Cheery's country living adventure

Cheery_Daff

Gosh this saga just gets more thrilling! Hope you've all got your popcorn out! 

Email from the AA - the car isn't taxed 🙄 It is, of course - I did it as soon as I bought it before we drove it home, but clearly the system hasn't updated yet (which i knew because the breakdown people said the same thing). 

I've forwarded my confirmation email and will eagerly await the next thrilling installment.

Also our friends are due any minute. We'll, they said 11, but this morning said 'more like 12'. Who will arrive first - pals or the AA?? Will the AA want payment at some point? Will the car actually drive once it has a new battery, or is something else wrong?!

Pretty sure I'm due an easy year in 2022 - the last few have been a right roller coaster 🙄

Karmacat

Good grief  you deserve a lovely afternoon with your friends, after decompressing with them for a little while about the insane car shenanigans.  Hope you have a great time.

Baileys_Babe

That little car likes to make a dramatic entrance, you will be retelling the tale of this saga for many years to come once it feels less raw. Hopefully, a new battery will get everything sorted and you can enjoy your time with your friends 🤗

hb2

Cheery, I hope that - by the time you read this - you will have had a nice time with your friends and have a fully working car! I think you deserve several good years after this, never mind just one.

Cheery_Daff

Thank you all 😊

Well it seems the battery was indeed the culprit, and the lovely Steve was extremely helpful. They've got 33% off from Tuesday, and if you sign up they take off the £35 callout fee so basically for an extra £90 I can have a year of homestart, rescue from anywhere, onwards travel for several days, AA cover. 

Not entirely sure how MSE it is, since we do already have breakdown cover til March 😂 But that has no onward travel, and will only take you to a garage 10 miles away. Fine if you break down at home (which, bizarrely enough, I usually do) but useless elsewhere.

Need to check there isn't any kind of double cover rule (like with normal insurance) and then I'll sign up.

See, this whole saga did get money-saving eventually! 😂

hb2

I'm glad that you have the battery sorted and wish you many miles of trouble-free motoring in this car Cheery.

You asked about Nightstop - we finished our training in March of last year and went straight into lockdown so haven't hosted many times. We do seem to have more than our fair share of problems - I think some of that is due to Social Workers minimising known problems in order to get the charity to accept the client. We aren't quitting just yet though, the truth is that these people are very young and - in many cases - very damaged from a life in 'care'.

Cheery_Daff

How interesting hb. There must be so few options for somewhere to stay. Do you just have people for a night, or a couple of weeks? 

So today turned out much better than it could have. I've been SO tired but the car is fixed (yay!) and we have had a lovely afternoon with pals 😊😊 

We've even done all the washing up! And we got a bit of an extra tidy done while we were waiting for people to turn up.

I did make a bit of progress on the 'big projects' list - I laid another three breeze blocks for the chicken extension, and also did a bit of clearing of the garden shelter that blew down a couple of mo the ago - slowly trying to reclaim the garden (and also we're reusing bits to make the chicken extension).

So, plans for this week...

MONDAY
* add new car to insurance
* ring garage to book old car in for service and to sort out clunking noise
* cafe breakfast
* work in garden
* YNAB in eve
* final breeze block in row

TUESDAY
* lots of work meetings
* measure and cut wire mesh for side of chicken run

WEDNESDAY
* off work
* TWO dentist appointments first thing - hygienist and then tooth out 🙄
* meeting friend after - supposedly for lunch although I'm not sure I'll be able to eat much! 
* hammer on wire mesh if feeling up to it

THURSDAY
* work
* running with friend in the evening

FRIDAY
*take other bike to bike shop
* booked annual leave but might switch it to Wednesday (although dentistry doesn't feel like much of a holiday!) 
* hammer on more mesh

WEEKEND
No particular plans, but might try to get some assistance with next phase of chicken run, and I would love to get the final bits of kitchen ceiling done.

I'd also like to fit in at least two bike rides this week!

Let's see how that all goes...

themadvix

So glad to hear that things turned out alright in the end Cheery! 

If it was the battery, I’d just keep an eye on it - it may have been the battery, but after what should have been a good long charge while you brought it home, the alternator might not be doing its job properly - either a loose fan belt or a dying alternator. 

Hb, had a look at Nightstop- what a wonderful charity, and very lovely of you to do it too. Hope next time is more successful!

Cheery_Daff

Thanks Vix - I the AA guy did check the alternator and all seemed OK. But we'll definitely be suspicious for a while, and it'll be going to the garage for a check up once the other one is out 🙄

Cheery_Daff

Right. Insurance sorted - we got a refund of £89 for having no insurance for 2 months, and the new car cost £49 more to insure, so we're still £40 up (although I'll check those figures as I was only expecting a refund of about £15 a month).

Popped into the garage - old car is booked in for a week on Wednesday, new one the Wednesday after. Shame we couldn't get sooner but there we are. He thinks the spring might be on its way out in the old one but we'll see.

Hopefully that's enough car shenanigans for now! YNAB tonight.