Would you like fries with that tie rod?Yes, I'm still whining about my car...but before I whine more, let me tell you about what happened last night on the job.....

For this I went to college, Part 347:
God love the chronically mentally ill......I'm covering for a staff who didn't quite make it to work last night and thus I am watching clients take their medication. (I can't say I'm giving them their medication because I am certainly not doing this and I am not trained to do this and thus my master's degree eyeballs are watching clients take their medications.) In walks "Mr. Terminally-Manic-Anxious-Man" and he's all befuckled because I'm there and his site staff is not. He's rambling and fretting and pacing and I can tell he is really a-thither with me there and he's not very happy about me watching him take meds instead of his "usual" staff doing this job. Mr. TMAM then realizes he has forgotten to bring a cup or mug with him as part of his medication-taking ritual. I don't have any paper cups to offer him and he whines and paces and frets some more about the lack of a cup.....

.....Just as I am about to tell him to go back to his apartment and get a cup, he literally walks over to the staff desk, dumps the pens and pencils out of the mug on the said desk, pours water in the dirty pen/pencil mug, throws the pills in his mouth and chugs down the dirty mug water and pills, all before I could spit out one word.

I absolutely swear this is true.

Then, he puts the mug on the desk, throws the pens and pencils back in the still wet mug and leaves the office, all without missing a beat.

For this I went to college? You betcha!
Back to whining about my car....my 2002 Mazda Tribute...of which I love...of which I hate...

...when does one decide whether or not to put money into repairing a car verses just going out and buying a new damn car? I'm not used to being in this position...I'm used to having new cars before problems begin. So, I'm turning to you, dear blog readers, to help me in my quest to find the meaning of car repair.You know that $1000 I put into repairing my 5 year old car last week? Well, now there is a loud clunking noise coming from the front of the car, right in the area they told me they fixed. This does not make me happy. Add to that the problem with the electric windows & locks (that work when they want to and not when they don't want to--that's really helpful) and I've got a dilemma.....a 50,000 miles hunk of junk or a 50,000 mile investment. How to tell?

On both the positive and negative side, my car has a lot of new parts: the clutch & clutch disk were replaced around 20,000 miles. The Rack and pinion doohickies were replaced at about 13, 000 miles. The accelerator valve has been replaced twice. The battery was replaced at 41, 000 miles. The throttle body plate, engine light sensor, tie rods, bushings, arm control thingies all have been replaced....that's a lot of new parts. Good for me!

I have brand new tires on the car....The wife has always made sure the tires are properly inflated, the oil has always been changed on time, the car has been "tuned up" as requested. The wife has kept that car shiny both inside and out. I've even had one of the seat belts fixed. The car has never been in an accident. The six-changer CD is rockin' and the floor mats look brand new. We've even replaced the wiper blades awhile back. Way good for me!
....On the down side, there is that clunking, there is that "none of the windows will open" problem, I've shoved the wrong key in the ignition four times (see previous blogs for the sad stories about this) and there's all that rust on the underside of the car. The back seat doesn't lock into place (you know, when I put the seats up, the bench seat doesn't fully click into place--I've just ignored it for the past three years). I did spill that entire frappaccino in the car way back when but I don't really see any problems from that.....Not so good for me...

I really, really do NOT want a new car but I certainly don't want to put all my "could have had more tattoos and Xena crap money" into pooh on wheels. I want tattoo and Xena money. I NEED tattoo and Xena money.....

So, I turn it over to you and the Universe. Vote early and vote often for the addiverse car situation....no car knowledge needed--feel free to voice opinions based on a love of a car color, love of new car smell, of whatever "turns your car on...."

I'd whine more but it's time for L.A. Ink, so I'll have to save my whining for later....Kat Von D, save me!