Everything around me is falling apart! Seems it all comes at once. My dear little Buddy, our loveable family Beagle, has had his third cortisone shot and is on two pain pills, but he continues to hunch his back and cry with pain. If Dave or I could sit all day giving Buddy back rubs, crooning pet phrases of comfort, Buddy might find solace. We thank all of you who have responded to my columns with sympathetic notes and hopes for Buddy’s recovery.
However, not only Buddy is breaking down. This weekend my oven of 15 years stopped heating, and my cheesecake fell. I was expecting company for dinner. When Dave suggested baking the cake on the grill outside, the pan slid forward and the cheesecake fell apart, coating the grill’s burners with sugar, eggs and cream cheese. We soaked the grill with buckets of water; eventually we were able to grill yummy, marinated chicken. We had an ice cream dessert
Then my dryer went on the fritz! The pilot light continued to burn, but the machine wouldn't tumble, tossing and drying the hundreds of towels I wash and dry weekly. I’m washerwoman for our son Andy's Tidyboat business. Business is booming this hot, humid summer: everyone wants a clean boat to cool off in on weekends at the lake. Meanwhile, my laundry room is filled with wet, sopping towels.
We own a handsome white Audi, our newest car (of 1999 vintage) which “Fast Eddie”, our NY brother-in-law sold to us. Lately, its lights are flashing red on the dashboard and there’s a chugging sound in the rear. Something or maybe MANY THINGS are falling apart. We limped the car to our favorite mechanic Mr. Love, where it is still waiting for a "used" part. Buy American! These foreign car parts are expensive! We thought we had learned our lesson when Eddie sold us a Saab, which a deer crashed into. When we brought it in for repairs to the Saab dealer, the mechanics came out to give a diagnosis in white coats. We thought they might be doctors. Nope, but they doctored our Saab at unaffordable prices.
Since the weather is so hot and our sprinkler system irrigates the fast-griwubg lawn, Dave has to mow more often. When he tried to pull the cord on our "used" mower (which we purchased on Craigslist at a very good price), it wouldn't start. It didn't matter how often he pulled or how long he waited between pulls, it wouldn't start. Presently, he's surfing Craigslist on the internet, for a new mower. We’re rapidly going through cash this month. Now the sprinkler system’s timer just busted! Uffda! Rain, please start watering our lawn and fill up the lake!
We own a rental house near the university where Andy went to school. He was a terrific house father to his buddies, but we’ve had fewer calls from irate neighbors and police reports since we've been renting to girls. With the females present, we no longer have to replace busted doors, windows, and holes in the walls, but after three years of girls, the dishwasher decided to quit. Dave is on Craigslist almost daily. We checked out three models, finally finding a good-looking "used" stainless steel, quiet machine for a good price. Actually, it looked so good we decided to "gift" our household dishwasher to the rental house and install the good-looking machine in our kitchen, where it's presently working just fine…and it's quite quiet.
Could most of these breakdowns be occurring because we buy "USED" merchandise at good prices? Personally, I love my Assistance League Thrift Shop sweats, T-shirts and jeans, which are not stiff; they’re broken in comfortably by its first owner. But we'll think a lot longer before buying another foreign car, even if its mileage is said to be under 100,000 miles. I don’t think owners can turn back those miles any more, can they? As of today, we own 4 cars with a total of 537,985 miles on them. I’m hopeful my sporty convertible, a silver Miata with a red racing stripe, will still be running when it hits 200,000 miles.
At this point, many of you readers have probably come to the conclusion that my husband does not believe in buying new. I haven’t had a new car since I was single over 30 years ago! My hubby depicts himself as a conservative, in politics as well as his spending habits. Some might say he’s frugal, perhaps even cheap at times. A subscriber to The Tightwad Gazette, Dave’s a pro at buying “used” things cheap. Neighbors, PLEASE, when he appears at your garage sales, send him home!
Fast Eddie will continue to be our personal car salesman with the best "used" car deals. Though Craigslist may offer the best buys for lawn mowers, dishwashers, dryers and washers, I must say, when it comes to Buddy, the Beagle we love so totally, we’ll always take Dr. Roshar’s advice for meds and treatment. When Dave had back pain, we learned that pinched nerves and bulging discs don't repair themselves quickly. Meanwhile, we'll sit and talk to Buddy, petting him and giving him meds and back rubs. 879 words
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