Dealership car repair.

I took my car in today for its regular oil change. I get the oil changes at the dealership because I prepaid for them at a bargain price. I don't get any of my repairs and such there because I feel that they overcharge and I can usually find a better price. My experience with dealership repairs hasn't been wonderful. I just don't trust them.

Sooooooooooo.....
The last time I took my car in they told me it (supposedly) needed a couple of very expensive repairs. One of them was the u-joints, yet they couldn't explain why my tires weren't wearing unevenly. The other one I don't remember, but it was something that I was sure should be covered under the warranty, since I haven't reached 70,000 miles, yet. They also told me I needed a brake fluid flush. That struck me as really odd, since I had just had my brakes replaced less than a month before that visit.
I asked about the one repair because I was sure it should be covered under my warranty. Sure enough...it was a warranty item. "But", she told me, "you might as well do the u-joints at the same time, since it will be less labor than if you do it separately." She then quoted a price of $314.00 for the u-joints and 50 dollars for the warranty work. I told her I would check into that and check whether or not Tiny's had replaced my brake fluid and then I would get back to them.

Of course, I already knew that Tiny's had replaced my brake fluid. They are very thorough when they work on my car and, besides, I had an invoice stating that they had replaced it. They checked out my car and couldn't find anything wrong with the U-joints or any need for the other repair that Dodge had mentioned. They did all of this without any charge to me at all. I never even called my Dodge dealership back.

That being said, I have to say that I thought it was interesting today that there was no mention of my car needing anything at all. Those two expensive repair jobs were magically no longer needed. How is that possible? I would think if something needs repair, it still needs it a couple of months later, if it wasn't done. This is not the first time this has happened with them. The one repair that they told me I needed on my first van was never done the whole ten years I had it. Why? Because I couldn't get any other car repair place to tell me that the car needed it. haha.

So, please, if you are a woman taking your car for routine service and they tell you that your car is in need of repair...always get a second opinion and make sure you have a repair shop that you really trust.

There was one great thing about my appointment today. I mentioned to the girl that I wanted to leave time this morning to run to the car wash before I came in for the oil change, but because I forgot to put the clothes in the dryer last night, I had to wait for my jeans to dry. She mentioned that I could get a wash and vacuum there for 14.95. They HAND wash it, vacuum it, detail the tires, and wipe down the interior. That sounded like a bargain to me. I got back into my sparkling clean car and decided that from now on I will gladly pay them to do that each time I get an oil change. It was so nice to not have to vacuum it out myself! And since it is hand washed, there are no little spots that are missed like when I go to an automated car wash. It's between 8 and 10 bucks just to go to an automated car wash, not to mention the 2 bucks for vacuuming. 14.95 is not much more than that and I don't have to do a thing except sit in a waiting room. So nice!

Fail

I failed at the January challenge, but I'm ok with that. I just don't have the time right now.

Friendship

I tried to find the source of some pictures with quotes that my longtime friend, Cheryl, sent me in an email and found two more quotes that I really liked.

Friends are God’s ways of apologizing for our families.
~ Anonymous
I so agree with this one. We all know we can't choose our family. It is what it is, and sometimes the friends in our life are much closer to us than those we call family. Oftentimes we would prefer our friends to be our family. And many times I've witnessed where friends became the family that a person didn't have in their blood relatives.



It takes a long time to grow an old friend.
~ John Leonard

So true. My friend, Cheryl, has been in my life for all of my adult life. We became friends when I was still in my teens, and she was a young married mother about to give birth to twins. I'm not sure she really believed she was going to have twins. They didn't have ultra sounds in those days. But she did give birth to identical twin girls. I loved babies and was so excited to have a friend that had twins. I still remember going over to her house to help with them, and give them their baths in the sink. I often babysat them and their older sister while she and her husband went out for the evening.
It was kind of funny because I was dating the man who was to later become my first husband. He would call me up for a date and I would tell him I had already agreed to babysit the twins and Tina. He would offer to go with me and help me out, so our "dates" were going over to Cheryl's and babysitting! I don't know a lot of men who would have thought that was fun, but Michael loved it as much as I did. It sure did make taking care of them much easier.
Cheryl and I have been friends for over 41 years. We have seen each other through many things and while we may not agree on everything, we have both worked to maintain the friendship over time. We have had periods where we didn't see each other for long stretches. Things just got busy for us, or we lost touch by moving or circumstances changing. By chance we would run into each other again and start right back where we left off. Since then we have both been determined to make sure we don't lose touch again, and we make time for each other almost every week when we get together for breakfast. There's just nothing better than a good friend who has been through life with you.

I love you, Cheryl and hope we have many more years to come!

Here are the pictures that Cheryl sent in the email. I couldn't find any information to post about their source, but since they are going around the internet, through the emails, I think it will be alright to post them here. If anyone knows the source, I would gladly acknowledge the person who put the quotes and pictures together!
Enjoy!

