Gold Rush - General Discussion

[walnutqueen]

Jenkins, on 21 Jan 2016 - 2:51 PM, said:

The drama definitely seems ramped up this season.

 

Yes, Disco is trying mighty hard to make us think it is a contest to see who gets the most gold, when we know damned well the only thing that counts is net profit - i.e. cost per ounce to get that gold.  Not to mention how many people have to share those net profits.

[Jenkins]

Yeah, I think it is pretty clear Turd Hoffman wins the "gold race". At least that is what editing is telling me.

 

But subtract the cost to basically have a small city living there and his net is going to be lower than Parkers, without a doubt.

[walnutqueen]

Jenkins, on 21 Jan 2016 - 4:48 PM, said:

Yeah, I think it is pretty clear Turd Hoffman wins the "gold race". At least that is what editing is telling me.

 

But subtract the cost to basically have a small city living there and his net is going to be lower than Parkers, without a doubt.

 

And Tony Beets might have them both beat, because he knows the true cost of his gold to the penny, I'll bet.

[SRTouch]

Yes, Disco is trying mighty hard to make us think it is a contest to see who gets the most gold, when we know damned well the only thing that counts is net profit - i.e. cost per ounce to get that gold.  Not to mention how many people have to share those net profits.

Totally agree, gold totals mean nothing without knowing costs - and as far as I know no one is revealing costs. My impression is Todd owns nothing (except maybe that junker of a conveyor) and is mining for percentage. His operation appears to cost, by far, the most to run. Parker's equipment seems to be mix of leased and owned, like Todd he is paying someone else to mine the land. Then we have Tony who owns the land, his equipment, has the smallest crew, and has the lowest fuel cost. Tony has a big upfront cost with the dredge, and paying to move it - but once it's pays for itself he'll be way ahead.

I'm hoping the current Parker and the new guy vs Rick and the rest of the crew is all manufactured drama. If it' real both Parker and Rick are demonstarting appalling lack of leadership/managerial skill. Parker needs to remember his foreman's job is not only to run the crew, but to act as a go between between Parker and the crew. Rick should be Parker's eyes and ears about the day to day operation, and Parker needs to listen when his foreman has concerns. Parker needs to learn to step back and let his foreman do the job. He already lost Gene at the end of last year, and he's close to losing Rick. He needs to listen to his foreman and not get into I'M THE BOSS - SO IT'S MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY! mode.

Rick needs to remember that Parker IS the boss, once Parker makes a decision it becomes Ricks job to make it work. With the new mechanic situation, Rick's childish refusal to shake the guys hand was just that, childish. To compound his error, he made it into a pissing contest with Parker. They need to sit down and decide just exactly what each of their jobs entail.

That said, if it IS real, once Parker sees the tapes of his new best bud, he needs to bury the pr1ck under a pile of tailings and apologize to the rest of the crew, if any of them are left.

[urusai]

Toad: "We've got a better team and bigger hearts."

Me:  "Yeah but Toad is still on the team so that out weighs any negative on Parker's side."

[forum4idiots]

i could care less.  both teams are arrogant pricks right now.

 

now if only kevin can do a strip tease, then this season will be saved.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Really bad continuity continues.

 

Remember how Parker said they had more pay than they could process this season?  Even with the new math of the Goldzilla, the pay on hand was already sufficient to keep it running all season.  Now, out of nowhere, less than two weeks later, they are running out of pay to keep up?  Riiiiiiiiight.

 

Is Parker truly stupid enough to face repossession of Goldzilla?  Reeeeeally?  Seems to me that here again we get more made-up tension.  Why wasn't he bitching that he could have had another 30-50 oz of gold in that clean out?   He'd essentially be tied with Toad already!  Imagine!  Not. A. Word.

 

Tony and the dredges are a farce, as well.  Just last week, he was soooo pleased.  Now, it is revealed that the silt is ruining everything.  So, we get the fix, which I actually love seeing.  It's the engineering that keeps me watching.  But, c'mon, man.  If the original design resulted in such a big loss, that just shows you 1)  How incredibly rich the pay was when they operated, and 2)  Shows one solid reason why they no longer operated.  And TB has doubled down, and has to pay for the super-expensive casting of dozens of buckets?   Add the expense of tear down, transport, and rebuild?   And there are no tracts anywhere that are rich enough to justify anything close to that investment?  Ugh.

