Date: Tue, 11 Aug 1998 12:27:10 -0600
Reply-To: Robin Davies <rodavies@FACSTAFF.WISC.EDU>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <Vanagon@vanagon.com>
From: Robin Davies <rodavies@FACSTAFF.WISC.EDU>
Subject: A New Syncro Story(long)
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Here's a new twist in Syncro glory,
July began with the most rain on record for Madison, Wisconsin. Ten
inches in the first five days. A quick and dramatic U-turn and we have a
loong dry spell. Twenty days without rain. The corn is through the roof,
the grass is yellow and brittle. Things were getting a bit testy... Perfect
time to do that roofing job that we've been putting off for years. The tear
off was pure joy in that hot sun. Not one, not two, but THREE layers of
shingles AND cedar shake underneath! The roof got done in a weekend (let me
tell you, I have new respect for those grimy roofing folks doing this day
after day) and the pile of rubble was great! Too cheap to rent a dumpster.
Well the neighbor wasn't too thrilled about the pile of junk in our shared
driveway (this is a person who cleans his vinyl siding weekly with a wash
cloth and 409). I borrow a coworkers trailer and it's time to test my new
hitch with two loads of roofing trash.
August, and the weather has come about again! Flash floods warnings
for days. Three inches of rain the night before, but The Day dawns sunny
and hot. Oh yeah, and this is supposed to be quality time with my 11 year
old daughter whom is home from camp and trying to enjoy a summer vacation
the way it's supposed to be. When we were kids, mom was lucky to see us for
dinner, we were off terrorizing the neighborhood all day. Those days are
gone even in happy Madison, WI! We have kid-napping, people dumping gas and
lighting citizens on fire on city buses, crack dealers shooting each other
in housing complexes- Ah the joys of modern America! Gotta keep the
children close. So, the daughter and I are going to do some work together
and haul the mess to the Dane County landfill.
Loading the trailer isn't too bad. The blisters on my hands scream
a bit, but we will get this done. Hell, I'm saving $150 by not renting a
dumpster. Leslie the Syncro Westie seems to tow the first load with ease.
We even have a brief interstate romp(got up to 60!) to get to the now
underconstruction county highway that leads to the dump. The gravel road
(closed) is very rough and we power on. Climb on the scale (5500 lbs) and
proceed up Mount Trashmore. This aint so bad... Round the corner and we are
suddenly overcome with the nastiest odor EVER! I have two big dogs, a cat
(swore I'd never have a cat-just can't stand the liter box), changed a
thousand baby diapers- I have been intimate with many foul smells, but this
is the worst! We close the windows. The sauna is now open! At the summit we
are directed by a scruffy dude driving some great earth mover that possess
not tires, but mighty steel rollers covered with breadbox sized blades that
crunch our trash to further smithereens, to "leave your load over there by
that truck". That truck belongs to the masters of the dump domain and has
HUGE baja tires, four wheel drive and suspension a mile high. The trail on
top of the mountain is rough and mucky, I can't see everyones leftover
McBurger trash, but there is certainly a great variation to this terrain.
Leslie plows through with purpose and we get to point B and I begin to work
on my blisters again. Why can't my coworker have a dumping trailer?!? The
daughter stays in the van roasting half to death- really enjoying our time
together...
Load number two brings new adventures! The daughter is at home
snuggled up with the VCR and I am at the summit again and the flood begins.
It is pouring buckets. TerraFirma is no longer firma! The path to my
previous pile of roofing scraps is looking like a scene from Apocalypse
Now. The great flock of seagulls that normally circle the pile have flown
south to avoid the torrent. Dumpster dude decides to close up shop, but
will let me unload- Hey I'm on a Mission! He jumps in his truck to run a
hasty retreat while I say goodbye to the last of my cedar shakes.
Truckasaurus doesn't want to go anywhere! He is quickly burying himself up
to his axles in lovely trash/crud. He chains his truck to the
trashcrunchmobile and tows his truck out to solid trash. Through the wall
of water "I'll pull you out next!" he gurgles. I sputter that I'll give it
a shot on my own. Mission accomplished and I jump in the van, rip off my
completely saturated t-shirt and fire Leslie up. You should have seen
trashboy's jaw drop as my awesome camper pulled straight out of the
quagmire, past his two beasts and drove right out off there (hopefully)
never to be seen again.
The Syncro wins again!
Peace R.
87 Syncro Vanagon Westfalia
95 Passat GLX
http://www.biochem.wisc.edu/medialab
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