Blogging.

Blogging.
January.
Laziness.
.....sigh.....

I will get into it. I promise. Just not today.

Gift yourself a friend.

A friend is a gift you give yourself.
Robert Louis Stevenson

I really like this saying. It's always nice when you find a good friend. It's especially nice when that friendship is long and filled with good memories. I want to write more on this subject, but I fell asleep when Logan did and had to do some serious farming when I woke up and now it's suddenly too late because I forgot. Dang farming, anyway.

Getting out more.

The road to a friend's house is never long.
Danish Proverb

My friend, Becky, gave me a wooden plaque with that message on it a few years back. I have it hanging on the wall. It took me a long time to realize that it should also include me. In other words....why did I always expect that everyone should come to my house?

This is something I have really had to work on this past two years. When I joined the "101 in 1001 Mission", it was one of my goals to stop being such a hermit. I made it a goal to go to my friends's houses more often, instead of always expecting them to come to my house. I also made it a goal to get out more and do things and go places. It is so easy for me to be a hermit and shut myself away from the world. I love my home and being in it and I have to work to leave it on the days when I don't work.

I have made good progress on this goal. Becky and I have made many trips in the last year and have had some really nice times going new places and seeing new things. I have also gone to visit more people and not copped out on going to functions. It's not been easy, but it has been fun. I am not a person who really likes crowds and big parties or gatherings. I have been making myself go to some of these things and have actually had fun.

I am going to continue to try and get out more and spend more time with some of the people I hardly ever see because of my swing-shift schedule. I can actually go places in the mornings and still go to work in the afternoon. haha. It's a work in progress, but I am making progress. Which reminds me...I really need to go check out my goals and see how I'm doing. The challenge ends this September and I think I have a LOT of reading to do.

Friends...the definition and some quotes.

You have a good life if you have even just one good friend. I'm not sure if that is a quote or just a thought. I read a lot and maybe I read it somewhere, but friends sure do make traveling through this life easier. Here is the definition I found online. I think I could come up with more definitions if I gave it a minute, but I slept in today and I'm trying to finish rearranging my farms so I can spend less time farming and more time being productive. Tomorrow I begin my whirling dervish period, so today was my last lazy day! Wish me luck on my projects!



friend (frnd)
n.
1. A person whom one knows, likes, and trusts.
2. A person whom one knows; an acquaintance.
3. A person with whom one is allied in a struggle or cause; a comrade.
4. One who supports, sympathizes with, or patronizes a group, cause, or movement: friends of the clean air movement.



Friends are those rare people who ask how you are and then wait for the answer.
Author Unknown

A friend is someone who knows all about you, and loves you just the same.
Proverb

The road to a friend's house is never long.
Danish Proverb

Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light.
Helen Keller

Don't walk in front of me, I may not follow;
Don't walk behind me, I may not lead;
Walk beside me, and just be my friend.
Albert Camus

A friend is a gift you give yourself.
Robert Louis Stevenson

It is the friends you can call up at 4 a.m. that matter.
Marlene Dietrich

I don't need a friend who changes when I change and who nods when I nod; my shadow does that much better.
Plutarch

A true friend is one who thinks you are a good egg even if you are half-cracked.
Author Unknown

Friends

Friends is the theme this month and I've been thinking how nice it is to have friends and how sometimes it's kind of like the tide. The friendships ebb and flow over time. I have had friends that were actually great friends even though we saw each other very seldom. Sometimes our schedules were just opposite, or sometimes there were other extenuating factors that made it difficult to actually get together, but when we did finally find the time to reach out to one another it was like no time at all had passed since we last saw each other. Sometimes you spend so much time with one friend and don't have any time for another.Sometimes you have a couple of friends with whom you get together and spend time many times over the course of a year as a group. Friendships come in all sizes, shapes and colors and hundreds of configurations. There is just no one way to define friendship.

I've come to learn that friendship survives these kind of things if you and the other person truly have an understanding and a strong bond of some kind. I've also learned that some people cannot handle friendship that is not exclusive and 24/7. I, myself, prefer the friendships that are tested over time and remain strong with or without actually spending tons of time together. 24/7 friendships tend to wear me out and I've found that many of the people who want that type of friendship have issues if another friend needs your time or things happen in your life that cause you to be unavailable to them. I've also found that those who want a 24/7 style of friendship are often not true friends. I'm not sure why that is, but it has proven true to me more times than once.

