Stubborn as a....
Molly gave everyone a bit of a scare this morning; I had gone into the shop early, to try to get caught up on some of the backlog. Around 10am, trixstir called to say that Molly was laying down, and wouldn't get up. She had been walking around when I left in the morning, but Trixstir said that she had tried to get her up, but she just kept laying there. This can be a sign of a serious problem, so I hung up the closed sign and headed back to the farm. I stopped at the Vet's office on the way out to make sure I had their emergency numbers, and to alert them that I might be needing some assistance. Of some concern was that the vet himself was out, and wasn't expected to be back until around 2pm. :/
Naturally, by the time I was almost back at the farm, Trixstir called again to say that Molly was up and walking around again. I was only about a minute away at this time, so I continued to the farm to check on everything. Molly was fine, no signs of any problems at all. It turns out that the only problem had been that she was laying down in a nice sunny spot, and simply didn't want to get up when Trixstir tried to make her move. Keep in mind that a Hinny is essentially the same thing as a Mule (just the reverse breeding) and they can be just as stubborn!
When I got back to the shop, I had some more paperwork to deal with, including signing off on the forms to get accredited with the Better Business Bureau, I also had to file an eClaim with Briggs & Stratton to replace a defective service-part; This was only the second time I've ever filed an eClaim, and the first time for a service-part (as opposed to an engine failure) so I had to call my rep for assistance. The form is pretty self-explanatory, but I wanted to be sure I had it filled out properly before hitting the SEND button.
Last week, my Kohler rep finally filled in the paperwork to get me set up as a Kohler Diesel dealer. Kohler has been making diesel engines for years, but they recently purchasde the Lambardini line in Italy, giving them access to Europe for their gasoline engines and acquiring the popular Lambardini engines to bring to North America. They've been pushing their Expert dealers to carry the diesel line, and I've been after the rep to sign me up since February. He was a little reluctant since I don't have any official diesel experience, but we fudged things through on paper. Kohler has training schools, and I intended to take one as soon as one was available.
Turns out that the courses are available a lot sooner than expected! I got an Email this afternoon saying that there were classes in August and September! The August course runs from August 21 to 23, and the September course was from the 11th to the 13th. That's only a week before Trixstir is due for Munchkin #2, so that's not an option! Besides, I want to get this training ASAP, so I signed up for the August school. The school itself is held at Kohler's plant in Kohler WI, though the hotels and such are in nearby Sheboygan WI. My plan is to fly in to Milwaulke on Monday the 20th, and fly out on Friday the 24th, renting a car for the week while I'm there. There are a number of hotels available, with the priciest one on Kohler's list beng the Holiday Inn Express, at $126.77 a night! I found a Super-8 that's actually closer to the plant at $56 a night! They've got free Wi-Fi, a fridge, a microwave, TV, and a continental breakfast. I don't need all the fancy stuff that the other places have; Super-8 has all my basic needs covered, and is far more affordable. The next trick is getting airfare to get there; I'm looking at about $700 for a round-trip, but I want to confirm that I'm actually registered in the course before shelling out that kind of money on non-refundable tickets. Trip-cancellation policies only cover things like medical emergencies, not your class getting cancelled.
So, is anyone in the Kohler / Sheboygan WI area? :)
(Setting my mood icon as "numb" as the whole business has me kinda excited, but also stressed out, resulting in a sense of "what the heck is happening?" numbness...)
Naturally, by the time I was almost back at the farm, Trixstir called again to say that Molly was up and walking around again. I was only about a minute away at this time, so I continued to the farm to check on everything. Molly was fine, no signs of any problems at all. It turns out that the only problem had been that she was laying down in a nice sunny spot, and simply didn't want to get up when Trixstir tried to make her move. Keep in mind that a Hinny is essentially the same thing as a Mule (just the reverse breeding) and they can be just as stubborn!
When I got back to the shop, I had some more paperwork to deal with, including signing off on the forms to get accredited with the Better Business Bureau, I also had to file an eClaim with Briggs & Stratton to replace a defective service-part; This was only the second time I've ever filed an eClaim, and the first time for a service-part (as opposed to an engine failure) so I had to call my rep for assistance. The form is pretty self-explanatory, but I wanted to be sure I had it filled out properly before hitting the SEND button.
Last week, my Kohler rep finally filled in the paperwork to get me set up as a Kohler Diesel dealer. Kohler has been making diesel engines for years, but they recently purchasde the Lambardini line in Italy, giving them access to Europe for their gasoline engines and acquiring the popular Lambardini engines to bring to North America. They've been pushing their Expert dealers to carry the diesel line, and I've been after the rep to sign me up since February. He was a little reluctant since I don't have any official diesel experience, but we fudged things through on paper. Kohler has training schools, and I intended to take one as soon as one was available.
Turns out that the courses are available a lot sooner than expected! I got an Email this afternoon saying that there were classes in August and September! The August course runs from August 21 to 23, and the September course was from the 11th to the 13th. That's only a week before Trixstir is due for Munchkin #2, so that's not an option! Besides, I want to get this training ASAP, so I signed up for the August school. The school itself is held at Kohler's plant in Kohler WI, though the hotels and such are in nearby Sheboygan WI. My plan is to fly in to Milwaulke on Monday the 20th, and fly out on Friday the 24th, renting a car for the week while I'm there. There are a number of hotels available, with the priciest one on Kohler's list beng the Holiday Inn Express, at $126.77 a night! I found a Super-8 that's actually closer to the plant at $56 a night! They've got free Wi-Fi, a fridge, a microwave, TV, and a continental breakfast. I don't need all the fancy stuff that the other places have; Super-8 has all my basic needs covered, and is far more affordable. The next trick is getting airfare to get there; I'm looking at about $700 for a round-trip, but I want to confirm that I'm actually registered in the course before shelling out that kind of money on non-refundable tickets. Trip-cancellation policies only cover things like medical emergencies, not your class getting cancelled.
So, is anyone in the Kohler / Sheboygan WI area? :)
(Setting my mood icon as "numb" as the whole business has me kinda excited, but also stressed out, resulting in a sense of "what the heck is happening?" numbness...)