RETURN OF THE PRIUS

On June 12th, I got slammed, gently, me at seven mph, her moving into me from a stop sign, but the insurance wanted to total my vehicle. It took a long fight and several mishaps, as in the body shop closed that was scheduled to fix my car; a new bid required and so on.

Finally, I got my car back in time to take Jim to the Palo Alto Vets, Wednesday and Thursday.

The Kia rental zipped right along, with doors that sounded and felt like tin. I had very poor vision out the back window. The trunk was miniscule. I felt insecure in it. I’m glad to have my trusty, heavier Toyota Prius back on the road again. Jim has one more short appointment for his eyes and he is finished. We left yesterday with a test of 20/20 vision in both eyes. Pretty good for 74 years old.

While at the hospital, I read the unbelievable story of a man who has a plan to turn half the earth to its natural state. Sound unbelievable?  I thought so too. But, E.O. Wilson has already started. He teamed with a scientist who also believes it can be done. More tomorrow.

 

CHICKENS AND A FENDER BENDER

Yesterday, I crossed the river (without my camera,) and a woman plowed into me in a shopping center. Typically called a fender bender. The front passenger door could open but the back door, no. When I called the insurance, I told them, I have to have my little Prius back because I bought the first one in the state. Toyota shipped three to each dealership from Japan in 2000, and they gifted me and took my picture for the news. I love my little Prius, not only for its good mileage but because it fits in my small garage. The sticker on the back fender was proof of an electric, and used to allow me in the diamond lanes without the two-people-in-the-car requirement. Since, rescinded. Thankfully, it is fixable and neither of us were hurt.

I normally let my chickens out about 6 a.m. or even a tad earlier. But, yesterday, I heard a commotion and the chickens had scattered to all parts of the yard. When I got outside, I had to chase a fox out of the yard. I scolded him, but a hungry fox is likely to return. Because these chickens were in a small yard, their wings are clipped and they don’t have much defense. Hopefully their wing feathers will quickly grow. They think I’m God. I only give them a treat at night, whatever greens, or compost stuff I have. Yet, the minute I let them out in the morning, they follow me like I’m the pied piper. I think it is interesting that I’ve had chickens at every house I’ve owned, from 1961, except this one. And, I’ve never had a coop. They can basically take care of themselves, but always before, I had a rooster.

So, here I am, with the Taj Mahal chicken coop; it still needs paint and a few other modifications, like automatic water, and so on. These girls get all organic feed and let me tell you, these are the most expensive eggs I’ve ever eaten. And, that fox is NOT going to get them. I’m going to build a yard roost they can fly up to for protection. Hey, I’m having fun. My housemate loves watching them from the deck. They follow her around too and one of these days I’ll get a picture because it just tickles me to see them following her. I guess they have two Gods. Life is never dull.

 

OUR BUSY LIVES.

These last two days have been horrendously busy ones. My friend Ann was hospitalized, I went to visit her. She is out now home and her caretaker is sick. I went to look after her on the 5th for several hours while her live-in caretaker went to prompt care.  The home healthy care nurse ordered the place quarantined because both of them have pneumonia and don’t want Ann exposed to anyone else’s germs.

My living room propane heater needed servicing. I have wood heat for back up, but just like to take the chill off cold mornings before starting my day. We don’t need to fire up the wood stove yet because daytime temperatures are still ambient. Art Alexander fixed it. It needed a new thermocoupler and the fan needed oiling. Art is a good friend.

His daughter was murdered for insurance money by her husband, Karl about 20 years ago. She was in the shower when the house erupted into flames. The broken bathroom window was boarded over. The fire supposedly started from a kerosene soaked rug in front of the bathroom door. In those days we had a volunteer fire department and they were not educated enough to detect whether the fire was deliberately set or not but Art and the neighbors suspected. Karl took off with their two kids and moved to the East Coast as soon as he collected the $100,000 insurance settlement. (The house was rented.) Karl then collected $700,000 in insurance money on his 21 year old son last year. He saw the opportunity to kill him by shoving a car the son was working on off the jack so it crushed him. This time, Karl’s wife turned states evidence. She was wired, she got him to admit on tape that he killed him and now the investigation into Christine’s death by fire is also part of the investigation. Art is jubilant that at last this monster is behind bars and facing a trial. He prayed for this day to come and we celebrated over a glass of wine.

I also had my Prius serviced before Art arrived. The check engine light went on while I was on my way to Orgeon.  These smart cars have a computer in them. The computer told me that some dampness occurred near the inverter board which is installed under the driver’s seat. Doug and I verbally traced the probable source of moisture from my air conditioning system. Now I can have my air conditioning system flushed without an expensive trip to the dealership in Modesto.

I began work on fixing a sprinkling system leak. The pipes are buried about ten inches deep and digging them out around entwined root systems was a huge job. I put a soak hose on them to finish the job today. I found the crack in the pipe. Two major water leaks have cost me a bundle in water bills over the last three months, two of those months I was gone. My yard worker fixed one leak two weeks ago; this leak was pretty invisible but the water bill alerted me to the second leak.

