Hoping your grandmother makes as quick a recovery as possible, Trish. 
What made me happy today?
- Thread starter big soft moose
- Start date
Thank you, Rath. She's still stable soHoping your grandmother makes as quick a recovery as possible, Trish.
Not Houston though. IYKYK
Louanne Learning
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Post moved to the "unhappy thread" - posted here by mistake
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I ordered a new gas tank for the car since the current one looks like something straight out of Chernobyl. It's a big tank from a Polish company, sold through a German eBay storefront at retail price... with just a five euro shipping price from Poland to Greece.
Honestly, five euros to ship a big tank is bananas. I was convinced that I'd get scammed if I tried, which would be okay since eBay has good buyer protection. But today, I received a tracking number and confirmed that something is indeed heading my way. It looks like it somehow wasn't a scam. I really don't understand how they ship big gas tanks for five euros.
Pretty happy about that though!
Honestly, five euros to ship a big tank is bananas. I was convinced that I'd get scammed if I tried, which would be okay since eBay has good buyer protection. But today, I received a tracking number and confirmed that something is indeed heading my way. It looks like it somehow wasn't a scam. I really don't understand how they ship big gas tanks for five euros.
Pretty happy about that though!
Are you changing it yourself? I don't know what kind of car you have, but having changed out gas tanks on multiple chevy trucks - that sucks lol. Hopefully you got what you ordered.
I want to but I don't got the tools. I usually borrow what I need from a friend who has many but he is away at sea at the minute, so I don't even have jack stands. I really should start gathering my own tools soon. I don't really trust mechanics. They usually do rushed jobs that aren't great.Are you changing it yourself? I don't know what kind of car you have, but having changed out gas tanks on multiple chevy trucks - that sucks lol. Hopefully you got what you ordered.
At the same time, I'm glad I'm not though. I cleaned the old rotten gas out of the current Chernobyl status tank last year myself, and I didn't exactly enjoy smelling gas for hours at a time.
Honestly though, I always love the feeling of success at the end of something challenging, so I am on the disappointed side, lol. But I'm still pretty happy the old tank is going away. I did clean it but it's still really rusty inside. The ten year old gas also left these weird layers of hard black tar.
The car is a Corsa B from 1993, by the way. My Grandfather bought it in 1994. He died in 2015 and the car was left alone in a driveway until last year when I decided to rescue it so I can have it as my first car. It was a good choice—it has 25km on the engine!
Heartlet Happer
Active Member
Ha ha. I got the job. It was some wait for interview and then offer. Starting next week, Friday! A library custodian, awesome.
I have been 'bubbling' along to this song each day this week and I feel like I am making progress. Because I can sing the song and almost have enough air to hit all the notes before the next pause. Ugh, it's a marathon, but it's so worth it.
After I manage to expand my overall air capacity, it's onto making sure I am hitting all the notes properly. (Without the embellishments!) Which I CAN. But that C6/C#6 before the verses is killer. I just need practice. Then, onto perfecting the lyrics. I love this song.
After I manage to expand my overall air capacity, it's onto making sure I am hitting all the notes properly. (Without the embellishments!) Which I CAN. But that C6/C#6 before the verses is killer. I just need practice. Then, onto perfecting the lyrics. I love this song.
Phew. For a second there, I thought it was "Death Strewth Valley" ... and my second thought was, when did you get to Australia?!
(Oops)
'93 car with just 25km on the engine? Wow. And you did it all yourself. Well done, ps102!
I know a few things about cars, but I wouldn't try to do most of the things you've done. I just don't know how, and wouldn't want to mess things up. *shrug* I'm not proud of it, or ashamed to admit it. It's just the reality. No-one knows everything, and I'd be a fool to pretend I was a car expert.
Lucky for me, I have an excellent (and very honest) mechanic.Congrats, Heartlet Happer!
Don't let anyone look down their nose at you or stupid stuff like that. It's an important job, and it's what you want, so who cares?Eek!
It's certainly sounds demanding, especially the C6/C#6 before the verses. (I'm a baritone-bass, but I can use my falsetto to sing alto, no trouble. But I know my limits. *G* I tried "The hills are alive with the sound of music" and cracked badly. Lesson learned!) OTOH, I've been practicing some Mongol throat singing. Not too shabby at it, but of course I'm no expert!
