
"Hanging?" asked Eugene. "All we need now is to set up a topic for discussion." he added.
"How about Chuck's farm?" stated Becky.
"Mustang68scout is now a member!" said Yancy. (GB mustang68scout 3-16-18)
I'm working on archiving the story. I'll set up the topic over at GBO next week. We can't let this die, it's been going for over 12 years! (GB BillG 3-17-18)
Just then, Luke Bizzy came driving up to the house. "Hey is Chuck around?", he yelled at no one in particular.
"I think they are down at the shine shack", replied Velma.
"Oh good, I have a business proposition for him", replied Luke. (GB BillG 3-18-18)
Klancy woke up from a nap. "Woof" said Klancy. He went outside and followed Luke Bizzy down the drive to the farm. (GB mustang68scout 3-19-18)
Luke opened the door of the shine shed. "Chuck!" he said, "I have a proposition for you!"
"We're a little busy right now!" said Chuck. "We're filling jugs for a very important customer!"
"Well, I can fill jugs a lot faster!" said Luke Bizzy. "I have something to show you in the back of my truck!" he added. (GB mustang68scout 3-19-18)
“Maybe I’ll look at it later”, answered Chuck.
“Just take a minute. You’ll like what I have out in the truck!”, replies Luke. (GB BillG 3-19-18)
"Nice job Luke!" stated Eugene. He had already looked in the truck.
"What is it?" asked Chuck.
"I don't know quite how to describe it, Chuck!" said Eugene. "But it sure is cool."
"I think it would help production, it has 3 cooling tubes and a flamix mixer!" said Luke Bizzy. (GB mustang68scout 3-19-18)
“Oiling system is automatic too! Very low maintenance!”, exclaims Luke Bizzy. (GB BillG 3-20-18)
"Perhaps one of you will help me unload it?" asks Luke Bizzy.
"You help, Yancy. You're not doing anything!" said Eugene.
"OK," said Luke Bizzy. "Careful you don't bend the offer pipe!" "It is quite fragile," added Luke.
"This thing is heavy!" said Yancy. (GB mustang68scout 3-20-18)
“Question for you Luke. What does this thing do?”, asks Yancy. (GB BillG 3-21-18)
"Really don't know? Well, let me tell you." (GB teacher_tim 3-21-18)
"Supplements production!" said Luke Bizzy. "See this flamix mixer, here, it increases cooling and exposes more mash to the air!" said Luke Bizzy.
"But, we want alcohol," said Eugene.
"Oh, that comes out here," said Luke Bizzy. "See the dripolator," pointing lower towards the bottom.
"Well, maybe you can demonstrate it for us, Luke!" said Chuck.
"Be happy to!" said Luke Bizzy. "I will get it set up." (GB mustang68scout 3-22-18)
“This all seems too complicated. Supplements???”, replies Eugene. (GB BillG 3-22-18)
"Unless you have a better idea, that's what we're doing," replied Luke. (GB rkh 3-22-18)
"Very crude, Luke," says Chuck.
"But it just might add enough production to keep up with orders," ads Yancy.
"Maybe it is worth a try!" said Eugene. (GB mustang68scout 3-22-18)
“Wait a second! What’s this all gonna cost me?”, asks Chuck. (GB BillG 3-23-18)
Xitty walked into the moonshine shed. She sat down and watched.
"Cost!" said Luke Bizzy. "I want a piece of your action!" he added. "This is my contribution." (GB mustang68scout 3-23-18)
“You want a piece of the action? Really?”, asks Chuck.
“Yes, only a very small percentage. Say five percent of the profits!”, replies Luke Bizzy. (GB BillG 3-24-18)
"Zowie!" said Eugene. "We are just getting started!" "We are feeding the lawman Sheriff and there are no profits right now!" he added.
"Well, my device just might push you over the top!" said Luke Bizzy. (GB mustang68scout 3-24-18)
“All right, here’s what we’ll do. Run a few batches and see what the results are”, says Chuck.
“So how do I get my cut?”, asks Luke Bizzy. (GB BillG 3-25-18)
Buddies... I archived all I could from this site. The new thread is here: I saw it on Chuck's Farm... A thru Z... I don't know if tomorrow is the last day or not but I did not want to take a chance of losing everything. Hope to see you on the other site. -BG (GB BillG 3-25-18)
Congratulations and thanks to Bill G. for doing all the work to archive Chuck's farm. It has been kind of fun to evolve the story over the years.
Chuck said, "We still have to work out the details, Luke!" "In the meantime, we will try and get caught up on orders!" he added. (GB mustang68scout 3-25-18)
“Details, shmetails! Who cares? This new technology will save you 10% on your production costs. All I want is 5% of the profits. You’ll come out ahead!”, replied Luke Bizzy. (GB BillG 3-26-18)
Continue the story with the letter "E"...
Cast of major characters:
Chuck (he owns the farm). Becky (Chuck’s wife). Yancy (Chuck’s uncle). Velma (Yancy’s wife). Jack (Chuck’s son). Eugene (Chuck’s nephew). Xitty (the magical barnyard cat). Klancy (Chuck’s hound dog). Sheriff Vince (the local constable & large moonshine customer). Deputy Enos (Vinces deputy). Olivia (Chuck’s 6 year old daughter). Luke Bizzy (the local still expert). Barb Dwyer(Jack’s girlfriend). Ginger Vitis (Eugene’s girlfriend). Gorton Gloucester (local welder). Henry Patrick (proprietor of the general store). Bo Lingball (loser friend of Jack’s). Godwin (a neighbor). Lou Stooth and Mick Stup (moonshine customers and general ne’er do wells). Ken Opner (the CIA agent, maybe). Haywood Jabuzov (a weird “bidwatcher”).
