Perspective can be Painful

I’ve been cruising along here with only the normal negative influences of the TTT, so not that many demands have been placed on my time (or bank account) by the house or the other cars (thank You Lord). All that changed last week when a litany of issues began to invade my staid little life. First, the house’s hot water heater sprung a leak, then the lovely Loriann was sideswiped by an impatient idiot, and finally, Ariel contracted appendicitis and had the offending organ removed Monday night (thank God she was smart enough to have the intense abdominal pain checked out before said sack burst). All that has put a real wrench in my getting good Ringo-time.

Well, the replacement water heater has been installed and is functioning properly, the lovely Loriann and insurance companies will deal with getting the PT Cruiser’s mirror replaced, and Ariel is home recovering, so I’m ready to knock out some serious Ringo progress.

With the four day weekend only hours away and sunny, sixty-degree days on tap, I can plan the tasks I hope to complete by the end of Sunday. First will be to roll Ringo out of the garage and do battle with the passenger door for hopefully the last time. The initial skirmish will be sanding smooth the mess that’s currently on it, followed by cleaning and a few coats of high-build primer. I’ll need to be careful to not sand through the epoxy primer so I’m not required to shoot a protective coat or two of that stuff. While letting that cure, I’ll move on to spraying primer on the last pieces of loose interior (gage and glovebox domes) in preparation for their final coat of satin black. Next will be the dying of the carpet. Mikhaila just moved the box filled with cans of VHT’s black vinyl die to ensure they’re warmed up and ready to go. After that the primer should be dry enough on the loose interior bits for me to lay down a couple coats of rattle-can Rustoleum. Included in that paint work will be the inside surfaces of the two doors. Next, I’ll be sanding the interior surfaces I’d brush-primed the other night. With those ready for paint, I’ll need to make the hard decision about how I finish coat them. Given the major pain it would be to properly mask, I’m still very much inclined to paint the hard-to-reach areas with a brush and save the spray for the dash and maybe the areas under the rear side windows. We’ll see how ambitious I am. Finally, I’ll move on to putting the finish coats of color and clear on the outside of the passenger door. I’ve purchased a new in-line dessicant dryer, so I’m confident the fish-eyes will not be the issue they were before.

I’m excited about making some significant headway towards the light at the end of this roadification tunnel.