Our Big Rig.....

Eighteen feet long, eight and a half feet tall. Our new (slightly used) 2006 Dodge Sprinter. I want to call her Jet White, but the family wants BC JET (Bonnie, Clyde, Jodie, E, Troy). Bonnie and Clyde are our dogs, Terrier/Dachsun mixes.

We bought the van 2 weeks ago from the wonderful folks at Access Mobility Systems in Edmonds, WA. We have a full ADA compliant lift, and we can fit both scooters inside. It handles well for being so big, and it is nice not to be hauling one scooter inside and one outside...with our tail dragging.

Jet White has presented some challenges. It is a diesel. I wanted to get the oil changed, so I went to our local Oil Can Henry's to see if they could change our oil. We have been going there for years and they have been really nice to us. The manager came out and told me they could change the oil for us, but they don't carry the filter. He said that if we bought our own filter, they could change our oil.

I went to Thrifty Auto, a auto supply store near work at lunch to get the oil filter and an air filter. 2006 Dodge Sprinter 2400 turbo diesel. The had the air filter, It was not in stock, but they ordered one for me to pick up the next day. I picked up the oil filter the next day. E and I went to Oil Can Henry's after work. It was the wrong king of oil filter and the air filter was way too small.

I get flustered at this point. My cerebral palsy affects my speech in such a way that I can communicate well with people who know me, but with people who don't know me it is difficult because they are apprehensive of me, and I get nervous, making it harder for me to speak and be understood.

The lady at Thrifty Auto seemed to understand me when I explained what kind of van I had. The guy I encountered the next day was not quite as nice. I gave him the receipt I had and said I was back to pick up a oil filter. He came back with a air filter. No, I need an oil filter. He seemed a bit flustered, but he looked again and came back with a cannister oil filter.

Oil Can Henry's changed our oil, but said that we needed a cartridge oil filter, instead of the cannister.