The Land of Lost Toys...Automotive Version

After installing the new gaskets for the wiper shaft bezels, I learned that just as there is a land of lost toys, there surely must be a land of lost car parts, as so often I find myself spending more time looking for a part I misplaced than I would installing it.

When I removed the dash top to install the defroster vent that I should have installed first, I had better access to the wiper shafts, so it was the perfect time to attach them to the motor. When I went to retrieve the little plastic box of assorted e-clips, it was nowhere to be found. I must have spent an hour looking for that damn box, and finally gave up in disgust. I know that it will show up within days of not needing it, but for now I have to make another trip into town to buy more clips.

Other than that, it's been a week of yard work and I've done little more than repair and polish some stainless trim, patch holes and dents in the trunk lid, and clean up around the shop.

Yard work isn't going much better. The rototiller needs the carburetor cleaned again to keep it from stalling out at full throttle. That's become an annual event. Ditto for the year-old leaf blower. It will only run with the choke half-closed, so it's on the repair list this winter. Don't you just love modern Ethanol laced fuels that constantly gum up the fuel system? The problem might not be severe in cooler climates, but our hot Texas summers cause all sorts of fuel related problems.

Between the idiotic no-spill gas cans that spill and leak more than the old designs, and the need to frequently disassemble fuel systems and solvent clean, I'm releasing far more hydrocarbon vapors into the air than I did thirty years ago...before bureaucrats became smarter than engineers.