[Mrs. P.]

I thought there was an interesting contrast between Todd and Parker shown last night. When Todd's wash plant went down, Todd's reaction was to get in his mechanic's face, yell "Fix the friggin' thing NOW!" and storm off. When faced with a problem with his equipment, Parker ran up to his mechanic and said "What can I do to help?"

Now I'm no fan of Parker and his ego, but Todd's seeming laziness and refusal to do anything requiring physical exertion drives me friggin' nuts.

[SRTouch]

I thought there was an interesting contrast between Todd and Parker shown last night. When Todd's wash plant went down, Todd's reaction was to get in his mechanic's face, yell "Fix the friggin' thing NOW!" and storm off. When faced with a problem with his equipment, Parker ran up to his mechanic and said "What can I do to help?"

Now I'm no fan of Parker and his ego, but Todd's seeming laziness and refusal to do anything requiring physical exertion drives me friggin' nuts.

Yep, Parker's redeeming quality is that he's knows how to work - a quality sadly lacking on Todd's part. I still trying to figure out Todd's redeeming quality.

I'm of the opinion that 90% of the drama is artificially created because drama makes good TV. 'Course it would be better TV with professional actors, but that's true of most all of "reality TV".

[Liberty]

... still trying to figure out Todd's redeeming quality....

 

His redeeming quality may be selling the concept of down on their luck people going to mine gold in Alaska to Discovery 6 seasons ago.

[SRTouch]

His redeeming quality may be selling the concept of down on their luck people going to mine gold in Alaska to Discovery 6 seasons ago.

LOL you've got it. His redeeming quality is salesmanship. He's been able to convince his crew to keep coming back, after repeatedly failing to succeed at mining. Somehow, he's been able to bounce back from seasons which should have bankrupted him, and convinced mine owners to let him mine. At the same time, he has a backer who keeps writing checks every year to get the newest, biggest, BESTEST equipment. Yep, his talent is being being able to sell/con people.

Is it possible that the mysterious benefactor is DISCO and the producers? Could it be that the show is not real?

No this is "REALITY TV"!!! It has to be real! Next I'll be doubting Matt, Bam and the rest of the kids were raised so far back in the bush that months would go by without them seeing anyone not named Brown. I need to stop thinking and turn on the TV!

Edited January 23, 2016 by SRTouch

[clod]

 Next I'll be doubting Matt, Bam and the rest of the kids were raised so far back in the bush that months would go by without them seeing anyone not named Brown.

 

 

and apparently lose track of what state they were living in.    :)

Edited January 23, 2016 by clod

[oakLeaf]

This show isn't even trying to make sense. Everything is so scripted.

 

Example:

Toad is building his million dollar mountain because he no longer needs all those trucks and excavators to strip overburden. His tailing stacker breaks down (wtf kind of design using plastic for that? but I digress). Shut down the wash plant for a day (when there is a mountain of pay that probably cannot be processed in time sitting there).

 

How about putting one of the loaders and trucks on tailing duty? Move the stacker over to the side so Juan (how did Toad end up with someone as competent as Juan?) can fix the stack and clear the tailings manually instead of continuing to pile up pay that cannot be processed? Don't lose a day of sluicing when the problem is solvable.

 

The amount of equipment (and number of people) Toad is using is truly staggering this season. If he actually had to cover his costs with his gold (instead of Disco funding whatever the folk paying to have their equipment advertised doesn't), a 10,000 ounce season would not be enough.

 

The only reasons I continue to watch this show are:

- I like watching Tony work with Gene

- I like Grandpa John

- I like Chris and his eternal cigar

- I like to make fun of Toad

 

but the last reason is starting to be less enjoyable because I only make the same jokes about how he doesn't do anything but pray, watch other people work, make stupid goals and wagers, and screw things up. I need new material.

[HalcyonDays]

Episode synopsis: The sons of the Klondike return for more gold digging; the Hoffmans try to rebuild their reputation; Parker could be on borrowed time; the Beets family may rise again.

[AndreaK1041]

I think this is the synopsis for next week?

I did not understand from this week why Parker would pre-pay royalties. There is no upside. What am I missing?

[ranchgirl]

I think Parker did that as motivation for himself and his crew.  Or the producers told him too.  Haha. 

Not much going on in this episode.  I found myself just wanting to hear about the weeks clean out. 

Good thing Todd's guy decided to open up that new area. 

