Dating advice

I took the Westfalia out last night.  Not for a long drive just to Adventures in Scuba and back.  I think that this is the first time I have actually mentioned a business by name.  Anyway I was finishing off my Instructor Development Course so I can become first, an Assistant Instructor then an Open Water Instructor.  I have to say that I love using the Westy for heading out to the lake with my scuba gear.  It’s like a change room on wheels.

I also have to relate this story about online dating.  A friend of mine has recently decided to give online dating a try.  Now she’s asked me a couple of questions about the process, like I’d know, so I gave her me two cents worth anyway.  I told her that dating is like shopping for shoes…

“You’ll know too within the first couple of minutes if you are into him or not.  If things don’t click don’t worry about it, but make sure you tell him either via email or text that you don’t think it’s going to work.  There’s a certain amount of rejection built into the online dating system… think of it as going shoe shopping.  You see a pair you like, think they are kinda cute so you try them on.  If they don’t fit, you take them off and move on.  If they kinda fit you may wear them for a little bit but in the end you are going to get blisters on your feet and you are going to end up hurting.  Sometimes though you’ll put on a pair of shoes that fits perfectly… that’s the one. That’s when it clicks.  You have to remember that they are doing the same thing too….” 

I thought it was a great nugget of advice.  Anyhow, if you have any dating advice let me know and I’ll be sure to pass it on to her. 

With the Canada Day long weekend coming up, sadly there won’t be any camping in the Westy.  It’ll be a hang around town type of weekend I think… maybe I’ll bugger off once the Stampede rolls into town.

Not much happened this weekend in terms of the VW.  Basically because I didn’t drive it. On Saturday I took it down to my IDC (Instructor Development Course) for my scuba diving.   I have been working my ass off this week trying to get all of the assignments done which sadly isn’t leaving me with a lot of free time for playing with the Westfalia. 

I still have to get the oil changed.  Not that the oil is THAT bad but I’d like to get it done.  You know that whole fresh start thing. 

I am keeping it short and sweet today, sorry folks.  I have to finish two assignments for my IDC as well as work today.  As you can understand I have a full plate. 

On positive note before I leave for the day we hit just over 200 page views sometime last week.  Thank-you.  It lets me know that someone is reading it and some of you are actually coming back for more. 

Any questions or comments, fire them in.  I’d love to see em.

I have seen the ultimate food and it is BACON

I'll admit that this has nothing to do with my Westys or VW's in anyway but I have to share it.  We just had doughnuts brought in and they were amazing.  They are from a place in Calgary called Jelly.  Zoinks the Maple Bacon doughnut was heavenly... yes I said bacon and doughnut in the same scentence. 

If you are in Calgary you HAVE to give them a try.  AMAZING!!!

http://www.jellymoderndoughnuts.com/

We'll back to work... I'd be interested to hear your thought if you do try them!

Ta-da! It’s Safety Guy!!

I love taking the VW out.  Last night I headed down to the Bull and Finch in the SW to enjoy some sunshine, beer and wings on the patio.  I managed to get a primo parking spot and it was kind of funny actually because people were looking at the Westy and interested in it.  It’s almost like it’s a relic from the past.   Lol

Anyway, had an enjoyable night but I don’t know that I am going to go back to that pub anytime soon.  The service wasn’t great and the wings were kind of tasteless actually. I can live with mediocre service on its own, but mediocre service with crappy wings…now you’ve crossed a line!

Oh, one last thing… there was a group at a table next to me who were all clearly drunk.  I don’t mean fall down drunk but impaired none the less.  So as the night winds down this group disperses and one of the ladies whips out her car keys and staggers her way over to her Chevy Cavalier.  Really?  Seriously?  My friends call me “Safety guy” sometimes, not a sexy nickname, but I can’t stand it when people get injured because they failed to look and take account of what’s going on around them.  For some strange reason, I feel the need to say something to this woman who is sitting behind the wheel of her car after drinking for several hours…  Obviously this is not something I do all the time.  I come up to the driver side window.  Tap,tap tap.  I look into her glazed over eyes and ask her, “Are you sure you should be driving?”.  I do this in the least accusing was possible.  I did think about saying, “Look lady, your efff-ing hammered there’s no way you should be behind the wheel of a car”, but I didn’t. 

She assures me that she’s okay and that she’s not that drunk as she shifts the car into reverse and pulls away.  I’m no expert, but if I was a cop I would have totally given this woman a sobriety test.    I hope she made it home safely but stupid people however, have a way of taking themselves out of the gene pool. 

