I am trying to decide what to do with my blog. I could go back to doing the monthly NaBloPoMo, but don't know if that is what I really want. I throwing a few ideas around in my head and seeing if they bounce off the walls and land in the "do it" zone. If any of you readers out there have ideas, please feel free to let me know. I love the writing exercise and it's good for my brain. I want to write regularly, but not necessarily each and every day. And for those of you who used to blog with me and have also hit the blank wall we've been sitting on...I would love to have you join me in this mission!
Speaking of missions...I need to see where I stand on my 101 in 1001. The end is coming up in September and that really isn't going to be that far away. Yikes!
Saturday, March 05, 2011
Monday, January 24, 2011
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!
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!
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
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!
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!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
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