Well, the hour and a half freaking long wait to get my tires re-balanced was worth it.  I was a bit peeved because there wasn't that many other people in the waiting room and more importantly: only 2 other vehicles in a 6 car bay.

They did not attempt to sell me a new tire to replace the used one I had bought there.  I sat there for such a long time I drained the battery down to 15% - which is when it shuts itself off - on my lap top and then put on my sunglasses and started to take a nap.  I fully expected them to come up with some sort of sales pitch - not saying Discount Tire is fraudulent or otherwise deceptive, but they are in business to sell tires and make money, not give away free tire rotations only - but they did not.

Instead, they pulled the car up front, the dude came in and told me that all 4 tires had been out of balance, 2 of them extremely much so.  I say that was good to hear because that simply means nothing else needs to be done and I didn't pay a penny to them today, the used tire is still good - and looks good btw, still lots of tread on it - so off I went.  I was going to get on the freeway when passing by a gas station that had changed names.  Sitting at a red light at the corner, I saw the sign: oil change only $15.99.  I did some turns to go back and then went in.

My "Oil Level Low" light came on the other day and did so a few months ago as well.  There is a small, slow oil leak. It's going to cost $600 to have it fixed - just replacing a bunch of gaskets but the labor is the killer because half the engine has to be taken apart.  Okay, 1/3rd of it.  Right now, I have no plans to fix it.  Only if/when it becomes a leak that I can see on the ground, then I will have to deal with it.  If I really had the motivation, I could do it myself.  I have done enough total engine rebuilds in my life, I just haven't done anything that extensive in quite a long time and a bit nervous about attempting it in my driveway.  I will wait until Caleb is gone for the summer and his/my car is parked in the driveway before attempting it. If I screw it up somehow, at least I will have something to drive, lol.

I have quite a lot of comment I would like to speak about the Obama administration and the now-labeled "Benghazi-Gate" per Fox News anyway and also this situation with the IRS admitting they targeted Tea-Party groups.  But it makes me mad, really mad to think about what this administration is doing to our nation so I have to just back off, take a breath and put it out of my mind.  Obama can't be President forever, thank God, but I wonder about the damage done before he exits office.

My mom sent me a pic of a very long snake.  It was slithering into a hole next to her porch in the back of her house.  Black and white the thing was.  I don't like snakes, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't want them around if they are eating unwanted guests such as rodents.  Well, I looked it up and this thing is a King Snake and upon further investigation, those snakes actually EAT other snakes! Including Rattlesnakes!!!  Well done, Mother Nature and God, lol, that's a good one to have around me-thinks.  My mom was of the same mind.  She hates snakes but she let this one go - otherwise she would be out there with her .22 pistol attempting to fill it full of snake shot.  Lol.  Cracks me up to think the only time I ever saw her trying to kill a rattler with that thing, it was doing nothing to that snake, or if it was, it certainly wasn't anything visible.

Oh-ohhhh. The Hummingbird that owns my property is out there whining about the feeder being empty.  It is getting drained REALLY fast.  There HAS to be more than just that one bird feeding off of it.  It sits there and chirps at me when I procrastinate on refilling it.  NO, I am dead serious, that little bird owns my property, pays all of my bills and has a robotic maid serving me meals.  It always tells me about it when that thing is emptied out.  Which I just filled it up, what a week and a half ago? That's really fast for a bird that small! Gotta figure out what else is feeding on it. If it's other Hummingbirds, oh well, if it's other kinds of birds, they can go find some other source of nutrition.  It's not leaking or, obviously, there would be a lot of red stains on the ground below.  Nothing.

My plan is to go up to the property sometime in the morning, but plans can be changed by circumstances, we all know that!

ben

Sitting at Discount Tire, waiting eternally for them to simply balance all 4 tires.  Worth the wait I guess since it's free, but I am guessing they are going to come back and tell me that the used tire I bought several months ago is going to need replaced.  I wish they would at least GET that far with this, I have been here for an hour now.

I was thinking of going up to the mountains today, but it's already 4:15 pm and I haven't even started anything about packing to go, much less the fact I haven't gotten home from work yet.

Finally getting the shifting on the new semi.  Extremely fast.  Just too fast, it really shouldn't have to shift that fast between gears.  If I don't, though: clunk.  Not good for a tranny.  The thing winds up so fast you'd think I was driving a car, not a tractor trailer rig.  I dunno, guess it's new technology or something, certainly isn't acting like ANY other semi tranny I have ever shifted and I can tell you, I have driven a lot of semi's over the last almost 30 years now.

Driving at 65mph on I-10 is also irritating.  That's what the governor is set at and that's what i was stuck at on that highway today while everyone else was zooming past me.  We are going to deal with that soon enough.  I will keep whining about it until a tech is sent out to change it.  Besides the fact of going slow, it's taking forever to get from point A to point B.  The extra time driving today cost me a delivery this afternoon - they had already gone home by the time I was ready to go over there.

Well whatever.  The weekend is here and I dunno.  I will decide when I ever get out of this place whether I am going to drive up there today or not, but probably not since it's getting so late.  i don't want to be showing up there at 9 o'clock at night or something.  I may go up tomorrow morning since mother obviously doesn't want to spend Mother's Day alone.

I am wondering when George is intending to have his girlfriend move in.  Mark informed me the George told him he was having a phone line installed to his room for work.  He is, apparently, required to have a dedicated line for working at home, which is what he has been doing for a while now, but they want to make it official.  I want to charge the guy more rent.  I don't care if he's operating a business out of his bedroom, for all intents and purposes, but at the same time, it's using more electricity and he should have to pay extra.  If I bring it up to him, though, I am sure he's going to have a conniption.  Which has never stopped me before, lol.  We'll see.  Oh, apparently his work pays for the phone line.

The dude living in the mini van in front of the next door neighbor's house must be getting pretty miserable out there by now.  It's getting warm, very warm, not "hot" yet, but it will be there soon enough.  I don't get it, though.  What is this guy doing? Why isn't he looking for a job or going to school or SOMETHING? He is ALWAYS out there.  It's just weird, I guess.

Well enough of this, I need to put this computer away and get up and find out what's taking so long.

ben