dancerjodi

This weekend has flown by! We hung out with Tember and Corey on Friday, I had ballet and we went to a birthday karaoke party on Saturday, and today was a lot of running around at getting things done at home.

We dropped my car at the Fresh Pond Honda/Chevy this afternoon to get some work done. I've had the check engine light on for a while, because one of the tire pressure monitors is busted. Yes - these new fangled cars have monitors in them to measure your tire pressure (the right rear one on my car isn't working). I'm sure it's complicated and expensive, and presumably covered by my warranty (hence the dealer). It's frustrating that a lot of the Chevy dealers have closed and I'm left to go to this one. I'm assuming that they won't have the part in-house and preparing for the worst, not having my car for a few days. Thankfully we have Brian's truck and he can get to work via the bus. Eddie will also get an oil change while he's there. It's so dusty inside - I waver between wanting to get him detailed and doing a quick clean myself. Maybe this year I'll treat him.

As the weather gets warmer I think of cruising, Hampton Beach, Dairy Joy, camping. Things are filling up in our schedule so I'm hesitant to make a lot of plans. I have this weird balance of wanting to go out and see people and do things and liking having chunks of unscheduled time. This is part of the reason why we haven't been jumping all over every trooping opportunity we've had. I'm organizing two events over the next month (Anime Boston Blood Drive with The Heinlein Society and the Higgins Armory troop in May). I think I'll be ready to take another break from event planning after that.

There are a bunch of silly and annoying house projects that have been waiting for quite a while that I'd like to get a jump on. Our bulched is rotted away. We need new gutters and downspouts. Our chimney is leaking. Ceilings need plastering and painting and we still haven't painted our hallway a purposeful color (it's still the odd red and yellow that the former owners put up). The trim in our upstairs bathroom needs priming and painting (I was a dummy and didn't prime before I painted, so the paint just soaked in and now you can see all of the knots in the wood). Our tub needs recaulking. We need a new bedroom door since ours is broken. I'd like to take photos of the stuff in our house so that if we ever had a fire we'd have things documented for insurance purposes. I'd like to build some emergency kits for the same reasons (water, nonperishables, pet supplies, the 'needs to come with me if we have to run out of the house' box). Our poor, poor yard (front and back) is a mess! There are things stashed in corners of our home not visited frequently (the attic, the basement, the garage, stacked plastic bins with who knows what in them) that I can always weed through and find things to rid ourselves of. I feel like "stuff" doesn't have such a hold on us anymore, but there are still treasures to be found and passed on. I actually enjoy taking care of this kind of stuff and I know that it will never all be done, but in list form it can be quite overwhelming.

Along these lines, when going through some old boxes in the attic today (oh boy did I make a huge pile of things to donate to Sister Thrift!) I found something from high school that I thought was long gone, yay! It will make its appearance at a costume party in a few weeks (yay for unexpected inspiration, because I was really struggling with what to wear - I did not want something Star Wars related or super obscure, which seems to be my MO)! I also found one of my grandmother's vintage hats circa 1940 which is PINK with white feathers on the top. If it fits with my Umbridge wig, it may be a perfect way to complete the costume! I'm waiting for some shoes to arrive at my house and then I'll take a picture to share the whole frightening getup. I have some neutral-colored shoes fro work that just aren't comfortable so I ordered some new ones from Zappos to replace them that I think will work well for Umbridge (not pink, but complementary and something I'd wear elsewhere).

We leave in a couple of weeks for our St. Thomas weekend - crazy! Going from Boston to San Francisco was a bit of a shock weather-wise, so I can't imagine how we will feel in St. Thomas. Bathing suits and sunblock! Despite it being spring, I was in flannel PJs last night - brr!

Triscuit crackers
Tori Amos' "Famous Blue Raincoat" cover
A new Tori album coming out in May
Helping out in dance class last night, feeling like I'm needed there
Late-night chocolate chip cookies with Brian
Having an auto mechanic conveniently located around the corner*

*Brian is notorious for taking poor care of his truck. His check oil light went off months ago, and we found the closest gas station so that he could check the oil, purchase 2 quarts and dump it in. He meant to get an oil change after that (can't remember the last one, but we were living in Framingham at the time and moved from there in the summer of 2004). He didn't get things checked out. The light went off again last night and putting oil in didn't make it go away (the pressure was at zero). He called the mechanic this morning and they suggested having it towed (seriously) around the corner rather than risking driving it. Of course, when AAA showed up to hook it up the pressure gage moved to normal. They can't get to it today but hopefully some time this week.

Lets hope that Brian learns his lesson and that it isn't an overly expensive one. TAKE CARE OF YOUR CAR PEOPLE - WOULD YOU ABUSE AND NEGLECT YOUR BODY THIS WAY, OR YOUR PETS, OR YOUR KIDS? He and Andy used to have this saying which I think applies here: "Much too big and useful".

