Car Battery Portable Jump Starter

Well, another post that might not seem too sexy.  But.  I’ve run into some car trouble.  And I want to share two things that bailed us out and might literally have been life savers.  A car battery portable jump starter and a spare tire.

If you live in a climate with wild weather changes (who doesn’t?!) your battery might not last quite as long as the manufacturer claims.

Not long ago, John learned about and purchased, a car battery portable jump starter.  Just a cute gadget.  Good to have.  Very small.  Even charges your phone.

Fast forward.  We got in the car last week and every dang error message flashed like we were going to blow up.  And the car wouldn’t start.  Oh, every message except:  “YOU HAVE A DEAD BATTERY.”

But.  Being the intelligent beings we are, we figured it out.  And having the better memory, John remembered he had the new jump starter in Big Red.  Luckily, we were home and had access to it.

I am telling you.  It was the easiest, most powerful thing I have ever seen. 

If you are a single person without access to another car, run, do not walk, to your near Harbor Freight or order one of these today!

In fact we ordered a second one so both cars now have one.

Portable Jump Starter

I ordered one from Tanga and it came in two days.  This is a similar one.  I don’t know the differences, but ours is now out of stock.

They are inexpensive and come in a compact carrying case that takes up very little room in your car.

Now, changing out the battery was another story.  Hub wanted to do it himself and take it to the car parts store to get a new one instead of taking it to the repair shop.

It was VERY difficult to get out of its casing and then one of the rods that holds it slipped down to an impossible place to reach.  Ugh.  There was a lot of cussing going on in our garage.

Our wonderful neighbor, Gary, had just the right tool for reaching down and pulling it up.  It was quite the ordeal!

Spare Tire

And then.  I had a flat tire.  A completely, inured (is that the right word?) to more air, flat tire.  No hole, no place to repair, just a flat tire.

I called the insurance rescue line and the wait time for a tire change was 75 minutes.

Again, hub to the rescue.  Not only did he change my flat tire, he had the foresight to BUY the spare tire.

Yes, it’s true, new cars no longer come with a spare and I had no idea.  He recently purchased one and what a life saver that turned out to be.

If you have a newer car, you might want to consider checking to see if there is a spare and if not, consider getting one.  They are not cheap, but worth it.

What I’m Doing

I’ve been slowing getting back in commission as far as my beloved exercise.  Saturday I met Evon at our regular Boot Camp class and darling Susan put us through the ropes.  My burpees have always been a little lame, but it felt so good to be there.

Susan hates getting her picture taken, but she’s a good sport! As you can see from the picture, I am not only still standing, I’m actually smiling after class.

What I’m Reading

Did you read the Dexter series by Jeff Lindsay?  I so loved them.  The TV series was good at the start, but it strayed too far near the end and I gave up.  But the books?  Ahhhh, my favorite sociopath. 

Lindsay’s new series features Riley Wolfe and I love him almost as much as Dexter.  Three-Edged Sword is the latest and I gobbled it right up.  If you want to start the Riley series, the number 1 book is Just Watch Me.

What I’m Eating

Is there anything in the world better than smelling baking bread?  Ahhh.  I know everyone is either watching their carbs or their gluten, but not me.

Frugal Fit Mom is a great YT channel and she has featured No Knead Artisan Bread a few times. 

I decided to give it a go over the weekend.  Three ingredients and no kneading.  Yep, I’m recommending it!

It’s a dense bread – not as light and crunchy in the middle as I would like, but I’m going to continue to work on it and use it as a sandwich bread until then.

Wrap Up

This was a two-cup o’joe post!  Thank you if you stuck around with me this far.  It’s hard to believe the summer (and the whole year) is slipping by quickly already.

We still don’t have travel plans, but we are enjoying friends and the pool and walking trails and the mountains every week. 

Have a wonderful week and God bless you and yours.