April 2010 Archives

The tires on the Escape are getting pretty worn - there's lots of tread left, but they're really cupped, and that causes an annoying, low-pitched hum at speed.  Above 80mph, the car shakes something fierce.

Last week, I ordered a set of tires from TireRack, an online tire retailer that we've used for tires for the Corvette.  I used their year->make->model selector, and it said the OEM tire was 235/70R16, so «in spite of the disclaimers on their website telling me to double-check the actual tire size on the car», I ordered a nice set of General Grabber tires, and had them shipped to the local Lexus dealer, where my brother-in-law is a service writer, and gets me discounts on mounting and installation.

Carole took the car to the dealer yesterday, and after they got it up on the rack they discovered that the car actually uses 225/70R15 tires.  Not good.

I called TireRack today to see what my options were, and they were very helpful.  The nice lady in customer support was able to waive the shipping charge on the replacement tires, and get me a discounted rate to ship the wrong tires back.  The guy in sales helped find me a great set of Kumho's in the right size, and had some good advice on which way to go.

All in all, they turned my mistake into a fantastic example of excellent customer service.

This is from an advice column today, but I think it applies directly to a long-simmering issue between two of my siblings, and I thought it was insightful:

[H]umanity works best if you treat it like a contract: We mutually agree to try our best not to screw up, and to take full responsibility when we inevitably do. In return for those efforts, we aren't automatically banished for the bad things we've done.

The issue doesn't directly affect me, but it really pisses me off to think of what one sibling would do to another, and then to avoid responsibility for it for nearly twenty years.

Jaguar Paw had just killed Zero Wolf's son and was heading for the corn field in Apocolypto when I finished my donation this afternoon.

The key fob for the Escape has been a problem for a while now. It's so old and worn that it takes two or three (or eight, if you're Carole) to get the doors locked or unlocked.

When I bought the car back in 2002, the dealer included two extra key fobs, but someone had told me you had to go to a Ford dealer and pay big money to get them programmed. Carole is going to be using the Escape for some work in the area, and decided it was time to pay the price to avoid the frustration of the old, balky fob.

To get an idea of exactly how much it was going to cost, I did some research and found that that 'someone' was wrong. Anyone can reprogram the key fobs -- the big expense is replacing the ignition key if you only have one. (If you have two paired keys, anyone can do the programming, but with only one you have to go to a specialist; this is to prevent a valet or car wash from duping your key while they're holding it.)

There's a trick in programming the key fobs: once you put the car into programming mode by turning the ignition key on and off eight times (leaving it on for the last cycle), you have to program each fob in the same cycle, by pressing a button on the fob. You can't just add one new fob, and have the previously programmed fobs still work -- you have to reprogram all the fobs (up to four) that you want to work.

The new fob is quite an improvement over the old one - and now we have two working spares too. Carole is happy.

Clooney was talking his sister's fiance into going through with the wedding in Up In the Air when I finished donating this evening.

I normally don't think a whole lot about shaving, but sometimes it must be done. A few years ago, after becoming dissatisfied with the hassle, expense, and discomfort of shaving cream, I tried out shaving oil, and found that it gave me a superior shave in all respects. I had less irritation, and since the oil didn't hide my face like shaving cream, it was easier to trim out around my beard.

I ordered the shaving oil from a site on the 'net, and the only downside was the expense -- a single one ounce bottle cost around $18. But, it lasted about 5-6 months, so overall it was much less than even plain-wrap shaving cream. Over the years, I used about 8 bottles.

The biggest problem was leaving the bottles behind in motel rooms while traveling. I left an almost full bottle in a Motel 6 in Clarkston, Washington last summer, much to my chagrin.

My last bottle was nearing the end, so I went on the web site to order more, and found that they were closing down the business.

I found a few other places that had similar products, but the prices were even higher. Before I ordered, I did some research on making my own shaving oil, and found a few good resources, including this video from a guy in England.

Shaving oil is made up of a base oil, plus small amounts of various essential oils in varying amounts. You can adjust the essential oils as desired to come up with the mix that works best.

I priced out the ingredients, and found that for about the cost of a one ounce bottle of shaving oil I could buy all the ingredients to make ten bottles on my own. Even if the first bottle turned out to be a flop, I'd be no worse than even.

I started using the exact recipe from the video:

• 3 tablespoons grape seed oil
• 5 drops peppermint oil
• 5 drops tea tree oil
• 5 drops eucalyptus oil

I've been using it for a couple of weeks now, and am mostly happy with it. I still get a nice, close, comfortable shave, but I may change the mixture on the next bottle -- maybe 3 drops of each of the essential oils, with 4-5 drops of lavender added.