Oops… Glenn.. I got to thinking, maybe you’re just now clicking this link.. It’s the next blog after this one… Sorry!
It’s been a week. I think not long ago I’d mentioned life can sometimes be like being an average boxer... Some days you knock ‘em out - other days you find yourself on the canvas, and ya just gotta get back up and get in the ring…
Had a job interview Wednesday at 8am sharp. Buddy-o-mine that had given me ride to work Monday and Tuesday… he so very kindly dropped me off at the Hotel where I was interviewing for a part-time position… Neat man, the boss feller of the Hotel… Took the the remainder of the day off to get the HRL running.… started traversing on foot the 3 mile trek home…
Stopped by Meineke Car Care Center… asked “If I bring the power steering pump, how much would you charge to put it on my 1993 Hot…. Rod…. Lincoln…?” He clicked it all in the computer, raised his head up and said “that’ll be a two hour job, you’re talking roughly $150.” Well, that ain’t bad… I’d had a shade tree mechanic run from me when he saw the size of the engine in the HRL… I can do this… (and still eat!)….
Walked home the resta the way… I’m actually beginning to like the look of my legs again, they’re getting hella exercise of late.. I’ve walked to the Library, to Phillips 66, and to where my car was broken down (thrice times) - so the pups have been getting a workout…
Called the auto parts store (right next door to Meineke) to see if they had a power steering pump to fit my ‘93 H… R…. L… “yep, it’s fitty-two dollars, got ‘er right here on ma shelf.” Perfect. The battery charger I had hooked up to the HRL all night did the job, and it enabled me to avoid a tow… Pulled into Meineke…Met Hal at the desk.. Asked if I’d ever been there before… “yup, but you ain’t as pretty as the person that waited on me the last time I was here!”..”
Gave Hal the keys, walked next door to buy the power steering pump… “Say, is it a Signature or Executive model?” Heck I dunno, how do you tell? "Should be rahht thar on the bumper or the trunk…" K, I’ll go look. Wasn’t. Opened up the door handle to read the thingy on the insidea the door where they stamp when produced… “Manufactured 6/95.” Crap, I’d told him the wrong year. The 1993 Checkenginelight car was still ingrained in my brain. “Sorry, it’s a ‘95, my bad.” “Oh we ain’t got that one, sorry.”
So I said hello to my legs again, walked the the next closest auto parts store.. “Nope, sorry, fresh out. You can get it at our warehouse offa Front Street” (some ten miles away.). At this point my legs locked up as if to say “Nope, no way, huh uh, nomme.” I agreed. Ring, Ring. “Clay, can I borrow you for an hour.” Yep. Whew.
So called Hal @ Meineke ‘hey Hal, I thought they had the pump in stock.. Didn’t.. it’s gonna take me 30 minutes or so, so I was just calling to let you know so you wouldn’t tie up your bay.” “Hey Vic, when you left, I went next door to look for you… there’s been a little misunderstanding here… your engine is a 4.6, NOT the same as the one we thought.”
“Yeah, sorry, I told you the wrong year.” “BIG difference here. You’re looking at 4 hours labor, $375 insteada two hours, $150.” Borrowing a line from Meatloaf, “let me think on it… Hal baby let me think on it.”
I could do. It’ll be tight $$-wise, but I could do. “It’s cool. Please go ahead and fix it, but I’m not promising to love you til the end of time Hal.”
Six hours later, a sunburn thanks to the grassy knoll I snoozed on for two hours.. I’m handin’ over more twenties than I seen since I ran the desk at the Soooper 8.. And I’m off in the Hot… Rod… Lincoln… all was good.. Safe at home for the night.
Next morn, jumped in car. Long about a mile down the road, hear this “ding ding ding”.. Dashboard telling me “check temperature gauge.” Did. Uh oh.. Shit. Pulled into gas station in my homey town. Do I miss work again, or do I try putting more water in and see what happens? More water, it’s summertime, I have the time to take off - but I can’t allow my work to sit two days in a row…
Ahhh… the defroster kicked in… temp gauge behaved all the way to turn off to work.. LIG. (Life is good.) Ding ding ding. Uh oh. Yep, overheated again. So I’m thinking, it’s ok, it loves 65 mph, it’s just the 25 mph it hates. I’ll be fine tonight once I jump on the highway.
5pm.. See you guys.. Have a nice evening…Worked an hour over.. Vrooom says the HRL.. I inch my way to Interstate… No, no heater yet. Enter the ramp to the place I can go 65. Yes, it’ll be all good. But it wasn’t. Kept putting my hand up there to feel the heat, and there weren’t no heat. So I get off on 87th street. Gently undo the radiator cap.. PSSSSSSSSSSSSSS… Pour more water in.. off I go… By Gregory (the next exit) “ding ding ding.” More water. Back on the road.
