Dads old pickup
Well the last couple of days have been dedicated to
getting dad’s old pickup back on the road. Seems as if it has its own mind when
it comes to letting me down, little
things here and there punctuate my history with the truck , and a couple of
days a go again I had another day from hell.
By now you must
think all my days are from hell and I must be some hellish person for putting
up them or in some cases causing them. Well I am not a hellish person or a
devil in disguise but instead just a person out there trying to get along day
to day with the minimum of crap so that I can concentrate on other things I
feel are more important like chasing Mutter, who after watching us, (being
James and I working on the truck), decided to take off again when I wouldn’t
stop long enough to feed her.
A couple of days
ago I left the house to have my blood checked, a fasting blood test where I
wasn’t allowed to eat, so I had no breakfast but did cheat with one cup of coffee,
but I was up and out early and heading up the road with the old pickup, which
struggled to start in the bitter cold but relented and soon I was heading up
the road. I stopped grabbed 10 dollars’ worth of gas, not wanting to put more
in as I have 2 tanks on my truck and both have issues with leaking, so I just
put in enough to get me where I am going that day. Plan on fixing them both but
not now in this cold weather.
I was headed up I-77
and all of a sudden I started seeing steam and heard truck noises of a belt screeching,
and I looked in my rear view and saw a trail of steam blow out behind me and I
was looking to get to the side of the road as soon as possible. I had an exit
coming up and I wanted to get off the interstate so I maneuvered the truck down
the ramp and before I was at the light , pulled it over as far as I could to
the right side of the road , allowing people to pass me easily as I figured I
might be there awhile.
The truck had been
making noises since the first time I had it down, and it sat a while. I had a
problem with the slave cylinder on my clutch that took me almost 9 mos. to fix
last time due to bolts being tightened too much, anyhow when I finally get it
back on the road, then it develops this noise coming from the water pump and it
kind of sounded like the clutch fan, but it was running so I figured I would go
along with the noise till it reared its ugly head, well it did and alongside
the road is where I sat.
I looked under the
hood and realized I would never make it home so I called AAA and soon I was on
the hook and heading home. Thank someone for free towing and cell phones, two
of the best inventions. I soon had it sitting back at the house, and was soon
heading back up the road for the blood test, and then breakfast as I was now
past noon and the hole in my belly had grown much deeper by now. Priorities.
Yesterday was
devoted to fixing the truck and even though changing a water pump isn’t really
that hard but coupled with the cold and cold wrenches, and the miracles of the
modern automotive research into more ways to keep you from working on your own vehicle
I was soon faced with finding a special wrench and spending twice as much time
to remove the water pump than normal.
What would have been
a couple of hours job in a Ford garage
soon became an all-day affair , with no real cost savings but instead the
satisfaction of knowing I can really get along with a lot less skin on my
knuckles as before. I swear all this vehicles are designed with tolerances way
to close to accommodate my huge hands. I like writing much better than playing
mechanic. Less skin removed and frustration is eliminated. I have the money to
let someone else fix it but have a problem parting with it when that same money
can go to help my friend and help him learn how to do things for himself if he
has to.
But finally in
the dark last night with the help of a flashlight and James I managed to get it back together , and
running while Mudder my heifer, watched
the two of us in the waning daylight. I mentioned to James that I needed to feed
the heifer but when I turned around she was gone. I grabbed her feed and headed
to the barn and she was not there and so I stood in the continued cold and
called for the calf until I finally decided she was nowhere close and probably
over the hill. Whether she was out I don’t know, I realized later I had turned
off the fencer so it is a possibility, anyhow she was gone. I went out a couple
of times and called later but still no heifer. Woke up this AM and went out to
barn and she was back again. I swear I am going to strap a cell phone and a GPS
locator to this little bitch just to figure out where in the heck she is when
she gets these moods for a walkabout.
Anyhow all is well,
will check fluids on truck again and check for leaks, then head out and grab a
hay bale for my errant heifer as summer still isn’t here and the need for hay
is still there, as it is just another day on the farm.
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