Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Old Husband, Car Repairs and The Round Up

Wow!! I feel super encouraged to continue blogging. Perhaps I'm not as strange as I thought. Thanks for all the comments.
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Old Husband and I have not been playing well together here in 'Harmony Cottage.' Car repairs is the subject of discord this time. I do not like to drive. I want nothing to do with cars. I view them as a necessary evil that sucks my money.

I waited as long as I could before taking over the driving because with that also came the responsibility of car maintenance. Old Husband's way was always to drive until it quit running, then fix only what you absolutely had to to get it running again, and see how long it would be before it stopped again. He always used a neighbor/shade tree mechanic for repairs. 

That's not my way. Because I know next to nothing about cars I want everything repaired. This means we lock horns over car repairs. The time has come when I have to do something. I decided it would be good if Son took the car and Old Husband in to the dealership to learn exactly what needs attention. I think you probably should have the spark plugs replaced more than once every 13 years but maybe not. I asked Old Husband to make an appointment for Saturday to get a diagnosis.  He made it for in the morning.

We'll set off from 'Harmony Cottage' by 8:30, though our appointment isn't until 10:00, because he likes to be early. I'll be stuck in a little waiting room while he sits, stands, walks around, whispers loud enough for all to hear, and asks repeatedly how much longer it will be. 

Our car is old. We're old. It has low milage and seldom needs repairs. He wants a new car but that's not going to happen. I'm only hoping to make this car last as long as he does, then I'll make every effort to figure out a living arrangement that will not require a car.
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I warned you I would not be able to remain quiet about politics if it involved civil rights, human rights, voting rights, religious freedom or separation of church and state. Well, it appears the round up of illegal immigrants is about to begin. I have no doubt some need to be deported but I've seldom seen it work out that those are the only ones who actually get deported. The wider they cast the net the bigger the pain is going to be. 

I recognize this issue is a campaign promise of President Trump. I just wish he, and his, weren't so happy about it. It's not something anyone should take delight in doing.

Being a native Texan I'm quite familiar with how a significant population of Texans feel about Mexican immigrants. Today I read an article that makes me cringe.


I think the thing that puzzles me most about these people is they see no correlation between their Christian faith and their political views on this issue. That troubles me.
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I'm a native Texan but these things hurt my heart and make me know I would be miserable living there again. My heart goes out to our daughter who lives there because of her work. It's no longer the Texas that was my home for 62 years.




I'm pretty sure I prefer the immigrants to the natives.

28 comments:

  1. Not much better here politically in our temporary digs in Florida. I've learned to never get involved in conversations about current events, and sadly, even at home. I suspect the husband as having voted for Trump and I don't want to have to leave him this late in life.

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    1. Oh my, I would be in big trouble at your house. Old Husband and I differ on most things but he knows not to cross me on politics. I know a lot more about politics than he does. In Oregon we vote only by mail. I know he's not cancelling my vote because I fill out his ballot!

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  2. I don't drive either and hate the money spent on cars..I find your blog refreshing, I am old 69 near the last day of May this year my hubs 70 the last of October..We have our differences a lot, he wants to withdraw money from an IRA he cannot until 70 and 1/2 I told him this 4 times he ignored me there is a message on our phone stating as much, now he will believe me..As one gets older I find in my own opinion one has to just go with the flow..In your case not so much whatsoever, I admire your bravery compassion and love of your husband a lot of the youngins I meet would be outta here attitude..You are so kind and loving and sweet, don't feel lost and alone you are not..have a great day..!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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    1. Our family dearly loves Old Husband but all of us know what it's like living with his obsessive compulsive tendacies, as well as his phobias and anxieties. I go with the flow as much as I can but sometimes that's not possible. I agonized a great deal over this car situation before taking charge. I don't enjoy doing that but sometimes it can't be helped. Old Husband will ne 85 in June. Thanks for commenting.

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  3. The idea of waiting until something breaks down on a car before fixing it is so scary, I couldn't do that. They never break down in a safe place, right in front of a repair place and it could be dangers. My husband could literally fix anything with a motor but he believed in routine maintenance as per the manufactures schedule. But the idea of living without a car is one of my biggest fears of growing older. I don't like the idea of depending on others or public transportation to get around. To each their own.

    On the illegal immigration round up, I agree, this administrations seems to take too much glee in it. I saw an interview yesterday of the past director of ICE and he said that what has changed under Trump is that before only those convicted of a crime could be deported but now you only have to be accused and that judgement can be at the discretion of the local or state police. I can see all kinds of room for abuse of illegals like asking for bribes for not falsely accusing innocent people of a petty crime.





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    1. I'm very concerned about the deportation of immigrants. It's not that I don't think it's legitimate in some cases but rather I greatly fear abuse of power. Jeff Sessions is the wrong attorny general. He will have no mercy. He's vicious. This also fires up Trump's base. The ACLU is staffing up for the battles that will surely come.

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  4. The worse place to take a car that is out of warranty, is a car dealership. You need to find a reliable service garage. The car dealership will gouge you with genuine parts, where the service garage can get less expensive parts that are just as good. My car is 18 years old, with only 50,000 miles on her. I worked for a car dealership for many years--I know how their parts department and service department work. I would NEVER take my old car to a dealership. It will cost you a small fortune and yes--you are right. you need to get EVERYTHING fixed that needs fixing because, it is cheaper in the long run then taking it back in every few months to have another repair done. The reason being, if they have fix a part and something goes bad, they will have to charge you labor to take of the new part to get to the bad part. Get it all done at the same time.

