Making Things Last (and I Love Sears)

Back from camping last weekend and somewhat renewed, I tackled that increasingly noisy drier. Mrs ER (Jan) left the house for some shopping with a friend, sniffing something about, "I can see a new drier in my future." Hmmm... now THAT'S a challenge to the weekend warrior-mechanic. Turns out a support wheel for the drum was worn out:

The wheel's hub is supposed to fit fairly snugly on the axle, and not be triangular & floppy like this:

What a great company, Sears & Roebuck--this drier (a "heavy duty" gas model) is nearly 20 years old, but I was able to go online and find the replacement part in a just a few minutes. (The new part arrived this week, so that will take care of Saturday morning--poor Jan, that new drier gets delayed awhile.)

Then it was time for an oil change and cleaning/regapping spark plugs on the '91 Toy pickup. Runs good as new--with just 340,000 miles.

I like making things last, and take inordinate pride (yes, the sin of pride) in petty material things like an old truck and Levi 501s:

Jeans get cycled through the new (1-year old):

--> faded (2-years old):

--> holy/holey (3-4 years old):

--> rag stage. Even at the rag stage, you can cut off a lower leg, sew one end shut, and make a rugged storage bag:

Now, if only I could find time for the big projects, like rebuilding that front porch...