My "whine moment today." What's yours?

Alot of car repair places will drive you home and pick you up if you ask? I know they do here, hubs used to do it all the time at the dealership where he worked.

Thanks for the tip, Captain! My engine's been leaking a bit. 200k on it. Panels are starting to rust. Gotta hang on to it for a while though. Hope she keeps going for me.

i can give you-all the best automotive tip ever . only check your motor oil level when the engine is cold - you get a more accurate reading and then rub the oil from the dipstick between your thumb and index finger . if the it feels gritty , get that metal laden crap out of your engine asap . engines can run 300 k nowadays but not with dirty oil in them . no schedule , stickers or recordkeeping . just rub the d*m stuff between your fingers . slightly blackened oil isnt a problem , its the detergent working well and is to be expected . microscopic metal shavings in the oil is the issue .
i just drove a 51 chevy truck for 18 years with the same used brake shoes on it so it is possible to be kind to your machines .

Speaking of vehicles and repairs, that is one reason I keep my 1996 Jeep and never once thought of replacing it with something newer.... it has been very reliable and the maintenance very inexpensive since I use an independent garage for its care. In my area we see a lot of that generation of Jeep, which still used a truck frame, people keep them until the wheels fall off :)

I hear you, Hope. Next time I get a vehicle it will be a solid, super reliable small/midsize SUV. Gotta have room for my pups, and for trips to the garden center!

Jeanette I think my brother thinks I am the only person who "feels sorry for themsevles" in this situation..and that is exactly what he told me before when I was trying to talk to him about feeling so exhausted...yes, I'm feeling sorry for myself...excellent diagnosis....good grief..that particular day he had brought me a bag of green beans...that needed to be strung and broke..and yes I was happy to get them, but once he came out with that comment, I threw that bag of green beans at him and gave him some general directions on other places to put them....

I bet Dr. Phil could have a really good show with all of us on there... lol

hahaha...your Mom is right for sure!!! Yes, my car has never given me any problems prior to last couple of years and now, it is to be expected with the mileage factor..still it is a good solid car and looks great...so I would rather pay the money and know the used vehicle I have than to buy a used vehicle where who knows what could go wrong..so I'll just go ahead and get the engine done and I will pay my brother's place whatever they charge, provided they will do it pronto...I think I may just handle it and be done with it...sadly it seems like any time he does even do something that he considers helping...it seems to cost me money

Dee....you are so right..my brother is Mr. Wonderful to every human on the face of the planet, yet he has no issue with letting his "little sister" run the risk of getting stranded in the middle of nowhere and thus leaving OUR Mama home alone....what is he thinking? I guess he thinks oh well, she's not going far, she can walk home from the dollar store...truly that is his train of thought I am guessing.

Why do I feel so exhausted after figuring all this stuff out with these cars. I got the car as fixed as it is going to be without having the engine replaced and tomorrow I am having a wrecker pick up my truck and get it to the same shop and I made arrangements for all that today and I won't have to go there until it's ready to be picked up. I guess I can call the "short bus" folks and hitch a ride on that...I don't even have a neighbor I can rely on...really up the creek without a reliable vehicle. I have never had to worry about car issues that much until now and of all times now is not the time. looloo...I agree with all of you re the drug ads. I especially love when they say if this prescription has caused your death...call...blah blah blah...that one always throws me...and I hate the ED ones too. in the first place, not something I want to see in mixed company...I'll be so glad when the deadline for the health insurance is here. I won't have to watch all these same ads over and over.

Hope, I really hate repair bills! It usually means I have to let other bills go. I'm averaging $1000 or more a year on my old van, but can't afford/qualify for a new vehicle. Sigh. I'm looking into a good bike (only half kidding). Hope they do it for you reasonable and you get many more miles out of it.

Just like Viagra. You must really want "that moment" if you take it after all those cautions! Once there was a pharma commercial on and they were warning about all the side effects and to make sure you tell your doctor what medicines you may be taking and all the conditions you have, blah blah blah. My mom said "well, shouldn't your doctor already know those things? If not, you'd better get a new doctor!". Hahaha. You got that right, Ma!

