Nice Guys Finish Last

I'm still trying to find time to get Dailaesse's mittens finished. So far it hasn't worked out. The cold weather at night makes me want to snuggle up under the comforter and go to sleep. I haven't even been able to keep my eyes open for Letterman the last couple of nights. Soon though...I promise. I have so many projects I want to start but I need to be disciplined and finish some of the ones I have waiting for me already.

Remember I told you a while back about the man who lives up the street? He blacked out at the drive-thru at the bank and drove his car into the cement basement of a house across the road. He was in really bad shape the day of the accident. So bad that the priest read him his last rites. Miraculously, he snapped out of it and was released from the hospital a few days later. The doctors found a tumor about the size of a gum ball in his brain. It was in a spot that commonly causes seizures. He was sent to Boston to see a specialist and starts chemo soon. The tumor has attached itself in a way that makes operating impossible. We were just sick over all this. This man had been so good to Bran. He helped him out with advice on several occasions and on many more just provided some good friendly conversation. Mike and his wife are from California and have no family here just like Bran. Bran and I both offered to help in any way we could. Bran has made countless trips up the street to check on him, visit and help with things around their house. He's called on the days that he doesn't get up there to check in and make sure they don't need anything.

The van he was driving was totaled. A local garage towed his van to their lot and left it there for the weekend. They charged him over $400 for this. A man he knows has a vacant spot of land on a quiet street in the village. They had the van towed there and left. In our village though you can only leave a junk vehicle for a certain amount of time. Since the vehicle has been there more than the allotted time it had to be moved quickly. So last week Mike calls Bran and tells him he has to get the van out of there and asks if Bran wants the van for parts. He tells him if he wants it to go get it and that he doesn't want anything for it. So Bran has this great van that he bought for $300 sitting out at work that needs an engine. It's a 2002 and it's loaded. We're talking everything but the kitchen sink. No rust, no dents, no nothing. It's perfect, except for the engine thing. The low book on the van is $8500. The engine in Mike's van is a perfect fit for the one that he already has. So Bran accepts the van with much thanks and appreciation and tells Mike about the van he has that needs to be fixed. Mike is interested in buying the van. Bran figures seems how he gave him his wrecked van with the good engine that he'll cut him a great deal on the van. Mike's quite happy and tells Bran when he gets the other van running to let him know and he'll take a look at it.

Last night we drove over to the other side of the lake to get the wrecked van. It took Bran about half an hour to get it ready to drive. The windshield is all smashed and it's not legal to drive so we had to call the police to let them know what we were doing. We got the van to the house and Bran called Mike to let him know that the engine and tranny still sound great and that it was out of the lot. Mike tells him his son called earlier and is bringing him a vehicle and is taking the wrecked van back with him. Oh, but if you still want it I want $700 for it. Bran said he could hear Mike's wife hollering $1000 in the background. WTF??? First it's free, no strings, not even a mention of using it to fix the other van and now it's $700. I'm livid. I told Bran we're bringing it back to the lot where it was after dinner tonight. We barely have room in the driveway for it to begin with but I figured seems how it would only be there for a week or 2 while he stripped it that I could deal with it. Bran is much more relaxed about things than I am. He can get an engine for the other van for about $300 so he said he would offer Mike that much for it. Nope. He will take no less than $700. Bran told him he was bringing it back to where it was and Mike asked why he couldn't just leave it here until his son comes this weekend. He also knows that I'm friends with the chief of police and most of the town cops so he knows leaving it here for an extended period of time wouldn't be a problem. And, he'd be damn lucky to get $50 for it in the shape that it's in. The passenger side is pretty much gone and the frame is broke so it can't ever be registered in NY again. Bran hurried up to go get it out so he wouldn't have to pay to have it towed or stored elsewhere and this is what he gets. I just can't believe it. Now mind you, we won't stop doing nice things for people because of this, but we certainly won't go out of our way for him anymore.

Thanks for listening to me vent! I promise more knitting soon! :-)