Stardate:        91322.46

Sol III Date:    09/19/2013/16:13

Life - the next day.

As I hoped, city council’s behaviour proved an excellent distracting activity and permitted my brain to slow down and stop turning remote possibilities into ‘going to happen’ disasters. When my brain slowed down and I found myself nodding off over the keyboard I went straight to bed and sleep.

I got up and headed out ready to deal, but the $500 was there as per arrangement.

 We stopped at B & W at Whatcom Road to get the paperwork done and with papers and plates in hand headed off to Chilliwack to pick up the car.

Washed off the windows so I could see to drive, inflated the flat tire (the car tires are new), jump started the car, put on the plates and headed back to Abbotsford.

It was a stick shift but as I told my friend I am fine with that as it saves gas, helps me avoid speeding and I prefer a stick shift.

The Cougar always felt like I was driving a tank, manoeuvring a huge contain ship, so driving had become more of chore than a pleasure or just plain fun. The ZX2 puts fun back in getting from point A to point B

.

We get back to Abbotsford and check to make sure the batter recharged enough to start the vehicle.

Nothing. Jumped it, disconnected the battery and the car kept running so the alternator was working. It looks like it needs a new battery.......and what other problems my mind says.

Turn out (hopefully) it was the Universe  exercising it’s sense of humour on me.

My friend Ken was there when we stopped and said use this, an instrument that you can use to check the alternator and battery. As we were checking out the alternator we found that depending on where you touched it to the battery the alternator was barely working, working OK or pumping out lots of juice.

So we set off to Canadian Tire to replace the battery connection and lacking tools headed down to my friend toms place and his amazing sets of tools.

Going to leave we took advantage of the slight slope of the driveway to get the car rolling and pop the clutch – started like a charm.

So I took it for a run on the highway on my way home and this morning (Thursday) nada.

Pulled the battery out of the Cougar, put it on the floor on the passenger side as my jumper cables will reach from there to the car battery. It starts and runs beautifully.

I have promised to have the Cougar off the lawn tomorrow (Friday) so I will have to find someone to give me a ride back from Captain Crunch as I have to bring the battery back to start the zx2.

Or find someone who picks up the vehicle. Hmmm.

The gentleman who sold me the car is determined to get the battery straightened out and worrying about whether the alternator should be changed as well.

Leaving me working on being Zen about, a minor irritation that will be dealt with. Ommmmmm.

Stardate:        91318.16

Sol III Date:    09/18/2013/02:30

Tires, brakes, shocks, drivers door (I have to climb in from the passenger side because you can only close the drivers door from the outside), electrical (there is a short in some well out of easy to find so the windows don’t work,  nor do the turn signals = expensive).

I have found a car......well, truthfully some has found a 2001 ford escort 2XZ 4 cylinders, 5 speed stick, air cared negotiated the price down to $500 that runs nicely.

Has pretty new tires and was taken in to be reset so it would pass air care. Dirty, even by my fairly elastic standards, which may be why it is available.

Set it up to do the paper work (buy it) tomorrow (Wednesday) afternoon – I am not a ‘car’ person but am old enough to admit it and listen to those who know their way around a vehicle.

The numbers (cost of work the Cougar needs + the significant $$$$ I will save on gas costs) say that unless the car dies after I drive it out of the current owners driveway I am ahead of the game. The way the Cougar guzzles gas the payback on gas savings alone is 6 months or less.

As always nervous about what is a massive expenditure on my budget and something were I have to trust someone else’s judgment.

Ramping up the nervous is that the person I had arranged over last weekend to lend me the $500 hasn’t returned the call i made at 5 PM. Not returning calls quickly is very unusual for him so my mind keeps trying to catastrophize. – Pardon me for a minute I need to step outside and SCREAM!!!!!!!!! – how do you spell relief? Scream.

The numbers say do it. The person recommending it knows cars. If necessary I can find the $500 elsewhere. My reputation on repayment may even let me still do the paper work tomorrow even if I needed an extra day or tow for raise $500....... ...................................................................................................................................................................................................

..........my tummy is still nervous, my head is still tryi8ng to run catastrophic scenarios and with my brain cells trying to melt down I have the beginning of a splitting headache.

It is at times like this that I appreciate the ineptness of Abbotsford City Council, especially vis-à-vis the homeless.

With several article/commentary ideas in my head on how good an idea/proposal Abbotsford Community Services 20 units of Housing First/first stage housing is, I should be able to distract my brain enough to mellow out enough to lie down quietly which will send me off to the land of nod in less than 5 minutes.

Granting me sleep to deal with tomorrow; should there prove to be anything to deal with.