When The Best Laid Plans Go Wrong

How often have you planned out your day just right only to have a monkey-wrench thrown into the mix?
Yesterday I experienced that monkey-wrench, along with a few socket wrenches and cut knuckles for good measure.
After having a completely unproductive weekend due to attending my son’s Little League games and celebrating my birthday (gifts are still being accepted), I had planned to work from home and still have a little time with my wife and kids.
With the time saved by eliminating my commute, I would be able to make a large dent in my list of outstanding items before everyone got home from school and work. After a short break for dinner with the family, I’d wrap up the last few items on my list and call it a night.
Everything was going according to plan and I was actually being even more productive than I had hoped. With the homework finished and dinner being digested, the kids asked if we could make a quick trip to the skate park so they could show me their new tricks.
Since everything had been going so well earlier in the day, I figured that I could spare another hour before getting back to work so we loaded up the truck with the skateboard, roller blades and necessary safety gear.
Click…click…click!
Don’t tell me!
Let me try that again.
Click…click…nothing!
The battery in my wife’s truck was toast. The kids were bummed that we couldn’t head to the skate park and I was bummed that I had to head out to get a new battery. I’d certainly not planned for this mechanical interruption but with my wife needing her truck to get to work the next morning there wasn’t much choice in the matter. Rather than stopping off at the skate park for a little fun, we had to hurry over to the auto parts store down the street before they closed.
I told the kids that if we made it to the store before they closed and I was able to get a new battery, we could still stop at the skate park on the way home. The kids were thrilled that the store was still open and after purchasing the new battery, we were on our way to the skate park for a little bit of fun. After 30 minutes of twists, turns and crashes, it started to rain so we packed up the car to head home.
With darkness upon us and the rain coming down, I realized that I would be standing out in the rain to change the battery as my wife had parked outside. I tried to push her truck into the garage but there was no way that thing was moving, at least not forward. So there I was out on the dark driveway, standing in the rain replacing the battery when I thought the kids would be in bed and I would be back to work.
Can someone please explain to me why you need two brackets, one bar, six screws and a locking cover to secure one truck battery?
That’s right, no easy battery change for me. After finding all of the various screws, brackets and bars holding the battery in place, I had the new battery installed and the car was back in operation.
With soaking clothes and the hours of my night just about gone, I still had a my list of work to be done but I was able to spend some quality time with the kids. And you know what…
I wouldn’t change a thing!