Yes, car problems are indeed the worst Susan.. ...Jessie, I did try to find a cab service and did not find ONE single cab service in this town..ha....This place is so much smaller than where I lived all of my adult life. As it turns out, I got Mama fed very good, got her all ready for the day and when she took her nap, I ran the car to the shop and they were able to get right to it. The fan relay was the problem so that was not a huge deal..BUT...there is an issue with the bottom of the engine and it is sounding like I may be replacing the engine ...after all the word done last year, now it looks like I am going to have to replace the engine anyway..why in this world did he not just do that last year...oh well....the shop I went is great and they know a couple of places that are very well respected and insured and bonded and a remanufactured one will actually be less than the replacing all the various components last year...go figure...oh well, still cheaper than a new car...and I love my car so that will be what i will be doing...

Re commercials for drugs -- the endless list of side effects and warnings would be hysterical if it weren't so scary. After the announcer finally finishes reciting all the ways the drug could possibly kill you, you can't remember what it's actually supposed to help with.

There have been some things lately about pharma's pressuring of doctors to prescribe and the advertisements geared at lay people to put the pressure on doctors. There is a huge markup on the advertised drugs, so of course, they want people to pressure the doctors to prescribe them. Pharma is a troublesome industry that is helping to bring the country to its financial knees. Just think of how much easier the federal budget and our personal budgets would be without the high cost of medical care in the US.

So tired of all these drug commercials on TV.... what I don't need to hear at breakfast is about [ahem] personal needs pills or creams to help [if you get my drift].

And whenever my parents are over to visit and an ad comes on TV about ED, I keep my fingers crossed that my elderly Dad doesn't hear it and start talking about his ED problem.... fingers in my ear chanting lalalalala... daughters don't need to hear about this.

loo... I would be freaking out blowing up their phone. How in the world can he incite such a dire situation and then forget all about it?

Have using those phrases today at work! LOL, I think it would be quite the inside entertainment of my day seeing how many times I could use those in a sentence. That alone makes me miss my job SO MUCH! It's not quite the same telling the dogs "breakfast is under consideration". ;)

However, I am actively considering joining a gym or turning my garage into a giant indoor heated pool. Now that would be heavenly, not the gym, the pool!!

Yep hope, I am also in the vehicle maintenance boat. Being single and still not really knowing anyone around here, it makes me uncomfortable not having reliable transportation ... or a back-up if one breaks down.

This whole sibling thing is quite the phenomenon ... if I could write more eloquently like some of y'all ;) I'd write a big ole article on this topic and submit it ALL of the talk shows... more than likely we would all end on the Jerry Springer show but hey, at least it would be out there!! LOL! Anyone up to the task of writing it?.. hehe, I'll submit it to every news outlet out there. Seriously!

CM, Thank your for the laughs! I'm having a frustrating day at work too, and the giggles helped! In fact, I think I'll use "under consideration" and "under active consideration" a few times before my day here is done.

I like your use of the word flexible there Looloo! - very English Civil Service, there is no more delicate form of irony.

You must be tempted to call the neuro back and ask him to define. So he presses the panic button and what happens is masterly inactivity? Infuriating.

A propos, two more Civil Service definitions for you: " 'Under consideration' means we've lost the file. 'Under active consideration' means we're looking for it."

I hope they get hold of her notes before long. Stay calm :)

Last Tuesday, my mother's neuro gave me a call to discuss the results of her most recent MRI. He didn't mention her dementia much, but was really, like REALLY, alarmed at how severe her spinal stenosis is. He said he wanted to do one more MRI as soon as possible on her C2 and C3 vertebrae. We scheduled it 2 days later, Thursday (so a week ago now). He told me that something as minor as stopping short in the car could cause horrible damage-he even said "possible quadropalegic." Yeezus.
He ran the MRI, called me within the hour (remember, I'm several hours away, work full time, etc.) and said he was submitting STAT requests for referrals for consults w/a orthopoedist and a neurosurgeon/spine surgeon, as well as yet another MRI.
Ok, I get that STAT might mean one thing in an emergency room, and have more "flexible" meanings in real life. But it's been an entire week of me now following up on the status of these referral auths, and the consults with both dr's are STILL pending. I tried to at least schedule the next MRI, but the office didn't have all the paperwork they need (ARGH!).
I have been juggling and plotting out the next few weeks as best I can, but I have NO info to go on. I need to request time off, probably move a tax appt., take her dog to the vet for a booster shot because I may need to board him, and on and on. It's been a WEEK already....

