Dear Jane,

Row C has been nagging at me. I KNEW that I was behind. I KNEW that I needed to start. But even though 26 blocks are successfully behind me (yes, some are definitely better than others), I was still SCARED to start the new row. But, last night, I finished C9–my first completed block on Row C.

I got most of it done as I sat at the truck dealership–I had taken Bryan’s truck in to get an oil change, safety inspection and new tires. TWO + hours later, Vivi and I were on our way again. Can I just tell you how FRUSTRATING Bob Tomes Ford in McKinney, TX is. I despise their service department. Whenever I call them, I get put on permahold and am inevitably disconnected before the receptionist picks up the phone. I then have to call back in, explain what happened to someone who simply DOESN’T CARE, and then repeat the process again. They charge a fortune for service, too–$40+ for an oil change. But we go there anyway because as long as we get all required maintenance done there, we get “free tires for life.” We still have to pay the tax and install on the tires (which is a chunk of change) but it still saves us a lot of $. Of course we are only at 40K miles and are on our 3rd set of tires (I am beginning to suspect that they haven’t rotated the tires like we’ve paid them to ever 5K miles). I honestly have to work up to going in there and facing the inevitable LOOOOOOOONG wait each time, knowing that I am going to have to negotiate the LAME shop supplies fees off the bill. But I know that if I don’t take the truck in, Bryan will have to waste several hours of our Saturday (our ONLY day together) taking care of it, and I know that he will OVERPAY. I’m definitely the shrewd negotiator in the family. This most recent visit, they didn’t even bother putting the shop supplies fee on the bill (I nicely told them up front that I knew all about the idiotic fee and, per previous discussions w/ the service manager, wasn’t going to pay it). I had to appeal to three different people to get them to take the competitor’s coupon I brought in–suddenly their policy has changed that they will only accept FORD coupons. I also was able to get Uniroyal Laredo tires w/ a 60K warranty put on for the same price as the crappy Continental tires that wore out in fewer than 20K miles. Maybe they’ll get to the point where, when they see me coming, they just quickly do the work and get me out of there so they don’t have to deal with me. Wouldn’t that be pleasant for everyone involved? Don’t get me wrong. I am patient and professional. Yet I am determined.

Ok, so how did I get off on that tangent? Anyway, C9 is done–simple appliqué. No earth shattering technique to explain.