 

Most interesting part was the preview for next week. 

[walnutqueen]

AndreaK1041, on 29 Jan 2016 - 10:03 PM, said:

I think this is the synopsis for next week?

 

Yes, thetvdb.com has next week's episode description as "The sons of the Klondike return for more gold digging", so they are not exactly on top of things.

 

Uverse has this synopsis for last night's episode:

 

Quote

"Dead Even"   2016.01.29

Parker processes bedrock material in an effort to surpass his competition; Todd takes an venturesome chance on another cut; the situation takes a turn for the worse when Monica and Kevin find themselves in command of their father's dredge.

 

Parker was showboating when he prepaid his royalties - even Tony Beets thought it was a dumb move.  But he has to hype his 3,000 ounce goal somehow, to keep the "rivalry with Todd/King of the Klondike" myth alive.

[Meliss]

If Parker keeps this up, this show won't have enough likeable characters to keep viewership. You have to have villians & heroes!

At this point I like Mitch, the guy with the cigar, guy who keeps finding good dirt for Todd, Dave, & the Beets kids.

Edited January 31, 2016 by Meliss

[SRTouch]

If Parker keeps this up, this show won't have enough likeable characters to keep viewership. You have to have villians & heroes!

At this point I like Mitch, the guy with the cigar, guy who keeps finding good dirt for Todd, Dave, & the Beets kids.

Over on the Hoffman crew I'd add Thurber and Freddy Dodge, but we hardly ever see them.

[Liberty]

Over on the Hoffman crew I'd add Thurber and Freddy Dodge, but we hardly ever see them.

 

Now that you mention Freddy Dodge, wonder how his venture with his brother & sister-in-law worked out last season.

 

The Dakota Boys were supposed to have a show, "All That Glitters", but never heard anything about it other than Fred talking about it.

 

Strangely don't miss the hot-headed Greg Remsburg who left Todd for Parker.

 

Just read on Starcasm that Todd has made a presidential primary endorsement and is working on another reality show about "preppers".  Yeah, all his loyal followers can vote his way and see how much food he stores for doomsday.

 

The show was pretty cool back in season 1 when a handful of down-on-their-luck misfits got together and drove a rag-tag caravan to Porcupine Creek. 

Edited February 1, 2016 by Liberty

[Rock knocker]

 

 

 

Just read on Starcasm that Todd has made a presidential primary endorsement 

 

Todd apparently introduced himself to Ted Cruz as "Hi, I'm Tod from the TV show Gold Rush", and Ted had no idea what or who that was.  Todd is now concerned that Mr Cruz might be out of touch with the common man.

 

Weird metric there.

[SRTouch]

Now that you mention Freddy Dodge, wonder how his venture with his brother & sister-in-law worked out last season.

The Dakota Boys were supposed to have a show, "All That Glitters", but never heard anything about it other than Fred talking about it.

I think the problem with the Dodge brothers was the same as the Dakota Boys. They were more interested in mining than making nice with the film crew. Really too bad we don't see them, as they brought some credibility to the show. The other thing, I guess, is that DISC likes to show the large crews with the biggest machinery, and the Dodge/Dakota operations weren't grand enough.

The show was pretty cool back in season 1 when a handful of down-on-their-luck misfits got together and drove a rag-tag caravan to Porcupine Creek.

What I remember most about the first season is how utterly clueless the Hoffman crew was - no one on the crew knew anything about mining. Parker made his first appearance on the show as a kid when he came over from Grandpa's mine to so the Hoffman how to set up their washplant. Then the mine owner brought in Dakota Fred to try to show them how to mine. At the end of the season, the Hoffman were utter failures at mining - but had a successful TV "reality" show. Edited February 1, 2016 by SRTouch

[HalcyonDays]

Episode synopsis: The sons of the Klondike return for more gold digging.

 

[HalcyonDays]

Episode synopsis: TBD

 

[HalcyonDays]

Episode synopsis: As winter closes in, the race for gold intensifies. Todd runs two washplants. Tony tries to get his dredge out of the water before it freezes. Grandpa John checks in on Parker.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

The TV stunt of giving TB an early payment is a big fat nothing.  Parker ain't going nowhere next year, so even if the pay he is processing went bad all of a sudden, he'd still owe TB that money next year.  Interest rates are basically zero now, anyway.  

