By Sock and Sweater or How I Survived the Car Saga part 2

The sweater came into major focus over the 4 days after the car died. Darling Hubby did not take the lack of vehicle well. He worried. He made phone calls, pacing the house waiting for people to call him back. His massive agitation and lack of focus was contagious. Doing more than two tasks in a row was almost impossible. My standard barrel through the house cleaning during the afternoons came to a standstill. Hubby trying to distract himself with games and movies only succeeded in distracting me as well. Knitting anything on small needles wasn't going to happen. I needed instant gratification. Something uncomplicated on large needles with bulky yarn. It's not that I wasn't worried myself, it's that I couldn't be if Hubby was. Someone had to stay calm, remember to make real food, and order the groceries. Luckily, Hubby works with an amazingly sweet man who let us borrow one of his cars so Darling Husband calmed down a bit.
That Friday was a field trip I wish I could have skipped. We all ventured forth to go car shopping. It was a requirement we all go as we had to make sure we would all fit in the chosen vehicle, growing teenagers require leg room. There was the standard obnoxious car salesmen and there were some that were actually decent. More work was done on the sock. I was pleased to note that at least one car salesman was rather disturbed by the sock, even left in a hurry when I smiled at him while knitting. Over that weekend, a car was decided upon. Roomy, comfortable, new and a lovely silver in our price range. Hubby drove it home Monday and things were much calmer. There was still another week of worrying over the old car. What to do with it? This caused a bout of finishing on the sweater as Husband himmed and hawed, finally deciding to sell it off to one of the local scrap metal places. The sweater was completed the day the old car was sold off. So the Car Saga ends favorably; a new car obtained, the old one no longer a worry, and I have a new rockin' sweater that looks even more fantastic on than I thought it would.

By Sock and Sweater or How I Survived the Car Saga Part 1

So, a couple Saturdays ago, Husband took the car into the shop to get a once over in the morning so we could head into town by lunch. Easy. He gets back from the shop and we drive into town. Before we even make it into the first store, someone has pointed out that our car is bleeding coolant. Up goes the hood. It looks like the mechanics just over-filled the reservoir, hood goes down, we head into the store, car to be checked once we come back out. Everyone and our purchases climb into the car an hour later. Husband turns on the car, only to have it immediately begin to overheat. Car goes off, hood goes up, cellphone comes out as the mechanic is called. This takes some time, so I pull out my purse sock and start knitting away. This sock has been my purse project for months and I was still not through the foot of the first in the pair.
We limp to the nearest garage to have their mechanics check out the car. We wait in the their waiting area, inhaling the smell of new tires. It takes them awhile, there are other customers and cars, it's a busy place. I have gotten three inches done on the sock foot. This only seems like a lot when you realize I am knitting with 2.75mm needles and yarn that is decidedly closer to fuzzy dental floss than say, soft rope. The guy in charge comes out and tells us we just had fans stuck. With everything topped off, we pile back into the car to head home(which is about an hour away). Ten miles down the road, the car is overheating again, rapidly. We pull over into a hospital parking lot, contemplating what to do next. Insurance company is called, the tow truck is on it's way, but....the cab of the tow truck holds at most 3 people including the driver. There were four of us in the car. Now what? Husband starts calling people who could give at least two of us a lift. No one is answering their phones. It's approaching dinner time on a Saturday. The one guy we do get a hold of, is on a trip in Montana till Monday. The bullet is bitten, the cab company is called even though we know it's going to cost us more than the tow. Father and son get in the cab. Mother and daughter get in the tow truck. We all get to the house about the same time. Everyone is home safe and dinner is even served on time. Sunday is quiet, the kids spend most of the day outside playing, while Husband broods inside, trying to figure out what to do. We only have the one car, with it out of commission, he's unable to get to work or even get to the train station eight miles away unless he walks. I turn the heel on the sock. As I knit away, I contemplate the food in the fridge and pantry, planning the use of supplies for the week. No car means no random store runs or even calling for take out. Luckily, I take being a housewife rather seriously and my pantry is rarely bare or full of things that are unusable. We make it to Monday with minimal drama. The rest of the week awaits.