Monica Kochelee

The economy worries me more than I’d like to admit.  According to the news programs that I watch and the Internet news sites that I read, the ever increasing gasoline prices, the increasing food prices, the floods in Iowa are going to result in HIGHER food prices, the price of milk will be going up to $6.00 gallon soon and the higher unemployment rates all spell bad times ahead.  We’re already in bad times; I hate to think of them getting much worse.  I hope that when the Presidential election is over and done with the economy will recover. 

Ever since we bought this house my hubby has been talking about how much he wants to put some kind of additional storage building on the property.  We have three acres of land, so it really isn’t an issue of having the space.  It’s just a matter of picking out what he wants that will fit in our budget and serve his needs.

Right now my hubby is “hogging” the garage with his show truck and his motorcycle, leaving our “real” vehicles out in the weather.  When I go grocery shopping, I have to lug the groceries into the house by myself through the rain.  I really don’t like that at all.  I’d like to park the car beside the house, under cover so I don’t have to try to run through a downpour.

I’ve found a website, www.steelmasterusa.com that sells some nice carports that would be good options for storage buildings.  I’d really like to see us put in one of the metal carports near the garage. We have more vehicles than our garage holds, and a carport would be a great thing to have.  I certainly wouldn’t mind having one of the metal buildings that look like a garage, either!

My hubby told me that he was going to spend the weekend helping me get the house ready for expected company that is coming next weekend.  He was going to dust the ceiling fans, dust the top of the refrigerator, do a few minor repairs here and there, install some timer switches on the bathroom exhaust fans, and help pick up the clutter.

Well, he ended up getting a phone call from my brother yesterday morning saying “I’m riding to Richmond on my Harley, want to come join me on your Harley?”  Well, hubby was out of here like a shot and didn’t come back until about 9pm.  They got caught in a severe thunderstorm on the way home and had to wait it out under a bridge for about an hour, but they seemed to have a good time overall.

I thought it was funny because my hubby swears he will never ride in the rain, and will never ride if rain is forecast, but the forecast yesterday said only a 10% chance of rain, so he went.  Now he says he won’t ride if it is even a 10% chance of rain.  I told him that there is ALWAYS a chance of rain, so he ought to just buy himself a rain suit and some motorcycle bags and be prepared!

I got another email from my British cousin today.  She is all excited about her new boyfriend that she met when she was going to the garage to have a flat tire for her car repaired a couple of weeks ago.  (Note:  she spelled it tyre, which apparently is the British custom!)  It seems that while she was waiting to have her tyre repaired she struck up a conversation with a nice looking gentleman that was waiting to meet with the garage manager.  This nice looking gentleman (Brian) turned out to be a sales representative for a company that sells Tyre Changing Machines.  Long story short, he asked her out for tea and they’ve been inseparable ever since.

She says that she learned a lot about his company and their products since they have started seeing each other.  She tells me that the company he works for his called Tyre Bay Direct and that the company sells tyre changing machines, lifting equipment, wheel balancers, air compressors and tools, wheel balance weights, tubeless valves, tyre tools and tyre repair materials.

I went to their website and saw that they also sell jacks, spray booths and wheel alignment machines.  They also offer a 12 month guarantee on parts AND labor, which is unusual in the business.

It sounds like a good business to be in!  People always need their cars worked on!

She sent me this press release about the company:

Tyre Bay Direct are emerging as a leading force in garage equipment supplying tyre changing machines, wheel balancers, Lifting equipment, air compressors and tools. Combine this with their supply of consumable items such as wheel balance weights, tubeless valves, tyre tools and repair materials they really are the one stop shop for any garage or fast fit centre.

Their range of machinery covers all fields, from the new start or small tyre fitting business, right through to professional large scale machinery. With more and more MOT centres starting their own tyre fitting service, their standard specification machinery and special packages mean set-up costs are minimized. What’s more, they can offer finance options on all the equipment they sell, as well as full warranty and after sales support from a team of engineers.

For the more established tyre fitting business, looking for state of the art tyre machinery, Tyre Bay Direct are proud to be UK distributors of Ravaglioli equipment.

Ravaglioli Spa is one of the world’s top-ranking companies in the garage equipment industry. They are Europe’s leading manufacturer of lifts and tyre equipment. Ravaglioli, produce a whole range of tyre changers that can work even with the newborn tyres mounted on some recent Toyota models.

Following the constant innovations taking place nowadays in the tyre sector, Ravaglioli also offers a wide range of tyre changers that have been officially approved for use with the BRIDGESTONE BSR system including the G1041.AX, G1061.AX, G1041.EL, G1061.EL, G1045.EL and G1065.EL fitting machines

The recently issued “Bridgestone Support Ring” Run-Flat system allows you to drive a vehicle at a certain speed and for a few miles even with a flat tyre, thanks to a metal ring, inside the tyre preventing possible damages caused by the rim and it is possible to drive the vehicle in complete safety.

So whether you are at the forefront of the tyre fitting sector, or are looking to start your own business with quality machinery and advice, Tyre Bay Direct are on hand to help provide you with all the products and service you need.

A short while ago I filled up my gas tank at a Texaco station.  I saw that they were running a special rebate promotion for new Texaco credit card holders, so when I got home I went online and applied for a new Texaco credit card for myself, and a separate one for my hubby.

I got my card a few days later, but I noticed in my email in-box was a rejection letter for my hubby’s card.  It turns out that he was rejected because they don’t think he is him!  They said that they rejected him based on information from a credit report company.  So I printed it off and gave it to my hubby and told him to call the credit report company, which he has been trying to do all morning long.  I am concerned that this may have something to do with an identity theft attempt!  If that is the case, I think we will be signing up with Lifelock! I’ve been told that there is a lifelock promotion code at the lifelock website for a discount on their service, so this would be a good time to check it out!