My hope was that we could get enough life out of this truck to allow us to pay off my car loan (at this rate within a year) and then save $1k a month toward him purchasing another one. He only drives about 2500 miles a year to Home Depot and back or the rare trip that requires a big vehicle (or going somewhere without me, while I'm out with my own car).

I'm in my new car (its name is Eddie as in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_the_Head by the way, Jessie guessed right). I figure that you're groovin' along, having a good time and them BAM this new thing comes from backstage unexpectedly to make the night even better; that's Eddie. He takes it and takes it and takes it and keeps on going. He's heavy and metal and black and BRUTAL! I figured it was appropriate.

Brian got me www.prince21nights.com/ and its excellent!

Watching old family movies at my sister's place with my parents was a lot of fun. We're celebrating "Christinamas" on Sunday with EJ and Christina.

Merry Christmas to the folks that celebrate it.

I made a ton of calls this morning. The car will be picked up by the salvage truck today and I can get my plate from the shop that initially towed it. The insurance company has my payoff balance from Rockland Trust and once they get the authorization form from me (it should come this morning from UPS) they'll pay the loan off.

Regarding the value of the car, they couldn't get an odometer reading because its such a wreck, so they'll have a copy of my oil change receipt from 2 weeks ago to estimate (I had included it with the loan payoff authorization form, so they'll have it today). I told them about the remote starter and Alpine system I had installed, and she said if I fax over the receipt from that work to them they'll figure that into the value of the car. She did say that the body condition was noted as "better than average", so the assessor did take into condition the recent work I had done. Come on big money!

Given the holiday she suggested that a check is sent regular postal mail rather than UPS (since they are closed for the rest of the week after today) which would get me a check as soon as Friday or Saturday. Assuming I get my plate today, this could put me into a new car tomorrow or Friday. I'm going to call the car dealer shortly to figure out what to do there next.

If you ever have to deal with this kind of thing I can suggest keeping everything (I mean everything) in a folder and keeping your phone and a pen nearby. Keep receipts of all of the work you have done to your cars because they can come in useful later. Write down who you talk to when, phone numbers, faxes and that kind of thing and keep it all in the folder.

What an exhausting process, but its hopefully almost over.

I'm back at work and the food is already flowing. I brought in my individually bagged pizelles for my coworkers which has become a very predictable tradition over the years, but people seem to be excited about them. Its going to be very difficult to be motivated this week.

We ventured out last night to do a final shovel and car cleaning and headed to Hannaford to pick up things needed for Xmas Eve dinner and Xmas morning breakfast. Of course, Hannaford didn't have fake vegetarian pepperoni (or a 3/4 lb block of muenster), so I'll have to hit Whole Foods tonight after work for those. Does anyone have any idea where the fake pepperoni would be kept? Brian's annoyed that we're going meatless, but I want my sister to be able to eat this (Gram used to make it all of the time).

My soreness is pretty much segregated to the right pectorals (bruising) and my right shoulder and side of the neck. I can still move all over, its just stiff/sore as if I slept on it the wrong way so I'm sure it will be fine. Years ago, Brian bought me one of those smelly pillow pads that you heat up in the microwave (a bunny) the size of a door draft sock, at one of the stores on Moody (Gourmet Pottery). This thing is really amazing in these sorts of situations, and I can't wait to heat it up and wear it around again tonight. I didn't want to bring it to work, because I wasn't sure if the smell would offend (and I didn't want yet another thing to carry in.

Montvale Ave was horrible this morning - I sat for 20 minutes trying to drive a straight line to my office (when it would normally take me 2 minutes). I think it was backup to 93 or something, but other than that my commute was uneventful. My pride in Hedwig and Impalas in general grows as I see how bad this Charger is in the snow, and how little relative power it has. I can't wait to hear from my insurance company today.

The more I think of it, the less I'm expecting to be in a new car early this week. Liberty Mutual needs from me the form that gives them authorization to pay off my loan on Hedwig and take the title (before they cut me a check) and I dropped that into a UPS box last night (it's next day air, but won't be picked up until tonight at 6PM and it needs to get out to Westboro, MA). If they totalled the car today and I was able to get the plate from it today or tomorrow, there's a slight chance I could get the car Wednesday (maybe) with only putting my cash deposit down (and then pay the rest to the loan later once I get the check). This is my first experience with this kind of thing, so I have no clue how it normally goes.

I guess the perk of renting an Enterprise car and then buying an Enterprise car, is that I can drop the rental off when I go to pick up the new car.

I feel kind of lame for rambling on and on about this, but its the biggest thing on my mind right now. I'll be happy to get back to normal, and am excited to buy the new car some gifts (like winter weather wipers, a steering wheel cover, those silly kinds of things) assuming of course I get it.

I'm OK, but I was hit by someone this morning. If you know Waltham at all, I was heading down Lyman Street from Main, just before the Lyman Estate/Rotary (on the bridge) and a woman coming down from the other direction lost control, skidded and smashed into the front of my car. Both airbags deployed and I had to really push to get my way out.

