Knitting Cybrarian

Bye Bye Blue

  octtarts 038 
  Originally uploaded by lauragayle.

Yesterday morning I said goodbye.  Some folks may think I'm silly, but this was hard for me.  The transmission on Big Blue died Friday and Friday night Joel and I had a discussion about whether or not it was worth it to put a couple thousand dollars in a nearly 20-year old vehicle that got at best 12-13 mpg.

I didn't argue.  I loved Blue, but it was pretty expensive to run and in the months that gas was close to $3/gallon, I spent over $300 a month on gas.  That's the better part of a new car payment.  If you're a regular reader, you know the tranny had been fussy for some time and the truth was that I knew it wasn't going to last.  I was a little fearful every time I started up the truck -- sometimes it didn't want to start, and of course, when I put it into drive, I wasn't sure what would happen - smooth start or a cranky start.

Why did I love Blue?  Well, Big Blue was originally my Dad's truck.  Mom bought it new for him in May 1987.  He kept sheets on the seats when he drove it to work to keep the upholstery clean and new looking.  He loved how it looked and how it drove.  He loved the V8 engine and we enjoyed riding the back roads of Franklin County, Va. in it.  When Dad died in 2001, Mom gave me Blue.  I put a lot of miles on Blue.  I drove it to Virginia and back several times, drove it to a few MLA Midwest Chapter meetings, MLA Board meetings, and just enjoyed driving it.  The guys at work really enjoyed watching me successfully parallel park -- I got ribbed about my "skillz" quite a bit. 

But it was time to say goodbye.  I got a new car on Saturday.  After the break-in period, it should get about 40 MPG.  It has that lovely new car smell.  And when I push down on the accellerator, the same thing happens every time. 

I felt sad yesterday when I took off my vanity plates.  But it was time.  Time to say goodbye to Blue.  You've been a good ol' truck.

No va

I left work early today because I wasn't (and still am not) feeling well.  Big Blue was somewhat cranky this morning, but eventually got to running smoothly.  This afternoon, however, it was cranky and took some persistent coaxing to get out of the parking lot and onto the street.

I made it down the hill, but Blue didn't want to go up the next hill.  I made it most of the way to my next intersection, but Blue didn't kick up into the next gear and just stood still.  I put Blue into Park, then put it back into drive.  Big mistake.  I pushed the accellerator and Blue.... went backwards, albeit slowly.  I tried this a couple of times.

No luck.  So I backed down the street (going the wrong way) when no traffic was coming.  I backed into a parking lot.  Carefully.

I turned off Blue.  Tried again to go forward.  No luck.  No va (Spanish for "no go" -- and why the Chevrolet Nova didn't sell there!).  I called Joel.  And I called AAA.  Because I have the Plus membership, they took the truck to Mr. Transmission and me home.  I didn't wait too long -- the blessing in disguise of going home early.  But what about wheels?

Stay tuned.

Back in KC

I'm baaaack.  And today is my final day of vacation (much like Suzanne!).  The heating/cooling fella was just here to do the winter check/clean on our system (and all's fine).  The pest control guy will be here later. 

I flew back Saturday evening with a layover in Charlotte.  I didn't sit in one of their lovely rocking chairs, but splurged on some fudge and white chocolate cocoa mix at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory.  I managed to avoid buying the lovely looking caramel or chocolate coated apples.  Here's the deal.  You walk off the plane into the airport.  You're a little tired, a little hungry because you get no food on airplanes anymore and this aroma hits you -- actually it tickles your nose, says to your brain "home... home... yummy" and drags you into the chocolate store.  It's the aroma of melted butter and sugar with cocoa mixed in.  Having made lots of brownies, I know that aroma all too well.  Funny that there were only women in the store when I was there.  A man stepped in as I was leaving.  I said to the salesperson, "my husband will complain that I shouldn't have spent the money and then devour it."  And that's exactly what happened.  Although Joel didn't devour it all, but he certainly tucked into it!

I sat next to a delightful young man on the flight from Charlotte to Kansas City.  The flight sped by as we took turns reading and chatting.  He hugged me and kissed me goodbye on the cheek at baggage claim.  I have to admit I was touched.  I wish him well!

Yesterday morning I went to church and the truck cooperated.  A little sluggish, but still cooperated.  Yes, I still need to get the tranny checked out.

I also took a loooong nap yesterday and did no knitting.  But I did print out a new copy of the Colinette AbFab chart after I discovered a mistake in it Friday or Saturday (needed one more repeat put in the chart).  Portia is quite happy I'm home and have put away the suitcase.  Saturday night she sat by my suitcase, making sure I took EVERYTHING out.  I think she was making sure that the big black thing was going away and that I wasn't leaving again soon.  Last night she slept on the bed between us -- but not at our feet, near our heads.  Unusual behavior for her.  I loved having her close enough to stroke and pet as I was falling asleep.

