I'm experimenting with things that might help me sleep longer, and that included skipping my normal evening half-cup of coffee. Two nights later I decided it didn't make any difference; I was up at 2:30 and 3:30 the following mornings. So last night I had Diet Coke with my pizza and that cup of coffee with a few cookies around 7:30.
We may need to revisit that caffeine thing. I was up at 12:30 a.m., very wide awake.
But I got quite a bit done, considering I only did quiet chores. (The air compressor didn't see like a good idea.) The closet rod has been replaced, the quarter-round stained, and about 20 square feet of the kitchen floor scrubbed.
We were in Junction City by 9 a.m. and I installed the hood latch. Ken, the owner of J.C. Muffler drove in front of me and Pam behind me as we made our way 3 miles down the road to the body shop where the repairs will be made. They sandwiched me like so no cop could see I don't have plates.
Observations after my first drive:
- Before I was out of first gear the speedometer was SCREAMING and it pegged at 100 mph.
- The gas gauge read full, and I know there's only about 3 gallons in the tank.
- The engine idles at about 3k rpm, way too high. It should be down around 800 rpm, where it was when it left our garage in AZ
- And the battery won't hold a charge for an hour. It's pretty much a 30 lb. weight.
I'm more than discouraged. I can't imagine why it won't idle or why the gas gauge reads full. When we got to the body shop I pulled the battery and will take it into O'Reilly's tomorrow to see what's up.
I told Pam I have to reset my thinking and just figure it will take me a month of fiddling to get the truck drivable. Until then we're a one car household which, while not impossible is turning out to be inconvenient.
It was so good when it left my custody.
We spent several hours after that trip shopping, going to several places for a variety of things. Pam had never been in a Harbor Freight before and experienced first hand the unique culture that is that establishment.
We found the coolest store - Coastal Farm and Ranch - where I was told I'd find the parts necessary for the hand-dug well just below MoHo. It's huge and they have everything the rural resident could possibly need or want, from pet rabbits, to everything Carhartt makes, to wood and pellet stoves, to feed troughs, to tools... It's like TSC on steroids. We'll be going back there!
We went to several places looking for something to put on the bathroom wall, something distinctive and interesting. Pier 1, Bed, Bath & Beyond, and someplace else that was equally as forgettable. Didn't find anything. We decided we need to find an architectural salvage business, or cool junkyard. No hurry. We'll know the right item when we see it.
On the way home we stopped at Lowe's so I could buy the bags of cement and 2x6's to make the threeslabs for Fred's foundation. I got that second 9-ton bottle jack from Dave this morning, so if the weather holds tomorrow I'll jack up the west side, remove what's there, and make & set the forms. I doubt I'll have time to do the pour, and it's supposed to rain a lot over the weekend, so maybe Monday.
I'm tired. If I continue to write I'm likely to get myself in trouble.
G'night.
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