Tires & Tire

About two weeks ago I was driving to the small business and heard two noises, first the front left tire going over something followed by the left rear tire going over something.  The second noise had a definitive 'thunk' attribute.

Two hours later when leaving the small business the 'thunk' identified itself as a 5/8" drill bit in the rear tire, now flat.  The removal of the tire was a challenge, the first time I had to stand and jump on a lug nut wrench.  I suppose they are tightened to fifty or sixty pounds but jumping motion was much in excess of that (I just looked this fact up.  It's something that I should have known...100 pounds).

With 40,000+ miles on the tires this 5/8" event became new tires.  Yesterday my low tire pressure indicator came on.  The left rear tire had a 1/2" stick protruding from the sidewall.  Given my lack of high performance sliding around I'm not exactly sure how this could happen.  The tire came off easily and I started the 100 mile drive home on the midget spare tire.  At 50MPH you have more time to think and was reminded of a time (1970) when new tires could be had for $25 or less and that included mounting, no shop fees, no hazardous waste fees and no environmental fees.

The tire was replaced but low pressure indicator in that tire was destroyed when I drove ten feet on the flat. An additional $85 charge was added to the new tire charge and one tire cost half the amount of four tires.  Given that all failures on the left rear tire seem to result in one or more new tires I'm not really sure that I needed to spend that $85, which is actually about half the cost of a new tire which I seem to be buying every two weeks.

What does all of this have to do with work and the pursuit thereof?  It seems that something is breaking every time I go outside or go somewhere.  I forgot to mention that after changing this recent flat I went into the shop to make some sawdust while waiting for the traffic to subside (given that I was going to be going no more than 50 MPH).  One of several projects in-process required some work at the bandsaw.  It was only a couple of small cuts and I was tempted to skip the standard safety gloves, hearing protection and safety glasses.  At the shop I'm thirty minutes from any health care and I'm alone so I try to be prudent.  Fortunately I did put all that on moments before a 12 TPI saw blade came flying out at my hands and face.  You have to get right back on the horse when thrown and I knew I had backup blades but they were not in the logical location because I had a water pipe freeze and break (not yet repaired) that I discovered after turning on the water and dumping a couple of hundred of gallons of water about the shop.  It's a long story.  I found the blades.

The lack of equipment failures would indicate that one is not doing much.  Lot's of failures might indicate you're making much effort or you shop at Harbor Freight.  Writing is much like that.  If you don't put something boring or stupid or without purpose or not elegant or not funny or not insightful down on paper (e-paper as noted) you're not doing enough.  The small business has been good but distracting, keeping me from this.

Today I did have a great conversation with a former vendor who indicated there were a number of companies that would benefit from someone like me and that he would be willing to connect the dots.  This fits well into my plan for actually pursuing work after September.  Of course I have to move past the tire issue which will, if the data pattern is correct, occur again before the end of the month or halfway until the next full moon.  Much is to be done before the first frost of the fall which is imminent.