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    1. Gracious, you do have low mileage on your car. Our car is 13 years old. Seems like I'm constantly learning how to take care of business. Bob took care of everything until about two years ago.

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  5. We too are old with old cars. Terry's is 26 years old, mine 12 years old. We have them serviced regularly, washed a few times a year (waxed, too) and keep them in the garage. I'm not to anxious to replace a car as the new ones have so many computerized parts. Our mechanic told me that to replace a gps system in a new car is about $5000. To replace the camera in the back of the car is even more. I cannot imagine. He says most people get a new car at that point.

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    1. Nope, no new cars for us. I'm counting on this one being the last. It will be tricky to find a living situation where I won't need a car but we do have good public transportation. The catch will be keeping something for our daughter to drive when she visits. She flies in about every six weeks, and rides the MAX train out to where we live. I'll need to keep something for her to drive while she's here doing errands for me.

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  6. When it comes to cars and maintenance , safety and reliability are number one. You don't want to be left on the road and you don't want to get in an accident.

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    1. The car repair trip went amazingly well. I met "Bill the Mazda Man." He had a driver bring us home . He called this afternoon. Car is getting 3 ignition coils and new spark plugs for starters. Hopefully that will take care of the problem. They'll send a driver for us tomorrow when repairs are finished. This caregiving job never gets easier. Always something new to learn. I thought this job was going to be the one I couldn't handle but apparently not.

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  7. I just read your Feb 21st blog. I enjoy your blog. I did back off when you got political but had to keep coming back to check on your husband. I also loved the knitting blogs and would love to see more of your knitting. I am learning to knit socks. I enjoy reading about everyday life and crafts and cooking. It is YOUR blog and no one is forced to read it.

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    1. Diane, thanks for the comment. Glad I didn't completely run you off with politics. I'm working on giving it a rest. Socks, oh how I love socks. I have more sock yarn than I'll ever be able to knit in a lifetime. I almost always have stories to tell about Old Husband. We've grown used to each other's faces over the last 54 years.

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  8. Car trouble! Puh! I hate it, mostly because I don't know a thing about it. We're lucky to have a good guy who works on our car. I do know it's better to keep up to date on what it needs. It only gets worse if you let it go. Kind of like your teeth.

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    1. Good analogy with teeth. Now that it is in my column of responsibilities I will be sure it is maintained on a schedule.

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  9. We have a 2010 Ford Fusion and Louis Dean is thinking it's time to get a new car. We will be going to Florida in October to see Amber swim in a Madters Synchronized Swimming meet. I think we have decided to rent a car - the kind he is thinking of buying - in order to decide if that might be right for us. It needs to be bigger than my Ford which is way too small for my husband! So far, he is in control of car/truck maintenance and I'm so happy about that!

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    1. Trust me, you do not want car repair in your column a minute before you have to.

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  10. We have old cars too, but they do get regular maintenance. You are correct that cars need to be properly serviced.
    It was nice to see links to some good news today. Heck, it's just good to have any good news.

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    1. It's been interesting to me to see how many of us are driving older cars. It will help my stress level if someone locks Kellyanne Conway in her office for a few days. I'm embarrassed for her every time she opens her mouth. She's truly embarrassing.

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  11. I have an 11 yr old Toyota SUV I love. It has 110,000 on it. But I do an occasional long drive and I worry about its age and things going wrong. I do keep up with the maintenance, but lately the new car itch has arrived. I would be lost without a car. I had a good honest dealer in NC and never had any gouging problems, but I'm not familiar with the one here. I've never had a bad experience with a dealer. I agree there's so much computerized today and the expense to repair is so high, they hope people will simply buy a new one. Oh and I agree with your political views.😊

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    1. Mary, welcome, I hope you'll stop by often. Bob always has the new car itch but not me. He'll be 85 in June and in my opinion that's too old for a new car, especially since he drives very little anymore and I hate cars. So nice to find another person to bond with over politics. We've got to stick together.

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  12. I learned the hard (expensive) way to maintain my cars with regular service and attention to anything that seems off in the meantime. I make an effort to have at least one car free day a week. When I lived in a rural area, that pretty much confined me to staying home, but now more. We need more attention to walking/biking routes and public transportation in many areas of the country. Maybe after we clear up the critical problems of which bathrooms people can use...

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    1. We live in an area that's full of sidewalks, walking trails, and public transportation of all kinds. I love it. I especially love sidewalks. Why are Republican Christians so concerned about bathrooms? Beats me.

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  13. Sure glad you--or your son--is in charge of the car maintenance. My vehicle turned 14 in January and has yet to have a problem other than tires and oil changes but I am fanatical with standard maintenance. As the old commercial went, "you can pay me now or really pay me later."

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    1. I'm also a believer in that saying. This afternoon when we pick the car up I'm going to ask if they can provide me with a schedule for car maintenance to help me know when I should attend to the different kinds of maintenance.

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  14. I watched the news this morning about Trump rolling back the changes Obama had made in protecting trans gender folk and then they had a story about the Olympics coach that molested all those young girls. I thought the Republicans make more out of the LGBT community that this sorry man. How ridiculous! The matter is simple. They don't like these people because of their distorted so called Christian view and they don't care one thing about these people.

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    1. Mary, I happen to share your view on this. I am quite troubled by what's to come. I know the ACLU, and other human rights groups, are already lawyered up and preparing to defend these people. It's a real problem though that Attorney General Sessions is the ring leader of it all. Look around among your conservative friends and see how many are willing to lay aside their Christian faith in order to cling to their prejudices. Somehow many of those people see no correlation between their faith and these issues. Very troubling.

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