Other than a stiff/neck and shoulders I'm fine (I went to my PCP after the accident just to be sure - I'm to ice it and take some OTC pain killers). I'm sure that Hedwig will be a total loss.

The woman that hit me was cited for driving on the wrong side of the road and being at fault (hooray for a nice witness behind me who stayed to make sure that everything was settled). She was only 25 and was very shook up. It was slippery but really wasn't that bad, and I think it was a case of her perhaps not being comfortable driving in the snow? She left in the ambulance - I don't think she was wearing a seat belt (there was a break in her windshield, though no blood).

After going to the doctor, Brian took me to get my belongings from the car and snapped this:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3013/3115262415_a13557e6d2.jpg?v=0

I am so bummed, but I'm glad I am OK. The insurance company has been called and I have a rental until either my car is fixed (yeah right) or until I have a check for a total loss. It looks like I'll be in the market for a newer Impala now.

The damage could be a lot worse - I was lucky:
http://www.marmontianderson.com/photos/thumbnails.php?album=197

After sleeping on it last night, I am going to suck up the deductible and have her fixed. I have insurance, I don't want her rusting, and I want her to keep her value since I'm planning on keeping her for a long time.

The insurance company has been called. I'm bringing her in for an appraisal on Friday morning at 8:00 to the shop that will be doing all of the work over on Felton Street. The insurance company will pay them directly and all I'll have to worry about is the deductible. I have rental coverage, and the insurance company will also arrange all of that for me so that when I drop her off at the shop for work they'll meet me there with my rental. Now lets do this thing, or something! Here's hoping that they can get my car in soonish so that I can get this whole thing over with.

We've rescheduled the garage door installation for the day before Thanksgiving. I guess the delay in shelling out that money is a good one, and gives more time for saving (considering this new auto expense).

On the green revolution:
http://www.dailynewstribune.com/archive/x43066446/Marc-Munroe-Dion-Green-revolution-or-class-warfare

I'm off work today to get my car fixed and to sew, and we're both off tomorrow, aiming to get to the hotel by 2:00. My Leia dress is finally fixed (the collar was too huge) and I started to try and sew a new trooper groupie skirt but I don't have the right needle for my machine - ah well. We picked up the last of our raffle prizes last night and most things are done save for some minor stuff to cross off the list. I can't wait to sit in the hot tub at the con on Saturday night after the ball, panels and raffle are all done. :)

Thank heavens for extended warranties! Something was up with my temperature gage on the car and I needed an oil change anyway so I dropped it at Fresh Pond Chevy last night. Since my warranty is up in October they decided to go through the whole thing and found a whole host of issues (this makes complete sense, since I have almost 86k miles on a 5 year old car - it takes a lot of abuse). That is so cool of them to have the forethought because not only does it get them money, but it prevents some problems for me down the line and makes GM pay for them!

For my $100 deductible, these are the things that will be covered under the warranty:
-The instrument panel cluster is busted, causing the temp gage issue
-The intake gaskets are leaking coolant, this would have cost me $1500
-The transmission cooling lines are leaking
-The lower control arm bushings (?) in my front suspension are busted

In addition to that $100 deductible I'll pay for:
-A new fuel filter (I guess its all gunked up - makes sense, its been a while since my last tune up)
-An oil change
-They had to "retork" the nut on my passenger side wiper arm which I'm guessing means tighten it with a powered wrench much stronger than I've been tightening the thing myself by hand every few weeks.

They tell me I also need a new left rear tire, a tire rotation and an alignment. I'm curious about the alignment because I just had one done before I went to Dragoncon but either way, that's all stuff I'll take care of in a few weeks after I've recovered from this cost at the local Monro where I can sit and wait for it.

Given how long it will take to fix things, the fact that its almost the weekend and they don't have all of the parts in house the car won't be ready until Tuesday or Wednesday. Well isn't it convenient that my husband has a vehicle that he was going to be using for us this weekend anyway (Jabba) and that we'll be at the Arisia hotel for most of the weekend? We're both off work Monday (his company is closed, I'm taking a vacation day) so that we can go pick up our new den couch at the Ikea warehouse (only open till 5 during the week and we don't want to have to wait until next weekend to get it), and that's something he'd have to drive for anyway. I guess my kick butt warranty also covers rental fees, so I'm going to give the mechanic a call on Monday afternoon to see how things are going with them, what the schedule is looking like, and if I need a rental they'll arrange for one for me that I can pick up there and drop when I go to get the car when its all finished.

I can't remember what I paid for that extended warranty from Enterprise Auto (where I purchased the car - its a regular GM warranty) but boy oh boy am I glad that I got it! Its the first time I've used it, and I'm so glad the timing worked out such as it did. Paying a few hundred dollars is much preferable to paying a few thousand!