 

The big, huge, WTF????!!!!! was Parker freely choosing to process the bedrock itself with soooooo much easy pay yet to grab.  Remember how he refused TB's demand that he "lick the bowl clean" in his first season with him?  Why on earth would Parker choose to risk Goldzilla with the jagged rocks?  Watch now as the rocks supposedly yield the same large amounts of gold the dirt had been.  Unpossible.  

 

Then again...did you see them throwing any of the bedrock Parker and Rick were grabbing into Goldzilla?  I didn't.  Hmmmm.

 

The dredge continues to make zero sense.  The pay is brought to it every bit as much as though it were a basic processor.  And TB (actually Disco) is doubling down?

Edited February 1, 2016 by Lonesome Rhodes

[oakLeaf]

I decided to count instances of Toad being useful this episode:

Number of scenes with Toad: 5

Number of scenes of Toad actually doing work and not just standing/sitting there: 0

[Liberty]

I like this forum better than I like the show.

[walnutqueen]

oakLeaf, on 01 Feb 2016 - 10:41 PM, said:

I decided to count instances of Toad being useful this episode:

Number of scenes with Toad: 5

Number of scenes of Toad actually doing work and not just standing/sitting there: 0

 

I think you'd get the same results if you tried to find any scenes of Todd actually doing work from all the seasons of this show.

[oakLeaf]

Yeah, but this was the first one that I actually decided to officially count. Might turn it into a drinking game.

Edited February 5, 2016 by oakLeaf

[forum4idiots]

Confused here.  Parker's crew bitching about how much time they lost when the washplant broke......why?  did they stop hauling paydirt when that happened?  why didn't they just keep hauling paydirt and pile it on next to the washplant as they fix it if the only issue with it the last few years was because of permafrost?   had they kept of hauling the dirl an dpiled it on as they fix it, they could have gotten as much paydirt off the ground and next to the plant before frost sets in again and have continued to run that if frost sets in after the season...they would at least have thawed paydirt that can be ran later.

 

with all this focus on beating each other, makes you wonder if discovery put a bounty on the top gold producer this year just to make the season interesting plot wise.

Edited February 6, 2016 by lovebug1975

[Lonesome Rhodes]

What BS.  They all just stopped working when Mitch was welding?  There was a new road to be built to the new cut and as lovebug1975 points out, they could have been running Fantasyland pay to Goldzilla.   And, for the umpteenth time...we were told there was no way Parker could possibly have processed all the pay in the Boundary Cut he carved out this season.  He haaaaaaad to get Goldzilla because there was unending pay and he didn't want to have to have it just sit there unprocessed when winter came.  Farce.

 

OK.  So...Parker has to shut it all down, all hands on deck to build out a road and re-establish Goldzilla to the new site.  Ruh roh.  Toad will have more time to pad his lead!  Oh nooooooooooooo!  Call the RCMP!

 

Wanna take up a pool as to when the motor on the dredge fails due to overstressing?

[Meliss]

Oakleaf

Are you saying you would drink every time he is just standing there--otherwise there's not much drinking!

Over on the Hoffman crew I'd add Thurber and Freddy Dodge, but we hardly ever see them.

Thurber is okay - seems pretty genuine, his only fault is following Toad.

And yes--Freddie Dodge is awesome, I forgot about him!

[Meliss]

Not sure if this has been brought up before but the gold count should subtract expenses otherwise it means nothing. Clearly Toad has spent more money on crew & equipment.

[SRTouch]

Not sure if this has been brought up before but the gold count should subtract expenses otherwise it means nothing. Clearly Toad has spent more money on crew & equipment.

I think anyone who thinks about it will agree the weekly gold competition is meaningless. First off, when they tell us the weight, they never bother to tell us how much processed gold they're getting per ounce. Like you said, when you compare cost of equipment and crew, Hoffman crew costs have to be a lot more than others - hell, if Tony sent Todd the whole dredge crew there wouldn't be enough people to drive all Todd's rock trucks. As for equipment costs - I don't know enough to say how much Todd's equpment would cost if he were actually buying it, but it wouldn't surprise me to learn it cost more than Tony's dredge. Same with fuel - cost of fuel to run Hoffman camp/small town could probably pay dredge fuel cost. I suspect that even if Todd makes his goal, Tony will still come out ahead profit wise, especially after you add in his cut of Parker's operation.

