May 26, 2025

Happy Memorial Day, America!!! 🇺🇸

Memorial Day's primary purpose is to mourn and honor the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. It's a day for reflection and remembrance of their service and sacrifice. It’s always important to remember that if you want to thank a soldier, be the kind of American worth fighting for! ❤️ This day is about connection. As a small business, BFR wants to express gratitude and honor to all veterans for their ultimate sacrifice. It’s a small businesses job to demonstrate authenticity by giving back to the true American heroes. It’s a time to celebrate community values. It’s through our customers that we enhance our businesses goodwill and drive engagement to increase sales through authentic connection by offering Veterans a discount on services all year long!

*Fair Warning: If you don’t like novels, move along from the BFR content. 😉 Blogs, posts and even messages or emails are meant to be long and informative showcasing education levels. Some are brave enough to admit they can’t read with their “I’m not reading your novel” comments. 😂

A personal note from BFR this Memorial Day:

Never forget that supporting American businesses is a way to honor American soldiers, particularly through economic support, community engagement, and recognizing veterans' contributions. By choosing American products and services, you're investing in a nation's economy that benefits all citizens. 

BFR is on top of the “American Made” game. While it’s nearly impossible to source every single desired product as “made in the USA” in the modern world, it’s possible to source many big ticket items. American made brands that BFR supports are vehicles manufactured in Texas, Michigan and Indiana plants, a built and assembled in USA carport plus a couple of buildings, a Hustler boat trailer manufactured in Rocky Top, Tennessee, a Sylvan pontoon manufactured from New Paris, Indiana since 1948 with a Johnson motor built in USA, if built before 2001 as Canadian Bombardier bought them out and switched to Evinrude in 2007, then discontinued in 2020 (that’s what they get for their betrayal), to a Cub Cadet lawn mower that started production in 1960 in a shed on Gloria Drive in Louisville, Kentucky to a Freedom brand home that was manufactured in Maryville, Tennessee filled with Whirlpool ONLY American made appliances founded in Benton Harbor, Michigan, USA in 1911. 😉 Just recently, BFR added a complete diamond stitched Lane Furniture set to their USA home collection kicking the “Aaron’s Vietnam special” out the door. The difference was noticeable as the old furniture had only one thing going for it and that was the microfiber, easy to clean and hide stains. The old one already had a broken latch on one recliner and was cheaply built as the wood didn’t stay together properly. The high quality of Lane Furniture is noticeable with firmness as the loveseat is not only a recliner, but a rocking loveseat. The back even comes completely apart in separate pieces to go into a door easier. Unfortunately, Lane Furniture discontinued production in 2022 but brand new pieces can still be found. Special thanks to a BFR customer who owns a consignment shop for this amazing deal! Both of Mrs. BFR’s parents made a living in the furniture industry so top notch furniture is a must and this purchase will make them proud by taking on the same values of quality furniture taught from childhood. 😉 Sadly, the furniture industry was hit hard by the US government allowing offshore competition into our country. “It happened so quickly. In just 10 years, between 1999 and 2009, North Carolina's furniture manufacturing industry lost more than half of its jobs. The chief culprit was increased competition from lower-cost furniture imported from Asia — mostly China.” Read more about the rise and fall of NC furniture making here:

https://www.richmondfed.org/publications/research/econ_focus/2020/q4/economic_history

This article explains how the NC economy boomed from 1890 all through the depression and survived on furniture making until the government stepped in and allowed global trade. The automotive market is under the same turmoil, yet so many Americans are oblivious to their choices. It’s comical to hear Americans say Toyota, Nissan and Honda have been made in the USA since the 1950’s or Kia since the ‘90’s. 😂😂😂 Honda’s main headquarters is STILL in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and Toyota is STILL headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. That’s where they originated from. No wonder the modern world has gender identity issues, there has been all kinds of identity issues going on since the ‘50’s, like saying an automotive company that originated in Japan and came to America, is “Made in America”.  🤡 That just means a Japanese company went global. It’s still a Japanese product and idea. 😂 You can‘t fix the stupid that the government has pushed onto American citizens. Here at BFR, we draw the line as true Americans and support companies built right here on American soil. We would rather see our own make it global than to see other countries make it here. F&$@ foreign trade. America doesn’t need it. 💯

Today, as an American ask yourself if you are doing these honorable veterans a favor by supporting American made products as much as possible or a disservice by supporting the American wannabe‘s products. 💯🇺🇸

Today is World Thyroid Day!

