Some days you should avoid helping others...
- Thread starter 1 Wild R/T
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Mini jump pack? I've got one if those too, works really well.
I get mine from Halifaxhops. The new ones are junk.
Reminds me of an occasion some 25 years ago on my way back to work after lunch. Came across a woman with her kid in the back stopped part way on a narrow road with a hill blocking view of her until cresting the hill. Deep ditch to boot, so no spot to get her car off the road. I stopped at the crest putting my flashers on so traffic was alerted. Asked her what her problem was; no start, just cranking – nothing. Well, her car was one POS, opened the hood and the engine bay resembled a barn car find. Asked her to crank it and determined zero gas. The gauge didn’t work. At the time I was duded up in a tie and such, required for my job at the time.
I said we should get your car in a safer spot as I planned to go to a gas station put down a deposit to borrow a gas can and put gas in the tank. There was a driveway about 30 feet behind her. I trotted up to the house to ask the owner if I could set her car in his driveway while I went for gas. He was fine with it. So I push her car back and with her in the car steering it into the driveway. Was a warm day so I’m building up a sweat in my duds. Then, I drive to the nearest station some 4 miles away got a can and two gallons of gas putting most of it in the tank leaving a bit to pour in the carb, need be.
I said crank the motor, but let me work the throttle. After some cranking it wouldn’t fire so poured a little gas in the carb, tried again and fired up fine. After so many years can’t recall what I spotted in the engine that I viewed as a serious hazard, think it was with the linkage. I asked the woman if she has a repair shop she uses or a spouse who does some car work, mentioning what I found needing attention sooner, not later.
Well…WDF…she starts saying I must have messed her car up; no buts about it! As my blood began to boil, I said I didn’t and you watched me all along right? Didn’t matter. Now boiling I said driving around with your kid, get the car looked at soon telling her what I found. I told her the station I went to giving her the can and said you can get the deposit cash back and the 2 gallons are on me. Had to leave as I was sooo pissed...wanted to tell the bitch what I thought; but with the kid refrained.
I said we should get your car in a safer spot as I planned to go to a gas station put down a deposit to borrow a gas can and put gas in the tank. There was a driveway about 30 feet behind her. I trotted up to the house to ask the owner if I could set her car in his driveway while I went for gas. He was fine with it. So I push her car back and with her in the car steering it into the driveway. Was a warm day so I’m building up a sweat in my duds. Then, I drive to the nearest station some 4 miles away got a can and two gallons of gas putting most of it in the tank leaving a bit to pour in the carb, need be.
I said crank the motor, but let me work the throttle. After some cranking it wouldn’t fire so poured a little gas in the carb, tried again and fired up fine. After so many years can’t recall what I spotted in the engine that I viewed as a serious hazard, think it was with the linkage. I asked the woman if she has a repair shop she uses or a spouse who does some car work, mentioning what I found needing attention sooner, not later.
Well…WDF…she starts saying I must have messed her car up; no buts about it! As my blood began to boil, I said I didn’t and you watched me all along right? Didn’t matter. Now boiling I said driving around with your kid, get the car looked at soon telling her what I found. I told her the station I went to giving her the can and said you can get the deposit cash back and the 2 gallons are on me. Had to leave as I was sooo pissed...wanted to tell the bitch what I thought; but with the kid refrained.
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Speaking of hitchhikers.......I picked up a stumble bum in SC and drove him to the exit to my town and dropped him off on the berm at the exit ramp. He said he was hungry so I gave him MY lunch. As I pulled away I checked the mirrors. He was GONE. I mean disappeared. I stopped and jumped out. There were no other cars, wide open fields for hundreds of feet in all directions other than highway. Nowhere he could have gone to be out of sight. Period. He simply evaporated. Still to this day cannot explain it. Weirded me out. Might have been God testing me......
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I also gave him all of the money in my pocket, about 23 dollars...lol.
At some point you cross the line from nice guy to sucker..... DAMHIK...