Ding ding ding. 63rd street exit, more water. Missed the ramp to get back on Interstate North.. Thought “I’ll just turn around here”.. oops. Interstate South… Took Gregory exit (again).. More water.. More ding ding ding..
Ding ding ding… 24 Highway.. I know I know, more water. Cept the car died on the off ramp. Six cars behind me honking, at least four of which had men in them that could surely beat the crap outta me. Five very long minutes later, more water, it started!
Turned right on Donnelly Street. Died again. No ding ding ding this time. More water. Started. I turned around. Or tried to. Died. There across the entire narrow span of Donnelly Street, the crossways Hot… Rod… Lincoln had North and South traffic blocked. I say a little prayer for you, I say a little prayer for you.. Forever, forever, you'll stay in my heart
And I will love you (HRL)…..
Finally got it turned around. Now this 24 Hwy and Donnelly area - maybe it was a good thing I broke down there. Helped not to direct pity inward. The house I was parked infronta, ten, count ‘em ten children ranging in age from diapers to twelve - walked outta the house to see who this stranger was (and to play in the rain.) Five minutes later momma runs outside, sees her kids getting all muddy, said something ‘sounded kinda scornful in Spanish… I don’t think it was “the chocolate chip cookies are ready!” Succinctly, others worse off than me. Maybe a two bedroom house.
By now battery didn’t even have enough juice for three dings. Inevitable. I ain’t making it home in the HRL. We’re ding-ding-ding, cha-ching-ching-ching, at $470 and counting.
“Hello Mr. Tow man? This is Vic. Say I’m here at the Quick Trip on 24 highway…just’n offa 435.. How much for a tow back home to Meineke?.. And could the feller come tonight? “Well lemme see… $40 hookup fee… ‘bout twelve miles.. You’re looking at $95.” Gulp. There are probably hookers in Vegas for less than $95. “Ok, bring the dude on.” This HRL is the best $4000 car I've ever bought for $1500.
The wait at QT was mostly uneventful. Poorer people are just like barely a little better off people. Dads held the hands of young’s so they didn’t get run over. Laughs and “howdy’s” happened. And if I saw one, I saw ten BBW walk in and buy 3 packs a cigs. They musta had a 3-pack BBW special a goin’ on at the QT.
Tow truck arrived. Quiet feller. ‘Til he got a little soaked as he laid on the ground to hookup the cables. A few F-bombs, and ten minutes later we were off, and HRL stowed neatly away on the flatbed.
“I’ma little nervous about that one hookup.” I’d prayed the dude was a smoker. Wasn’t. When he said that, I needed one more than ever. I rethunk it, even said "the way I feel about my HRL now, I wouldn't mind if it fell off. I wouldn't sue ya".. "Yeah, but it's them folks behind me that might." When you’re going twelve miles at $8 a mile, I figured the conversation oughta be special, so I kinda let him lead the way, and I nodded my head “yup” with every thing he said. Figured to get on his better side, I might not haveta walk home from Meineke, and mebbe, just mebbe he’d leave the meter off if he took me home.
“Yeah, just split up with the old lady two weeks ago… five kids.. “… Dang, sorry to hear that. Ya know, one example I’ve learned the hard way, one can only control one’s self. “Yep, and she thought she could control me, 18 years and she didn’t learn no better. You get out of it what you put in it.”
I thought that was kinda prophetic. “You get out of it what you put in it.” Maybe not quite as cool as the aforementioned “Boogy till you die”, yet, still… not bad.
So, after about 10 miles, some $80 cha-ching ding ding later, I asked about the meter still runnin’ whilst he takes me home. “I’m presently, thanks to $470 already, a po man, I don’t mind walking.” Nah, think nothing’ of it. Whar ya live? Told him. I can do that, just remember to do a favor for another in our boat on down the road. “Cool.” I wanted to see if I could stop and get my kid two double cheeseburgers at Mickey-D’s, but decided that might be pushing it.
So… $565 later, here I sit, no car. “Mike, can I have a ride again tomorrow?”… Thinkin’ about what I’ll say to Hal/Meineke when I call in the morning. After all, the HRL WASN’T overheating prior to me dropping it off the last time. “Let me sleep on it.”
Life, it’s fun. It’s funny. It’s ding ding ding. It’s drenched clothes. Po people, barely better off than po people. Reckon “you get out of it, what you put in it.” Yep, liked that.
Seeya tomorrow, same Bat Channel. Will it be “Vic, I’m sorry, we musta discombobulated something in the circulation lines.. No charge little buddy”… or… Judge Judy, here I come.
Let me sleep on it, baby baby let me sleep on it. Love, Victurd.
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