September 02 2011

            I awoke this morning around 6:30, fixed and ate an fried egg sandwich, drank a cup of coffee and then took my pickup truck to the mechanic’s shop.  A couple days ago I noticed an oil spot where the truck had been parked. 

            About a month ago I spent nearly $700 to have a couple of high-pressure hydraulic hoses replaced.  I was concerned that the mechanics might not have gotten the hoses properly attached.  Since these hoses control both my steering and my brakes, I REALLY did not want them to fail while I was driving.  Therefore, I had made an appointment to take them back to the same mechanics this morning.

            The good news is: it was NOT the hydraulic lines.  The BAD news is: it is an oil line.  Estimated repair cost is around $450.  It is an extremely slow leak and I’m going to have to live with it for a while, that is until my bank account ‘refreshes’ itself with the deposit of my next SS check.

            Because the trip to mechanic was both early and quick, Ella and I were able to go to breakfast with friends as usual for a Friday.  I’m not sure how long we have been going to breakfast together – four years or so, I think – however, part of the group had been getting together for longer than that.  It consists of mostly people from our church, although others sometime come also.  This summer, since we have not been attending Sunday services at our home church, we use this time to get caught up on ‘church news’.  I am told that it is ‘news’ and not gossip.  I guess it is the intent and not the content that makes it news rather than gossip. (smile)

            Upon leaving the breakfast clutch, we went to Sam’s Club to do some price checking.  I used to have a Business Membership with Sam’s.  Buying in bulk was very useful when we had seven to nine people living at home.  Once we sold the house and moved fulltime into our RV, buying in bulk was no longer as attractive because space is precious and weight is a concern when towing.

            Several weeks ago, I needed to buy 120 corn dogs for an event at church, so I purchased an Advantage Plus Membership at Sam’s Club.  Now that I have it, we decided to see where it might be an advantage to purchase there.  It may have been unwise to tempt ourselves as we spent $115 before we got out the door.

            I did make a list of several other items that it does make sense to purchase in larger quantities, and their prices.  I’ll do some comparison shopping and see if we can save enough to venture back into the clutches of Sam’s Club.  Perhaps if I leave Ella at home, I could: go, buy only the items on the list and get away without extra purchases.  I know that is unfair because I can not be trusted anymore than she can to pass up “a good deal”!