2003-02-20 - 5:21 p.m.

Well it's been an interesting snow week (some places get a snow day, we get a snow week - go figure!)

For starters, the Lochmere event was a blast. The food came out okay and we had a good time playing in the kitchen. Steve had a good time showing off the Black Museum and finally got his name and device submitted (whoohoo!) We took home many leftovers, had crazy-monkey-boys doing kitchen cleanup and got home before the snow.

Sunday was pretty much a waste. Like others, we occupied our weekend with soup and computer games and strenuous shovelling. I think I baked bread (or maybe that was last week - they all run together!)

Monday I didn't even consider going to work, so it was a good thing our offices were mostly closed. We shovelled more, and did more pottering around the house. Unfortunately, the way we park in the driveway, in order to unearth the van, we had to pile some of the snow in front of the Volvo. This will make a difference later in our saga. We got the van out, I took her for a brief spin (to ensure I could get her in and out of the driveway on Tuesday), and Steve took her up to get petrol. On the way back - "look Ma, no power steering!" He managed to get home and get her parked (I'm not sure how - it was a tight fit to begin with) and we determine (in the dark) that we've blown the serpentine belt. Hmph. No van driving to work tomorrow.

So, fall back to plan B. Remember all that snow we piled in front of the Volvo? Well, now it has to be moved. I called one of my colleagues who lives nearby to see if I could cadge a lift but she wasn't plowed out yet and wasn't going in. And we're not closed Tuesday (although staff can work from home) so while I work from home, my beloved shovels out the Volvo and tinkers with the van. He's so good to me.

Tuesday night we drive up to Laurel so I can get various prescriptions filled (like the ones I'd gotten Friday for antibiotics & cough syrup for the bronchitis...) and after a brief tantrum at the clerk and a long wait, we're off home again. No problems.

Wednesday the world is mostly returning to normal (for those of us without kids), and we go out to drive to work and the Volvo doesn't run. Won't even start at all - no clicking sound, no nothing. Grrrr.

I try to call my colleague but she's already left. I start calling friends who work nearby, work from home, don't work, etc. in an ever-increasing radius, in an attempt to get a lift to work. Bless the Moustache Man, he's not teaching that day, and he hauls himself out and over to my place to get me and take me to work. I owe you one, man!

Meanwhile, we place a call to Geico Emergency Roadside Assistance to get the van towed to a garage (since I'd had the belts changed in May '02, I'm more than a tad put out that they failed so I want to go to *that* garage, over in Colesville....) This is 9:20-ish on Wednesday. They say there's a wait, but they should be there in 2-3 hours (which given that we're not stranded in the cold on a roadside somewhere is perfectly reasonable). Then they were late. Starting at 4pm, we were their next pickup. Same was true at 6 when I got home (courtesy of the aforementioned co-worker). I called Geico back at 6 then alternated calling the towing company and Geico every hour or so, getting variations on the same story. At 9:30 pm (that's 12 hours later), they claim they tried to come get it but couldn't get to it. Then they retract that, and decide to see if they can come get it tomorrow (Thursday). I agree, if they'll be there promptly, as we currently have no working cars, and I'd like to get it fixed Thursday.

Insert colleague-commuting, and many long calls to Geico & the towing company here. At about 10:20am Thursday the Geico lady forbade me to call the towing company again, as I was obviously about to open a large can of whup-ass on them. They told us it'd be an hour every hour from 9am until noon. Then it was 'they're twenty minutes away', which went on until 2:30, when they finally showed up. Yes, that's right, 29 hours to get a bloody tow truck.

Thank goodness for the nice people at Colesville Amoco - they fixed the belt and did it inexpensively and stayed late so now I have a car and my hubby isn't stranded there to be picked up by the O'Leary's somewhat later.... Hooray for that, but you can believe the towing company is getting a long and unpleasant letter....

Anyhow, now I'm going off to do something festive with my husband in celebration. Y'all have a good one!

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