National Thyroid Day is observed globally on May 25th each year. This day is dedicated to raising awareness about thyroid health, promoting early detection and treatment of thyroid disorders, and educating the public about the importance of thyroid function.

The purpose of National Thyroid Day is: 

• To increase knowledge about thyroid diseases, such as hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. 
• To encourage regular thyroid screenings and checkups. 
• To promote healthy lifestyle habits that support thyroid health.
• To reduce the stigma associated with thyroid disorders. 

By observing National Thyroid Day, we can empower individuals to take care of their thyroid health and prevent potential complications, such as diabetes. Approximately one in eight women will develop a thyroid disorder during their lifetime, according to the American Thyroid Association. Women are also five to eight times more likely than men to have thyroid problems. The images above explain the disease symptoms in depth. One can simply listen to their body for clues of symptoms.

A note from BFR:

When faced with challenges, such as a thyroid disease, bad eating habits are the main trigger. Anyone who enjoys cooking, like BFR, would be offended if family wanted to go out to eat. Eating out is for special occasions only, when there’s a true cook in the house because cooking skills and talent just can’t go to waste. 😂 Admittedly, some restaurants are hard to avoid, such as BFR’s favorites of Pete’s Burgers, Mayflower, Hardee’s, Bojangles or O’Dells (all the way in Mt. Airy) but the BFR team used to pride themselves in preparing copycat dinners from all types of restaurants for a fraction of the cost all these years. Seriously, it’s 2025, the internet can be very resourceful. Any food from any restaurant has a copycat recipe online and people pay ridiculous prices to eat out. Some don’t even trust other humans but will trust a stranger to prepare their food… you can’t make it make sense. 🤮 Take a McDonald’s Big Mac, Sausage McMuffin or Steak, Egg and Cheese Bagel… That’s all super easy to recreate with all the copycat recipes floating around! Take the now discontinued McDonald’s parfaits… the recipe is simple. It’s Dannon light & fit original vanilla yogurt, frozen blueberries and strawberries in the middle, topped with Nature Valley oats & honey protein granola. It tastes just like it! There’s even a bag of chicken that can be purchased at Aldi’s that tastes like Chick-fil-a! It’s all enjoyable until life humbles a person through a health diagnosis, then it’s time to regroup. The problem is 99% of restaurant foods are highly processed, loaded with sodium and added sugars, none of which are a healthy part of a human diet. Sadly, the American diet is widely recognized for contributing to high rates of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. If one is socially aware, obesity is clearly on the rise in the USA for many people and everybody knows the government is against its own people so self-help and a strong willpower is pretty much the only source of healthy diet changes. Eating what’s healthy really matters. It tends to be difficult for children to adapt to this change but their health and future depend on it. Equip them to survive challenges and they’ll thrive. The BFR team has embarked on this new journey and are already seeing positive results. It’s important to get tested if thyroid issues are suspected. CVS Minute Clinic can schedule an appointment on the CVS app specifically to screen for thyroid TSH levels and blood glucose levels. It’s cheaper than a doctor and the results will show in the app, along with what normal levels should be so one can compare the results for themselves.

Here’s a list of healthy foods that can aid in the reversal of life threatening health diseases and disorders:

