Saturday, September 07, 2013

The Unexpected

I had to run several errands Tuesday before picking up our CSA box.  I drove home with the air conditioner one and once again, driving along our road in second gear, Eleanor began to overheat.  I had to go to town on Wednesday for the Reno Fiber Guild meeting, our first for this new year.  I had made an appointment for next Tuesday to have this overheating thing checked out and we decided that in the meantime we wouldn't use the air.  I had saved errands in the south end of town for this trip, but when I pulled in the credit union parking lot, the needle was pegged to the red. 

I called Ian and we agreed that Eleanor needed to be towed to the dealership.  I love this car.  I have loved this car more than any I have ever owned.  While waiting inside the credit union for the tow truck, I asked about new car financing.  Ian and I talked while I waited - we suddenly realized that we might have to cut our losses, given the high mileage, and start over with a new car.
Meanwhile, I needed wheels. Subaru called Enterprise for me and they came, as advertised, and picked me up.  I was pleased when it was time to pay.  Scott at Subaru had called them and authorized their dealership rate.  My rental was a Honda Civic and absolutely the most boring car I have ever driven.

I left home at 1:00, pulled into the credit union at 2:00, and skipping all my errands, arrived at the library one minute early to meet with the weaving outreach committee at 5:45.  The meeting started at 6:30 and I got out of there at 8:45.  Long day.

We had a rather protracted business meeting since it was the first one of the year, followed by an energetic exchange of Show-and-Share.  It seems everyone was busy over the summer.  Lorene was been a Kumihimo machine ever since our class last year and now she has begun exploring burnished wire pendants.
Diana Ballard has a machine that prints fabric, I think mostly silk.  I really don't understand what it is or how she does it but I know she wins awards.  She and Marilyn did a series for the May Arboretum this summer and those scarves sell for $100 each.  These are some of the scarves she printed recently.


Nancy has been experimenting over the past several months with this 16-sharft weave structure, using up random yarns.  Now you can see why I'm the newbie weaver in the guild.
Beryl brought this pin loom from a class she took at CNCH.  I think we're going to try to adapt some smaller ones for our outreach in March so that anyone who wants to try weaving will have something to take home.  I just noticed that the scarf on the left is mine!

I woke up early the next morning, after a restless sleep, knowing we were going to be facing some espensive decisions.  Scott was supposed to call with an estimate on the repair expenses, but Ian had been reading stuff online and came to the conclusion that we were looking at blown head gaskets, most likely something that has been slowly developing ever since Eleanor's radiator blew up in the desert 18 months ago.  We've noticed a burned smell to the engine after driving, like an overspill of coolant.  If that were the case, given that we needed new struts and brakes, we decided to pull the cord.

We always check Consumer Reports before making a purchase and Ian discovered that they offer a discount service, must like Costco.  He was up early Thursday morning and locked in a negotiated price with Lithia Subaru.  He had two confirmation emails from them and then a personal email from their Internet sales manager, saying he was up and to give him a call.  Ian was feeding and watering, so told me to call.  The guy's name was Paul and when I told him I wanted a standard transmission and a light exterior, he told me he'd have one waiting for us.

And here she is.  Her name is Jane, after Jane Addams of Hull House in Chicago.  She was a voice for the middle class and I've always felt that the Forester is a modest vehicle.  Niece Allison calls it a Commie Car, however the Forester has gotten fancy since 2006.  Paul explained that the earlier Foresters were build on a Legacy chassis but the engineers designed the 2014 from the ground up.  This is truly an SUV.  I do miss the sports car feel that I experienced driving on our two-lane road.  At the same time appreciate the solidness of the 2014 - it will be good for us out here.
My phone kept pinging while we were signing our lives away.  It was Christina.  She said, where are you?  I'm here!  She had run out on her lunch hour to get an oil change, saw my post on Facebook and stopped by.  And here she is with Jane - two lovely ladies.





4 comments:

benita said...

She looks like a pretty car. And to get a brand-new car with all of that warranty ahead of you is great!

I know what you mean by Eleanor being your favorite car you have ever owned. I feel the same about Bettie and am so sad that they no longer make PT Cruisers.

Here's to many happy miles together!

Minya said...

Subarus RULE!

Theresa said...

Congrats Sharon,

I love my new Subaru too. We kept the old one, since we did the head gaskets and a new transmission in the last 5 years. I saw some of he 2014 Foresters when I was looking. They certainly have gone more toward the SUV side, as has the Outback. Happy trails!

Anonymous said...

Ha! I drive a silver Honda Civic and you are so right -- the most boring car ever. My favorite car was a VW Fox named Victoria. Not a popular choice, I know, but my first standard transmission and she was very quirky.