So as alluded to in a previous post, the Chevy died on me and of course, I needed another truck. So this time I decided to go as top of the line as I could, yes it’s a bad time to buy a truck but it’s needed and I’m tired of having a truck that keeps breaking down, it was always something, the AC, window motor, etc…

So I got as close to new as I could, for 70k I got a 2021 Ram 2500 Laramie with almost everything you could get on it. Only had 17k miles on it. Bought it from Enterprise truck sales division and it was a bit odd because this just isn’t a truck that would be part of a rental fleet. It was the only one with the Laramie package as opposed to the big horn trim level and it had super low miles compared to everything else out there and it wasn’t white which is the primary color of the rental trucks. Supposedly these were checked out mechanically and certified to be free from defects… Supposedly being the keyword.

So I picked it up on 10/31 and I noticed it had a service light on the dashboard but it went by so quickly that I didn’t really know what to make of it. That night we went to my sister’s house for Halloween and since I don’t really dig that whole thing, I put the car in the driveway so I could check it out. I was able to familiarize myself with the dashboard menu and then was able to see the error:

Now I don’t even know what an electronic throttle control is but (sigh) it’s still under factory warranty so kind of a pain but if it’s got tits or wheels it’s going to give you problems eventually so just deal with it.

Called around to dealerships and the earliest I can get it in to have someone take a look at it is Friday. That’s fine, get it in, and then crickets until yesterday (Tuesday) when I get an ominous VM from the service consultant saying he wanted to talk to me about the vehicle. Missed the call as the phone was in the car from coming back from the rec center so I still don’t know what’s up until later this morning. So I’ve had the truck a little over a week and for half of that it’s been in the shop (big sigh), I’m just hoping I’ll have it back before I have to make the first payment in December.

So I went back to work last Monday, it was supposed to be a soft week where I caught up with a month and a half of emails and get things ready to jump in both feet this upcoming week. Well that didn’t work. Started with an issue that was damn close to impossible to solve because it was an integration done by Modulus and they custom code solutions so… Well you have to reverse engineer it to fix it, what a pain in the a&&, finally figured it out, you think they would be bright enough to replace/escape comma’s in the fields but noooo… There’s something as being too smart without having common sense.

In any case I’m still a month and a half behind on email and wondering if I can still handle the job, I’m just not feeling it anymore. I’ve been having rage/anger issues and it may be related. Part of me feels that I need to find something else but another part of me feels like I owe the gang to tough it out and deal with it. I think I have to do what’s best for me but I won’t actively look elsewhere, but I will update the resume and post it and if someone sees it and makes me an offer I can’t refuse… Well I won’t refuse it.

So to make a long story short, the vacation was cut short by the degradation of the engine on the Chevy. I can’t begin to explain my disappointment in the situation. I replaced the starter & fixed the oil leak that was being created by the dipstick being in wrong. I should have had another 10k miles before anything went wrong and instead a jackhammer broke out in the engine. Oh well, it makes for a good story I suppose and in the spirit of ‘we won’t let that happen again’, we’ll be upgrading the towing vehicle to a real truck. Right now it’s looking to be a 2020 Ram 2500 with a 6.7L Cummins inline 6 diesel. It’s a truck that does truck things. It works nicely for the property scenario, and when it comes time to move, I’ll get a big trailer and it won’t have an issue pulling it. Need to plow snow? Not an issue, haul a backhoe? Yup, it can do that too. And that huge propane tank you want for the property, yes it can haul that too. With a bed cap and winch, it’s the work horse for the business. The bed may not be big but it’ll haul anything.

So it rained all day yesterday and most of the morning. Couldn’t sleep but it was all good, went with Sandy to meet up with her dad, I went to Ohio to fill up, saved 21 cents per gallon and taking on 60 gallons means $12.60 saved, probably didn’t make up for the drive actually but oh well, we’re full. They had a lot of running around to do and I wasn’t feeling it, so I hung out long enough pick up and add some oil and had them drop me off.

I started watching videos on how to replace the started and I’m a bit nervous, this doesn’t look fun and if I were at home and could have time with it no problem, but I’m on the road and not sure that I have all the right tools. I’m pretty sure that I have to do this as it was just about dead last time we had to pull over and stop to get gas when it was hot. It will be so nice to be able to get this silly truck up on the ramps and get everything fixed that I’m looking to get fixed. I talked to Mike and we’re going to do it at his place, problem solved and we’ll see how it goes.

I’d like to say we did more but we’re here for a singular reason and to that end I believe we did well. It’s always sad when it’s time to say goodbye and you’re not sure when the next time we’ll see each other. We’ll try to get Sandy up here sooner rather than later, it will help with Brit moving to Erie I think, time will tell.

So tomorrow is a travel day that will find us in Erie, PA. We’ll probably beat Brit and Z there. We’re planning on crashing at Shelly’s driveway but I’ll head to the cleaners to see if there’s a possibility to dock there. I should also have the starter and a place to change it so hopefully we’ll get that taken care of, it’ll be good to take that off my mind. And Sandy will be reunited with the kids and we’ll get to see the new house. So there’s some exciting things afoot when we get there.

I did have some work to do today, it was a Linux TCC installation. Just 30 minutes and it went well enough. I’m hoping that there will be some work to do when it’s time to head back.

I’m currently working on cleaning up my paper and need to throw together a video to turn in for my project. I’m almost there. Still need to get hours in at work and a quick project that I need to complete and set up the VPN, and pack. So we’re going to be a little busy. T-minus 28.5 hours until go time. If I manage my time it will be smooth. Booked into GA and Wilmington already. It will be an expensive journey for sure but I sure feel like traveling.

It’s still warm but the heat has broken and its no longer 100 or above. It feels good to have rain again and watch the earth cool down.

This is the last week I’ll be working for a bit. I’ve got task two turned in and waiting the results on it, I’ve begun task three and then it’s over. I’m so tired of school, what a relief it will be to have it over and done with.

Roger’s memorial was today. Mom, Cortney and I went, it was nice to get a chance to remember him. Although I didn’t know him well, he was one of the great ones. Truly one who wanted to help others. And during the memorial, I was struck that the more you assist and aid and help others the more resources you seem to be given to do so. There’s probably something to that.

So the idea of a vacation is that you get to relax, but getting to the vacation is anything but relaxing. For example, I’ve got to clean the house, get packed, finish up work stuff and school stuff, make sure the cats are taken care of and get myself to Denver, then it’s just a couple days there and another drive back to TX. Seems like a lot of work to me.

I’m driving with mom and sister to Denver for Brit’s wedding this Friday. I should be all set, I bought a Nintendo Switch to keep me entertained and I’ve got computers, and cell phones with 1 TB of entertainment, and hopefully, I’ll do most of the driving. Not sure about taking my sister’s car but it’s either that or the truck or Xterra, considering gas is at an all-time high her car is probably best for the trip. Newer and less cylinders than anything I’ve got.

I, of course, worry about the cats when I travel but I’ve got cameras set up on the inside to keep an eye on them and of course there’s camera’s everywhere outside. Cali doesn’t seem to understand the new food setup where there’s an auto feeder and camera, she’s still looking on the old table. Oh well, hopefully she’ll figure it out. More fun to come, stay tuned.