News!

*gasp!* I'm still alive!

Lots has happened since my last post. Things were moving along nicely, as I said. Unfortunately, there was a rather serious mishap that resulted in me being let go. I was working in the Drive Clean bay, using the hoist for oil changes, tire swaps/rotations, and myriad other small things. I had a Saturn Vue up on the lift, and was replacing the winter tires with summer tires. I had this habit of hand-threading the lug nuts on until the wheels sat flush against the brakes, because it looks neater (I'm a neat freak when it comes to anything but my desk). Unfortunately, I was called away from the bay for some reason or another (perhaps to fetch a part, perhaps to push a vehicle, I don't recall) and when I returned, the vehicle was gone.

It was quite busy, and I was in the "go, go, go!" frame of mind, and don't recall tightening the nuts. Now, generally it is not prudent to remove a vehicle from a bay, not to mention a hoist, if it is not YOUR vehicle that YOU were working on. You have no idea if it is finished, if it has oil, or if the wheels are tightened. Another thing I would like to point out is that I have driven vehicles with loose lug nuts, and I must say, it is most definitely immediately noticeable upon turning the wheels. There is an audible and tangible "CLUNK" sound as the wheel flops around. If I had taken the Vue from the bay, I would have noticed this. I can't say the same for other people.

Anyhow, the customer came back, livid (rightfully so), as the wheels had almost come off, and done some damage in their wobbling around. "In the interest of customer safety" was the line I was given.

That was a Friday (April 25th), in the morning. I got home afterwards, called Enterprise (My second job at the time) and told them what happened, and let them know I wouldn't make it in. They were really cool about it, and totally understood.

That evening, Amanda called me into the bedroom to show me something that was sitting on the windowsill, which happened to be the best combination of light and quiet in the house. There was an almost invisible line. We waited two more days (with lots and lots more tests) and Sunday the 27th was when we determined for sure that we are having a baby! Talk about a roller coaster of a day. You get fired in the morning and find out you're going to have a child in the evening!

We're "due" December 28th, though there is lots and lots of wiggle room, because babies rarely cooperate. Case in point: I was 4 weeks late (to the day!), #1 was 2 days late and #2 was 2 days early.

In other news, Enterprise was awesome enough to give me the maximum hours they could under the "part time" classification while I looked for another apprenticeship. Not having much luck in the city, I shifted my search south, and all but walked right into a job just over the 416 on Prince of Wales. So I gave my notice at Enterprise, and helped them through the busy time of the week, then picked right up and started a new apprenticeship.

For the end of June, we went to Trenton and visited some of Amanda's family for 4 days. We took the kids AND the dog (who did NOT get carsick on the way there OR back! Yay!) and everybody had heaps upon piles upon scads of fun. Puppy discovered that the creek running through their property was NOT, in fact, going to swallow her up (it's not even knee height on me at full swell - it rained lots when we arrived), and promptly spent several hours splashing about in it with me and #1. #2 was out with us briefly, but the bugs and cold water (it warms up after a bit!) and the sporadic showers got to her, so when she had to go pee, she elected to stay inside. #1 and I stayed out and climbed up and down the little waterfall (5 foot total drop), getting COVERED in bug bites. #1 also ended up with scrapes all over her legs from the sticks and rocks, but didn't complain a bit about it... I think her legs may have been a little numb from the cold water :P

We think that Puppy was an outdoor dog with her previous family, because she really seemed to enjoy being out and able to run around and be free. I hate having to keep her shut in the yard, but it's not a good idea to let your dog roam free in the city.

Oh, and my Father's Day present is a Utilikilt. A black Original model, for starters... ;) It's fantastic. It arrived in the mail on the 20th of June, and I promptly put it on, then wore it the next day to Rugby, where I scored a try right at the end of the game, and separated my shoulder in the process. Brockville kicked the ball from deep in their end, and it flew straight to my waiting hands. I glanced around briefly and there was nobody around me, so I took off for the try line. Their fullback couldn't catch me in time, and decided to trip me as I crossed the line. I stumbled, and fell on my shoulder.

I was in a sling for two weeks, and I'm still not at 100%, so I'm not playing in the next game, and possibly not the one after that. Work seems to be slowing the healing process a bit, mostly because I have to contort myself into the footwells of vehicles, and carry around heavy stuff like truck tires and wheels, and torque convertors (a big metal container filled with fluid and more metal).

I think that brings things up to date... I'll try to update more frequently, though I make no promises.