Spend! Spend! Spend!

Shopping. Effectively it’s a crutch for those that are desperate for change, thirsty for something new in their trivial lives that are already beyond redemption. Tawdry day-to-day existence is punctured by the pathetic longing to purchase another something, a quick-fix of satisfaction. It’s a drug for the feeble minded. These knuckle-dragging lunatics refer to themselves as ‘shopaholics’ but in reality it’s a veneer of an attempt to disguise what is basically below par intelligence coupled with the feeblest of scintilla self-control. At its best it can amount to wasted money and time with the accumulation of worthless junk, at its worst it can cripple families and ruin relationships . . . which is a long drawn out way of saying that I’ve been shopping a lot and thoroughly enjoying myself to boot. 

Troopy Issues

The Landcruiser has been thirsty but wonderful work. I found out most of the below after travelling to a friends’ place 400km north, ‘just up the road’ distance in Australia. So whilst working at our normal jobs during the day, at night we set-about making some plans and fixing small pieces here and there. I’d been shopping already for new brake discs and pads, oil and air filters, but it was fun finding out new things about my beloved vehicle. I’ve already listed out the positive aspects of the vehicle in a previous post, so concentrating on the “to be dones”:

• There a rip in the drivers’ seat showing bare metal
• The oil was blacker than night time in a coalmine, so had to be changed
• The air filter needed changing
• The brake discs squeaked at the end of the journey which means they have to be replaced soon
• The differential filler bolts have ben fastened by Hercules when in a filthy mood
• The brake lines leak
• The soft-terrain tyres are bloody loud when travelling on the highway and need changing, and potentially wheels too given the sparse options of wheels available
• The front 1 and ¾ seat will need replacing as it’s impossible to clamber through the vehicle in its current state
• The old winch needed replacing
• The seat belts need refurbishing
• The driver’s door handle has a tendency to remain open
• The fridge smelt terrible
• The electric hook-up works but light in it is broken
• And finally, the diesel fuel filter has been tightened by Hercules’ older stronger brother. I don’t know about his mood. Angry, by the looks of it. Demonstrably angry. 

Making Money / Selling My Body

We had a lot of fun over the few days we were up there, although I appear to have made the same mistakes I made with the previous overland vehicle when back in my beloved Wales – buying it in Winter and having to make the repairs whilst freezing my nuts clean off. Four layers of clothes wasn’t enough. Still though, doing a 9-hour work day and then doing another 5 hours of Landcruiser work was bloody tiring.

We did manage to complete a full oil change and replace the oil filter, replace the air filter, replace and re-fit a new winch, clean up the fridge, lubricate the seat-belts, check tyre pressure and play with the air compressor, play with the maxx-traxx and electrocute ourselves trying to fix the old winch. All lots of fun! I had brought my Go-Pro with me to do some filming and then forgot the SD Card. Annoyingly, that’s the second time I’ve done that.
​
I’ve also decided to keep an electronic log-book in Excel to keep on top of what I need to change and when I need to change it. Naturally with all this buying prowess wasn’t cheap (well, the phone attachment for the car was $1 ha ha) so something had to give.
 
A fin yet saggy old bottom like mine doesn’t fetch much of a second-glance down on the mean, bourgeoise streets of Melbourne so I had to make the start selling a few things around the house, including my beloved motorbike. . . . which just about covers the first vet bill for my new animal and getting her registered. Onwards!