Thursday, April 19, 2007

Same Old Song And Dance...

We've been here before.

This morning marked another fun-filled visit to the dealership service center to deal with the ailing truck. For those of you having trouble keeping track (and who wouldn't at this point???), here are the vital stats:

Week #1: Truck is acting up. Visit my dear friend the Dreamy Mechanic and drop almost six hundred dollars for repair.

Week #2: All is well

Week #3: Truck breaks down on Maine Turnpike. Truck is towed to Dreamy Mechanic who thinks he knows what is wrong. He doesn't. Truck begins to fall apart shortly after leaving DM. DM, who is nothing if not an honest soul, has told me to take the truck to the dealership if I have any further problems because he admits that things will be beyond his ken at that point. Sheep takes truck to dealership, is given a tiny, toy car rental and doesn't see her truck again for a week. The cost is staggering.

Week #4: The battery light is on.

Week #5: The truck begins to have more seizures and returns to the dealership where there is no Dreamy Mechanic and the coffee is bad. The bill is less staggering but, when added to the total cost of repairs, is enough to give a Sheep the hives.


And there you have it. It has been a trying day. And, to top matters off, Hysterical Mind has decided that she has had it with dealing with vehicle repair and has determined that we need a husband. She seems to have gone online without Rational Mind's knowledge and registered us with some sort of Mail Order Bride outfit. Rational Mind has spent the better part of the day fending off cyber-suitors with ever-dwindling patience. The situation is worsened by Hysterical Mind's questionable judgement with regard to our profile. It seems that she may have given the impression that we are a bit more "nubile" than we actually be. And where she came up with the idea that we should be Swedish, I'll never know. Rational Mind is considering putting a v-chip on the television to restrict her viewing options.

It's a trainwreck...

Why don't we look at a few things that saw fit to go right today? Remember when I said that I thought I might have managed to duplicate the stripe pattern on my second Lana Grossa sock? Take a look at this!




Yeah, baby! Sheepie's got the eye!!!
There was actually a little bit of sunshine here in the great state of Maine today. After getting over my fear of the unfamiliar fire in the sky, I thought I might try to get a shot of the fiber that I've been spinning. I blended lamb laps with tussah silk in a lovely orchid tone and really love the subtle hint of purple that I can see in the carbon-colored lambswool:

Too bad it doesn't really show on camera though...you'll just have to trust me on this one.

It continues to spin up quite nicely and I look forward to the finished yarn. Sadly, though, this may not be happening any time soon. April vacation is spiraling down and tomorrow marks the end of my down-time. To say that this was not exactly the vacation that I had in mind would be an understatement of epic proportions. I don't recall ordering a flood with a side of snowfall. And the truck deciding to go all Needy McWhinerson on me was not part of the vision either. But, I did manage to get a bit finished fiber-wise and that is not such a bad thing, really.

Besides, April vacation marks the countdown to a little something I like to call Summer Vacation. And that, my friends, is a thing worth waiting for!

SA

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Excellent duplication of stripes, SA! I'm glad something's going right for you. :)

sheep#100 said...

I think it may be time to investigate the Maine Lemon Laws...

Anonymous said...

Look how those socks match!! Wonderful.
There was a woman at the grocery store today. It could have been you. Frozen pizza, diet soda and a large quantity of chocolate. I bet she's having trouble with her car. I hope your truck will be fine now.
Karen
http://nothingbutknit.blog-city.com/

Teri S. said...

The socks look great. It's such a rush when the stripes work out. I'm sorry to hear about the truck. I second what Trek says. It sounds like you've had nothing but problems with the truck, at least since I've been reading your blog.

Don't talk to me about summer vacation! Except for a two brief, non-contigous weeks off in August, I don't get one. Of course, I don't get two spring vacations either. Or Christmas vacation...

Anonymous said...

Wow, you have those stripes nailed! That fiber looks so soft and pretty. Enjoy the spin.

catsmum said...

what can I add?
truck bad
socks gooooooooooooooooooooood
now all you need are some gorgeous irish lace ups and you're set :]

mehitabel said...

I hate cars, and that goes for trucks too. I did get mine washed (and got the cheapie spray wash for it) and now all the dings and dents glow in the dark! That nice protective layer of mud hid a lot. We have rain in the forecast, and I certainly hope it comes to pass so I don't have to spend the entire weekend watering my poor dry yard! Oh... can we get HM to write me a "dating profile"??

laurie in maine said...

Your bad truck karma is as bad as your (was it monkey?) pox ... contagious? I think so! ;)

So yesterday we headed to Ellsworth for a day of sunshine/antiques & old book store browsing. (Husband on vacation this week, also.) I pull in for some gas on the outskirts of Ellsworth and then try to move our jeep wrangler away from pumps while he goes in to pay.

Brake goes ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR. With a gush. I roll to a stop. Brake light is on. Get out to look and sure enough: brake juice is coming out onto the ground.

A Wrecker Guy/Not So Dreamy but darn skilled Mechanic from Lamoine had us on our way by 2 for $180. It's that liquid salt they're spraying on roads. He said it's eating away at everything underneath.

The Walton Guardian Angel must be working overtime, as I dread to think what would have happened if brakes had let go doing 55 mph five minutes before.

I did find an old hard cover Knit-clopedia for $4 :) It's all about looking on the bright side, eh?

Mia said...

well.. you could always send your overflow of "cyber suitors" to me ::laughing my ass off:: and I'd give a dollar to read your profile *grin*

Carrie Bell said...

I can see the subtle purple in the fiber...and it is beautiful! I love that color combination.
Kudos on the stripe matching, Sheepie. You are becoming quite the sock knitter.
Perhaps a medium could help de-code the trucks continued attempts at communicating something to you? Not that I believe in mediums. Do I even have the spelling right there? I was under general anesthesia a few hours ago, so I'm a bit loopy still.

debsnm said...

Tell HM that a new truck is much cheaper and more reliable than a husband in the long run - trust me on this, I know.

Lorraine said...

Love the fiber. Makes me want to dive in and roll around. Reminds me of the quote in Jane Eyre about the "metal welkin."

April said...

Everytime you write "lamb laps" I have visions of little lambs running in circles around your condo.

Denise said...

Yikes, sorry about your truck! Trek may be right about the lemon laws.

The first new car I ever owned was a Nissan Pulsar. It would mysteriously not start whenever it rained heavily. Living in WA state this was a bit of a problem. Especially if it wasn't raining when I set out somewhere in the car. So I could park, go grocery shopping, come out to a downpour and the @#!% car wouldn't start.

The dealership could never find anything wrong with it.

May your truck issues be resolved to your satisfaction soon!

Lazuli said...

The grey future-yarn looks really nice! And those striped socks have beautiful colors!