Closet Seamstress

Last Friday while out scouting the Christmas Light Tour route we stopped at friends from the Miata Club’s house (they are the end of the line because they are hosting this year’s Holiday Party.) It was getting chilly as daylight faded and we considered putting the top up for the ride home. That’s when John said here try this. He had another member’s old windblocker to copy to make a pattern so he can make one up for himself. John is our Club’s closet seamstress, he has made a bunch of stuff up including bags for the boot and our Club’s Loaner Trunk Bag. We have had to windblocker on quite a bit and it has definitely extended the lower temperature limit for top down driving. Using just the blocker it keeps the cold wind off your back. With the blocker and windows up it is very cozy inside. Still get some cold air in, but hey it is a convertible. I think we are going to get John to sew us one up too.

Upper 30’s on the way to work – no problem, the top was down.

Started down, still down.
Top Transitions since 02/02/02: 328

The Ol’ Gray Matter Ain’t What It Used To Be II

Went out for bagels for breakfast. When we sat down in the restaurant to wait for our order I noticed that the newspaper print was slightly out-of-focus. It wasn’t the paper, it was me, I had left my glasses on the nightstand. I got tired of hunting down where I put my reading glasses about a year ago, so I went and had no-line bifocals made up of clear glass on top and +1.00 reading glasses on the bottom. Now I just wear them all the time. Trouble comes in the morning, because I don’t really need them to see, unlike my wife, I can get ready for work without putting them, so sometimes I get all the way to trying to read the paper before I realize that I need to get my glasses. Today was the first time I left home with out them though.

Essentially Free To Me

Almost forgot. Back on the 17th one of the door prizes I won in the Poker Run was a $25 gift certificate from MM Miata On the 19th I mailed in the certificate along with an order for some leather seatbelt stalk covers. I already have the leather shift and hand brake boots and this would complete the ensemble. They came in today, pretty good service. The first 4 years Miatas were produced the seatbelts were fastened to the floor. Starting in my year they were fastened to the side of the seat for I’m sure government mandated safety reasons. The sleeves fit all year Miatas, but for mine, about 3 inches had to be trimmed off the length. Now that they are installed they really are nothing special, glad they were essentially free to me. I would have been disappointed to have shelled out $25 for that lackluster enhancement.

The Ol’ Gray Matter Ain’t What It Used To Be

On the way to work this morning we stopped at the ATM to get out a twenty because Donna was going out at lunch with her co-workers. When we were walking into the building at work she asked me to give her the receipt from the withdrawal. She likes to put them inside the checkbook right away because I have a tendency to forget about them and have nearly caused some checks to bounce in the past. When I opened my wallet the $20 bill was there, but no receipt. For that matter, no ATM card either! Left them in the ATM. Hopped back in the car and hightailed it the 3 miles back to the bank. The receipt was still there in the slot, but no card. When I got back to work I called the 1-800 customer service where the fellow explained to me that after a minute or so of the card being left in the slot the machine sucks it in. If I was lucky that would be the case. I called the bank an hour later when they opened and sure enough they had my card. When you are old and senile it helps to be lucky. 🙂

Fifty Minutes Later

Decided to drive it work and see where I could go from there about my coolant leak. My wife followed me in her Mom’s car in case something happened. I’ll spare some of the other weird happening of the morning except to include the fact that a huge cloud of white vapor engulfed the car upon parking in the lot at work. At morning break the IE, Chris, and I went out and started the car and looked to see if we could actually see where it was leaking. Sure enough you could see a little drop – drop -drop coming from the lower heater hose. I called the two “local” Mazda dealers and neither had the hose in stock. I called Advance Auto and they said we have one of the 2. I ran there at lunch and picked up the hose for $10. When I got back to work Chris asked if I had any luck finding the hose I told him yes and that I was going to call the shop right across the street to see what he’d charge me to put it in.

He said, “Don’t do that, get me a pair of pliers and I’ll change it in 5 minutes.” 50 minutes later the hose was changed. To be fair he probably would have been done in less than 10 minutes if I had the stock hose. The Advance Auto hose was just a generic 90 degree bend thing and was too long requiring trimming and retrimming and retrimming to fit. And because it was in such an inaccessible spot forcing it on and twisting it only to have to remove it as a big PITA. Thanks Chris.

Started down, went up, went down, still down.
Top Transitions since 02/02/02: 326

The Sweat Smell Of Anti-Freeze

Today was a really nice day so we went for country back road cruise. Nice little 40 mile drive in he mid 60 degree sunshine. When we got home I went back in the garage to get a load of clothes out of the dryer I smelt something out of the ordinary, took a moment before I realized it was the sweat smell of anti-freeze. Looked under the Miata and sure enough there was puddle near the back of the engine area. Back the car out of the garage and wiped up the mess. I then mixed up a cocktail of water and anti-freeze to top off the radiator. While I ran the car for like 3 minutes topping off the radiator in the driveway I must have dripped out a half a cup on the driveway. And of course when I pulled back into the garage and shut it off I made another puddle… After some research on Miata.net I feel that I have either a bad water pump or a bad hose. Gonna have it towed to the dealer for the work as I don’t have the tools, time or talent for car fixin’.

Started down, still down.
Top Transitions since 02/02/02: 324

Must Take Some Special Handling II

Ordered my driving gloves from Moss Motors. I get a nice glossy catalog from them every couple of months and mostly it goes into the nightstand for bedtime reading and dreaming, but every once and a while I buy something from them. Moss had the same gloves as M M Marketing for $7 cheaper so I ordered them. But there must be special S & H precautions for deerskin driving gloves as Moss wants $7.95 to ship them me. Oh, well it still worked out a couple buck cheaper that any other option.