The car is (still) in the shop.
Last Monday, I went to return a few books to the library and our car wouldn’t start. So I jumped on the unofficial Oldsmobile Aurora forums, asked around on Twitter, and learned all about alternators on YouTube—but when we couldn’t even jump-start the thing Tuesday night, I admitted defeat and called for a tow truck.
(BTW, if you have any “in” whatsoever, get insurance coverage with USAA! They are, hands down, the absolute best when it comes to customer service.)
Anyway, on Wednesday I had the car towed to a shop that USAA recommended. The lead service tech there told me that they weren’t busy; they would have it looked at the same day, or by Thursday at the absolute latest.
When they closed for the weekend on Saturday afternoon, they still hadn’t even begun their diagnosis.
I was told that they would get back to me with a diagnosis by Monday, but I was told this by the same person who originally said Thursday… so I’m thinking it may be a while before we get our car back.
Meanwhile, food and diapers don’t replenish themselves (at least not here, and I don’t want to know if they do in your home), so I’ve found myself walking more this past week—including a 4-mile round trip to Walmart, with an ice-pack-filled backpack to keep the milk cool on the 40-minute trek back.
Then there’s some books that need to get back to the library, my very pregnant wife has an appointment with her midwife on Tuesday, and WordCamp is this weekend. There’s only so much in this city that we can accomplish by walking—or riding COTA—from this side of Whitehall.
In other words, this week is shaping up to be an interesting one. 