But at least it helps me with my lower register. I just tested myself, and I can hit anything from D2-flat up to G4, but I cracked on A5. :-\ Sigh. But it's 11pm here and I've been up since 7am, so maybe I'm just tired.Later on this year, I'm performing the bass line in Handel's Acis and Galatea -- and this particular chorus has me half-worried, half-thinking "Handel, you bastard."
Listen to the bass line from 3:15 to 4:10 -- it's almost nothing BUT ornamentation!!! I mean, I'm no stranger to ornamentation. I've done countless Handel's "Messiah"s, one "Dixit Dominus", and several Vivaldi pieces (all full of ornaments) -- and also quite a lot of G&S (good for breath support).
But this Handel's piece something else.
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I edited the top part of your post, Rath, as we're calling it a day on that particular discussion... please seek out your local gender rights forum if you'd like to discuss it further.
It's nobody's fault or anything, but we're really straying too far from writing topics too often. Posting one-off things about this or that in the Lounge is fine, like "I had ice cream today and it was good" or "wait until you hear about this plumbing problem I had." But discussions about potentially controversial topics that have nothing to do with writing need to be avoided.
It's nobody's fault or anything, but we're really straying too far from writing topics too often. Posting one-off things about this or that in the Lounge is fine, like "I had ice cream today and it was good" or "wait until you hear about this plumbing problem I had." But discussions about potentially controversial topics that have nothing to do with writing need to be avoided.
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I did do the gas tank yes, but the entire restoration work was not all mine. It needed a lot more than just a gas tank clean since it sat for ten plus years.
I actually didn't know anything at all about cars until last January. I learned everything that I know now by working on it alongside a good childhood friend, who agreed to help me out after I said that I was interested in restoring it. We started by figuring out that the pump was dead, for example, and he explained what I needed to do, so I spend three days cleaning the tank and pouring out fuel!
After it ran for the first time, he did basic service for me, and I watched closely and asked questions the entire time about anything that I didn't understand. This is how I learn best—through practise. I haaate theory! He changed spark plugs, break pads, engine oil, coolant, gearbox oil and brake fluid. That alone was enough to teach me so much and I can do this by myself now. It really isn't too hard.
But he also did so much more complex work that I would dare to do in the summer that followed: timing belt change, tensioner, water pump, thermostant, crankshaft and camshaft seals, control arm bushings, axle boots and all four suspension shocks. That was far more complex and I wouldn't really feel comfortable trying it by myself, but I still learned a lot in the process! With more experience down the line, I might gain the confidence.
Changing the timing belt was actually my idea somehow, and I'm glad I insisted on it because the thirty year old one was basically on the verge of snapping. In an interference engine like mine, that's a permanent death sentence. It doesn't just stop working. It becomes permanently damaged because the valves desynchronise and crash against the pistons. It would have been a HUGE shame if that happened to the 25km engine.
So, I'm really proud of myself for insisting on it! My friend is clearly capable but it somehow slipped his mind. Taking that rotten timing belt out was the greatest validation I have received in recent years. Really, we should have done this day one. I'm really lucky it didn't snap before I realized it needed to be changed. It was a Gates belt. If it was any other brand, It would have probably snapped.
Overall pretty happy about all that! I really want to gain more mechanical confidence because I just don't trust mechanics. My father's car was ruined by them.
It's perfectly fine to rely on a mechanic. I'm sure not all of them are like the ones my father has been through. But hey, nobody ever starts as an expert, you build your knowledge and confidence slowly.No-one knows everything, and I'd be a fool to pretend I was a car expert.
I've already started doing things on my own and have done a bunch of work (nothing too hard). Not gonna get into it though because this post is long enough, haha, and my autistic brain has a tendency to go on forever, so I'll stop right here
charlottegarbett
Member
We’ve recently moved the toddlersaurus into her “big girl bed” (a slightly bigger cot with the side off). Today, for the first time, she got herself out of bed. We were awoken by the pitter patter of tiny feet running towards our bedroom.
I know the novelty will wear off quickly when she decides to come in at 4:30 but the 7:30 wake-up call was lovely.