Reminds me of the lady I saw cycling out by Elbow Falls on the weekend who wiped out and was poorly equipped for riding in the mountains…all I can say is I am glad I had my first aid kit and water with me.  It came in handy but that’s a story for another time. 

The tally so far....

I might be jinxing myself by saying this but so far this week there have been no repairs to the Westy that have cost me money.  A couple of weeks ago I had a bit of a fuel leak.  I noticed it  when I got home from Canmore one day.  There was the smell of gasoline and a small puddle under the rear driver side wheel.  :(  I could see where it was leaking from and I have some spare fuel line but didn't have clue #1 as to how to fix it. 

So off to the shop I went.... $125 and change later and it's fixed. 

So far....
$125 leaking fuel line
$308 clutch/shifter repair

This doesn't include the door handles ($20) and my labour (couple of hours) so far.  There is also an oil change on the horizon which I have the filter and some 20-50 oil already purchased. 

I really hope this doesn't turn into a  money pit because it is a lot of fun to drive and camp in.  Besides my friends kids love it.  they think it's the coolest thing ever. 

A couple of upcoming planned trips for me...
I am going to go camping with my girlfriend and her kids to Drumheller, Alberta sometime in July.
Also going to go to Winnipeg in September for a family thing.  I am debating on this one.  I have no problem running a couple of hours out of town in the old V-dub but we are talking about a 1300 km journey of epic proportions.  Usually I drive this in about 11 or 12 hours but this would be significantly longer.  Maybe I’ll take a run to Kelowna or something first… it’s only 6 hours drive.

One interesting phenomenon that I noticed while driving the bus, other than people waving and giving you the thumbs up… despite the time constraints, I find I am never in a hurry and you can’t help but smile while driving it.  Strange I know…  

If you have any driving stories, I’d love to hear them, just post them in the comments section.

1 Picture... more to come

Behold! It's alive..ALIVE!!!!!

Okay, okay so it's not much but it gives you an idea of the overall condition.  Nice wheels, but I think I might go back to the stock rims.  Call me nostalgic. 

Oh, and there is a really strange, for lack of a better word, thingy in the engine compartment.  I'll post pictures and any suggestions on how or what I should do with it would be appreciated.

Frankenwagon, me no like fire.

Let me start by saying that I didn’t set my Westy on fire, nor has there been a fire (but I did pick up the How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive book this weekend).  I did get some from a dead VW and transplanted them into mine... It's alive! ALIVE!!!

Ever since I got the Westfalia I have been having trouble with the locks and the handles.  The locks either didn’t work at all or were extremely finicky.  The latch / lock on the back hatch didn’t work at all.  Now in looking at it I could have just adjusted the latch so that it opens easily but for some reason it wasn’t keyed the same as the other locks.  I put an ad out on The Samba looking for a set of handles (with a matching lock set).  Lucky for me there was a guy (Westy Nut) locally who was parting out a late 70’s bus and had the parts I needed.   

So after I got home from my camping adventure I parked the bus in the driveway pulled out my tools and took a look at what I was about to attempt.  How hard could it be? Right?  It only looks like a couple of screws, maybe an alan-key and I’m done. 

There is a line of thinking that says that you should start with the simple task first, complete it successfully and build confidence in yourself for the more challenging tasks ahead.  So with this mindset, I popped open the back and started pulling it apart.  After about 30 minutes of pulling the lock and latch apart and re-assembling it with the new part I am happy to report that the transplant was a success.

With new found confidence I proceeded to tackle the passenger side door.  I removed the inside panel and took a look.  Fairly simple or so I thought.  I pulled out the handle and lock set, placed the new one in and tightened things up.  I then put the panel back on THEN tested the lock with the key… guess what happened.  IT DIDN’T WORK.   So I pulled the panel off again, took the a look at how the lock mechanism works and realized my mistake.  I had somehow flipped the lock flange around.  I pulled it out, corrected my error and an hour and change later had a working handle and new locks. 

I managed to get the sliding door done without incident and proceeded to the driver side  door with the knowledge of my previous mistakes on the passenger side.  I got everything installed without a problem but for some reason the lock is still VERY stiff.  It’s not the handle and lock set but I think it’s an issue with the lock mechanism.   I’ll research it a bit this weekend and see if there is anything that can be done with it. 

With my girlfriend pulling into the drive way and dinner with friends in about 45 minutes I figured I'd get cleaned up and put the Westy away for the night.


Oh, I forgot to mention that I did take some pictures and I will post them as time allows in the next day or two.