vroom! vroom! erch! smash!

just when i thought this la-la existence was gonna get better in our foggy financial stupor...uh-uh.i got some seriously stupid news about our vehicle! it turns out that last week when i took our 2007 ford truckvansuvwagoncar (it's built on a truck frame, classed as an suv, & looks like a station wagon on 'roids) in to get a tire repaired, dude informed me that i have almost no rear brake pads left.

say whaaaaa'?

(k - so, for some reason
i can't change my font back.
whatever.
it'll help make my drying river
of cash flow just a little bit prettier.
actually, at this point,
the flow resembles a babbling brook
with little swimmy pools here and there.)
(similes always help.)
(when you're insane.)
(& the parentheses help with the sense of containing your brain.)

here we go. the reason it's bad about the rear brake pads is that they were replaced in nov'07 when i got a recall notice on the brakes and had to take it into the dealership for perusal and necessary repairs. apparently the pads designed for use in the vehicle (awd disc brakes) let foreign material under the pad - leading to increased wear and possible rotor damage. turned out that the rotors needed to be replaced because of an actual groove worn in one side, and of course the pads as well. they also did the front pads for courtesy's sake. note that curiously, there is not the same issue with the front brakes, even though they are the 'same'.?. odd. after all this time, an equal amount of time (16 months) as the rear pads, there is minimal wear on the front pads and the discs are shiny smooth. like this:

well, not exactly like this, but you get the idea. mine will look like this shortly if they're not tended to:

it's safe to say i'm a little pissed about that. wouldn't a recall imply that the problem should be fixed? if the same problem happens again, shouldn't it be fixed again? please, if any of you know, fill me in, 'cause i've got nothin' but time to fight the powers that be! i talked to the dealership and i talked to ford, who you'd think would be trying to RETAIN customers, and i get nothing. they now like to refer to it as a 'customer satisfaction' effort that was only a one-time courtesy fuck, as opposed to the continual humping they'll be doing over the years with us doling out our hard earned cash for their parts!

one of the main reasons we bought one new car, as opposed to two second/third hand ones is to prevent exactly that! we simply can't afford to be repairing vehicles every other month! i comprehend maintenance - it's not about that. it's about: we wanted to not have to worry about faulty and/or defective shit like that. caveat emptor, hey? what can i do now? we can't afford to replace rotors or have them machined, so we'd better get on those pads and keep them ship shape. we still have some parts on warranty, so that's better than nothing. i'll just take a moment here to knock on some wood....here's hoping we continue to have general good luck in vehicular mobility land...

the company is aware - painfully aware - of the problem. there were so many of these issue specific complaints that when they re-did the vehicle with a new name (presumably to bury their conscience) the brake setup is different and hence, no abnormal wear. normal wear and tear in the all wheel drive vehicle, taurus x, but of course they did it so that the brakes are not interchangeable, even though the vehicles are identical in almost every other way. save for the motor, which has gone to the regular shifting automatic transmission gears instead of what we have with the CVT.

the wiki gods say:

"A continuously variable transmission (CVT) is a transmission which can change steplessly through an infinite number of effective gear ratios between maximum and minimum values. This contrasts with other mechanical transmissions that only allow a few different distinct gear ratios to be selected. The flexibility of a CVT allows the driving shaft to maintain a constant angular velocity over a range of output velocities. This can provide better fuel economy than other transmissions by enabling the engine to run at its most efficient revolutions per minute (RPM) for a range of vehicle speeds."

so there you have it. if you want to know more about these transmissions, click here. it really is quite interesting.

(and if anyone can help me out with why i can't change my text style back anytime i switch it...now i'm stuck in quote style...)

i wish we could just go and get another vehicle, but with our debt problems (we consolidated last year) there's no way we'd get approved for a different loan. i suppose it'll be okay. i mean, it is a very nice ride... electric windows and moon roof, 6 cd changer, 7 all leather arrangeable seats, heated front seats, roof mounted dvd player, cruise control, triple zone climate control, electric memory front seats, driver side mirror and pedals so that whenever tharen or i use our keyless lock opener, the driver's seat, mirror and pedals go to where we each have them set... multiple power ports, vision screening sensor on rearview mirror to cut down the glare from headlights behind you, back up sensor alarm, traction control, and most importantly, the peace of mind you get with sensor controlled air bags and the highest crash safety rating due to its sturdy volvo frame. all that for 40+k.

so. my truck's all that....
where's my bag o' chips?!?uh-uh. ix-nay!
make 'em chocolate chips!

the con list would include the rear brake shituation [sic] and the fact that at every single oil change we have to get a new air cleaner. that's right, a new one....it's not even possible to tap it out to get a bit more function out of it. oh, and whenever we back out of the driveway on a rainy day, the downward slope causes water to pour in through the seatbelt housing at the back row of seating. awesome, right? i have no idea why that happens, but it kinda bites. i have to rmember that if there's ever anything or anyone back there!

when i was getting off the phone with my representative from the loser motor company, i made sure that i mentioned that i would never buy ford again, and would tell everyone i know my story. it sure is comforting to know that ford doesn't consider a faulty braking system a safety issue worthy of repair. i sure am glad i give them so much fucking money every month! damn, i wish i had the cash to pay those jackasses out right now - give them as little as possible, and then we'd have money available to continue our quest for an acceptable ride. oh. and fucking ford repairs!

anyway. i have to go now. jared needs a nap, and i'm in the middle of climbing mt. kill'emwithlaundry. jack's gone for the day, so i should have some good gettin' stuff done time today.

here's me...see how happy i look?

it's a cartoon, people. fake.
fake! fake! fake!

let's all hope that i don't have to jam on the brakes anytime soon! i have to drive across town to pick up brake pads this afternoon. they're so new that no one has them in stock, and fuck me if i'm gonna pay the dealership to do it!

vroom, vroom! look at me go!