Also, I finished reading a book which I’ve been “reading” since December. I’ve read 3/4 of it in the last two days, so I think I’ve finally kicked the reading slump!
I know the novelty will wear off quickly when she decides to come in at 4:30 but the 7:30 wake-up call was lovely.
Also, I finished reading a book which I’ve been “reading” since December. I’ve read 3/4 of it in the last two days, so I think I’ve finally kicked the reading slump!
Amontillado
Active Member
All those turns, figures, and trills. Particularly considering the range, what a challenge!
Amontillado
Active Member
I have been driving a minivan for a month or so. I've come to really like the silly thing. It's a writing studio on wheels.
There has been one extreme disappointment, though.
On my bike, I'll greet a total stranger by dropping my clutch hand off the handlebar and drag a wave or a v-for-victory sign. I'll usually get an answer in kind.
In my pickup, I'd raise one knuckle off the steering wheel, keeping it crooked as if it were tormented by too many long days stringing barbed wire. The driver in the other pickup would also respond in kind, one knuckle raised an inch, invisible to the masses, an obvious thing to country boys attuned to dusty roads and fellow trail hands.
Nothing worked in the minivan. I even prepared in advance, buttoning my plaid shirt all the way up to the collar. I got a pocket protector. I tried Spock's salute. I taped up my glasses. I waved like a hyper Unix admin. That wasn't hard. That's me.
Nothing worked. In despair I was ready to trade the minivan in for something I could handle, something not daring personality. A conventional Camaro, maybe, or perhaps a 'Vette. The minivan ethos seemed completely beyond my reach, no matter how hard I tried.
This week I cracked the code. Bikers, you aren't the only ones with a brotherhood of the highway.
When you're driving a minivan and see one of your minivan bros approaching, adopt a hunted expression. Something between "how am I going to pay this month's electric bill" and "aren't these kids ever going to give me any peace."
As the other minivan passes, focus into the distance, a thousand yard stare born of cube farm frustration and corporate stress catalyzed by the unreasonable demands of middle class life on credit cards.
The other minivan pilot will be doing the same thing. You'll feel the kinship immediately. It's so heartwarming. As I disappear in my minivan with the throaty exhaust note of a Dyson cordless vacuum cleaner, don't be shocked at Weird Al's Born to be Mild blaring from my AirPods.
I have to have something to take my mind off this dratted minivan.
There has been one extreme disappointment, though.
On my bike, I'll greet a total stranger by dropping my clutch hand off the handlebar and drag a wave or a v-for-victory sign. I'll usually get an answer in kind.
In my pickup, I'd raise one knuckle off the steering wheel, keeping it crooked as if it were tormented by too many long days stringing barbed wire. The driver in the other pickup would also respond in kind, one knuckle raised an inch, invisible to the masses, an obvious thing to country boys attuned to dusty roads and fellow trail hands.
Nothing worked in the minivan. I even prepared in advance, buttoning my plaid shirt all the way up to the collar. I got a pocket protector. I tried Spock's salute. I taped up my glasses. I waved like a hyper Unix admin. That wasn't hard. That's me.
Nothing worked. In despair I was ready to trade the minivan in for something I could handle, something not daring personality. A conventional Camaro, maybe, or perhaps a 'Vette. The minivan ethos seemed completely beyond my reach, no matter how hard I tried.
This week I cracked the code. Bikers, you aren't the only ones with a brotherhood of the highway.
When you're driving a minivan and see one of your minivan bros approaching, adopt a hunted expression. Something between "how am I going to pay this month's electric bill" and "aren't these kids ever going to give me any peace."
As the other minivan passes, focus into the distance, a thousand yard stare born of cube farm frustration and corporate stress catalyzed by the unreasonable demands of middle class life on credit cards.
The other minivan pilot will be doing the same thing. You'll feel the kinship immediately. It's so heartwarming. As I disappear in my minivan with the throaty exhaust note of a Dyson cordless vacuum cleaner, don't be shocked at Weird Al's Born to be Mild blaring from my AirPods.
I have to have something to take my mind off this dratted minivan.
charlottegarbett
Member
Excellent job. What are you studying?
Got a mic from my friend last week that I'm excited to try. Just need to finish a short story and then I will try to record it.