Ann’s situation reminded me of my friend Sandee Voges, who has myasthenia gravis. She fell and hit her head on the tile in her bathroom and couldn’t get up. She adopted a medium sized dog who was about to be euthanized. The dog she rescued saved her life. Amy came to her rescue, licking her awake. Sandee held onto Amy’s collar and the dog dragged her to the nearby bedroom where Sandee could reach up,  pull the cord of her phone down off the night stand, and call 911. Pets. They are such a wonderful presence in our lives, especially as we age. (Sandee lives in Arizona.)

Then, I like to keep up with the news and politics. Saw this funny poster:

I hope this doesn’t offend anyone. I thought it was pretty funny.

Then the rather meager “study”, where two scientists dissected two different chicken nuggets from two different fast food restaurants and found 40% chicken in one, and 50% chicken in another, except, the chicken had ground up blood vessels, cartilage and skin with very little muscle meat. That, as they say, is disgusting. The scientists admit, not all chicken nuggets were examined and it was a tiny sample just to see if the nuggets lived up to their claims of “healthy and good for you..” etc. I guess, they’ll do a bigger sampling in the future. Fatty, breaded, laden with sugar and flavor enhancers, you would do well to keep your kids away from such stuff no matter how good they taste. (That is my opinion.)

Yes, I’m busy. Retired people I know claim they don’t know how they ever worked and raised children. They are busier than ever. Would I have it any other way? NO!

 

 

 

WAITING FOR A TOW

I’m driving for the second time since my surgery and decided to have lunch with a friend  9 miles away in Angels Camp. The Prius battery pack, way over warranty, protested by not shifting gears when I went up a steep hill. Stuck!  I waited in a rain drenched spot on the side of the road for one hour. Luckily I had a magazine to read. When the tow truck appeared, they didn’t have the proper equipment to tow a Prius. I had to abandon my vehicle and return home. The tow company has it in their yard and will deliver it this morning to Modesto Toyota. I guess it wasn’t a wasted day.  I played with pictures all afternoon. I was able to load one picture only this morning because the post editor has changed something fundamental about uploading pictures. And, nothing else will load.  I guess it is like waiting for the tow. It will eventually get fixed.

Anyway, this is a clever sculpture as part of a building in downtown Portland, OR.

 

 

 

MY PRIUS IS A CHAMP.

I guess a day is never really lost if  you learn a lot, and I did. On my way to pre-register at the hospital, my 2001 Prius’s check engine light went on.  I managed to round-up alternative transportation to the hospital. When I returned, I had it towed to the Toyota Dealership in Modesto.

The next day, at Toyota, the head mechanic turned me loose after resetting the engine light computer. “We can’t find a thing wrong with this engine and we checked everything.” I took off and 30 minutes down the road, the check engine light went on again. I returned to Toyota. They were really terrific and fast-tracked me through since I came from so far away. This time he concluded that my main battery pack is beginning to fail and will need replacement sometime soon. The battery was guaranteed for eight years and 100,000 miles. I’ve far exceeded that. But, since it is still running…hmmm! Should I wait until it just quits?

Jim, in the meantime, did research on-line about battery life and the great engines Toyota is famous for. He sent me reams of information and we came to the conclusion that $2200 to replace the pack with a battery recycle credit, gives me another run at 150,000 miles. Much cheaper than a new car. Plus, the new battery technology is better than the old. Yes, I learned a lot about a car I love. Especially since I get 44.5 per gallon in winter, 47.5 in the summer, and 52.7 when I’m out of the mountains. That mileage has never diminished in the 11 years I’ve owned my Prius.

It was after 2:00 and I stopped for lunch and a brew in Oakdale.

And near home, I caught this beautiful rainbow. I guess that is a good omen! I think my Prius is a champ and will get a new battery pack.

TRAVELING WITH CHILDREN

Leaving the 73 degree heat in Louisiana on March 30th to return to Murphys in snow was a shock. I worked on taxes and arranged ceiling repairs and paint for my rental until April 4th, when daughter Virginia arrived in her Prius, packed to the hinges for she and I and her two boys. Our goal? A visit with daughter/sister Kristanne and cousins from Trabuco and points south.

Auto travel with children, ages eight and ten can be challenging. Its one of the only times you are grateful for those electronic mesmerizers.  Brother Owen helped his younger brother Theo with strategy in his electronic battle. It was good for a couple of hours. Then, Virginia hauled out new, never before read, comics. A snack of fruit, books and scenery, and word games filled some time.  Then a rest stop.

We chose a spot close to coffee, cool drinks, gas, restrooms and grass. The kids were able to practice karate moves and use up some energy while we watched and stretched our legs. Highway 99 has no state rest stops. They’ve all been moved to Highway 5, but the services are good and handy, making it easy to stop frequently if needed.

Later in the day, we had a leisurely lunch and met this cute baby being showed to everyone by a proud grandma.

At a stop for groceries and goodies before arriving at Portola Hills in Trabuco, we met this little cutie helping her mother shop.

American marketing talent is truly amazing. Comfort at every mile along the way makes traveling with kids a cinch. The drive was nine hours including stops and no blood was drawn. Pretty smart mother, too.

A bouquet for the hostess and we were eating, drinking, and playing Quiddler before you could say, “antidisestablishmentarianism” which is one of Owen’s favorite words. He also has a another favorite. Things are no longer awesome, they are “epic”!  Oh, its wild to learn things from your grand kids. Tomorrow, science and vegetables.