When I returned from Thailand, my plan was to use the minivan to get around. I hadn't even planned to take the Acura off the blocks that I placed it on when I left. Like so many things in life, when plan hits reality, reality whips its butt.
First, when I got home I saw that the registration sticker expired in February. I talked to my brother who had taken care of things for me here, and he remembered sending in the payment, but not receiving the sticker. So I called the Ohio BMV. They told me that since the van is only in Tim's name, that in order to do anything, I would need to provide a power of attorney (poa).
The next day I went to the BMV, and renewed my driver's license and registration. I was actually quite pleased with the efficiency and professionalism of the staff. I think I was there for no more than twenty-five minutes, and that included the five or ten minutes waiting for the license to print. The clerk gave me the same answer regarding my wife's information. She said she could not even look up the record to see if they had received the payment without the POA.
So instead of tooling around in the unfashionable, but roomy Honda Odyssey, the three kids and I had to use my Acura TL. The back seat was a bit snug with Aleena and her car seat, Nalin in her booster seat, and Jacob squeezed in between. Fortunately, as an eight year old, Jacob is free of the booster seat requirement. While the kids did fit in the back seat, the situation was not always comfortable. While they generally got along, the bickering in the back was certainly not a pleasant substitute for a radio. You see, my friend, I had not yet found the security code to reactivate my radio.
A few days later, I was digging through the box of mail that had accumulated over the year, and I found the registration sticker for the van. So I called the insurance company and added it to my policy.
I would like to write that the adventure ended here, but alas it would not be quite so easy. When I tried to start up the van, the engine didn't even attempt to turn over. I thought that perhaps the battery had died, so I tried to jump start it. Now, for some reason I had in my head that red was positive and black negative, so I ended up connecting the batteries incorrectly. I was soon become aware of my mistake in the form of sparks and smoke. I quickly disconnected the jumper cables before any permanent damage could take place.
I went Autozone to pick up a new battery. It's a bit of a pain to drag the kids everywhere, particularly in the TL. So I got the battery and returned home to hook it up. Getting the old battery out was actually a bit of a pain. Not only is it heavy, but there were not a way to get a good grip on it. After struggling for ten minutes with it, I was finally able to heave it out.
As I was hooking up the new battery I thought to myself that at least it would be worth the effort. The kids would have much more room in the van, and once I found the code for the TV, they would be entertained. After I finished hooking up the battery, I slid into the driver's seat and turned on the ignition. No sound. After heaving a big sigh, I found the owner's manual and found the location of the fuse box. Sure enough, one of the fuses had blown. Perhaps it had happened with my failed jump start attempt, perhaps not.
So the kids and I once again made our way to Autozone. I made sure to bring the fuse with me in order to ensure that I got the right one. To my surprise, Autozone did not have it in stock. They referred me to one of the other parts store in the vicinity. The parts store across the street didn't have it either, but they offered to order it for me. They could have it in the next morning.
I picked up the part on Thursday morning. When I got home to my dismay, it was not the correct fuse. It looked nearly identical to the fuse that I needed, but the copper prongs on it were a little too long. More than a bit frustrated, I called the Honda dealer. They didn't have the part in either, but said that they could have it in by Saturday.
On Saturday I picked up the part at the Honda dealer. I checked the part before I left, and it appeared to be the correct one. That was confirmed when I returned home and successfully started the van.
On Sunday I found the navigation system and stereo system (including the TV) codes for both the TL and the van. The kids were very excited about having the van.
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