Chrysler's Car Repair Sucks

So I hate Chrysler officially. I have had so many problems with them that it is not even worth the effort to mention all of them but basically it comes down to this:

I had to have my car towed in to the dealership because I had something faulty in the engine. They "repaired" it. They didn't. Had to have it towed in again. Actually repaired it this time. Had to have it towed in one more time because some jackass forgot to tighten the damn part he put in so it kept short circuiting the engine. That was about 4 years ago.

Kept having problems with the alignment so brought it in to a dealership near us in Tooele. Well when I got the car back it was worse than it was when I brought it in the first time and the people there made it seem like my fault. I eventually got it fixed at a Les Schwab tire place (awesome by the way). Have since refused to bring it back to the Tooele dealership because they suck.

Well my car was leaking something nasty so I brought it into the dealership in Salt Lake City. They "fixed" it for $1700. Never stopped leaking. Brought it in again. They said it was residue built up that was leaking down so they cleaned it up and said it was good to go. Never stopped leaking. Brought it back they said this time it was something NEW. So payed $300 more. And it STILL HAVE NEVER STOPPED LEAKING. So I gave up with them, went with store bought leak stuff. Might have worked, not sure.

But then my Speedometer stops working, right when I am about to go out of town. So I find a mechanic in Tooele since Chrysler only hires incompetent mechanics. They take 3 days to realize they can't fix it because only a dealer can reprogram the computer or something like that. Crap, have to bring it back there.

Well I bring it back in telling them I need it by Friday morning because I have to go out of town. I also mentioned the leak, not to mention the AC failed and the gas gage was acting wonky. Well, after I called they aren't even going to look at it until Friday. Son of a BITCH. If I didn't have to bring it to them they would be lucky if they ever get my service again.

The 306 Greatest Books #91 - Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

The next up on my reading of the 306 greatest books is Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. This book can be found on the BBC and My Book Lists.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is so far my favorite of Dahl's works, and likely to remain that way. I had grown up on Charlie, having seen the original movie countless of times and I actually believe I read the book growing up too, although I couldn't remember any of it. Unlike Dahl's other works, which seemed scattered and more like many mini stories with a common theme, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was a cohesive story with great characterization and a fun read. It was also interesting to compare the two movie versions of the book with the book. Despite my love of the original movie it appears that both of the movies had parts that followed the story very closely and both had parts that diverged from the story a lot, however they were often in different places. Overall, a fun, cohesive story, that is a definite must read on my list.

Mahna Mahna

Another great muppet song.

You and I and George

One of my favorite Muppet moments.

2010 Personal Goals Update - June

5 months in, and on time.

1. Finish first draft of my novel -
January 1st - 1st third done
February 1st - Nothing new
March 1st - Nothing
April 1st - Nothing
May 1st - Nothing
June 1st - Nothing

2. Drop weight to 167
January 1st - 175.0
February 1st - 176.0
March 1st - 176.0
April 1st - 176.6
May 1st - 176.6
June 1st - 169.2 - Apparently walking around with Gummy Bear non-stop is a good weight loss plan.

3. Balance our budget
January 1st - Things are looking up for this year
February 1st - Working over the winter break helped, a $1700 car repair bill did not
March 1st - Going the wrong way, another car bill as well as a new carpet and apparently I owe on my taxes, great.
April 1st - Working out those extra expenses a little bit at a time
May 1st - Still working it out
June 1st - Getting closer

a. Pay credit card
January 1st - Only one card left
February 1st - Still one card left
March 1st - Still on to go
April 1st - Still working on the one
May 1st - One
June 1st - One

4. Read a total of 100 of the greatest books on my lists
January 1st - Current count 86
February 1st - In the middle of Cantebury Tales
March 1st - Took a break from Cantebury Tales, time to get back
April 1st - Finished Cantebury Tales. 13 left to go. Reading Madame Bovary now
May 1st - Finished Madame Bovary. 12 left to go. Reading The Maltese Falcon now
June 1st - Finished The Maltese Falcon and The Twits. 10 left to go. Reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory now

5. Finish 2 more movies on my Geological Movie Review
January 1st - Look to start 2 new movies
February 1st - Nothing done on this
March 1st - Nothing done
April 1st - Nothing done
May 1st - Nothing
June 1st -Nothing

a. Also update the last two I did
January 1st - One out of 3 up to par
February 1st - Nothing done on this
March 1st - Nothing done
April 1st - Nothing done
May 1st - Nothing
June 1st - Nothing

Other items of interest:
Nothing much going on now. Mostly taking care of Gummy Bear and teaching my class. Figuring out 90 minute lectures is more than I am used to so it takes a little bit of work. And I start back at URS part time for the summer. Hopefully I can get some research done too.