This is Charlie loaded onto the truck ready to go back tomorrow morning. And why is the bonnet of the truck open? Not because we’ve been checking the oil/ screen washer etc. we did all that first thing this morning. No- it is open because having run without trouble for months the truck has suddenly decided at this incredibly inconvenient moment to throw a wobbly. I could see Jeff listening intently as he backed the truck in. Then he shouted something which I couldn’t hear, then he got out of the truck and opened the bonnet and peered inside. Then he reached in and found the fan belt was extremely loose, got a light, disappeared under the truck, came out and reported that the gas strut which keeps the tension on the fan belt was detached from its fixing. So, a  phone call to Charlie’s owners who have been, through all the delays (Charlie was due back home a number of weeks ago) extremely fore-bearing for which we are very grateful, to say that if we can get the truck repaired by a sensible time tomorrow then they will see Charlie tomorrow otherwise it will be next week. I’m pretty cross about it not least because its one more job for Jeff who already has more than enough to do.

He’s got Horrace’s engine running today… doesn’t sound absolutely brilliant but Horrace only has to be able to do a short run at the end of the month for a very special occasion and should manage that all right.

The parts department is having a reshuffle to make more shelf space available. Dave S. is really good at organising parts and parts areas and has been working towards this move round for some time. Jeff felt that the organisation of parts by numbers meant a confusing mix of parts and demanded that new parts were grouped together according to the part of the tractor. Dave and I started off thinking that it was recipe for disiater but actually it makes a lot of sense and now we can walk straight up to the relevant shelf and find the required part easily (apologies for doubting you, Jeff!)  (I should know by now that his ideas are almost always pretty sensible!)

I will have a no alcohol / early to bed night tonight anyway in the hopes of its being possible to drive Charlie back tomorrow as planned, even if setting off a bit later than I prefer to do.