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Sometimes it’s frustrating to help people out. While someone might be smart in some areas, they might not be as knowledgeable in others. And a lot of times we get frustrated when something doesn’t go right, and that frustration clouds our thinking. It is very difficult to diagnosis over the phone, or internet, but sometimes it’s what we have to do, and hopefully someone points out what could be the problem, or a few people point out a few different things that could be it, and one of them is the problem. We all need to be more patient with people.
And there is also people out there that are just too stubborn, or too brain dead, and nothing can be done about it.
And there is also people out there that are just too stubborn, or too brain dead, and nothing can be done about it.
That's the guy I gave all my guns to.... well, all except one, I lost that one in a boating accident.
Another time, if ya don’t mind me sharing, I had just picked up my new company ride, ’93 Eagle Vision. I had to travel to a satellite office 220 miles away. It was late Nov and ran into some weather on the interstate. Car started to weave out until dropping my speed under 50mph. Faster and weaving. Traffic behind saw my troubles thinking roads were slick staying back; until another car just zipped by that being a signal for everyone to pass me. Well, thought I’d hit my flashers and just keep going partly on the shoulder until I came across a car stopped on the shoulder. Two gals were in it. Well I couldn’t determine the problem and we were in the middle of nowhere, next exit 10 miles ahead; my old bag-phone had no signal. So she asked if I’d take her to the next gas station to call for help; her friend came along and the driver wanted to stay with her car.
After warning her of my ills, off we went making the next station to call for a tow. Was a desolate place and started to get a bit concerned about leaving her there; ya know if she’d be abducted, her friend would tell the police oh she was picked up by this guy here’s the plate number. So, I took her back to her car and waited for the tow.
As I was staying at the office for a couple days immediately dropped it by a Chrysler dealer to find out what was wrong. Two friggin days later as I was going to drive home they say sorry we can’t find anything wrong. Fortunately, the drive back was dry and no problem. Took it to the dealer I got the car from and they had it a few days trying to figure it out. The mechanic decided he’d take it home one night and got a call from him around 6-7PM from his house. Roads were slippery and he says “Wow man, your car is squirrely in the snow!” They determined the REAR wheels were way out of alignment.
After warning her of my ills, off we went making the next station to call for a tow. Was a desolate place and started to get a bit concerned about leaving her there; ya know if she’d be abducted, her friend would tell the police oh she was picked up by this guy here’s the plate number. So, I took her back to her car and waited for the tow.
As I was staying at the office for a couple days immediately dropped it by a Chrysler dealer to find out what was wrong. Two friggin days later as I was going to drive home they say sorry we can’t find anything wrong. Fortunately, the drive back was dry and no problem. Took it to the dealer I got the car from and they had it a few days trying to figure it out. The mechanic decided he’d take it home one night and got a call from him around 6-7PM from his house. Roads were slippery and he says “Wow man, your car is squirrely in the snow!” They determined the REAR wheels were way out of alignment.
GetX'd
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Speaking of the Angel story above - I’d left the office late one night - as was my habit. Stopped at gas station nearby to fill up for the way home. It was Tuesday - the night I always go to mens Bible study I belong to. That night my RN wife took off work - she worked the night shift. So this scrubby looking guy approaches me while I‘m trapped at the gas pump waiting for the car to fill. I hate that when they hang around gas stations Because they know they have a captive audience. He of course asks me for money as he’s hitchhiking up to Bakersfield hoping to get a job as a painter. The story just sounded like what it may have been - a story. I’m thinking to myself - a maybe late thirties, 40ish black guy in Orange County, hitchhiking at night way the hell up to Bakersfield - I’m not sure but think that’s got to be 2/300 miles from here. I’m about 95 times out of a hundred not the guy to reach into his pocket. I didn‘t make the guy rich - $5/10 bucks is what I gave him - all I had at the time. I drive home instead in the mens group because I wanted to spend the time with my wife since she took the night off. Get home, walk into the house, started feeling a little nauseous - have to get a glass of water and lay down for a few. Walk into the living room, didn’t even make it to the couch and I dropped like sack of rocks to the floor in full cardiac arrest. My wife walks in right after me and I muster all I could to yell call 911. I was certain I was going to die in the ambulance- nothing the EMTs did including 5 shots of morphine and 4/5 of nitro did anything. Bottom line - 100% blockage of the Left Descending Artery (LAD) as they call it. The “Widow Maker” as it‘s well known moniker. Seven days in the hospital, months and months of complications - yet 13 years later here I sit regurgitating the story with virtually a strong, clean cardio system - Why? Ever since that night I have never stopped wondering if that guy I gave a little traveling money too and was nice to was more than what he seemed. By all rights of anything - and as most do - I should have simply dropped dead that night - but yet here I sit. Yes I still continue to wonder …….
