Happy Honda

Well, I went ahead and had the air conditioning repaired. The repair place, unhappy to see my money go down the road, found a used compressor in good shape for $140. The compressor, a new belt, refrigerant, tax and labour came to $475, about half of what it would have cost with a new compressor. So far it is blowing cold air.

I had a bit of an adventure getting the car back however. Paul had to go out for the day but he left me the keys to his truck to use to fetch the Honda. That was fine until I backed out the driveway and discovered it had a flat tire! I have a 12 volt pump but of course it is in the trunk of the Honda. I had promised to pick up his grandchildren from school so I had to have the car by 3:00 and it was noon. Lots of time, I thought.

The repair place is only a couple of miles away and an easy walk but I decided to call a cab. The first cab company told me up front it would be a minimum two hour wait. Wow! That seemed like a long time for a Friday afternoon. The second company said "forty-five minutes" and $7 to $10 depending on traffic so I ordered a cab. An hour later I called back and was told the woman I talked to was off shift. So what? Anyway, he said he would send the first available cab. It was now after 1:00. At 1:30 I called back and was told to hang on, they were busy. At 2:00 I still had no cab and it was too late to walk to the shop, pay the bill, drive back to get the girl's mom and be at the school in time. I called the cab company in a bit of a temper and asked where my cab was. I was told it was on the way and would be here in five minutes. Ten minutes later I called back and was told it was on the way. At 2:20 my cab showed up. I jumped in, we drove to the shop, I quickly paid my bill, drove back to get the girl's mom and arrived at the school only five minutes late. I hate the helpless feeling I experience in these situations!

They have quite the process to pick up kids from school. You wait in line and when you get to the front, a person comes to the window, identifies you and asks who you are picking up. She then calls the kids and opens the back door for them. If you are unknown to the guard you need a document from the school with your name on it as well as the name(s) of the children you are picking up. If you are unknown to the guards and do not have this document or if the kids do not recognize you, you don't get them and the guard probably calls 911 from her cell phone. This is a great method and keeps the kids safe. It is sure different from when I was in elementary school (my dog walked to school to meet me and walk home with me) or even when our son was in school (he walked home by himself). Times are changing and not for the better!