(no subject)
Haven't yet heard back from old work (though that could be due to the fact that I put it off forever because I'm a coward >_>), so no news there. However! I did have various amounts of "fun," mixed with actual fun.
So my best friend decided to take me to Disneyland for Christmas which was very YAY! And so I started driving out toward her place, got roughly 45 minutes away from MY place, and suddenly my car started shuddering and the check engine light started blinking. So I pulled over at a Chevron and turned it off. After a few moments I attempted to turn it back on and...nothing. Just a small whirring noise from the right side of the car. Attempted again. Still nothing.
So then I had to call a tow truck and sit around for 45 minutes waiting for it, and was so overwhelmed by the crappiness of the situation that I called my mommy and cried. Because I'm apparently 6 years old. So I had my car towed to a Ford dealership and Matt picked me up and took me home (this was at about 11:30pm, pretty much just after he got off work).
So the next day they call and tell me what they found, and the conclusion was that it was nothing serious but was essentially my fault. You see, I never had anyone to teach me what parts of the car needed replacing when, and didn't have an owner's manual for my car until recently. I thought I'd done a good job teaching myself these things, but apparently missed some pretty important things. Like spark plugs. Did you know that spark plugs should be replaced every 100k miles? You did? Good, because I didn't and it just cost me big time.
To quote the guy: "I have never seen spark plugs that old. They're over 160,000 miles overdue. I'm pretty sure you have a record holder, here." See? Lookit that. I really AM special :P
Anyway, that and a couple other things that I never knew needed replacing has cost me mucho lots moneys and it sucks. But considering I was already spending so much I just told them to go ahead and change my oil while they're in there. This was apparently a bad idea, in a way.
So I get another call the next morning:
"Ummm...so apparently we shouldn't have changed your oil. I have to know if you knew about this or if someone pulled a fast one on you."
He then told me that at some point, someone had stripped the bolt on my oil pan and fixed it with a helicoil without telling me. Which could be dangerous and lead to engine-go-boom should it ever fall out. This was the first I had ever heard of it, to which I could pretty much hear the guy start headdesking over the phone. So we added a new oil pan to the bill. And I joined him in the headdesking.
$1300 later (but still not 100% done! There are some other, not-so-urgent things to be done still), my car is back home and running smoothly. Yay! One very expensive lesson learned. I also have the old oil pan and helicoil sitting in my car right now for me to bring back to the place that changes my oil so that I can yell at them. I doubt it'll accomplish anything, but I'm still gonna do it :P
But! The good news is that I still got to go to Disneyland! Because my best friend and Matt are both awesome and agreed to drive me back and forth. So we went on the teacups, and the Matterhorn, and Pirates of the Caribbean, and It's a Small World, and The Haunted Mansion, and a bazillion other things! And because my best is a nutter, she got me a season pass, so I will theoretically get to do it all again and again :P PLUS she got us both Minnie Mouse Christmas hats! See?
You can see Tomorrowland in the background :P
Speaking of amazing people, Griffin is also super fantabulously awesome. As I mentioned before the new expansion to World of Warcraft is out, but I couldn't afford it. Especially after my car fiasco. So! Griffin got it for me for Christmas! That man is a total sweetheart and his girlfriend is lucky to have him (*winkitywink* at psychosnake ;P).
If nothing else, I can at least say I'm lucky to have such wonderful people in my life :) They make it all better :D
So my best friend decided to take me to Disneyland for Christmas which was very YAY! And so I started driving out toward her place, got roughly 45 minutes away from MY place, and suddenly my car started shuddering and the check engine light started blinking. So I pulled over at a Chevron and turned it off. After a few moments I attempted to turn it back on and...nothing. Just a small whirring noise from the right side of the car. Attempted again. Still nothing.
So then I had to call a tow truck and sit around for 45 minutes waiting for it, and was so overwhelmed by the crappiness of the situation that I called my mommy and cried. Because I'm apparently 6 years old. So I had my car towed to a Ford dealership and Matt picked me up and took me home (this was at about 11:30pm, pretty much just after he got off work).
So the next day they call and tell me what they found, and the conclusion was that it was nothing serious but was essentially my fault. You see, I never had anyone to teach me what parts of the car needed replacing when, and didn't have an owner's manual for my car until recently. I thought I'd done a good job teaching myself these things, but apparently missed some pretty important things. Like spark plugs. Did you know that spark plugs should be replaced every 100k miles? You did? Good, because I didn't and it just cost me big time.
To quote the guy: "I have never seen spark plugs that old. They're over 160,000 miles overdue. I'm pretty sure you have a record holder, here." See? Lookit that. I really AM special :P
Anyway, that and a couple other things that I never knew needed replacing has cost me mucho lots moneys and it sucks. But considering I was already spending so much I just told them to go ahead and change my oil while they're in there. This was apparently a bad idea, in a way.
So I get another call the next morning:
"Ummm...so apparently we shouldn't have changed your oil. I have to know if you knew about this or if someone pulled a fast one on you."
He then told me that at some point, someone had stripped the bolt on my oil pan and fixed it with a helicoil without telling me. Which could be dangerous and lead to engine-go-boom should it ever fall out. This was the first I had ever heard of it, to which I could pretty much hear the guy start headdesking over the phone. So we added a new oil pan to the bill. And I joined him in the headdesking.
$1300 later (but still not 100% done! There are some other, not-so-urgent things to be done still), my car is back home and running smoothly. Yay! One very expensive lesson learned. I also have the old oil pan and helicoil sitting in my car right now for me to bring back to the place that changes my oil so that I can yell at them. I doubt it'll accomplish anything, but I'm still gonna do it :P
But! The good news is that I still got to go to Disneyland! Because my best friend and Matt are both awesome and agreed to drive me back and forth. So we went on the teacups, and the Matterhorn, and Pirates of the Caribbean, and It's a Small World, and The Haunted Mansion, and a bazillion other things! And because my best is a nutter, she got me a season pass, so I will theoretically get to do it all again and again :P PLUS she got us both Minnie Mouse Christmas hats! See?
You can see Tomorrowland in the background :P
Speaking of amazing people, Griffin is also super fantabulously awesome. As I mentioned before the new expansion to World of Warcraft is out, but I couldn't afford it. Especially after my car fiasco. So! Griffin got it for me for Christmas! That man is a total sweetheart and his girlfriend is lucky to have him (*winkitywink* at psychosnake ;P).
If nothing else, I can at least say I'm lucky to have such wonderful people in my life :) They make it all better :D