The birds are sing, the sun is shining and for once it's not raining.
I thought I'd make a start on fixing some of the stuff out the front so a quick trip to been and queued was in order for some paint. Tried to unlock the car with the remote - nothing.
Passenger side still has a traditional lock though. In I get struggle over the seats and gear lever to try the engine just in case it's the fob battery - again nothing. Looks like a flat battery, flip to bonnet and put the meter on it and confirm it's dead.
10mm nut for the terminals so I grab an adjustable spanner but it's not going to be that easy. The positive terminal is recessed in some sort of connector block and I can't get to it. I now need real spanners - not tools I use very often they're in an old fashioned cantilever metal toolbox .... somewhere. 45 minutes later after checking the shed, outbuilding, spare bedrooms, loft and the numerous house moving crates I eventually locate it in the cupboard under the stairs behind the tablesaw (don't ask).
I'm now an hour in and getting a little grumpy.
I grab a 10mm open ended spanner and also a 10mm- ring spanner but neither of these fit
The recess is too deep and they're too thick to slip down from the top between the post and cover. I need a socket. Everyone knows the standing joke about 10mm sockets (Google it) but after I spend another 30 mins looking I find my 1/4" socket set and thank the Lord there's actually a 10mm socket in there.
Back to the car but this time the outer diameter of the socket it too thick to fit between the nut and the power take off. At this point Im getting just a little bit cross. 3 spanners and 1 socket and still nothing that will physically fit on the nut. I need a smaller socket, a 3/8" socket set.
I'm 2 hours in and even the dog is hiding from me.
3/8" is a child size set, you get them as free gifts from places, I know I have one somewhere, somewhere being the keyword. It will also be made from the finest Chineseium, but for a battery terminal it shouldn't matter. I've already checked most places looking for the other tools and I've not seen it I'm running out of places to look. After a quick check everywhere else again in a Hail Mary I look in the office filing cabinet, and sure enough 1 cheap socket set present and accounted for even with it's 10mm socket.
It's 2.5 Hours since I grabbed my keys to go out, and I've done nothing, I'm not amused.
Socket fits without issue,terminal clamps and battery removed and put on charge. Needless to say I knew exactly where the battery charger was after after turning the house upside down twice already.
That's the entire morning gone and nothing has been done and no paint fetched, whatever enthusiasm I had to do things evaporated around the 2 hour mark. Not only that but the house looks like a bomb has gone off in it and I need to spend time putting everything away again, instead of doing things. Just not yet, not until I've had at least 2 coffee.
I'm pretty sure I must have had the same problem last time I wanted to charge the battery. Probably why the socket set was in the filing cabinet rather than with everything else - so that I could find it easily next time I needed it.
Frustrated of Worcestershire.
