Thursday, May 13, 2010

Long day

This morning Hannah and I drove clear across Houston to north Houston. We arrived at the LDS cannery and made an appointment to can the food I wanted.
Our appointment was for noon and it was eleven so we left to get lunch and come back at noon. We got just a few blocks away and the car died. It was at a stop light in a busy intersection of course. A car stopped by us and blocked traffic with their car so we could push our car to a parking lot. It would not start. Later Hannah and I decided to push the car more into a parking space so it wouldn't block traffic. Two men who were working on the overhead wires came running over and helped us.
I had to call Bill in Hawaii, he gave me a man from church's phone number. I called Galen and he left right then and drove all the way to help us. When he got there he checked it over and we decided to rent a car dolly from U haul. While we were there a man told us he would get some help and come help us push the car onto the dolly.
We took the dolly to the car and tried to get it on, the man wasn't there yet. We couldn't quite get it on, it was pushing uphill onto the dolly.
A couple stopped and asked if we needed help and I said yes. The man got out to help and we still couldn't quite get it so the wife got out and we got it pushed onto the dolly. Of course we told her she had lots of muscles.
Of course we called the man who was coming to help us and thanked him and told him we had it under control and he could go back to work.
We strapped the car on and Galen drove us back to Alvin. Of course we hit just the beginning of rush hour.
Oh and I called the cannery and cancelled my appt. They were very nice and told me I can come back any day and can there.
When we got back to Alvin, Galen hauled the car right over to a mechanic he knows. The mechanic later called me with an estimate and he said he will have the car fixed in the morning. It was the timing belt. So with renting the dolly and the repairs it will still be less than a wrecker to haul the car all that way.
I think I convinced Galen that there are nice people in Houston and not just Oklahoma. He kept telling me that no one would help us. Thanks Houston.

Tomorrow after we pick up the car I would like to go to a few garage sales if possible.

Saturday we are packing a lunch and going to Galveston. We want to ride the ferry, look at the washed up barges, tour the ship, play in the water, and have a picnic. The kids are really looking foreword to it.

Oh and I don't remember if I told you but I messed up my phone last week. I dropped it in Joy's coke and didn't realize it and left it there while we went into a Goodwill. I got my new one tonight. Its a pretty cherry red one. Now I just have to figure out how to use it.

3 comments:

Beverly said...

Oh my, Debbie! You sure do have some adventures! I am glad you found some nice people to help you.

Yolanda said...

I have to admit that this whole story had me chuckling. I'm glad everything turned out alright! How nice that you can go to the cannery in Houston! We have one about 70 miles north in Indianapolis. I just had to get a new cell phone, too, and I feel your pain. Oh, my goodness! Things get crazy complicated so fast in the tech world. When will you go home?

debbieo said...

Yolanda, We are staying until the 24th of May. Then the girls can take turns driving Joy's new car home. Bill and Christina gave Joy their old Dodge Stratus. Its a 2001 with hail damage. A good little car that gets about 33 mpg. That is the car that quit. We are good to Bill and Christina and they are good to us.
We are buying their enclosed trailer but we cant take it home behind Joys car so they will bring it when they come in June.
So if I want to buy something big I can just put it in the trailer.
Also, that is why I am canning the food so it can just go into the trailer until they bring it to us.
We brought their 5th wheel to them so they can bring the trailer to us. We just do for each other as needed.
We love them like crazy.