Mechanical Stuff

I'm not good with mechanical stuff. It's been coming up lately and I've had some successes and failures. I usually don't have either as I will just pay someone to fix whatever is broken.

Success - The toilet chain came off. At least that was my diagnosis. It looked like it should have a clasp thingy, but I couldn't find it lying there. So I improvised one with a paper clip. And it worked!!! I can't explain how impressed I was with myself. Move over McGyver, there's a new kid in town. Joy throughout the land. You can't win them all, though. As I remember Ed McMahon telling Johnny during a bombing monologue, "If there were no valleys, there would be no hills." A nice sentiment, although Johnny didn't take kindly to it at the time. Anyway, on to the valleys.

I was going to mow my lawn. My lawnmower wouldn't start. I think there is a wire missing. I'm pretty sure I had seen it on there before. Maybe going to a choke. That somehow seems right, although I'm not totally sure what a choke is, what it looks like, or if a lawnmower has one. So I bought a new lawnmower. It was only $140 because its at the end of the season. I asked the guy if the price would be going any lower. He said he could go down to $120. I can't believe that worked. I had heard there's no harm done in asking for a lower price. I haven't wanted to offend the salespeople, though. So, big victory right there. However, after I got it home, put in gas, and put in oil, it wouldn't start. Beside the actual act of mowing; getting it home, putting in gas, and putting in oil are the only three things I know to do, so after many attempts to get it started, I took it back. I didn't actually take it back. That would have been embarrassing for me. I have people for that. I just assumed I must have been doing something wrong - especially since I was now on my third lawnmower today - but this one started started right up. So, I'm calling that a draw.

Next adventure was within a couple days. Driving down the road, the car started to shake. Oh-oh. It got worse and worse. I managed to make it in to my mechanic, conveniently working at a place called "My Mechanic". He called the next day and said it was just a flat tire. Was my face red. I think I know what flat tires are like. They usually go thump-thump-thump and the car kind of leans to one side. It didn't do that. If I had known that, I think I stood a good chance of changing the tire on my own. That would have been another mechanical victory for me. As it is, at best a tie. I was predicting a call about the cam shaft regulator, being disconnected from the turbine or maybe the choke. Do cars have a choke? Predicted cost - $700. So I felt good about that, so I'm calling that experience a draw.

Not bad, one victory, no losses, two ties. I'll take that.