That Never Happens

What a shocker, the weather forecasters were wrong in the right way for a change. They predicted that it was going to thunderstorm all weekend long, but it turned out to be perfect Memorial Day weekend weather. I went up to North Dakota to visit the family for the first time since Thanksgiving. That’s far too long, I know. Last summer I said I was going to get up there more often, and it didn’t happen, but this summer I’m actually going to put in more effort to do that, especially after having such a nice weekend at home this Memorial Day.

I said last time that my doctor ordered “a happy place” for me, and I think a nice quiet weekend in North Dakota with the family was perfect. We went out and did some fishing on the lake, and I actually caught some fish! That never happens! Sunday and Monday I got to sit down and have a nice talk with people, that never seems to happen anymore either. It was good to just take a break from everything and just communicate with people who are interested in more than all of the negative B.S. people seem to consume their lives with around here.

Other good news is that my brother seems to have figured out the big problem I’ve been having with my car. I left the Grand Am up in Fargo for the week so that he could check out the transmission and see why it’s been acting up. It turned out to be a much simpler and cheaper problem than I expected. Hey, that never happens either! What’s going on here, things are actually going my way for a change!

The Grand Am just needs a new motor mount and throttle positioning sensor. The combination of those two problems made it seem like the transmission was having problems. The throttle wasn’t working right and I wasn’t getting any torque because due to the bad motor mount the engine was moving around 4 inches every time the car shifted. So that’s it, problem solved. Two easily accessible things to be replaced. Jeremy saved the summer for me, I won’t have to pay a couple thousand dollars on a new transmission. You can’t really beat that news.

Meanwhile I’ve been driving around in an 86 Mustang all week that my old friend had laying around collecting dust. The car seems to be riddled with problems. It has a leaky gas tank that goes through about a tank of gas every 2-3 days, it’s going through about a quart of oil every 2-3 days, and the power steering doesn’t work which really sucks in a 4-speed. If all works out accordingly, I’ll be making a quick trip up to ND this weekend to pick up my car and drop off the Mustang.

Of course, I took the time to sit down and watch 95% of the Indy 500 as well, and most importantly the exciting finish. That was one of the best races I’ve seen in a while, that’s a race that will go down in history. I missed the evening NASCAR race, but I’ve been a little burnt out on NASCAR lately anyway. I don’t really like the direction NASCAR is going in a lot of ways, but I’m still hanging on hoping they remember all the fans made it into the spectacle that it is today. They seem to be a little off target, pushing aside their roots and looking for a way to make more money, and that’s a little disappointing.

Speaking of roots, I did do what you are actually supposed to do Memorial Day weekend and went out and paid my respects to past relatives. That’s a good thing, though, because remembering them always seems to breathe a little joy and comfort into my life. I don’t know as much as I’d like about many of those past relatives, but perhaps some day the people who are left out there holding those memories will share them with me. Most personal stories aren’t written down, and no amount of research will ever uncover that information. It’s the passing along of stories from generation to generation that keeps the memory of those ancestors alive. I’d hate it if my generation were the one to lose so many of my family’s memories. But every Memorial Day I find myself very worried that there may no longer be a way for me to avoid that, and all I can do is appreciate the memories that I do have and I look forward to the responsibility of passing them along.

Hey! Summer is here! See-ya again soon.