Back in June, Kevin and April and Peter came for a Father’s Day visit. We had talked with them about the problem of our out-dated garage door opener situation and the suspended shelves that would, eventually, have to be removed in order to have the newer-type of garage door openers installed. They offered to take on the task of removing those shelves. They spent a couple of days taking down boxes that contained some of Kevin’s things and some of Jeremy’s things and some of our things. And, then, the more complicated process of removing the shelves themselves, and the supports from which the shelves were suspended.
It took a while.
We found places (some temporary) for the boxes that came down. But there was quite a bit of lumber, scraps, large nails, etc. that we couldn’t really reuse. April and I took the usable wood to Waco ReStore, a place where donations of new materials are used for Habitat for Humanity homes, and usable recycled materials are sold at discount prices, enabling people to work on their own homes and also keeping those things out of the local landfill.
Still, there was quite a bit of junky debris that we loaded into their car and my trunk and took to the local citywide recycling center, which also takes scrap and junk that might be too bulky to fit in our regular trash containers. We tossed that stuff into large metal bins
All that happened on Thursday and Friday. Saturday morning, I went out to run some errands and restock the cabinets and fridge.
My car has a space on the dashboard where I can see what my speed is. But, it’s also a sort of information center. If someone gets out of the car and doesn’t completely close the car’s door, an alert pops up, as I might be driving away, that says, “Door Ajar,” and the little diagram shows me which door isn’t closed properly. If the temperature drops, it will warn me that there might be ice on the road, due to the cold. It doesn’t, however, realize that there hasn’t been any rain, so, no ice. Still, if there ever is rain and freezing temps, I’ll be glad for the information.
This is the tire track that the flat tire on the car made. I took this photo a couple of days ago, in other words, it’s been there for two months. We’ve had rain, some of it quite heavy. And, there have been lots of intense sunshine. And still, the tire print is still there. Quite clearly.
It also tells me if a tire is low, and it identifies which tire needs air. That is what I saw while I was out on errands. It said, “Tire pressure low.” So, I realized that, when I was done with my errands and got back home, I should let David know, as he is the tire guy for us.
I made several stops, the last one being Target, close to home. As I drove that last mile home, the car seemed to be driving rather rough, and when I got home, I drove the car into the driveway, stopping before going into the garage. When I got out and looked, that tire seemed, rather, sort of, quite flat.
I fetched David. And said, “The car always gives me plenty of warning. It said, “Tire pressure is low,” not “Tire is completely flat!”
So, the jack has to come out and lift the car. The lug nuts have to come off and the very flat tire removed. The doughnut tire has to be attached. And the car has to go off to get a new tire.
During all this, Kevin says, “Remember yesterday, when we were at the local recycling place? And April said, ‘There are lots of nails lying around here.'”
Yes, we did remember that. So, I’d been driving around all morning on a tire that had a nail. And the accompanying hole.
Our counsel is that you warn the freeloaders to get a move on. Gently encourage the stragglers, and reach out for the exhausted, pulling them to their feet. Be patient with each person, attentive to individual needs.
1 Thessalonians 5:14 (The Message Translation)
A few days after Kevin and April got home, Kevin called me. Seems like April also got a nail in one of her tires, too. Fortunately, they discovered it before she drove it to death; it must have been a pretty small nail. And, I’m grateful that people in my family treat me with patience.