Truck update II

DR has wheels now, granted they aren't the greatest wheels, but it is transportation.

He was was running a little scared yesterday when we went after it, it's been sitting for several months and we had a heck of a time getting it started, but after we got it going it ran surprisingly well (after we blew the soot out of it).

The gas tank has a hole in it and it's going to need a new starter soon, there is an occasional rattle in the engine that TC thinks may be a lifter. It's intermitent and may go away after he drives it some more and gets the oil changed. The rocker panel on the drivers side has leprosy (I'm surprised it isn't worse... I've never had good luck with Chevrolets and rust).

But, for five hundred bucks, what do you expect?

On the plus side, it has a tool box, bedliner and is 4 wheel drive (which actually works). It's not beat all to hell and it should clean up pretty nice.

I discovered the reason for his jumping the gun on purchasing it... it seems he was about half drunk the other day when we went to look at it... my head was stopped up so I didn't smell it and although he acted a little groggy, I didn't think anything about it because he said he'd just got out of bed. It usually takes him an hour or two to get woke up good so it never occurred to me that he was in the condition he was in.

I looked over his Dodge when we robbed the battery out of it to go in the S-10... tried to pull the dipstick and it literally got stuck halfway out... I'm willing to bet he hasn't checked the oil in that truck in weeks... which is probably why that pretty '97 Dodge is now a lawn ornament, at least for several months.

Just a reminder

The Art with a Heart auction is still going on, so go bid on something!

Truck Update

DR is still without wheels at the moment, but with luck, come Saturday, he will be tooling around in an '84 S-10.

I took him to look at it Sunday evening and the dork ended up making a down payment on it without ever hearing it run...

Long story, but I took him around to the title pawn places last Saturday and we didn't have much luck (the boy is 42 years old and although he can drive a stick, he doesn't like to), so I called Junior at the barber shop, who is always wheeling and dealing with something and asked him if he had anything. He didn't, but he knew an ole boy who did have two S-10 pickups for sale at $600 each, so I took DR to LOOK.

The one he liked needed a battery, so he couldn't test drive it then. My intention was to let him look and if he liked one, to go back Saturday with TC and look 'em over again (with a battery this time). We got to talking to the owner, who seemed like a decent guy (his references were good anyway) and kind of told him the situation and he told DR he'd let him have it for $500 to get it out of his yard, whereaupon DR whipped out his wallet and said "I ain't got the money, but can I give you a hundert to hold it fer me til I git my bonus check?"

I'm standing there flabbergasted that the boy was that damn dumb... He knows better than to buy a pig in poke like that.

We got in the truck and headed home and I said "ummm, DR, I meant for you to LOOK at the damn thing, not buy it without driving it."

"Well, damnit, why didn't y'tell me that fore we got there?"

More tall tales from the campfire

Skinner had a weenie roast a month or so back. The usual crowd was there, including Donald, who was in rare form.

Ever wonder where your money has been before? I will try to relate this tale of a twenty-dollar bill in his own words.

"Year or so back, I run off one morning without any cash, so I called my wife and told here to leave a twenty on the front steps and I'd swing back by the house an' git it.

I pulled in a few minutes later and there was half of a twenty under a brick on the front steps. Looked like somebody had just took it and ripped it in half.

I called my wife and asked her what was the big deal and why she'd left me a tore-up twenty. She didn't know what I's talking about and swore up an' down that she'd left it sticking out from under that brick so the wind wouldn't blow it away.

Later that afternoon, I came home and the neighbors’ dog was visiting. When I walked up to the front steps, I saw that he'd left us a little present there in the yard. I noticed they was sumthin' sticking up out of it and sure enough, it was the other half of that twenty. Funny thing is, it was in a perfect roll, just like you'd roll it up to stick in yore pockets.

I set a bucket on top of it to show it to my wife 'cause I knew she wouldn't believe me.

When she got home I said "Honey, you ain't gonna believe this, come take a look at where I found the other half o' that twenty."

I showed it to her and we went on in the house to get a paper towel... I was gonna retrieve that other half. I came back out to get it and it was gone. That dadblamed dog had come and swallered it again."

We asked Donald if he ever got the other half of it back...

Well... this is kinda sad, but the pore ole dog got hit by a car the next day and I never did get the half back. I've still got my half though.... an' I'll get that other half back one of these days 'cause I know where that dog is buried at....

Talk about bad luck

When I got home tonight (at 11pm) DR was standing on my front porch. I asked him where his truck was and he said "Sitting in my driveway."

"So, how'd you get over here?"

"Walked." He lives about four miles away...

"ooooooook... why?"

"blowed the motor up in it this morning, I was hoping you could give me a ride to work." (Have I mentioned he has no phone anymore?)

"why did you walk instead of riding your bike?"

"fraid I'd get run over in the dark."

I don't know what to do, I am not exactly in a position to help him right now. I think he's looking at going to one of the title pawn places and getting a $400 car to drive until he can afford to get his truck fixed.

Remember the "gloom, despair and agony on me" song they used to sing on HeeHaw? I am beginning to think DR is the living, breathing embodiment of that.

If anyone is still reading this

Go here and bid on some artwork. The registration is a little tedious, but there is some nice artwork done by local kids with the proceeds going to a great cause.

And that is the public service anouncement for the day. Lack of blogging will continue now.