Nov 29 - back on the bike

As planned, Bill and Collette left around 9:40 to make an appointment at the rental place for 10:00. They were expecting get at least halfway home by the end of the day. We have not heard from them yet ... hopefully their drive went well and hopefully the car was doing equally well. It looks like they hit a fair amount of rain yesterday with more expected in that area today.

Back at the ranch, I got out biking a little after 11:00 and with the wind from the SSW, did the loop from here to Merritt Island, across to Titusville and then north on US 1. That route is 78 miles. However, I did not make it the distance without a delay ...

The phone rang before I'd made it to the halfway point -- Sandy couldn't get the car started. I tried talking her through using the external starting battery and failing that, the battery charger but no luck. She was convinced that there was a problem with the starter. I was equally convinced that it was simply the battery. She left the charger on and tried a little later but still no luck.

Once home, I tried starting too with no luck and then moved the clamp to another spot in the engine compartment -- success. It seems that she simply had not gotten the clamp on securely enough to carry that much amperage. I'm not sure at this point whether the external battery has enough juice to start the engine, since it might have had the same issue. Perhaps I'll find out at Christmas in the cold ... hmmm.

Unfortunately this signals a resumption of the electronic (I think) issue that has been a problem since we got this car. Occasionally the battery would be dead with no good explanation as to what drained it. The car dealers -- Philadelphia and Daytona -- have both checked the battery, the charging circuits etc. and found not fault. I'd better keep that battery pack in the car ! I thought this problem was over !

We had Grouper for dinner with leftover scalloped potatoes / celery root, asparagus and salad. I retired at my usual time and then was awaken by Sandy because of a large spider in the house. It looked like the large dock spiders that we have up north, with a leg span over 2 inches. I chased it down by the back of the TV and then it disappeared. I have no idea where it was hiding. I was thoroughly awake at this point and sat down to watch TV ... and then it climbed the wall again. I got my shop vacuum and managed to suck it in -- so much for the spider. I checked inside and the trip through the vacuum "done him in", as Eliza Doolittle once said.

That's about it ... that's enough ....