Saturday, March 27, 2010

She's Still Here

I see that I have left you hanging this week ;o) I do apologize for not posting a progress picture of Sabrina sooner but between being busy, tired and lack of energy for stitching, I didn't think I had much to show. Now that I look at the pictures though, there has been some advancement -

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What do you think? The blocks of solid colors are wearing thin but in a way it's good because with my mind being in space, there's a slight lack of concentration going on upstairs and we all know that I don't want the dreaded Frog to visit.

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I have kitted up a small project that I'm going to start soon. That will give me a little break from Sabrina but don't worry, she's not going far! This girl is going to have her dress done this year for Christmas ;o)

There is still one more day left of the workshop and I have to say, I am learning some things. For those of you who asked, they are teaching us how to be assertive, anger management, how to prepare a cover letter, what employers are looking for during an interview, etc. I am 'hoping' that there is a little secret in there somewhere that I can use to get prospective employers to actually call me! A sixth resume went out this past week and one will be delivered on Monday.

I am SO happy to report that we have gotten rid of our piece of $hit Tracker :o) WOOHOO!!!! I don't think I related this story on my Blog. DH and I were given a 2002 GM Tracker from my parents last year figuring it was the safest route to buy a used vehicle. A few months ago, DH noticed it was running weird and the engine light had come on. He took it in and found the chip for the throttle sensor had to be replaced. Okay, done.

Not a day went by and the engine light came on again. He took it back to the mechanic (they are awesome btw) and found out the chip for the oxygen sensor had to be replaced. Apparently the throttle sensor and the oxygen sensor affect one another so when one goes, the other one usually does too. Expensive little part but what else were we going to do?

On the way home, DH noticed this awful noise in the dash every time the Tracker vibrated. Annoying as heck (because I drove in it) and after five minutes I wanted to jump out, even if the vehicle was still moving! Soon afterwards the engine light came back on. You can just imagine how blue the air was in our house.

Soooooo....back to the mechanic and this time he had a guy from GM. He told them to replace the air filter and the thermostat. Okay, but the thermostat had already been replaced (forgot about that). They did it again and fixed the nails-scratching-on-chalkboard noise in the dash and away DH went. He was really happy because the Tracker really was working better and this went on for a whole week!

Hope didn't last long because that dreaded light appeared again >:o( That was the last straw. I told DH to trade it in and get what he could for it. It was that or burn it to the ground...but you didn't hear that from me ;o) The people who own the garage sell used cars as well and DH noticed they had gotten in a 2008 Ford Ranger two-wheel drive with extended cab. It only has 19,000 kms on it and still under warrantee! They negotiated a deal and the Tracker is their problem now. At least they know what they're getting into.

DH is much happier :o) The Ranger isn't 100% what he wants but it's what we can afford right now and we'd rather sink our money into a vehicle we can use than one that's headed for the grave.


17 comments:

Irene said...

Sabrina gets more beautiful with each appearance.

Danielle said...

Pumpkin, your gift is on its way to you! I hope you like it. I was inspired by you to start Sabrina also. I am loving it so far. I have about 800 stitches done. I will be posting a pic on my blog soon of her. I started smack dab in the middle of the pattern so it doesn't look like much. Can't wait to get to her face!

Daffycat said...

Sabrina is looking more lovely with every post.

Sorry you got stuck with a lemon! I hope thr Ranger does a better job for you.

Rachel S-H said...

I think y'all made the right choice. We were throwing all kind of money at my old old car, and realized that, for what we'd spent in repairs in 6 months, we could have had a year's car payments done, and that car went.

Love Sabrina!

Cole said...

Sabrina is gorgeous, so elegant!

Anonymous said...

Every post is getting better and better

Cindy said...

Sabrina is looking fabulous!

It's good to hear that you traded in that problem car.

Best of luck with the job search :)

Jo said...

I can't believe how fast she is progressing...beautiful

Annie said...

Sabrina is looking great. Your stitching is so pretty.

Hope the new vehicle turns out to be better than the last one!

Brigitte said...

Sabrina is such a lovely project and gets more and more beautiful.
It seems you made a good choice leaving your old car at the garage and buying another one instead. I hope it will be more reliable than the old one.

Raven/Missy said...

Sabrina is gorgeous! You are doing a wonderful job stitching her.

I am sorry to hear that you've had so much trouble with a car. I've had one like that. Get one thing fixed and immediately something else goes wrong and its never anything cheap or easy to fix. Good move on trading it on for a different car.

Carol said...

Sabrina is sensational (I am still jealous of her long, swan-like neck!), Cathey. I'll bet you'll have her finished long before Christmas as fast as you're stitching her...

We have a lemon of a car, too. Went through a period where it was in the shop every month and I finally said to my husband, "The next time something goes wrong, that's it--we're selling it!" Well, 18 month later, nothing has gone wrong with it at all! It is like the car heard me and didn't want to leave us--very strange :)

JOLENE said...

Sabrina is lovely Pumpkin!!! You have made alot of progress on her. How do you like stitching all that white? Sorry to hear about your auto troubles, we own almost all GM vehicles and they have been incredibly good to us....in fact, we have a 1993 Chev. Ext. Cab p/u with 424,000 miles on it, original engine and transmission!!!! That is what I call incredible! No problems or any expenses associated.

Tammy said...

Sabrina is stunning. You are making some incredible progress on her.

Never having owned a lemon, I'm shocked at the expense and aggravation when you do have one. Glad to see you were able to get rid of it. Good luck with the new vehicle.

Dani - tkdchick said...

She is looking oh so pretty!

Lori said...

This gal I haven't seen! Very nice.

I'm singing theold car blues as well. Mine leaks like a bucket with no bottom when it rains. Oh well.

Justflo said...

Sabrina really is gorgeous,