• Only purchase lean meats: minimum of 95% lean, 5% fat hamburger, protein packed chicken and tuna, lean ham and steak (any meat high in protein and fiber).
• Go big on fruits, vegetables and eggs as sides for plenty of water, protein and natural sugar intake. All canned or frozen vegetables are beneficial. Choose no salt added or low sodium varieties on vegetables.
• Drink at least 4 bottles of water per day (not just any kind of water, store brand has sodium bicarbonate added, which is salt that makes you more thirsty. Brands like Deer Park are 💯% natural spring water).
• Eat healthy fats like olive oil, avocados, nuts and seeds.
• Hummus and salsa varieties are good for dipping vegetables or to aid in daily high protein and fiber content. Natural peanut butter is also high in protein, fats and fiber. Avoid JIF & Peter Pan due to added sugars. (Carrots and Mediterranean hummus are 🔥).
• Most seasonings are great from cinnamon to onion powder, garlic powder and even black pepper is ok. If salt is craved, a brand called “No Salt original salt alternative” is a better option.
• Add lettuce, peppers, protein packed pinto or black beans and onions to chicken or hamburger for help with feeling full. 
• Avoid white bread and cereals at all costs due to its added sugar. Whole wheat bread is the way to go. “Bimbo Wheat” is a good substitute (only available at Walmart and it’s scarce. BFR travels to Martinsville to score this bread. Another alternative is “Sara Lee Delightful Soft & Smooth Wheat”). Eating burgers is best with reduced fat cheese, lettuce and onions with no bread or condiments.
• Throw all dressings and condiments out the door. They are all baaaad. 😭 Choose light and fat free varieties. Mayonnaise lovers can transfer to “Duke’s light with olive oil” for 1/2 the fat and calories of the original.
• Yogurt eaters avoid added sugar. Go with “zero sugar”, “non fat” protein packed varieties.
• Coffee drinkers and soda drinkers: Coffee is healthy on its own. For creamer, go with “zero sugar” varieties. If sugar is needed, Splenda or Equal are the alternatives. Soda drinkers can opt for diet but only in moderation of 1-2 cans per day.

Tips:

• Basically, only shop the outskirts of any grocery store for healthy food. If shopping in the middle, look for “no salt/sugar added”, “low sodium” or “sugar free” varieties. 
• Research and follow the way a diabetic would eat for a healthier eating lifestyle free from health issues.
• Always read labels: avoid any foods with high sodium or added sugars and fats.
• Keep track of sodium intake (2000 mg sodium daily limit).
• Eat everything in moderation. One can still have that favorite Rice Krispies treat or oatmeal cookie once a week if wanted and on a self disciplined routine. 
• Aiming for a life free of greedy doctors and dependent upon unnecessary pharmaceutical medicine creates a higher quality of life.

When sourcing a forklift repair company to repair your forklift, demonstrating integrity is a business dynamic that would be required if BFR had the choice.

Obtaining the correct replacement parts is vital for business success. For this particular repair, it involved a set of brake shoes. Upon inspection of the brake shoes, the picture demonstrates the issue of an incorrect part. This issue took a broader team to solve. Initially, it was thought that this was a reconstructed data plate issue due to its age. However, after a few back and forth conversations and some research from the parts supplier, it was determined that the brake shoes were incorrect in the system for the year of this forklift. The BFR team discovered that the brake shoes on this model of forklift come in 2 different sizes depending on the year. Any forklift produced prior to 2004 had a different brake shoe design than a forklift of this model made after 2004. This forklift is a 2003 so the parts supplier was able to track down the correct set of brake shoes for BFR at no extra charge.
With that said, this issue exposes what other forklift repair companies could potentially be doing to incorrect forklift brake shoes. It doesn’t seem possible that BFR was the first business to order these brake shoes for this particular forklift. It makes you wonder if other technicians are modifying them to make them work? The correct size and shape brake shoes are critical for proper friction and braking power as they are specifically designed to fit within the brake drum or caliper. Either way, this part was sent back and the correct brake shoes were put on this forklift. BFR also appropriately compensated the customer on the unnecessary extra downtime by offering a maintenance service free of charge.
Call BFR today if you want your forklift repaired with the correct parts! 💯

Happy Mother’s Day to ALL of BFR’s customers and their mothers!!! ❤️

Mothers contribute significantly to the economy as workers, entrepreneurs, and consumers. They are a vital part of the workforce, and their economic activity drives various industries. Mothers often influence purchasing decisions for their families, impacting businesses that cater to children and households. Mothers play a crucial role in raising children and caring for their families, which indirectly supports economic growth by fostering a healthy and productive workforce. Mothers' influence extends beyond the household and into the broader community, impacting education, healthcare, and social policies.