~

♪♫ i went to the library & what did i see? ♪♫

holy crap my new library is crap!

it's been closed months and months getting this new haul over and was supposed to be beautiful. it's cold, uninviting and unorganized! i read in the local rag that they had their grand opening last week and i was so excited to have this library open again. the other one takes 20 minutes to drive to...blahblahblah. this cookie was not impressed. maybe i'll like it more when they get their signage up to point out the different sections. i only had 20 minutes to run in and grab my treasures, and i was honestly a bit put off! they were way over budget and way past schedule, so i think it's safe to say that the public was expecting a little more! a lot more! it is bigger, so they better fill it up with better books! i used to have to request books from the other branch often, but alas, here's my reading list for the next few weeks:

how to self publish and make money - crook and wise

self publishing 101 - debbie elicksen

building a website for dummies - david a. crowder

the everything blogging book - aliza sherman risdahl

career building through blogging - deirdre day-macleod

the huffington post complete guide to blogging - editors of the huffington post

&&&
the links i found for these books are cool. i'm totally gonna check more of this dude's site...

the life of hunter s. thompson, gonzo
- jann s. werner & corey seymour, with an introduction by johnny depp

kingdom of fear,
loathsome secrets of a star-crossed child in the final days of the american century
- hunter s. thompson

ha! first chapter is: "when the going gets weird, the weird turn pro"

bye...we're going camping.
in march.
in the west coast rain forest.
i'm so smart.

oh! and i have to watch ER now.

waffles and eggs it is!

it's spring break!
oh, joy.
it doesn't really make for all that much difference around here, what with the two year old and all....and jack's only in kindergarten, so that's only half a day. BUT it is half a day that i don't HAVE to be sociable. half a day that i don't have to get dressed. half a day that i don't have to run around as soon as i get up in the morning, which i HATE. half a day when my boogies get to stay in their pj's as long as they want.
except for today, that is.
today, i had to deal with poop first thing, little guys up too early, and whining. wicked. it really doesn't help that i was up 'til 2am, either....maybe that's why they seemed to be awake too early! the clock said 7am, just like it does every day! then there's the beer...not much, but enough to make a difference. can't forget about the sore legs either, but we don't need to talk about that. let's just say that tharen and i stayed in this weekend and liked it.
after the whining and poop, i realized that i was out of cigarettes and pepsi (omg) so i had to go to the store, which i also love doing first thing in the morning. upon entering the vehicle, i noticed tharen's pay cheque sitting there. damn it! he was supposed to get that in first thing so we wouldn't miss our astronomical truck payment yet again! DAMN IT ALL TO HELL! this meant i had to go to the bank (which wasn't open yet) ! there's a machine, so it wasn't really a big deal, until i got there and noticed some fukwad had mangled the machine trying to fraud the fraudsters. okay. so there's more banks, right? wrong. this particular bank was the only one i could hit the machine smellin' the way i did with my hair the way it was. the only bank where the boys could sit in the truck right beside the little vestibule. the only bank i where i get to blissfully go through life believing, if only for a few sweet seconds, that myself and the lovely machine were the only ones alive on this whacked rock.

SO! silly teague has to go home, brush her hair and teeth, change out of pj pants and throw a bear paw down the boys' throats, and go to the bank where i had to park, get the boys out, walk up around the corner, go INTO the bank, make small talk with the old dude trying to play with the boys, wait to use the machine after some dude who turns around to be a guy i've known since i was like, 14 or something. AWESOME. all before the blessed coffee that i have started to drink so i can make it through the mornings without regularly feeling like i could die at any given moment. andy said i looked good, but i refuse to believe him. i know for a fact that i looked like i weigh 170 lbs with my fleece pants and sweater under the coat gear to try and ward off the chill i had since ripping off the covers to get jared before he pulled down his poopy pants.

anyway, crisis diverted 'til next month. truck payment covered, insurances out the ying yang covered, late rent payment covered. i came home, made the transfers, made some waffles and eggs, and now it's play time before we head out to run more errands. shopping, tending to our friends' fish and frogs, parkification and a stroll. i'm gonna do some contemplating on how to earn some more money without taking away time from my family. that always will be the most important thing to me. family. not how much money my family has, or how big my family's house is, but FAMILY. doing my job, in other words. i will gladly take this little struggle if it means that i've been here when it matters and my kids aren't being raised by strangers. i think i might've pointed out before that i think that's what the problem with the world today is. kids raised by strangers and/or having too much time alone - i WON'T contribute to that.

i think i might get into some advertising on here if it could prove to pan out. that would mean any of you fabulous peeps out there reading this will have to click on to follow me. see, advertisers don't like advertising where people don't go. huh. go figure. no worries. i wouldn't have anything annoying, no pop ups, and no screen stealers. lemme know what you think, fill me in if you have any advice or tips, and KEEP READING!

oh yeah! i DID start reading 'this perfect day' again. almost done, and am in love with it all over again.