It really makes me shake my head at how siblings can't take 5 minutes out of their busy lives to help us, yet are very available for others. What is that all about? I honestly don't understand.

hope, how about a taxi cab to bring you home and to take you there to pick up the car? Many of us are in the same boat you are.

Hope, car problems are the worst, aren't they? Seems like it's always something. Hopefully you can get things sorted out soon.

Where's my soapbox....ah, here it is.......ok...my whine for the day is that both my car AND truck are currently not operable..The truck has to have new calipers (yes I complained about this a couple weeks ago) the car I have learned has a bad fan motor....I can afford to get them fixed but my problem is I can't go there and sit all day and don't have anyone to pick me up...If I had a bicycle I would put it in the trunk and get the car to the shop and then bicycle home...this makes me know I need a bicycle...now the part that makes this a whine...my BROTHER is a manager at one of the biggest multimake dealers in the area, he helps friends, cousins, everyone every time the wind blows to get a new car, a good used car..fix their car at no cost to them...and he knows mine won't run and his words to me....just run the AC fan on high on your short runs to the dollar store......the other day I had to get my BP meds...I was totally out...I had already gone about three days without them and began to feel not so good...so I said a prayer, followed my brothers advice and hit the road...by the time I got there the radiator was beginning to smoke....I got my meds, had to let it cool down then headed home..stopped halfway there and let it cool...then prayed all the way home and made it...but can't do that again..just hope I didn't cause more damage.... ok...I've got to figure this out, so putting the soapbox away and wishing you all a good day...

Today's whine. i am having a hard time living in the world of normal people because my husband will only stay in bed for about three hours than he's up and sleeping in his recliner. i must get up with him to be sure hes not doing something that might harm him. most of the time we get naps but there are times when we have app'ts and need to be awake must of the day...he still won't stay in bed more that three hours. He sleeps most of the day but I have a household to keep up and meals to prepare. I'm tired.

So in other words, capt'n, we all have our special place in life? haha... nice :)

I fell asleep on the couch... poor mom got lost in my bedroom and now her feet are swollen and hurting. sigh

Captain, What is the world are you talking about?????
I will check in tomorrow to see what is going on.

my sons are pretty smart people . they are motivated by the horror of having to beat on rocks for a living . i helped cracky clean the debris out of our second egress well today and some startling reality hit me . i carried 10 ea 5 gallon buckets of stone chips out of the basement and i suppose another 5 - 8 buckets of chip were placed behind the stone walls in the stone crotches . long story short ; i can imagine a quarter of a million or so rather violent hammer blows being made in the last 3 weeks just inside those two egress wells .
my boys are doing meaningful things but i have to go with the creativity that medieval - goth germany planted in my head in only 3 yrs as a young soldier .
tiger has to swing golf clubs , mike phelps has to swim ( and party ) and i haveta beat on rocks .

Where is my helmet? I am still trying to get my Dad to get all the paperwork done for his Trust. We keep going around and around, it's like a merry go round that doesn't stop.

Now I am to a point that maybe have his attorney do a basic Will and what ever is left in the estate goes to me, and I will carry out Dad's wishes on how to distribute the money, etc. [I'm an only child so the Will won't be challenged]. Dad can type out what he wants done to be attached to the Will, we will sign it, and have it notarized.

I need some sleep :0

I hope we all get a huge surprise from our sons.

one of my sons is still building engines and the one in chicago is leaving the EMT business to take a job with british petroleum . its almost too easy to write a ditty about a man named bob .
hates his ambulance , hates his dispatchin job .
one d*mn day his vegan girlfriend , said daddy works for BP and he can get you in . into oil that is . crackin tar sands , mining the moon .
well the next thing you know , old bob's a millionaire .
smoking hash with the saud's , flyin thru the air .
he'll buy graceland for his mom , buy bluntman a ton of weed .
but he'll never find a thing his poor , dumb daddy needs ..
dad drives an abomination , that has three wheels .
the ignition point cover is a zebco fishing reel ..