Bottom line is, I view Tony as a miner who is playing at being on TV. Meanwhile DSC and Parker are paying for his hobby dredge. I think Todd and crew are reality TV personalities who pretend to be miners. And Parker is somewhere in the middle.

[Liberty]

Nice to see one of the "Kings of the Klondike" actually compliment an employee.  Tony spent some time appreciating Gene.

 

Think Parker is missing Gene?  Does not seem like Parker's "Management style" has changed since he drove Gene off last season.

 

So is it really that difficult to estimate how many ounces of gold are in a mason jar?  I would have thought that after weeks and years of being around gold they would be able to guess 'about 30 oz'.  Getting really tired of the weigh in that are drug out to heighten the excitement, the show could focus on the operational aspects of the show and be much more interesting.

[SRTouch]

Nice to see one of the "Kings of the Klondike" actually compliment an employee.  Tony spent some time appreciating Gene.

 

Think Parker is missing Gene?  Does not seem like Parker's "Management style" has changed since he drove Gene off last season.

You're right, the big difference between Parker's style when dealing with Gene and Rick, is that now he probably does have more mining experience than his foreman. Gene has probably forgotten more about mining than Parker and Rick combined. I don't particularly like Tony, but at least he listens to his foreman. The biggest disagreements between Gene and Tony have come about because Tony wants the dredge to be as close as possible to "the way they used to do it", while Gene wants to add modern methods and make the dredge as profitable as possible. I really think the dredge is Tony's hobby that he hopes to make profitable as much as a part of his business.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

I remember the end of last season when Tony and the fam sat  with Christo and were all chatty about how they were on their way home to the Netherlands.  I thought to myself Disco was gonna pay for it and it would be used.  DIng! DIng! Ding!

 

I loved it.  As fake as Gold Rush has become, is there any doubting how scared he and Minnie were as newlyweds?  Or how freaking hard they had to work, with ZERO assurances of wealth?  I do doubt that he went from not there, to truly running Tamarack inside of two years, but I do not doubt that he busted his ass and that he demonstrated great ability from Day One.

 

It was most interesting to learn about Tony's instinctive love of dredges.  He's cray cray when it comes to this, unless of course Disco is actually indemnifying "his" losses, nonetheless.

Edited February 13, 2016 by Lonesome Rhodes

[walnutqueen]

I love watching Tony and Minnie together - they make a great team.  It is nice seeing them enjoying life during their down time, too.

[forum4idiots]

this was kind of sad.

 

so tony inadvertantly killed his father.  that is quite a mind fuck on a 15 year old.

 

and the child they lost.  extra chromosome......so down syndrome perhaps? 

[Rock knocker]

Toad finds one nugget and is ready to pack the whole show off to 200 acres in Oregon because he needs to fins a new site for next year so people have a job.  Problem is, his crew is so big they can't all even stand on twoo hundred acres at the same time.

 

Have fun in Oregon Todd, I'm thinking the water useage and discharge laws are a little different then in the Yukon.

[forum4idiots]

Wow.  Todd is an idiot.  Hey, Todd, I got a claim to sell you.

 

So let me get this straight.....these guys were heavily marketing it and it just opened for lease.....hmmmmm.  One red flag, they are marketing it.  Understandable but still.

 

Second......no overburden, at all, as the "marketers" claim........Really?  No overburden. Hmmm.  So it could be a blessing, OR, MAYBE, it was already mined and you are basically gonna mine scraps.

 

Third.....the owners conveniently have "I have something to show you" nuggets ready to show you.  WOW.  Look at all those jewelry class nuggels that they show prospectors.........BIG RED FLAG.

 

Fourth....the one "dirty nugget" they found (ON LAND WITH NO OVERBURDEN), just happen to be on this "discovered" on land easily detected by a metal detector and as stated by one of Todd's own men, NOT VERY DEEP.......BIG RED FLAG.  If I was gonna market something for someone to lease really fast, Why not make it appealing by scattering a few "gold rocks" across the ground near the designated "meeting place" and get them all excited like dumbass TODD.  See how giddy he got and was already willing to sign the lease because of that......PURE STUPIDITY.  Thank goodness that other guy stopped him on his tracks. 

 

WOW.  JUST WOW.  Lazy fucker.  Ready to sign the lease on his first venture without any real due diligence.  Too good to be true?  Probably.  This may or may not be a gold rich place, but the way Todd went about it is just too funny.  A freaking 8 year old can convince Todd to sign a lease cause he has the mental capacity of a 5 year old.

