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Wednesday, July 19, 2006

DANG IT

--------------------------NOT AGAIN! --------------------------



The truck was doing some bad jumpin and hoppin. Jethro had a mean old 4X4 when I met him, which he wasn't driving anymore because it was, well, a great collection of parts that didn't work very well together. It ate universal joints. He knows a nasty U joint whean he comes across it.

Most of you probably have a clue what this is all about but in case you don't, here's the quick lesson:


Engine makes power-->transmission (in my youth we called it a tranny) determines speed (gear)--> driveshaft moves power from engine & transmission to the rear axle--> axle makes the back wheels turn and move the thing down the road. Here's the thing...the driveshaft is at a right angle to the axle. So you need this thing called a universal joint. If it gets out of round you're in trouble. (I don't fix em, I just talk about em.) When I was a kid, my mom's 68 Beaumont dropped a driveshaft once while we were going down the road. Pretty scary, kids!

Now don't ask me how a front wheel drive works. Haven't got a clue. Don't get it. Makes no sense. I love our Jetta but I'll never ever do more than fill the windshield washer.

Here's the truck on another truck. It sits pretty high on its own 4 tires let alone like this. There I was, standing there at the end of my driveway, in my blue camoflage miniskirt (it'll come in handy if I ever get invited to a party in Blue World and I want to remain inconspicuous) and my Los Angeles tank top (which Jethro brought home for me after he had a gig there) while my neighbours honk and wave and roll down their windows and yell, "Hey! Wha Happen?" Ah, town life.

Just when I thought I wouldn't have to spend any more money on that rassafrackin truck. I love my truck. But I'm wondering at what point the repairs would equal a payment. You know what I mean? I have to keep telling myself that only two years ago it would have just sat in the driveway for three months until we could afford to fix it. Bright side, kids. Bright side.

In the stupidity department, here's my knee after I hacked into it with a saw blade.


Kids, don't aim the sharp jagged saw blade at any part of your body.









This is why I was sawing:
It's the mulch heap. There used to be an ugly chain link fence around it. I had to saw apart a weedy little tree that was growing through it. I don't want to discuss right now why I'm dismantling the heap; let's just say it has to do with the shed and the driveway, and it's gonna cost a chunk of cash that I don't have. (See truck, above.)

Here's my puppy eating raspberries. This is much more acceptable than him picking litter critters out of the cat's box.

Here's my ape rigged washline. Yep, it's tied around a tree. Jethro hates it when I do stuff like this. He wants to wait and do it right and only do it once. Perfectly. Well that's very nice. I agree with him. Except that sometimes I'd rather have it done crappily than not done at all. But I'm not very handy. (See hand saw blade, above.)


And another thing being towed, here's something you don't see every day. Behold the Chevette. I have a neighbour who is a talented painter, so I'm assuming the Chevette is getting a new coat. When I was a teenager, this car was to us metalheads what the VW Bug was to the hippy kids twenty years before. GM should bring back the Chevette. Rear wheel drive, 4 banger, hatchback...only this time maybe their design department could make the steering column set in straight so the wheel isn't on an angle.

I love that photo because it looks like the little car is jacked up and tubbed out.

(I don't usually put up pix of other people's stuff on the internet but I love this. I really do. He did a great masking job and he should be proud!)

Also, my hair is no longer pink. Now I've got some weird kind of Avril Lavigne half blonde/ half black thing going on. I won't dye it again until after the summer. I'm afraid it's going to break off in chunks!


(See Dang It, above.)

19 comments:

Anita said...

My u-joint is going out... I bought one down at the parts store, my hubby is going to put it in for me...

When I was in high school, one of our friends had an army green Vega... Plaid interior... lol

Heidi the Hick said...

This is the thing- he knows how to fix it. He could do it, if he wasn't out slaving his butt to make a living so we can stay in our house! In fact my neighbour offered to fix it for me but it was already on its way up the roll-off truck by that point. (I'm gonna get that neighbour to help me with some yard work.)

I had a bitchin 76 Nova with plaid interior! I'll do a whole post on my car history some day!

