Aborted mission

Today after our weekly staff Bible study/ meeting (today's meeting featured cake for Ira's birthday even though she wasn't here, Victor brought it, so we ate it and sent the rest home with her husband) we needed to drive to Molachansk to buy more frozen Canadian Holstein semen. Garry split the last straw between two cows this morning. Last month he decided to get numbered ear tags in every milk cow, and it has paid off big time. Every day the students tell him which cows are in heat, and he seems to breed a cow or two every day.

Of course we did not get out of the house and in the car at 2:30 like Garry had hoped, it was after three pm when we left the village but he knew we should make it there by five pm as we hurried along.

We got through Zaporosia, which takes a while, there is no bypass around Zap.  Garry did a quick stop for Pepsi, peanut m and ms and grapes at a grocery store (travel snacks) and were heading south, the sky streaked a little pink as the sun started to think about setting around four pm.

We called Masha so she could call the place and let them know we should be there shortly before five pm, and then as we headed up a hill, I said that the car sounded funny. Garry laughed and said we needed to turn the radio back on, but he turned it off a few minutes later, when the motor slowed down, There was an odd noise. He decided to stop at the next gas station, coming up at the bottom of the next hill.  

Garry stopped the car and the smoke billowing from under the car prompted me to jump out too, carrying my purse and crocheting, I had started a mitten as we left the village.

First  Garry looked under the hood, trying to find the problem.

Then the gas station attendant called someone to take a look..-

While he waited for them to come, Garry phoned Masha to tell the guys we wouldn't get there today after all. Then he called to say we would not make it to Bible study this evening either (we had planned to go there on the way home.)

Three guys pulled up in a little car and looked under the hood, and talked with Garry and had him start the car, rev the engine, and decided that it was a problem with the turbo, but said we could still drive it back to Zaporosia slowly.

The next gas station was only a mile or two,, there was smoke billowing behind the car causing other drivers to flash their lights to alert us. First Garry mumbled, I know I know, and thought we could just get some oil there, but when we stopped he quickly realized we did need to be towed back instead.


We sat in the car, once the smoke cleared inside... once again, we had to jump out when we stopped. Oil was dripping out of the tail pipe. Garry was on the phone again, talking with Max, and calling for a tow truck, which are not that common in Ukraine, although we had seen one on the way there, with a banged up Lada on. The gas station attendant here had a number for one.

After fifteen or twenty minutes, the guy phoned back, with a price and an arrival time, forty minutes. It was dark already, Garry turned on the interior lights so I could see to crochet. He bought some more snack food to eat, and even put his seat back and took a nap.

Finally around six pm the tow truck arrived!

Garry got to steer as the van was winched onto the back of the truck. The guy stopped and went back to talk to him a couple times, he seemed to think that he must have it in gear or even have the brakes on.

 It took a while to get it all the way up there and then the driver secured the wheels.

He asked if we wanted to ride in the van, or his truck. Garry vetoed the idea of riding on the back of the truck in our car, so he put the center seat up for me.

No seat belts of course, Garry held my hand, as I tried to not look nervous as I stared at the eye level cracked window inches in front of me. Garry squeezed his legs in, knees tight to the dashboard. He had a seat belt hanging by the door, but nothing to catch it onto to (not that he would have insulted anyone by wearing it).

 My blood pressure may have risen a bit, even though Garry reassured me with "the guy doesn't want to crash his truck."

We, and the van made it safely to Zaporosia without any big scares, although a few bumps were found in the road, and few drivers passed us in a somewhat close to oncoming traffic fashion. No real surprises there. 

The driver found the same place that fixed the van when I had the adventure on the bridge about six weeks ago, after a second call to Max for directions. I realize now that the exercise and no salt diet may not be all I need to lower my blood pressure...

It was raining lightly as they unloaded the van with the winch again, after the guard opened the gate for us. He was expecting us, since Max had phoned our guy from the village who works there. Garry got the tow truck driver, who was returning south, to drop us by Mc Donalds for some food before trying to find a taxi to drive us home.

Luckily we had a pocket full of cash for buying the semen, because we spent some on this trip. Less at Mc Donalds than having the van towed...

After eating we went out in the rain (it was more steady now and me in a hoody), walked across the road a few times looking for taxis. I got a wet foot when I stepped in a puddle. We found one who didn't want to go all the way to village, and finally phoned Masha who got one to come get us and drive us home to the village. We went into a dry warm store for a few minutes while waiting for her to call back. Then we head across a cross walk to wait in front of Mc Donalds on Lenina (main street) for the taxi. Masha calls again, to say the taxi would be coming form the other way so we shouldn't wait in front of Mc Donalds after all. Cross the road again. Masha phones again, the guy is waiting... where? Garry hurries across two streets with little regard for lights as I run behind him.  There is is, in front of the store we were in before! Garry got into the front seat after opening the back door for me, and put the seat back as far as it would go. Poor guy was crammed into every seat once we got out of the van.

It was a slow ride home, but we arrived safely. The driver had me a little worried when making the u-turn on the highway to get to the village, but he waited for that first car, after all.

Don't tell Garry, who didn't buckle his seat belt, I found the shoulder belt hanging beside me and spent a few minutes fishing under the crack of the back seat for the other end and was securely buckled in all the way home. Hope i didn't insult the driver.