Zoiks.
More than half-way through my trip (time-wise) and I'm still in Jackson, Mississippi.
The car had to go to the local Volvo dealer when the body shop found the dash display was insisting the tailgate was open, when in fact it was not. They even replaced the lock mechanism, but it turned out to be nothing more than a pinched or broken wire. And, it's not a simple replacement - the car is networked, and harness is almost $2K on its own, so they had the dealer go at it with a meter to find the break. God bless the troubleshooters who know how to do things the hard way. Makes me proud to be an old-school techno-wienie.
So the car comes back this morning, and goes off to the nearby tire/suspension specialist for a 4-wheel alignment. And guess what! The steering wheel is a few degrees off center. No big deal, a simple adjustment. Nope. The lower tie rod on the passenger side is frozen and/or bent. It's likely a result of "Ohio Hammering Incident". The tech has put penetrating oil on it and is leaving it for the night. Worst case, they'll have to cut off and replace the tie rod. The good news is that the dealer has one in stock.
Auto Body America has to do a final inspection and get their subcontractors' paperwork sorted as well, so it'll be tomorrow morning before it's ready to go.
So it's one more night in Jackson. I sure wish I felt like doing something. I've been here long enough to have hit all the high spots, but with the weather (it's getting cold and they're calling for snow tonight), and this head/throat/chest thing, I just haven't had the energy to do much of anything.
I did go to a real blues club (The 930 Blues Cafe) on Friday night (pics real soon), but Saturday morning I felt like someone had put a garbage bag over my head, tied it off at the waist and went about beating me about the head and torso. Fever, aches, pains, the grippe (anyone know what that is?). Good thing Dr. Beam (fondly known as Jim) is easily reached.
My tablet PC has been acting up as well, overheating and shutting down, so I broke down and picked up a new laptop (like I can afford it now). I guess I'll finish setting it up tonight, and maybe get to uploading some images. Gonna need a second job to get caught up.
Enough rambling; the shop is about to close, and I have to get hold of Captain Kirk again to see if I can score another deal on a nice hotel (BTW, the Marriott chain leads in quality so far - high thread count sheets, real pillows, etc.).
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Hello again Stefan,
ReplyDeleteI hope the weather improved in Jackson. I associate that place with sweltering heat and humidity but I guess that is in July not February.
Sorry you are feeling the grippe. I think you described it perfectly, something grips you around the head and neck and chest and tries to squeeze the energy and braeth out of you!
I do know an effective remedy called the "Two Hat Therapy". It works well and you are almost half way there I think. Make sure you are relaxing in a Four Poster Bed. Remove your fedora and place it on one of those posts. Get Jim Beam or Jack Daniels over to helpass the time. Get one fairly big tumbler. Get Jack or Jim into the tumbler and sip slowly, breathing in through your nose and exhaling long breaths through your mouth. Repeat the above procedure several times. Eventually, you will see two fedoras hanging on that post. Gently close your eyes. Repeat the two hat therapy for 7 days or for one week, whichever comes first and all your troubles will be over!
I am really enjoying your blogging!
Hang in there buddy!
Tom