Heidi the Hick said...

aaarrggh, my mama taught me good, I'm just too STOOPID!

Reid Farmer said...

Just be glad you didn't mess up the drive shaft. I had one of the old small-body (1972) Ford Broncos and the u-joint on the engine side fell apart. The drive shaft hit the road and got damaged. THAT was expensive.

I sold that Bronco in 1979 and have missed it ever since. Connie said my owning it was a main reason she was willing to go out with me.

Reid Farmer said...

Oh, and be careful with that saw. If you were a Scout we'd have to take your Totin' Chip away. And DON'T run with scissors!

Heidi the Hick said...

That's what happened to Mom's Beaumont. It hit the road. That's why I got the truck towed!

4x4 is expensive if it breaks down but it's so cool. Mine's not 4x. It's expensive enough!

(and I have to admit, Jethro's car was one of the reasons I went out with him. I wanted to buy it but SOME GUY got to it before me....)

Heidi the Hick said...

haha ha! I'm such a loser! How can a farmer's daughter be such a useless klutz?!?

Reid Farmer said...

Don't feel bad. My daughter is a Farmer's daughter (ha!) and she makes mistakes sometimes too.

Heidi the Hick said...

Reid, I feel much better now!!!

CindyDianne said...

Heidi - my old F-150, affectionately dubbed Whitey Fred, had a U joint going out when I sold it. I told the guy though, so I'll not feel bad about it.

Totally sucks for you though. But is is a cool truck! And what would you buy that has that kind of coolness factor? :-)

I am constantly scraping, scratching, cutting and generally hurting myself.

I think you are going to miss the pink hair.

I think that is all I have to say at the moment! ;-)

Heidi the Hick said...

Whitey Fred is an AWESOME name for a truck!
Mine is known as Mothertrucker, but only in certain company.

I want to keep it. I don't ever want to be without a truck. But I've also decided that my next one will be a diesel. As much as I love GMC and think I'll go with Ford or Dodge because Chevy diesel is crap.

Yeah I miss my pink hair. Now I'm just another bleach-half-blonde...

CindyDianne said...

My truck "new" truck (I've had it 1.5 years) is 2001 F-250 crew cab with the 7.8 diesel. I love, love, love my truck. It hasn't shared it's name with me yet...

Heidi the Hick said...

I just read that to Jethro and he groaned with happiness! Then blissfully muttered something about Powerstroke.... why does truck stuff always sound so fun-dirty?

KSHIPPYCHIC said...

OMG! If someone gave me tools to play with - I would have no fingers and probly end up with no nipples....

Heehee - Love the washline! We only had one pole - (WTF?) so we had to bolt the lines to the garage. I say whatever works to get the job done!! LOL!

Distant Timbers Echo said...

"Engine makes power-->transmission (in my youth we called it a tranny) determines speed (gear)--> driveshaft moves power from engine & transmission to the rear axle--> axle makes the back wheels turn and move the thing down the road."

Hahahaha! You rock, Heidi! Seriously, you do. Funny as hell.

Sorry 'bout your knee though. Knee surgery really should be left to the professionals, H. On the other hand, that's no way to remove a splinter, you know. We use tweezers for that. Not saws! :D

And we had a wash line like that too, growing up. I prefer to call it my "jungle zip cord"! Makes it much more appealing.

Love your do there Avril! Awesome!

Heidi the Hick said...

Beck, not all of us are meant to use tools, that's what I say!

Red- Thanks!

Actually I was trying to carve a capitol L into my knee for LOSER but it hurt and I wimped out! haha!

Notsocranky Yankee said...

Sorry to hear about the truck and your knee. Be careful girl!

Cranky drives a Dodge Ram 1500 but he's been riding his motorcycle most of the summer. Gas prices are just too high!

Heidi the Hick said...

No kidding! Gas is brutal! I'll tell you all about my bike soon. OOO yeah, my bike...

.:.KC.:. the brown eyed girl said...

Love the washline. And Doby eatin' raspberries...you should be careful with that dog someone might take him...:, and I wouldn't mention me or anything.