Awake: 4:51am Temp 49 sleep 5+33 overcast overnight @ Mission, Texas.
A Kathy muffin + (4) of my magazines & I am on my way to let the guys @ Payne Suzuki fix up our tow car. I hand the keys over to Fonzy @ 7:40am; then let him know that I’ll just hang out near the customers lounge, read my magazines & wait for the work to be finished. He did offer me a ride back to the campground but I didn’t want to take advantage since I’ve already accepted two trips this week.
Loosely, I figure they should finish up around noon time in spite of my adding a few more items to do besides the radiator replacement: new fan belt & timing belt; oil & filter change; new spark plugs; in addition to fixing the tire with a nail, rotate the tires; pressure wash the engine; & a new rear wiper blade.
Where I was sitting & reading, I could easily see our Suzuki in the shop being lifted up & down on the hydraulic lift according to the work being preformed. My magazines were interesting so time went quickly. Around noon, many of the workers were leaving & then returning with plates of food from somewhere. Only then did I remember my itsy-bitsy breakfast. Only 3 feet away from my chair sat a commercial popcorn machine; I wait patiently for the right moment.
Lunchtime was over & it was obvious that our Suzuki had not been raised & lowered for sometime; so when Fonzy walked through the customers’ area, I had to ask: “how goes the Suzuki progress?” “Not good Mr. Kirsch” he says. “They sent the wrong radiator from California.” Fonzy was very apologetic & explained that the guys were busy searching the local area now for a new radiator. He seemed confident that they will do the right thing to take care of us. He also offered to have someone drive me to a café for lunch. Ahaa, this is the moment I’ve been waiting for: “Fonzy, does the popcorn machine work & if it does, could you just make a batch & I’ll be ok with that.”
Not only was I OK with that, but I had 5 or 6 bags of that good popcorn, finished (3) of my (4) magazines; read the local newspaper; worked ½ of a crossword &…… those guys didn’t get finished with our Suzuki until 5:15 in the afternoon. I didn’t bug them; I didn’t pace the floor & I kept my cool. I think they appreciated that because: they were embarrassed over getting the wrong radiator & taking all day for the repair job.
When I was introduced to the bill, the original estimate for the radiator & labor was several hundred dollars less, no charge for the tire rotation, no charge for the pressure wash on our engine & the belts + spark plugs were some 20% lower in price. There is a 12 month guarantee on their parts & labor. I thanked Fonzy & Steve for their good work & slowly pulled away onto the service road leading to the US 83 freeway back to our home on wheels. The engine compartment really does look terrific.
Oh by the way, Fonzy’s eye surgery went very well. He was tired of wearing glasses or contacts, saved up some money & had it done on Wednesday. (2) days later, he’s back to work & he says its great not having to wear glasses/contacts & his sight is better than ever.
Kathy had a whole day to herself. She tells me she exercised with “Gilad,” made a batch of Kathy muffins and homemade crab cakes. She also bought some very good fruits and veggies from a Mexican farmer who brings his wares to the campground every Friday & attended a wonderful quilt show at the large hall (quilts made by camping women in their RVs). In addition, she did some house cleaning, a little e-mailing, and some reading.
7:20 dinner: Homemade crab cakes, baked potato, corn on the cob & a spinach salad.
Late evening satellite movie: “Jackknife” with Robert De Niro, Ed Harris, Kathy Baker, Charles Dutton, etc. A Simple & involving story of a Vietnam vet (De Niro) who looks up an old Army buddy (Harris) & tries to get him to face up to his repressed memories of Nam, & their mutual best friend who died there. 1989. Not too shabby.
High temp=? Lights out: 10:18pm
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