[AT] OT: Flashback - Early Farmers Building County Roads

[charlie hill]

Len,

Gravel in the road only goes down when you don't want it too.  Otherwise it 
comes up.  The driveway to my house is sand and that's just fine with me. 
It is very good quality sand like is used to build road beds.  It drains 
well and only needs occasional attention.
I grew up on a sand hill and I like the stuff.  I like to walk barefoot in 
it in the summer.

Well, about 15 years ago I added some drain field to my septic system.  I 
had a little bit of septic tank rock, maybe 500 #'s left over.   Like a 
dummy  I decided to spread it in the driveway.   I've been trying to get rid 
of it ever since.  It doesn't do a bit of good because it is spread at a 
rate of about 2 rocks per square foot.  It won't sink in the ground.  I 
can't grade it up into one location so I can get rid of it.  It just lays 
there and when I decide to walk barefooted to the mail box I hit one of 
those rocks about every third step.   Stone bruises didn't slow me down much 
at 9 or 15 but at 55 they are starting to bother me.

Charlie
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Len Rugen" <rugenl at yahoo.com>
To: "Antique tractor email discussion group" <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
Sent: Friday, January 27, 2006 1:38 PM
Subject: Re: [AT] OT: Flashback - Early Farmers Building County Roads


> The road back to the farm where I grew up and Dad lived until about 6 
> years ago used to be a "major" thru road, but it went through some low 
> river ground.  I guess this was OK in horse days and when there were 
> houses along the road, but since about the time of the rubber tire, the 
> center section was abandoned.  The county somewhat maintains the ends, but 
> it gets less and less each year.
>
> Dad was an antognist and made enemies with the county, so there hasn't 
> been any gravel on our end for about 15 years.  After he moved away, I 
> tried to mend things a little, they were nice but said since nobody lives 
> back there, they won't gravel it now.
>
> Several years ago, I borrowed a pull-type road grader, replaced the wooden 
> tounge and generally made it usable again.  I worked on the road, then 
> returned the grader to the neighbor who promptly sold it to an antique 
> buyer.  Oh well...
>
> I now just use the tractor blade, but it won't do as good of a job.  I 
> can't really afford to gravel a mile of county road, then put half as much 
> around my buildings and lanes.  One without the other is useless, so I 
> just live with it like we always have.  If it's reall bad, in the spring 
> the first pass down the road is with the disc, then blade to level out the 
> ruts.
>
> I think it was the world's worst farmer 
> (http://www.worldsworstfarmer.com/), who lives near here that asked why 
> rocks in the garden come up but gravel in the road goes down.
>
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