In some previous posts, I’ve mentioned that I like to do
things myself—rather than pay someone to do them. Part of the reason is that
I’m a cheapskate—or thrifty, as I prefer to call it. But it’s more than that.
Having someone else do the work usually makes more work for me—when I have to
fix it.
This past weekend, my wife’s car needed an oil change. So,
after purchasing the oil and filter, I went outside in the cold to change the
oil. The job should have taken no more than fifteen minutes. Should’ve, but
didn’t.
The first problem I ran into was I couldn’t get the drain
plug out. The socket wouldn’t stay on the bolt. At first I thought I just
didn’t have things lined up but on closer inspection, I saw the corners of the
bolt had been rounded off. Odd, I thought, because I’m the only one who changes
the oil. Who had been messing with my vehicle? And who in their right mind
would crawl under a vehicle, ruin the bolt, and then just put it back? It
wasn’t like the vehicle had been low on oil either. But obviously, someone had
done something; I knew it wasn’t like that the last time I changed the oil.
And then I remembered. The last time the car needed an oil
change, my wife had been gone on an impromptu trip to Wisconsin. One of those
oil change places had done the job. Which was okay, since I wasn’t there—until
this weekend.
So, I set to work, selecting a slightly smaller socket,
driving it onto the bolt, and then smacking it with a hammer. But the bolt
didn’t budge. I did manage to break a socket and bend a few other tools though!
And then it all made sense. I can’t be certain, but what I
imagine happened is whoever changed the oil last time used an air wrench and over
tightened the bolt, stripping the head in the process.
Eventually, with the help of another socket and a bigger
hammer, I got the plug out. And then moved onto the filter, which I discovered
was the wrong one. (I did double check to make sure I hadn’t been putting the
wrong one on all this time). The filter fit so it did the job but taking it off
was another matter. My oil filter wrench was too large. But with a little
friendly persuasion, I got it off. I finished changing the oil in the
dark—thanks to the annoying time change—but at least I got it done. The job had
taken an hour and forty minutes, a lot longer than the fifteen minutes it
should have been.
And that’s why I do things myself. It saves time and hassle
later. ~
Bruce
A. Borders is the author of more than a dozen books, including: Inside Room 913, Over My Dead Body, The Journey,
Miscarriage Of Justice, The Lana Denae Mysteries, and The Wynn Garrett Series. Available in ebook at www.amazon.com/Bruce-A.-Borders/e/B006SOLWQS
and
paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-a-Million. Bruce A. Borders
is a proud member of Rave Reviews Book Club.
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