GRATITUDES:
1. The ability to pay for vehicle repair without worry of (complete) financial ruin
2. Very little debt
3. Some much-needed rain

Sooo… I’m currently parked in the waiting lounge of our local Discount Tire, still reeling from sticker shock. The Subaru had a flat on Friday afternoon – a bolt had been driven through the tread on one of the front wheels and I was just informed that it can’t be repaired. I actually laughed at the salesman when he suggested that I replace all four tires (for ONE damaged tire? Are you effing serious?!??). I ended up shelling out $516 for two new tires, plus warranties, because I know it’s better to replace two at a time rather than only one. Still, those damn tires had better be worth it because my Chase Visa was ALMOST paid off and now it’s got that charge on it, festering away and accruing ridiculous amounts of interest. I’m seriously annoyed. I suppose the silver lining I need to focus on is that we really don’t have much debt other than our mortgage, which has a locked-in interest rate of 3-ish percent. Oh, but wait… there are airline tickets to consider (Basil has to get to college in Maine in late August), graduation gifts to buy (two laptops? EEP), and we actually OWE the federal government this year, so there won’t be a decent tax refund to squirrel away. This is the crap that wakes me up in the middle of the night.

Okay, we won’t necessarily be financially ruined by two stupid tires but damn… We’re going to be spending a LOT of money in the next few months, and that isn’t even counting the staggering amount our health insurance company says we owe to Methodist Hospital for a CT scan that should have been covered. Maybe I read the statement incorrectly. I sure as hell hope so. Is it time for a drink yet?😱

On the bright side, we actually had some decent rain last week, complete with the much-loved thunder and lightning. Damn, I love me a nice big flash of lightning and its accompanying crack/rumble of thunder. The dry creek bed on the edge of our property came alive with runoff and everything received a nice drenching. Now everything looks green and plush and the bare earth patches in our yard don’t resemble a cracked, dry lake bed. That’s definitely something to be thankful for. Now, if we could just manage another few weeks of that kind of weather…🙏🏻