Today is a day to celebrate:

• Every known mom walking among us or in Heaven
• Blessed girl only moms
• Blessed boy only moms
• Beyond blessed moms of both genders
• Single moms
• Aspiring moms
• Foster moms
• New moms
• IVF moms
• Grieving child loss moms
• Bonus moms
• Self sabotaging moms who made amends to their children at any point in their life

Every single mother ROCKS this planet!!!

Mom’s are the spirit of the home so they usually have what it takes to get things done with thoughtful and teachable traditions. A mother’s job is to teach, nurture and train children in the way they should go. Some of the traditions that have been passed on for 3 generations now in the BFR household include:

• The hobby of hunting and collecting lucky 🍀 clovers.
• The discovering and collecting of heart shaped artifacts in nature such as collecting heart shaped rocks, noticing heart shaped clouds or anything in nature that resembles a heart as a gentle reminder that God always loves us. 
• Establishing a “no secrets, only surprises" family philosophy emphasizing open communication and trust, encouraging children to share everything, including potentially difficult things, rather than keeping them hidden. This philosophy helps children understand the difference between a positive surprise (something to be shared and enjoyed) and a harmful secret (something meant to be hidden, often to exclude or harm). Teach children to RUN far away from anyone who even mentions the word “secret” as it has destroyed families for centuries.
• Teaching the “No Bullying” family policy at a very youthful age. Using unkind words to label someone’s appearance, such as calling someone “ugly”, can have a lifetime impact on others. Teach children that using unkind words is not being self conscious and impacts a whole entire generation of genes. Use common sense in that when a person is called “ugly”, their whole family of the same DNA is also being called “ugly”. It is completely dishonest, unacceptable and abnormal.

On a more personal note, the BFR team traditionally celebrates Mother’s Day. Brad has unfortunately lost his mother in 2012 (say a prayer for him🙏) while Mrs. BFR’s parents are in their 50’s/60’s, so time is essential. Additionally, Mrs. BFR is truly blessed to have a small crew behind her. The BFR children are familiar with their mom and can sure bring the “onion eyes” to the table. Leave it to the oldest child to go in the woods to pluck a random Rose bush to gift a thoughtful “Rose bowl” with a yummy chocolate Truffle. The middle child, bless her heart that God made her a copy and paste of her mother, purchased the wrong wording on a card, made one from scratch with such thoughtful and tear jerking words with some nail polish of a beautiful sparkling color and the youngest gifted a card with a candle in Mrs. BFR’s favorite smell. Brad gifted flowers and a Mother’s Day balloon as he is the King of gift giving. Here’s to the celebration of all Mom’s on Mother’s Day 2025 and may all Mom’s win the lottery and be classified as “cool” by a teenager. 😉💯

“Strength and honor are her clothing; she is confident about the future.”

PROVERBS 31:25

#HappyMothersDayFromBFR

AI tends to get heated with hate due to the misrepresentation and manipulation of reality concerning visual media such as photos and videos. It has associated risks with the potential for misuse as a downfall. There are also arguments that express the potential of devaluing human creativity by replacing human imagination with AI-generated content.

BFR likes to analyze everything from all possible perspectives and has discovered a way that AI is useful in ”AI Overview Summaries”. 😎 This tool is available on any platform that summarizes any topic. AI overview summaries offer several benefits, including providing quick and accurate information, saving time and effort, and enhancing online visibility for websites. These summaries gather information from multiple sources and present it in a concise format, making it easier for users to understand complex topics. For website owners, being featured in AI overviews can lead to increased traffic and higher click-through rates.

