Day 45: Arguably the best tractor ever made (~cough~ admitting to some bias here!), the 36-horse Farmall M was produced between 1939 and 1954, and at the peak of its popularity in 1952, sold for $2400. I think my dad paid substantially less for the one he drove (I believe he bought it used), and like most tractors of its time, its greatest fault was that it was hard to start. Once up and running, it was a workhorse whether pulling a hay rake or a disk harrow, but starting...well, that was another story. Even today when I am describing how I surmounted a particularly problematic issue, I may refer to having "used all my father's tractor-startin' words," and like any Marine, he had a very broad vocabulary of them. Still, if you want to talk tractors with me, don't bring up those green lawnmowers. Real tractors are red, and don't you forget it!
"Tractor startin' words..." Priceless. Gotta love the salties in our lives. I've often wished I were a creative swearer but when I have a go it's like lowering the plow and nothing turns over. Or, as my son says, "It just doesn't go with you, Dad."
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