I didn't really have a direction with this blog. I just was thinking about the subject at hand because the blogs I've written so far this month have very little to do with friends per se. They have been picture blogs about things that I saw one day on a trip out with a friend, just not anything about friendship in general. I think I will try to find some good stuff about friendships and some philosophical sayings and post a few blogs about what makes friendships special. Maybe I can even tie it into some of my best friendships and give some kudos to the folks I call friends, whether we have met in real life or only on the internet and what makes them special to me. I will try to start tomorrow, but maybe not until Monday. Tomorrow is supposed to be my LAST lazy day of the lazy streak I've been having. So I just might need to take full advantage of it and be VERY LAZY because Monday I am going to turn into a whirling dervish! That's just how I roll!

oops

I just remembered I needed to blog today. I was just too busy farming. I need to get out of my farming rut. Maybe tomorrow. But this counts either way!
Doesn't it kind of look like this hill has a mohawk?

Tired.

Today's blog is brought to you by tiredness, laziness, procrastination and BLAH!
How about a couple of pictures of ice on a stem or two.












Thanks for stopping by. Tomorrow will be more interesting. I promise.

Winter Day Excursion, The Clouds!

As we were leaving Northwest Trek the clouds were rolling in. It had been a beautiful sunny day for most of our day out. We got dripped on at both the Wildlife Refuge and at Northwest Trek, but it was only because the trees were covered in snow that was melting. These pictures were taken as we were leaving the park and on our drive out to the highway. I loved the way the bright sun contrasted with the dark and looming clouds. If they seem redundant, it's only because they probably are, but I couldn't pick a favorite, so I posted all of them.

Winter Day Excursion, part 4

We got to see a lot of animals. I didn't get good pictures of the mountain goats or the bighorn sheep. We didn't get to see the caribou herd because the upper roads were too icy to travel. It was a fun day, though and Logan really enjoyed seeing the animals.


These two bulls are from the first herd of elk we saw.





The bison were on the roadway so we had to wait while they dispersed.



Then they were right next to the tram.





This is the dominant male elk. His antlers are all broken and chipped from the clashes to prove his dominance.



The herd crossing the road in front of us. They were also blocking our way at first.



Someone's lost antlers.



The moose were hard to get on film. They just wouldn't cooperate and give me good angles. Here is the bull moose.



Here is the one female that didn't turn her back on me completely.

Winter Day Excursion, part 3

We got to see lots of animals on our trip to Northwest Trek last week, but I think this one was my favorite. He is a Giant Pacific Salamander. I found him to be so cute I had to laugh. Something about the little face with his sucked in lips which make him look like he forgot to put his teeth in just cracked me up. Plus, you have to love the pink gills which make it look like he's wearing a boa and those startling blue eyes!.











Logan had a super good time and made some friends. Here are some pictures of Logan enjoying himself at the different centers and on the tram.

He is running to get another puppet and almost ran into the other grandma that was there.


Enjoying the snake. I'm so glad he missed the part where the snake swallowed a live mouse that was in the tank. I'm glad I missed that, too.


Making a wreath.




We told him the tram was a 'train' that was on wheels instead of a track. He bought our story and enjoyed his ride on the 'train'.


A preview for tomorrow's blog:

This is the dominant elk in the elk herd. The big animals were all right up next to us, even blocking the road while we drove through.

Winter Day Excursion, part 2

After our trip to Morse Wildlife Preserve we took Logan and went to lunch at a little Mexican restaurant. We then headed to Northwest Trek. It is not normally open for the weekdays in the winter, but they were having a special day to celebrate winter. They had little centers set up to teach us about winter care for the animals. We had a great time and Logan enjoyed himself. We got to see lots of animals. Here are the eagles and owls. I will do the other animals tomorrow.


The Bald Eagle.



The Golden Eagle.



The Snowy Owl.



The Great Horned Owl.



The Barn Owls.

January, 2011. Wow.

I've decided to do the January NaBloPoMo monthly blogging. The theme for this month is "Friends". I have decided I will start with photos of my trip out last Wednesday with my friend, Becky, and my grandson, Logan. We had a really nice time. It was a beautiful sunny day with snow on the ground.
First, we visited a little wildlife preserve. It was Winterfest at Morse Wildlife Preserve. I had never heard of the Morse Wildlife Preserve in Graham, but it is a nice little place. They took us on a comfortably paced, guided walk through their property. We identified plants and birds and just enjoyed the lovely day. Logan was able to make himself an owl mask in the little barn before we went on our walk. They have a nice little look-out tower, easy to climb the stairs and with a beautiful view of the surrounding land. Here are some of the pictures. Tomorrow I will post the pictures from our Northwest Trek excursion.

Ready to glue.


Watching the helper take the lid off his glue.


The finished product.


Gorgeous day with a gorgeous view.


Posing for Grandma.


Snowy bushes.



This tree lost its battle with nature.


From the tower showing the neighboring property..


One of the ponds formed during the wet season in the wetlands.


Logan looking around from the tower.


The barn where they had the crafts and informative materials. They had hides from several animals, a owl that was preserved through taxidermy and many pamphlets and pictures, plus hot cocoa!