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autoxcuda
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This story reminds me yet again of the hope I always have when reading of the good guys like @1 Wild R/T -
namely, the hope that there's a younger version of him that he's influenced/helped along the way to becoming
the next generation of "good guy" as well.
The hobby is depending on that happening, hundreds of times, all over the globe...
One of our long time CPW club members has been helping a 24-ish year old fellow member build his first motor build. The young guy volunteers and is active in our car club.
He's always willing to learn, wants to do the work himself, does research, gets necessary tools, follows direction, follows advice. And he has a realistic budget that meets his goals (his eyes aren’t bigger than his stomach).
They just broke in the motor last weekend... 500 inch, quality parts, carefully picked cam, 14-15in vacuum at idle, easy to tune, and growth potential.
BTW that long time CPW member has been a key part of the club since he was in his early 20's. And he got advice and help back then too.
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Wow pard! You are LUCKY. A close buddy of mine was diagnosed with the infamous widow maker...sadly for him they diagnosed it via an autopsy. He was a health fan, working out and running regularly, slim hating the beer gut...got him after playing golf, arrived home saying he felt like he had a flu bug - that was it...he dropped to the floor gone at the ripe age of 50!
Man, that's scary. I'm getting with my doctor at my next check up in Aug/Sept. I just had a heart scan in March and they said I was 100% clear, but I'd like to be certain. Thanks for the stories guys.
My bud had regular checkups; but don't know if his younger age and overall health/fitness made the docs think more intense screening was unnecessary. Who knows - but when I hear of the widow maker it's usually a one and done deal given its handle.
GetX'd
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The heart scan isn‘t enough if you want to know it for as sure as they can be. You’ll need to request they do an angiogram - Cather thru the wrist with a small camera on the end. They will maneuver it up thru each of your critical arteries (3) and thru that be able to tell you if you’re really clean or not. When I was in Cardio Rehab almost every guy in there had had the scan and stress tests. Yet they were still there rehabbing from their recent heart attack. I was by far the youngest guy in there at 55. And I was in good shape and had had even more aggressive prior testing.
As an additional footnote - Four years prior I had had the “gold standard“ Angiogram and they told me my arteries couldn’t be any cleaner. Yet 4 years later I’m on the table dying. There’s no way that much blockage could have accumulated in only 4 years. They told me while in the hospital there was a small bump of plaque in my LAD and it likely broke off and kind of like a beaver dam jammed the whole artery and wala - The grim reaper came a calling. Just a month ago I requested another angiogram because it’s been 13 years - I have one stent at the point of infarction and I want to remain as certain as I can possible be of my cardio status. Full monty - The verdict was crystal clear arteries including the 13 year old stent. That‘s the best you can do - You have to let God do the rest.
If they try to wiggle out of doing it - Tell them you’ve been having regular chest pains and demand an angiogram. They’ll do it then. You have to take charge of you‘re own care because no one’s going to do it for you. I was 51 when I requested my first angiogram.
Runcharger
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Yup: I know I'm a bit slow but when I get a new car running I usually frig with the carbs and ignition for a few weeks before I'm happy with it. But you get guys coming on with a problem on the internet and want someone to throw them the magic answer to make it perfect.
GetX'd
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Ron, check out my post #38 above. The story gets deeper.
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