 

-------------------------------------------

 

Ugh, Parker.

 

Where did he go while his crew move the goldzilla?  The guy who irresponsibly paid the royalties up front and recklessly put a 3000 ounce goal and was barking "we're running out of time" cause of winter coming.......leaves. 

 

Hey, Parker.....how about......while the crew move goldzilla, you make your ass useful and strip some paydirt an dpile it next to the future destination of goldzilla.  You keep bitching about needing to beat winter and how you need more gold.  Guess what, you lost about 6 hours of opportunity when the crew was moving the equipment...you could have been moving dirt.  Loose dirt can be easily ran through goldzilla through the winter......But instead, you decided to disappear and when you come back, you bitch, bitch, bitch.  You are becoming quite the new Todd.  When you fuck up, you blame everyone else.

 

Mitch.....you are a good man and a cutie.  You da man.

Edited February 20, 2016 by lovebug1975

[Liberty]

So Parker says he does something stupid and smiles, as if to say "I'm cute, so I can do stupid things".  He used to be a Gold Rush Crush, but now he is getting an undesirable edit.

 

The Hoffman crew takes Dave, Toad, Jack, Andy and Freddie to Oregon!!  (Or maybe it did not really happen during the Yukon Season).  Who's running the mine?  Without Toad on site how are things getting named in the Yukon.  Toad did take time to name Freddie's smaller wash-plant as it was being hauled to the Oregon site.

 

Rock Knocker and Lovebug's points are great.  200 acres is not very big.  I like the forum members here more than I like the show, unfortunately the show is getting so bad forum members are falling by the wayside.

 

I cannot really figure what audience this show is aimed at.  If it's children, they should not even show the swearing, and if it's adults they should not be insulting their intelligence.

Edited February 22, 2016 by Liberty

[Mrs. P.]

My DVR cut off early so we didn't see the ending. Did Freddie's test run in Oregon produce good gold?

[Liberty]

My DVR cut off early so we didn't see the ending. Did Freddie's test run in Oregon produce good gold?

 

If I recall correctly it was better than what they are finding in the Yukon on a per yard basis.

[Rock knocker]

I think it was about 1 1/2 ounces per 100 yds

[Rock knocker]

I hope that moving Fort Knox was either easier than it looked or the owners got a boat load of money.  

[Jenkins]

So now Todd is going to have two massive wash plants running.

 

And of course if he "beats" Parker, he will brag like it is an actual accomplishment.

 

Seriously, his profits must be TINY.

 

Massive workforce. Tons of equipment. Two wash plants, one of which he has to pay a portion of the gold they find to the owner.

 

He would have to beat Parker by over 1k ounces for me to be even remotely impressed...

 

I know if next season is all about Todd and Oregon, I am probably done with the series. I just don't even like the guys face on my TV.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Well, at least we finally got a wee taste of just how seriously Canada takes the environmental impacts of mining.  Why weren't we shown the special baffling and channeling Parker and his crew fashioned in the channel they dug?  Also...it's not just about the channel.  It;s about the effect on the existing creek to which the water is being diverted.  No impact statement required?  Riiiiiight.

 

I LOVE otters.  They are my favorite species of animaI.   hope they liked the new set-up.   

 

Hmmm.  I guess Parker won't have to beg Tony for a rebate, eh?  Too funny.  Didja notice how Disco narrations never mention that Parker won't net anything near the $3 million they keep harping on?  Tony has what, $500K + of it?

 

I knew there was a giant Disco rat at play when Tony so easily agreed with Gene and called it a season, ordering the winterizing of the dredge.  Ta dah!  Here comes Mighty Mouse to save the day!  Er, I got my mouse names mixed up.  Here comes Minnie to save the day!  Yay!   

 

It took FOUR hours to run a cable directly to the generator?  

 

Finally...the whole should we stay or should we go deal with Parker's crew.  Unless they are getting a piece of each cleanout, or a heckuva salary bump, why on earth would they choose to stay, given a choice?   Of course, you know they did.  There's no particular urgency to mining the old creek bed, either.  It'll thaw quickly next Spring.   It ain't gonna be a creek again, either.

[ranchgirl]

Grandpa John may have made a tear appear in my eye.  Parker is a very fortunate young man to get to hear words like his grandfather said to him so young in his life.