Monday, January 30, 2006
The old washer is still around 6 years later
Ever take something apart just to see if you can fix it? I am always doing that.
For years I had watched my Dad taking my mothers washer apart and repairing it. One time when I stopped to visit my parents, there was my Dad again sitting in a kitchen chair with washer parts scattered all over the kitchen floor on newspapers. I asked him if he wasn`t tired of looking at those same parts again. He told me yes, but your mother doesn`t want to spend money on a new one, so I realy haven`t a choice. He kept repairing it for years and Mother never gave in and bought a new washer till after my Dad died and there was noone to repair it for her.
Well, about 6 years ago my washer went on the blink-- wouldn`t spin, wouldn`t dump , but the motor still ran strong. this was on a Sat. Walt told me to be ready Monday morning and we would go to Sears and get a new one. We saved money from that weeks pay to put down on it.
When I woke up Sunday morning, Walt was still asleep. I got to thinking that if my Dad could fix one, whats to say that I couldn`t. I had watched what he did enough times. So, I decided to try. I got the tools and started taking the back off and the hoses and then off came the belt and other inside parts. When Walt woke up, I was sitting on the floor with parts all over on newspapers like I had seen my Dad do so many many times. I had cleaned every part I took off and was slowly putting the parts back in and making sure every thing was snug tight-- all the screws and bolts tightened, the motor tightened down so that the belt was also snug tight so it couldn`t slip and so on. When Walt saw what I was doing, he wanted to know why I was doing all that work when we were getting a new one tomorrow. I told him, what could it harm, couldn`t do any damage since we were tossing it away anyways.
Well to both Walt`s and my surprise the washer worked great when I had it put back together. So, guess it must just have needed cleaning and tightening up. Walt was sure it would break down again in a few days, so he kept saving more money from the next few SS checks to have it when we needed to get the new washer.
Last year I loaned that saved money to my youngest daughter with the understanding that since her Dad had saved that money before he died to buy me a new washer, I wanted to continue to keep it for when I did buy a new washer. Well. So far so good. I still haven`t gotten the money back, and that old washer is still working, if my saying it doesn`t bring me bad luck. Never had a washer last this long before.
Should i knock on some wood for good luck?
Yesterday my heater that I use in my kitchen stopped working. So, later I am planning on taking it apart to see if something might either be unhooked or burnt off in it. Probably nothing that I can fix, but I can`t just toss it without first checking to see if there is something I can do to get it working again. I have kids, both daughters and sons that must also have inherited my Dads abilities for repairing and fixing things as they do most of their own work. The older Daughter when she received her College Diploma, also received a Certificate for repairing small electrical things like lawnmowers, etc. . The youngest is a prison guard. not my type of work, but she enjoys it. She wanted to be a State Trooper, but by the time her oldest daughter graduated she was too old-- she was divorced and raising the oldest by herself. Later she remarried and had another daughter , so as soon as her youngest daughter was a few months old, she went into Prison guard training instead. the middle daughter was a manager in an auto place for over 10 years and after her two kids were grown, she got tired of the long drive to work. She now runs her own Day care service. Youngest son is a roofer and carpenter and handy with repairing motorcycles and other such things. One twin works in a school and is handy with electrical repairs, his twin bro works for the Town. They all can do their own home repairs. I have hard workers and am proud of all of them.
For years I had watched my Dad taking my mothers washer apart and repairing it. One time when I stopped to visit my parents, there was my Dad again sitting in a kitchen chair with washer parts scattered all over the kitchen floor on newspapers. I asked him if he wasn`t tired of looking at those same parts again. He told me yes, but your mother doesn`t want to spend money on a new one, so I realy haven`t a choice. He kept repairing it for years and Mother never gave in and bought a new washer till after my Dad died and there was noone to repair it for her.
Well, about 6 years ago my washer went on the blink-- wouldn`t spin, wouldn`t dump , but the motor still ran strong. this was on a Sat. Walt told me to be ready Monday morning and we would go to Sears and get a new one. We saved money from that weeks pay to put down on it.
When I woke up Sunday morning, Walt was still asleep. I got to thinking that if my Dad could fix one, whats to say that I couldn`t. I had watched what he did enough times. So, I decided to try. I got the tools and started taking the back off and the hoses and then off came the belt and other inside parts. When Walt woke up, I was sitting on the floor with parts all over on newspapers like I had seen my Dad do so many many times. I had cleaned every part I took off and was slowly putting the parts back in and making sure every thing was snug tight-- all the screws and bolts tightened, the motor tightened down so that the belt was also snug tight so it couldn`t slip and so on. When Walt saw what I was doing, he wanted to know why I was doing all that work when we were getting a new one tomorrow. I told him, what could it harm, couldn`t do any damage since we were tossing it away anyways.
Well to both Walt`s and my surprise the washer worked great when I had it put back together. So, guess it must just have needed cleaning and tightening up. Walt was sure it would break down again in a few days, so he kept saving more money from the next few SS checks to have it when we needed to get the new washer.
Last year I loaned that saved money to my youngest daughter with the understanding that since her Dad had saved that money before he died to buy me a new washer, I wanted to continue to keep it for when I did buy a new washer. Well. So far so good. I still haven`t gotten the money back, and that old washer is still working, if my saying it doesn`t bring me bad luck. Never had a washer last this long before.
Should i knock on some wood for good luck?
Yesterday my heater that I use in my kitchen stopped working. So, later I am planning on taking it apart to see if something might either be unhooked or burnt off in it. Probably nothing that I can fix, but I can`t just toss it without first checking to see if there is something I can do to get it working again. I have kids, both daughters and sons that must also have inherited my Dads abilities for repairing and fixing things as they do most of their own work. The older Daughter when she received her College Diploma, also received a Certificate for repairing small electrical things like lawnmowers, etc. . The youngest is a prison guard. not my type of work, but she enjoys it. She wanted to be a State Trooper, but by the time her oldest daughter graduated she was too old-- she was divorced and raising the oldest by herself. Later she remarried and had another daughter , so as soon as her youngest daughter was a few months old, she went into Prison guard training instead. the middle daughter was a manager in an auto place for over 10 years and after her two kids were grown, she got tired of the long drive to work. She now runs her own Day care service. Youngest son is a roofer and carpenter and handy with repairing motorcycles and other such things. One twin works in a school and is handy with electrical repairs, his twin bro works for the Town. They all can do their own home repairs. I have hard workers and am proud of all of them.
# posted by Dotm @ 1/30/2006 04:32:00 PM 
