The Great Gas Discount

Last week I got a terrific discount at the gas station, $1.54 a gallon (because of a discount from shopping at the local grocery store). However, as the gas flowed from the nozzle to the tank it came spilling out from underneath. Only $9.35 into the fill and the discount was over. Gas flooded the ground where I stood and I had to put the nozzle back on the pump. After I told the station manager about the environmental emergency I got in my van and drove away.

Did I say drive? Yes..... God was merciful and I didn't blow up and catch on fire. As I headed for the repair shop I thought of all the difficult things that could be wrong with the van. Hole in the gas tank was the worst I could think of.

My van is in the shop. We have an extra car that I can run around it, however it doesn't have capacity for Emily's wheel chair. How was I going to take Emily where she needed to go? Would I be able to pick her up from school if she needed me? What would I do without a wheel chair lift? After explaining the situation to the repair-man I was given a shuttle ride home.

In the afternoon the repair-man called to tell me that xxx was in need of replacing, and oh yes, YYY also was going bad and should it be replaced also? And then there were the battery cables that were in bad shape. (My van is a 2002, how can all this be bad?) I told the guy to call my husband....

It took all day but the van was repaired by evening I was able to pick it up. Wow, great. The hose from the nozzle to the tank was bad and needed to be replaced. There was no real part number for the hose since it had been an after market item to go with the lowered floor of the van, to go with the wheel chair lift. But they found a hose that would work and they put it on. $1275 later I drove my car home. Sounded like highway robbery to me.....

Things went well for a day, till I went to fill my van with gas again (this time no discount). Off in my own thoughts, and because it shouldn't happen twice, I hardly noticed the gas flooding the ground again...... This time a lady from the office came out and told me that my tank was leaking. UGGGGG

So the van is back in the shop again. I gritted my teeth and said, "This isn't going to cost me anything, is it?" The reply was, "Nope, you've already paid."

There were some recall parts that my van needed and they were ordered when it was in the shop the first time. They came in by the time I got the van back to the shop so they will be replaced also. I expected the van to be finished last night. They had it all day Friday and all day yesterday to work on it. Nope, not done.

In the mean time I can't take Emily anywhere. The shop knows this, and says they are doing the best they can. Since the hose is an after market item it is taking some time to find and replace it with the correct part. Great...... I think its time I do some research and find the correct part so my van can be repaired.

The sun is out and birds are singing. Its going to be a lovely day!