My Night Sucked

If you’ve been reading by blog, you know I had to do the brakes on my truck. I finally got around to it the other day and it sucked. Now I’m an ASE certified Master Technician, and a brake job is a very easy task to do. It should have taken me all of 30 minutes. I started on the passenger side brakes first and was done with it in 10 minutes.

Then I started on the drivers side brakes, and that’s when the sucking started. While taking off the wheel, three studs broke. This has happened to me before so I had two lug nuts in my tool box, but the only stud I had was for the rear. This meant I had to walk to the auto parts store (I only have one vehicle and I had already broken it).

At the auto parts store they only had 2 studs and no lug nuts. This didn’t help me much. Although I could replace 2 studs and nuts, I would have to disassemble the hub twice, and that would be a pain in the ass. So I walked to the next auto parts store (Luckily the first one is only a mile away, and the next one is only a mile from it). This one also had studs and no lug nuts. This was OK because I could replace all the studs and use the two lug nuts I had (I could install the third lug nut later).

Once home I started fixing the drivers side brakes. Nissan does things a little different than most other manufactures. In order to remove the hub, a specialty tool is needed. I don’t have this specialty tool, so I had to make do with what I had (that means I couldn’t torque the wheel bearings when re-installing the hub; I had to use the German method of tightening, "gutintite" (good and tight)). The hub then had to be removed from rotor (it is held in place by 6 bolts) and the three broken were replaced.

All wrapped up I test drove the truck, parked it and went inside to get cleaned up. I took a shower and started to have a couple of beers. After the second beer I realized that I didn’t tighten down the 6 bolts holding the rotor to the hub. I only snugged them down. I had already cleaned up, and had a nice buzz on, so I wasn’t about to go get dirty again that night. I decided to do it in the morning, and had another beer. I called my cell phone (it was charging in my bedroom) and left a message on it to remind me that I needed to fix the truck before I drove it to work.

In the morning, I woke up early, got dressed (at which time I saw that I had missed a call on my cell phone, and remembered that I had to fix my truck) I changed, because tan pants and light blue shirts show dirt and grease more than dark blue pants and shirt (I didn't want to look like total crap all day). So I took the wheel off my truck, and tightened the 6 bolts that I had forgotten to tighten the night before( this sucked to do before I had my first cup of coffee).

It pretty much set the tone for the day. My day sucked, just like my night sucked.

Buddy Update

Buddy has gotten his cast off. After the first day of having his cast off he is doing well, but the first day he didn’t do well. I don’t know if it was because he hadn’t used his neck in 5 weeks and re-using it made it hurt, or if it was a left over reaction from the sedative. By the time I got home the next day he was back to normal (as normal as a dog dying of cancer can be (which is more normal than you would think)).

We still have to go to the vet next week. Because Buddy had a cast that whapped around his legs; he developed a couple of arm pit sores (I guess it is actually leg pit sores because he doesn’t have arms). I have to clean the sores daily and put an ointment on them twice a day to help them heal. That is why the vet wants to see him, to make sure he is healing OK.

With any luck the vet will clear him, so he can go to Yappy Hour on August 9th and say goodbye to everyone from GRRA.

Jeep

As I was leaving the restaurant at lunch, I looked across the street and saw this Jeep. It was parked in a bar parking lot. This got me wondering, why? The following are some reasons it could be.

1. Someone left the bar with someone, and the person who wanted to leave with them was pissed (and just finished shopping at Office Depot).
   
2. Someone was getting married in the bar and the best man didn't know where to get empty cans.


3. The Atlanta Police don't know how to subtly mark a car for surveillance.


4. Who needs to boot a car when you have post-its.


5. It is the new Maco budget paint job.


6. Nothing was wrong. The car is owned by Carrot Top.


7. The owner is a criminal genius. The cops will be looking for a dark blue Jeep, not a pink, yellow, lime green, light blue and purple jeep. And, it has the added benefit of windows that they can't see into.

Good Boss

When I left my old position as a Technical Instructor, my biggest apprehension was leaving my boss. After years of having a bad boss, Scott was a welcome change. Scott was a good boss. Scott wanted you to do well, because when you did well, he did well. He even encouraged us to put in for promotions, which is why I have my current position.

Going from a good boss to a unknown boss can be unnerving. For the last few months Seyed (my new boss) and I have been feeling each other out. He has been a good boss so far, but recently he has gone beyond good boss. With all of Buddy's vet appointments he has let me take vacation days, and today he let me swap my off day so I wouldn't have to burn up all my vacation.

Working for a good boss makes life a little easier. I just wish Seyed liked working a 4 day work week like Scott did.

I just finished reading a book called Ten Points. It is the memoir of Bill Strickland, an editor of Bicycling magazine. It recounts a race season that he tries to score 10 points in. He uses the racing to exorcise the demons of his past.

It is a good story with parts that are disturbing and others that are inspiring. Although it is sold with the cycling books in the sports section of the book store, it really isn't a cycling story. It just often takes place while he's cycling. It is more of a inspirational story.

If you are wondering how I'm able to read and not mow my yard. The answer is easy. You can read with a Golden using you as a pillow, but you can't drive a mower.

What a Mess

My lawn is high. If my dogs lay down, I might loose them. The brakes on my car squeal when I stop. The high pitch metal on metal sound makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up. I have a mountain of laundry. I’m thinking of hiring a Sherpa. I am fatter than normal. I am no longer a Clydesdale, I’m the draft wagon. I haven’t exercised in a month. My bike and running shoes are gathering dust (I couldn’t go for a ride or a run if I wanted to. All my cycling and running shorts are in the mountain of laundry, and I would probably cause an avalanche if I tied to dig it out to wash.).

You may ask why my life is in such disarray. Because it sounds worse than what could be explained by my normal laziness. You would be right. As you know Buddy (my Golden Retriever) is sick (he’s dying). This has left me a little depressed. Add depression to laziness and you get a person who sleeps a lot. The other thing is when I get home; all I want to do is hang out with Buddy.

Friday I have to take Buddy to the Vet. In order to change his cast they have to knock him out. With the time I have between dropping Buddy off and picking him up, I might be able to mow the yard or fix the brakes on my car.

Who am I kidding? I will probably curl up in a little ball on the couch and wait to pick Buddy back up.

Buddy in a Shirt and Cast

The Biopsy came back on Buddy. He has Chondrosarcoma. For anyone that doesn’t know what that is, it’s a malignant tumor of the bone and cartilage. It isn’t a fast moving tumor, and it doesn’t usually spread to other parts of the body, but because of its location and extent, there is not much we can do. I am still waiting to talk to the surgeon.

They had to knock Buddy out to change his cast. He had a couple of sore spots from the rubbing, so they put on a shirt under the cast. They must have re routed the tape a bit, because he is walking better. This may not be a good thing because he snagged his new shirt on the screened door and fell down as he pushed the door open in order to get away from me (he didn’t want to go in the crate).

I have to take him in to the vet again Friday; they want to redress his sores.