Negligant

I am generally good at keeping things up for safety especially.

And yet I let go the rear brake change needed on my car until the weekend.

I knew it was needed because they screeched when I back out and down the driveway.  But Friday I heard terrible scraping noises too, when I braked.  That was the end of that and I made an appointment and was able to go in the next day.

The rear brakes on my car are drum brakes.  Those incredible multi part wonders.  That's how I see drum brakes because I've changed them before, on another car, without knowing what I was getting into.  I was over confident I will say, after changing front disk brakes, which are quite easy to change.

What a nightmare that entailed.  Holding all these parts together while hooking another part up.  One needs more than two hands and special tools.  I vowed I would never change drum brakes again alone.  Better yet, never!

I was quoted two prices.  The lower price was if I didn't need the drums replaced and the higher one included new drums.  I knew I'd need new drums so I knew it'd be the higher price.

What I didn't count on was the technician coming out to me in the waiting room to say they could not remove my rear tires legally to change the brakes.  This was because they could not legally put them back on.  One had steel belts showing from wear.

I swear my face turned red with shame.  I know I felt shame, letting tires get that worn, not even checking them.  I changed the front tires when I had a sidewall flat some time ago, but had forgotten all about checking the rear tires for wear.  I asked to see the tire in question and sure enough, on the outer edge of one rear tire and perhaps this came from curb rubs, I could see steel.

Anyhow, unexpected as this expense was, I shelled out for two tires. 

Now I'm up to par, good to go, at least in that regard.  Good tires on the back and brakes all around good, front and back.  My my, that car, in the 2 1/2 years of ownership, has cost me!  But it still runs so I'm happy.

I finally returned the three young cats from the Marks Ridge colony yesterday.  I'd held them in my bathroom since I trapped them just over a week ago.  They were fixed last Sunday at the FCCO but had terrible colds.   They seemed much much better by now.  I'll miss joking around with the old man and talking to the woman--the caretakers of the cats, along with birds, deer, just about anything.  I like them.

I needed one more cat also to fill out my seven spots for today.   The Sweet Home cat wrangler pair had gone out to Cascadia, where they got five last week.  They only got three there this time and were not happy with the people who own the cats for not helping get them contained.  "Welcome to my life," I told the woman.

I had them down for five cats.  They found another in Sweet Home somewhere and then when I went to pick the four up the woman's neighbor ran over with a cat he needed fixed, so that was five in the end.  I had a kitten I trapped in Sweet Home Friday night and another male too from Sweet Home, already.

In the meantime I tried to trap again at the Ridgeway colony down the hill from the old couple on Marks Ridge but they were not home and the woman has no working phone.  They pulled up though in their car but family was coming over for a get together so there would be no trapping there.   13 have already been fixed from this place but there are five more needing caught and fixed.  I wanted to get started on those.  Was not to be.  They said that a couple of the cats are tame enough they might catch them and put them in a dog kennel.  I handed her one of small carriers and said to first put it in the dog kennel, so the cat could then hide in that and she could merely close the door to contain her.  Will they do that?  I don't know and if they do, how will they contact me to have me come get one?  She then assured me her boyfriends phone works.

I went across the street then, to the man's place who has six needing fixed and finally got him on the phone.  I told him I was outside his place and could get at least one done.  He apologized and said he'd just been released from the hospital with pneumonia and was not well enough to deal with anything yet.  I said goodbye and that's when I drove over to collect the others and found out I had enough cats anyway for the reservations I have today.