Perpetual Ruminations

Thursday

I'm getting in here a little earlier today, since I have the time. Rhonda's at work, Len gave her a ride, and I have the Jimmy in the shop getting fixed. So, there's not much else for me to do today except hang out and wait for the call saying I can walk over and pick it up.

It was leaking a little anti-freeze for a while now, but very slow. Over the last week, it seems to have gotten a bit worse, but I just could not find where it was leaking. I figured I'd have to take it in and have it fixed, since I could not find the leak, and because it's just a difficult vehicle to work on. It doesn't help that I have no garage to work in, and that the weather has been extremely cold, windy, and miserable. But, I had hoped it would hold up till payday, Tomorrow. I would have two days off next week, Tuesday and Wednesday, and was thinking about taking it in for the needed repairs on Tuesday if he had an opening.

We had Tuesday and Wednesday off this week, and I also had today off, so we rested up and got caught up on some stuff. Normally, Rhonda and I do not get the same days off, unless we have a full crew, and that has been seldom. We do now, and Tuesday we had a peaceful and restful day. I spent the afternoon working on paperwork, emails, and schedules, getting caught up. Wednesday we had the serviceman for the internet come out and get our internet working better, then got ready to go into town.

See, we live in a very small, rural town. We have a gas station/service station, a cafe that's open until mid afternoon, a bank that's open until noon, and a post office that closes for a couple of hours in the afternoon. That's it for businesses, and if we need anything, it's a twenty five mile drive to the nearest town of any size. Our plan had been to run into town on Tuesday afternoon, but then the serviceman was suppose to show up. He didn't, but by the time we realized this, it was getting late so we decided to go in on Wednesday.

The serviceman showed up in the morning and finished repairs about noon, then we did a little work on the computers and set things up for our new router. After, we got ready to go into town and do a little shopping so we could get home and make dinner. Since the anti freeze has been leaking out slowly, I wanted to top of the radiator before we left. Rhonda was just coming out as I filled it up, and she seen fluid running out underneath. Not real fast, but a trickle. Well, this meant it was now leaking faster than before, and it meant I may be able to find the leak.

I got a light and looked around the area we seen the fluid, and sure enough, there was fluid running from the lower hose. I got a bucket and drained the fluid down, pulled the hose to see where it was leaking, and found nothing. The hose was fine, and the leak was someplace else. I looked, I poked my fingers around, but I could not tell where it was leaking. I knew about where, since it had to be running down the pump and on to the hose, but where on the pump was beyond me. Not that it mattered, I did not have the means to change it anyway. First of all, I was working outside, and secondly, it was cold out. Nice in comparison to our recent weather, but still cold, only in the lower teens. Finally, the vehicle is so crammed full, there's little room to work on anything, especially out in the snow.

So, Rhonda called to see if we could get it in for repairs. He could, but it would take him all day. The job wasn't so big, unless there was more wrong than just changing the pump, but he would have to wait for parts to arrive, and they wouldn't get to him until around noon -- one o'clock. Also, he gets a lot of interruptions, so an hour long job could take two, maybe even three to finish. This was fine, except Rhonda had to work today at eleven, in town; twenty five miles, remember? It just happens, that Zack has been taking a lot of time off and having Rhonda or I fill in for him. Therefore, it only seemed logical to have Zack work for Rhonda this afternoon, so we wouldn't have to try and find her a ride.

He told her no, he wouldn't work for her. So much for that idea, and so much for an easy solution. Rhonda ended up getting a ride in with my brother, who lives in town. That means he had to drive twenty five miles out to pick her up, then twenty five miles back. If that wasn't bad enough, the weather was terrible this morning. It started as a severe winter weather advisory with 30 to 35 mph winds gusting to 45 mph. But by nine this morning it had changed to blizzard conditions, winds at 35 mph and sustained gusts over 55. I had driven the short distance to the garage, dropped the vehicle off, and walked home. About a block and a half, maybe two. I could barely breath the wind was so bad. It was a struggle to walk against it, and it was blowing enough snow around to make visibility very limited. I was walking two blocks and it was difficult, he had to drive fifty miles round trip in it.

But, we manage. That's all we can do, right? So around noon, the phone rings and I pick it up wondering if there is more wrong with the GMC than the pump. But it's not the garage calling, it's my boss. The Director of Operations out of Sioux City, Iowa. The last Director received orders and was deployed, so I have a new boss and he sent me a message, he will be in town this afternoon, can we meet up? I had to call him back and tell him I'm without a vehicle today. We had a good chat, but it would have been nicer to meet him.

I did call the garage and it was the pump, no surprises there. He had the parts, too. That means he can put it all back together this afternoon, and I should have it in time to pick Rhonda up. Hopefully sooner, then I can meet my new boss, too. I explained the situation to the mechanic, but emphasized not to rush. If it's done in time, great, if not, no problem. He thought he could have it by three or three thirty if everything went well. Not problems with the work, but interruptions, as I pointed out. I'll keep hoping it works out in time, but time is running out quickly, and I'll likely not get a chance to meet this guy until later in the spring.

But, I have time to write a bit, and that's what I'm doing. I would also like to get into some editing on a poem, but I know, with my luck, that as soon as I do, the phone will ring and I'll be off to pick up the vehicle. It's been damn near impossible for me to get anything done in WDC other than my blog, and even that has suffered. I'm still doing good writing in 750 words, and did not miss a day yet this month, but only because they are later than I am by a couple of hours, so I sneaked my entry in yesterday just under the wire. One day it has to get better -- doesn't it?