Unlke Suzanne, I've made a task list for today and hope to get it all accomplished.   It's a beautiful and cool fall day.  Sunny, with a cloudless blue sky and the maple out front is a brilliant yellow.   I hope to enjoy these days and get the most out of them before the winter gloom hits.

Work returns all too quickly.  I realize I could have used another week off -- I won't wait so long to schedule my next vacation days!

Be good to your truck

The tranny has been hesitant lately (again), so I decided this am to check things out.  Added some transmission fluid, some oil, and some radiator fluid.  Then I looked at the battery.  There have been a couple of times when the battery didn't catch things the first time.  And looking at it in the engine today, I realized I hadn't changed it since I got the truck in 2001.  Guess what I'll be purchasing before winter?

And scheduling a transmission fluid change.  And praying that doesn't bring on other issues. 

It'a always entertaining to come back inside after checking fluids, etc.  Because I checked the transmission fluid and added oil, I got more grease and black dust on my hands and forearms than usual. 

I was reminded of my Dad's hands -- diesel oil and other black fluids and dust were permanently embedded in the grooves and wrinkles of his hands.  You could see every whorl in his fingertips.  Those of you who have never worked on an engine are probably wondering why he didn't wash his hands well.  He did.  Scrubbed them.  But when you take apart an engine piece by piece, and it has oil, grease and engine dust on it, and then pick up tools that also have grease on them (from working on other engines), your hands get covered in it -- and the tools and whatever you pick up forces that dirt and grime in your fingerprints. 

My Uncle Marvin worked at the same place Dad did, and his hands weren't quite as grimy.  I know Uncle Marvin usually worked on smaller machinery (lawn mowers, chain saws, those sorts of things), but he constantly scrubbed his hands nearly raw with Lava soap. 

Next time you see someone with rough, grimy hands, ask them about how they earn their living. 

One of those mornings

It's a gorgeous morning.  Cool, sunny, a little wind.  Got up early and got ready for work.  Joel treated me (or rather my truck) to an oil change Saturday, so I felt good about the run in.  Until...

I got out to the truck.  A small stream of oil was snaking its way from underneath Old Blue to the garage drain.  I didn't see that yesterday morning when I went to church.  Hmmm.  I went back inside to look for my receipt from the oil change.  No luck.  Joel commented on the quick trip and I told him my next stop would be Goodyear.  Joel followed me, but I got there just fine.

The guys checked out Blue and the verdict?  Stripped threads on the oil plug.  I paid $4.34 for a replacement.  The labor and the oil refill was covered by their warantee. 

While waiting, I got engrossed in Morville's Ambient Findability and decided to spend the rest of the day at home reading and taking notes on it.  And drinking mint iced tea.  It's one of those mornings that has turned out all right.

Adventures in owning...

an older vehicle.  I've noticed the tranny on my '87 Ford F-150 hasn't been happy lately.  It hasn't wanted to shift easily into first and second particularly.  After about the first 10 minutes or 10 miles, it's shifting better.  So Saturday morning, between Altar Guild duty and working at the Studio, I thought I'd check it out.

There's a QT and an O'Reilly's close to church, so I stopped in to check my tires and everything else.  Filled up the tires at QT, then went to O'Reilly's and did a little reading in my truck manual first. 

Went in and asked the guys about transmission fluid, based on the diagnosis in the little manual.  They got me the right fluid for my vehicle, and recommended that I may want to try this stuff called Lucas if I'm really low.  They also loaned me a funnel and answered my questions about where to put the tranny fluid.  I learned several things -- for starters, on my truck, you fill the tranny fluid at the same place that has the tranny dipstick.  It's different from the oil -- dipstick location and the place where you fill the oil is different.

So... I followed the directions.  Took off my jewelry, started up the truck and checked the tranny fluid.  The dipstick was hitting air.  GROAN.  So, I used the Lucas stuff (which takes a long time to drain in -- very thick) and then followed it with half a quart of tranny fluid.  The tip of the dipstick was wet, so I followed it up with the rest of the quart.  Mind you, this took around 40 minutes, between waiting for the Lucas stuff to drain in and then every 10 minutes, shifting the tranny through all gears to get the stuff worked in.

The tranny is happy now.  I need to check the level again today or tomorrow.  And I realize I'm very fortunate that I didn't have SERIOUS problems.  But I know how to check it now, what to listen for, and how to fill up the transmission fluid.

The guys at O'Reilly's were GREAT.  They answered my questions, came out to check on me and in general were just terrific.  I was one of two women there in 45 minutes -- more women should know how to deal with these things! 

A father was there with his twin daughters and I told them that I was glad they were there.  More girls need to visit their auto parts store.  The father told me that he does bring them with him so they can learn about what's there -- and that they watch him (and help) when he works on their vehicles.

That brought back memories of my dad.  I would hold the timing light for him, or get him the right wrench or other tool.  I would go with him to the NAPA store in our hometown.  Dad would have known right away what to do -- but at least he trained me well enough to have the sense to read manuals and ask questions!