Ten years ago to the day actually, I screwed the lid back on the whiskey bottle and walked away from it.

I pounded my left thumb with a hammer, again.

Trying to knock a bearing out of a tube locked in a vise at work using a long rod, the hammer glanced off the end and I whacked my thumb traveling right to left.

Oh it hurt a bit but then it started bleeding.

And Bleeding.

And Bleeding some more.

There was a trail of blood across the floor to the garbage can and then all over the insides.

Oh there were the words too.

I was basically Speaking In Tongues at that point.

No cracks about the dirty nails, I work for a living.

Split that motherfucker WIDE OPEN and peeled it back from the knuckle.

Of course I was at work.

Of Course they had to call an EMT.

Of course there was four thousand pages of paperwork and a trip to the bathroom to pee in a little cup.

Then they wouldn’t even let me drive myself up to Urgent Care to get it sewn up.

Oh no, gotta ride up in an ambulance with the EMT.

He gets with six blocks of the joint and his little traffic alert thing rerouted him and we wound up a mile and a half away from where we needed to be, in downtown, until he finally discovers that what I have been telling him since he turned off was right and we had to turn around and go 24 blocks back the way we had just came from.

I’m really fucking glad I wasn’t having a heart attack.

He drops me off and then it’s more paperwork and a two hour wait to get seen.

Xrays, the works.

Finally some lady comes in and cleans the thing up and it starts bleeding anew.

More gauze. Then some lady doctor comes in, takes one look at it and says she doesn’t sew so good so out she goes and ten minutes later another lady comes in.

Young, from Tennessee, we had a great conversation while she was working me over.

I have split that thumb open before with a hammer, to the point you could see the bone.

Even then it only got like 6 stitches.

I told her she needed to sew this thing shut tight.

So she did.

I now have a new personal best for that thumb.

Nine freaking stitches.

Then this on top of it.

Oh, and another Tetanus shot because I can never remember when I had the last one.

Fuck me.

When they got all done they patted me on the ass and pointed me to the door.

No pain relief, just instructions to keep it clean and dry.

Yeah, those numbing shots are wearing off and this thing is already starting to throb like a sick chicken’s ass.

It’s gonna be a long night.

Then it’s back to work tomorrow.

This kinda shit may slow me down but it sure as hell isn’t going to stop me.

You just have to know where to look.

I told you about the deal I got on the slightly used tires for the back of my pickup.

$150, cash money off of Craigslist.

Well I knew of a little Gypo tire shop and stopped in there to see about getting them swapped out.

I figured they would be busy and I would have to make an appointment but as it turned out, they weren’t.

The minute I pulled in I could tell it was my kind of place.

Used tires piled up all over the place and a sign in the front window that said Cash Only, no checks, no cards.

Yessir, we are going to be able to do business.

After asking about the pricing and showing them what I needed done, it wasn’t long before the ass end was up in the air and the lug nuts were flying.

A grand total of $70 to dismount 4 off the wheels, mount and balance 2 and dispose of the used tires and wheels I didn’t need.

For a Grand Total of $220, less than half of what I was quoted by the Big Chain Tire Store.

Double Bonus, while I was waiting, I inquired about a couple of decent used tires they might have to go on the front.

2 of those are sitting there, they want $100 for both plus the $50 for mounting, balancing and disposal of the worn ones on it now.

Triple Bonus, also while I was waiting and the guy was breaking down the tires, I grabbed a brake drum and yanked it off to discover I have at least one axle seal puking oil all over the brake shoes.

Try doing that sometime at a Big Chain Tire Shop.

I can tell you it ain’t happening and if you ask them to check the brakes while they have the wheels off anyway and they find oil on the brake shoes, they are going to slam you with another $700 estimate to replace the seals and brakes.

Guaranteed.

So I plan on going back, getting the front tires swapped out and I will STILL be under what I was quoted for 2 new tires to be installed!

Since the weather has FINALLY started to turn, I’ll be doing those axle seals and rear brakes myself, Thankyouverymuch.

Not that I WANT TO but because I can and I’m not paying that kind of money for something I can do myself on a nice and sunny Saturday afternoon.

The lesson here is to shop the hell around.

I have been broke most of my life, mainly because of piss poor decisions I have made but I did learn how to get by on the cheap and have a nose for finding cheaper alternatives rather than bending over and paying full price for shit like most Normies do.

I’m not the least bit afraid to shop at shady looking places Sally Homemaker would lock her doors while driving by.

Especially places that say Cash Only, up front.

Yep, we can do business just fine.