The good and not so good (cont.)...

On the way home I spoke with Chris about the trailer he used to move much of our larger things here and the possibility of fetching the couches over the weekend. Well, I was welcome to use the trailer but to only vehicle he had to tow it with was in the shop. I decided to call to see if any shops were available to put a towing hitch on the Prius. First of all the price for the hitch with installation was $350 and I just will not need to tow often enough to warrant the cost. I had already priced all over he local truck rentals and everyone had a per mile cost of $1.15 over the daily rental fee and the cost of gas. Another nonstarter.

Chris suggested I check with Dan and Melissa and borrow their Explorer. I did and Mel said she needed to check with Dan, but thought it was likely a go & she’d call me back. I headed out the door for Santa Rosa. I’d called the dealership as soon as they opened and made arrangements to bring the Prius down first opening.
Nell called me back about the time I hit Middletown. Borrowing the explorer was fine, could I meet here in Ukiah when She got to work Friday morning. From there I’d head to Chris’ in Graton and hook up the trailer, and head south for Novato and the couches.

The dealership kept the car and told me they’d call me the next day.

“How am I getting home?”
“Let me arrange for a loaner.”
“Cool, but crap!”
“Problem?”
“I was swapping cars tomorrow for my friends’ Explorer to go pick up a couch.”
“Why don’t we give you a loaner truck?”

20 minutes later I was driving south in a Tacoma.

I’d called both sellers before I’d left that I was coming Friday. I now called while driving. The loveseat was still in the driveway back in Fairfax so I went there first. I heard from the Novato sectional owners just as I arrived in Fairfax. I went there with the loveseat and nested the center section in the bed closed the tailgate and headed for home. I carried the sectional piece into the living room myself and as it was 8pm and post sundown, threw a tarp over the loveseat and left unloading it for the morning. It was then I checked the phone for messages. The dealership had called. The problem with my car wad the cooling vent and duct for the hybrid battery was completely blocked and hence the battery was starting to overheat. It wasn’t damaged YET, but it needed to be cleared out NOW. Also not a covered maintenance item. I would need to pay for it. 3 hours of labor. At $120/hour. Oh, just f@ck me!

What else was I to do? I called them the first thing Friday morning and I said yes. It the battery gets toasted, it’s $4K to replace. Talk about short hairs.

The night before, I did touch base with both Mel and Chris to let them know change in plans. It was at that point Mel confessed she could really use a hand cleaning out her father’s place to sell. I promised to be there Saturday afternoon to help pack...

To be continued...