Death to the Toyota, Death Eaters, & Other Disasters

So, is it bad when Tori Amos isn't angsty enough for what you're writing, and you have to dust off the Evanescence again?

Anyway. Went out today, as my library books were due and Mom's glasses were in. And wouldn't you know but the car died again? We wandered across the street from her eye doctor's, got some lunch. Came back, car still wouldn't start. Called the tow truck again. I decided, what the hell, let's just reach over and turn the key, try one more time.

It started.

Fucking car. Evil, it is. It's going to Toyota next weekend, too. Have had it with this.

Library does not have one single copy of The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe checked in. *shakes head* I'm trying desperately to find stuff to read in between my re-reading of the last half of Prisoner of Azkaban and Goblet of Fire, so that I don't end up spending half the week with nothing to read till OoP.

I went to the video rental place, figuring I'd pick up a movie or two, maybe a game. Right. They're out of everything that looked remotely interesting. Tell me it doesn't figure.

In other news, my grandmother's finally decided what we're all doing for fathers' day. (Yes, that is a bit odd. Don't ask- none of us can figure it out either.) Anyway, it's brunch, which means great-grandpa, who doesn't know anybody from- well, anybody. Always fun, that.

So I've been snapping at Mom all weekend, which is horrible of me. I hate fathers' day, though- always gets to me, no matter how much I try to tell myself that it doesn't matter.

I still maintain that those who don't have fathers ought to be exempt from having to celebrate this nonsense.

10:30 is brunch at Grandma's. Ugh. That's way too early on a Sunday to be dealing with my family, but what can you do? Going is less trouble than not going. But I swear, if I have to endure the "you know you could call me" lecture one more time... Yeah, and you could talk to me yourself, instead of telling Mom you said I'm invited to do stuff with you, too... so back at ya, Grandma.

Dear Auntie Em,

Hate you. Hate Kansas. Keeping the dog.

Love,
Dorothy

Very old bumper sticker. I want this on my car (if I ever get a car...or have a reason to own one).

I'm torn suddenly between wanting to finish the Narcissa Malfoy scene I'm working on, and wanting to write something entirely different. Not one of the originals- I haven't touched them all summer. Just something...different.

( Strange, for as many characters as HP has, but I'm running out of Death Eaters. )

Must hang curtains tomorrow.

(no subject)

I was woken up half an hour ago by my mother, who now wants to leave even earlier so we can go to Marie Callander's and pick up a pie for Grandpa. (Not to be confused with great-grandpa; Grandpa still knows who we all are).

There is not enough caffine in the western hemisphere for me to think this is a good idea, but as usual, nobody asked me, so...

I just have visions of being over at my grandparents' all day, which is frightening on so many levels.

Oh well. At least I can tell them about my grades if they ask how it's going with me.

Starving. Must go grab something to eat before we head out. *sigh*

Well. I'm off.

Troubles with the Toyota, and other stuff

Damn car.

Damn car.

Wouldn't start when we were heading out to Grandma's. Which annoyed Mom more than it did me- I was sort of half hoping it would stay dead and we wouldn't have to go, but then she said she'd call Grandma to pick us up, and I thought, god no, it's bad enough as is.

Managed to get the thing started- then I was afraid it wouldn't get us home. My uncle came out to take a look at it, and it of course started right away. He came over later and swapped us cars- he's going to take the Toyota to Sears and get us a new battery, since our old one's still under warranty. They refused to listen to Mom. Sexist assholes. Anyway. So we have some old Ford my uncle's fixed up and is trying to sell. I haven't seen it yet, but you know, at least it runs.

The funny thing is that we're more worried about the Ford getting stolen by Mom's office than we ever were about the Toyota. Nobody wants a car that old anymore, and anyway, good luck getting it started.

I did decide, though, that if anybody tried to steal it while we were at Marie Callanders (left the engine running and me sitting guard) I was going to let them have it. No takers, damnit.

Oh well. They probably wouldn't have totaled it anyway- just run it out of gas and ditched it somewhere. Hence, we'd get it back.

I'm hoping the new battery will solve the problem- Uncle John says it's bulging out on one side, which doesn't sound good even to me. (And I can't drive, so why would I care how cars work? I just know ours has never worked right since it died a couple years ago and was towed to Pep Boys in Fairfield. They suck, by the way.)

Was hoping for a Ford Anglia, but it's a Fairmont or some such. Yellow.

Beats the lime green Ranchero we once drove for a week when the old car died while I was in high school. Horrible, huge, tank-like, and no power steering.

Got the curtains hung this afternoon- hottest part of the day, but we were stuck at Grandma's a lot longer than any of us wanted to be. At least we had my uncle and his girlfriend around to help distract the grandparents.

Oh, and great-grandpa. Let's not forget great-grandpa. He knew Grandma's name today- sort of. They told him at the rest home that his daughter would pick him up, and when my grandfather came instead he said, "You're not Patsy." The grandparents are encouraged by this. I'd be happier about it if he'd had a clue that she was the one sitting next to him at the table.

*sigh* My family. And the grandparents aren't traveling anywhere till September. They're going on some cruise through the Panama Canal with their oldest friends on earth. Mmmkay, whatever makes you happy I guess.

My uncle's girlfriend is very cool. Her ex-roommate works at Starbucks, and can get her free coffee. She said we could go sometime, if I wanted. Yay! Hell, I'd go even if I hated coffee- must counteract whatever ill effects the grandparents have on her.

Have had enough family togetherness for a while.

And I survived fathers' day. Yay.