A couple of years ago an attractive, vivaviious, participatory, smart lady attended our investment group of about 20 ... and I thought that I'd like to get to know her better.
Which I did, over the past couple of years or so: she says that I remind her of her grandfather.
When I visited her home a while ago, she was just leaving, to run an errand to her daughter's place, and to visit her old uncle. As she was soon to return, I asked about going along, and she agreed. En route, she told of her concern, as guardian, for her old uncle who, a former exectuive at a major grocery chain, now, at 90, suffers from Alzheimer's, or at least dementia, and had had surgery for cancer of the throat ... and now, with a recurrence, can't eat solids. She was at the point of instructing the nursing home that no extraordinary medical measures were to be undertaken to keep him alive, when trouble developed, and was finding it some burdensome. I assured her that such instructions were obviously the path that one should follow.
About a week later I received an email from her that her uncle had died, and telling of the funeral in Toronto, a city about 120 miles away.
I wondered about going ... but felt that a bit foolish, as I'd never met her uncle, and it was a substantial distance.
But I decided to go: visitation was at 10 on a Saturday, with funeral at 11, and I arrived just before 10:30, when there were a few family there, to be greeted by a big hug and heartfelt thanks for my having come. Once a clergyperson, always a bit of residual spirit, possibly?
During the service ... the presiding clergyperson would read from the Bible, or his notes ... then look up at the ceiling ... first to the left ... next time to the right. I'd thought that I'd like to have suggested to him, after the commital, that he look down into the audience (unless he was looking upward, hoping for immediate inspiration).
But ... en route to the cemetery, steam began emerging from the hood of my car: the radiator had blown. There was an unused space beside a concrete island in the middle of the multi-lane street into which I could move to be out of the way, and motioned the following cars in the procession to go on by.
After the rad cooled, I had some water in large jugs in the back, and poured some in, a tiny bit at a time, then wait a bit, after a while having some steam come out ... and finally got the rad filled. Went back a couple of blocks to a garage, to find "Bars-leak" to put in ... they had none, but an auto supply store was only half a dozen blocks away. So added some more water, headed for the auto store.
Bars-leak has liquid and little chunks of stuff ... shake well ... add all at once. When you have a small neck in the rad ... the liquid goes in all at once ... the chunnky stuff has a certain reluctance, shall we say.
A lot of white liquid going out on to the parking lot.
Returned to the original garage for more water, the mechanic would install a rad ... for $75.00. What year car? Was I sure that it was an '88 model? I was sure that it was an '88.
He returned after an interval to say that he couldn't help ... that they had no rad available for a car that old, on a Saturday afternoon. Why was I not surprised?
Filled the rad, headed back about a dozen blocks to the funeral home. As I've said before, when I appraoch a yellow signal light, I often push in the clutch, turn off the ignition ... to have the guys in a hurry move by, on multi-lane road ... then turn on the brake lights as they approach the signals. Usually I turn on the ignition, let out the clutch to start the engine, just before getting to the stopped cars ahead ...
... but this time, I left the engine stopoped until the green light on the other street turned to yellow, then used the starter.
When I arived at the funeral home, I turned in the little "Funeral" card that had been on the car, and they offrered me a juice and water, as the rad was pretty well dry again. Fluid was going out of three spots at the top tank, and I suspect out of the bottom, as well. As I was near the limit of the tow that CAA would allow me, I thought to try to make a few miles along the homeward route, as I had about 10 big jugs for water (for the garden) ... but thought that the hassle would be too much, finding water ... and risking burning up the motor (resulting in seized pistons).
The funeral home allowed me to phone CAA and when the driver arrived, gave us a couple of bottles of water to see us through the 120 mile trip.
I'd suggested to CAA that, as I was in no hurry, they could send down a tow truck from London, if they chose, as it would be much cheaper ... but was told that they had to dispatch from the originating location. En route to London, the driver announced that the tow would have cost me $800. had I done it on my own, so that would pay for my CAA Plus membership (that allows a 125 mi. tow) for 8 years ... but I think that it would have been about $400. by a truck from London.
As we arrived at the edge of London, he asked how much farther ... just under 10 milles ... we were getting near the limit. And the dispatcher said that I'd have to pay the driver $3.00 per km. cash for excess mileage.
When we dropped the car at the garage where it would be repaired, he asked whether I wanted a ride home, and when I said that the dispatcher had said that they didn't do that, he said that were were within the mileage limit at the moment, but that if he drove me home, it'd be over, so there'd be a fee.
So I told him to head back along the route that I'd instructed him to get on the freeway to Toronto, and drop me about a mile up the road, so I could hith-hike home. He allowed as how it was a bit much to ask an 80-year old to hitch-hike, so he'd take me home without a fee.
So ... I arrived home just after supper time, all in one piece.
The garage installed a new radiator, and found a fan to begin turning when the heat got to a certain level ... but the sensor wasn't working, so it's running all the time. The have a sensor now, so I'm to go in for them to install it, shortly.
And, oh, yes ... pay the bill.
Some were rather perturbed about the situation ... but I figure that it's just one more experience along the path of life.
ole joyful
caroline94535
joyfulguyOriginal Author
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