BFR appreciates how AI describes this business in a nutshell. It highlights all information with a purpose. Ask AI questions about your ”favorite” forklift repair service for an honest summary today! 💯

Wednesday Wisdom with BFR. 💯

#ReadThatAgain

Shooo weeeeee!!! The BFR team loves seeing its customers do so well! There’s not many other forklift repair companies that have a customer arriving to pick up their repaired forklift with an International Harvester XT. Checking out this vehicle is like attending a car show all on its own. It was only produced from 2004 to 2008. Its features are phenomenal with the hydraulic operated bed lift plus many other benefits. Those Bald Eagles 🦅 under the hood are something else too and to top it all off, it’s American origin baby! 🇺🇸 Special thanks to all of BFR’s customers for keeping the business rolling like they do. This is one proud American small business! Those with Toyotas (Lexus), Hondas (Acuras) or anything else not of American made are missing out on that American dream. There needs to be a meme made with a father and kids showing a line of Toyotas or Hondas in a driveway that says, “Hey kids, look there’s a boy (not a man) who lives there that doesn’t want to work on cars or wants to pay to have them worked on so they support Japan instead!” 😂😂😂 With that said, the BFR team has been idiots before with once owning a luxury Honda, but never again as it was plagued with electrical issues. 💯
#BFR❤’sAmerica🇺🇸

It’s Funny Friday!!!!!

Who doesn’t enjoy a well perfected comedy skit showcasing reality and being able to laugh anything off as a joke??? Comedians are some of the realest humans on Earth. As always, joke about actions that trigger accountability versus being a mean bully poking fun of someone’s looks.
The BFR team recommends giving “Mr. Grouchy”, the purple Grinch, a like and follow on all socials. This character will keep you uplifted in the highest of spirits by dancing with his vacuum that sucks up all of the negativity in the world, not just at Christmas but all year long. His analogy is perfect. The world would be a much better place if we could suck up all the bad humans that leave awful paper trails (aka criminal records) and just send them to another dimension. The bad ones that have had their chances to be good but keep blowing it.… poof! 💨
Enjoy some of his latest comedy. This week has been lit with chuckles. 😂😂😂

#KeepItReal

#SpreadPositivity

It’s our business to serve YOU!

Our success derives from our relationship dynamic being strictly business while treating customers with respect and dignity. 💯

😓 Ouch! Life sometimes has unexpected challenges that no one is exempt from. BFR’s work truck caught a flat tire by a sharp piece of metal that was so bad that it was not worthy of plugging. The BFR team could easily shift blame to a customer and create a new policy where it is a requirement for the environment to be free of debris before providing mobile services or even take it to the next level and charge hazard pay based on the environment. Ladies and gentleman, the truth of the reality is the accountability is all on BFR for this one. Situations like this are why a savings of 3-6 months of bills is an intelligent investment in addition to an emergency savings account for unexpected events, such as a new set of tires. Never add these savings to business or personal income. Simply act like it doesn’t exist and the burden has less of an impact.

While the BFR work truck was down, work had to continue with or without it with the hot rod truck stepping up to fill its place on a day filled with diagnosis requests. To make matters worse, Mrs. BFR had an I-D-ten-tee (ID10T) (idiot) error and has obviously never ordered tires for a heavy duty truck before. She ordered a set of tires with the right tire size but the wrong load range. 💀 Special thanks to Lynn’s Tire Barn for coming to the rescue! They provided a blessing of a used tire of the same exact size, brand and all with nearly identical tread wear as the damaged one. BFR is not the type to go for mismatched tires so this situation felt like a one in a million chance. Just like that, the BFR work truck was back.
These types of lessons are a reminder to be a self-conscious human and avoid controlling life situations that snatch and absorb money before it’s earned. Life is already complicated on its own so it’s never ideal to further complicate it. A good person has no time for that.

Based on horoscopes, this situation was right on point for the entertainment that happened on April 22nd. The BFR team recommends to read horoscopes AFTER the day is over, instead of the recommended day before. It’s more entertaining! 😂
On a final note, it’s Thoughtful Tuesday showcasing scripture that hits the nail on the head with truth. 💯❤️

☮️ Motivational Monday with BFR ✌️

BFR was provided with an opportunity to replace the water pump on this unique forklift to put it back in service. It was also dusted off with compressed air to aid in its maintenance reliability. You can’t help but notice this Hyster sports a respectable custom flame paint job that has to give it about 50 horsepower, right? 😂 It’s about as rare as a Stealth Gray Escalade. 😉 Unique will always be attractive and the BFR team is digging it!

Call BFR today for repairs that don’t waste your companies time. In and out efficiently is our top priority! 💯