I took the minivan to the gas station close by our house for inspection. It was failed because of brake. The technician gave me a quote for $960 plus tax to replace all 4 pads and rotors. I called another auto shop and the price was $900 plus tax. I called the dealership and the price was $1,400 plus tax. I placed one more call and they gave me a quote for $780 with tax included and they would also throw in the inspection sticker.

Ravensworth Auto Service, runs by Vietnamese folks, is the shop I had used many years ago. I stopped because location was not convenient for me. Now I work remotely on Mondays and Fridays, I can just drop my car off and walk to a fast-food spot nearby to do my work. Their price had always been reasonable and they had done good jobs. I will be returning to them in the future for car services.

I told my wife that I am done with cars. When this minivan becomes too expensive to fix, I will get an electric bike.

I took my 2011 Toyota Sienna to Ourisman Fairfax Toyota to get an oil change. We’re clocking in 160,000 miles. The service staff who checked me in asked if I needed anything else besides an oil change. I figure I should get a new rear wiper blade. Obviously I had to pay for the part, but he also charged me for the installation. I told him to cancel the service. I just wanted to pay for the part ($18).

The trick to replace the rear wiper was to turn it on. When the blade wiped half way through, turned of the engine. From there, I just popped off the old wiper and replaced the new one. A YouTube video shows how to that in 1 minute and 7 seconds. Ourisman Fairfax Toyota was going to charge me for this, how greedy?

It has been hot as hell driving the Toyota Sienna 2011 in the summer since the A/C no longer blowing out cool air. The dealer wanted to charge me $189 to fix the issue. I recalled someone told me about AC recharge, but I could not find anything on YouTube. On Saturday, my wife told me about the product called A/C Pro ACP-100 Ultra Synthetic R-134a Car Refrigerant Kit, 20 oz and I picked it up at Walmart for $37 yesterday.

Then I found the official video on YouTube on how to recharge your car A/C. The process took about two minutes and I had my A/C back. The kids and I were rejoiced. We went to the skate park to rollerblade and Tea Do for boba teas and Street Fighter. I am not really a fan of Tea Do, but it has some classic arcade games for free. The kids loved Street Fighter.

I slept with a sore throat last night; therefore, I couldn’t get up early. I got out of bed around 10 am, grabbed a quick bite, and headed to the skatepark. Half an hour later, I headed to Home Depot to pick up a vinyl siding and ready-mix concrete patch. The Home Depot I went didn’t have the vinyl siding; therefore, I had to drive to another Home Depot. Luckily, someone just returned a piece for $10.

I went back home and replace the cracked vinyl siding. It was easier than I had imagined. The house’s foundation had a big crack somehow I hadn’t noticed. I just patched it up with ready-mix concrete. Then I washed the front siding and windows. I used a rag mop with a bit of detergent to wipe down all the green molding from the tree instead of using the power washer. I just sprayed off the soap with a regular hose.

After that I went up the roof to hammer in the nails that held the gutters. For the trims, I used screws years ago to make sure nothing would fly off anymore. It was so hot up there and I am definitely an acrophobia, but I had to do what I had to do.

It was quite a productive day. Now that all the works are done, I am now heading to the skatepark for the second time to relax.

I woke up this morning, drove to the nearest Toyota dealer to get an old change. Toyota Sienna 2011 is clocking in at almost 160,000 miles. Because I didn’t have an appointment, I would have to wait for three hours. No big deal. I could work remotely.

I told the service rep about the alarm blaring off at random time and he said they would charge $189 to diagnose the issue. I told him the air conditioner isn’t producing cold air and he told me another $189 to diagnose the issue. Not even fixing anything, I already have to pay them $378. Sure, they would waive the fees if I make the repair, but they will charge me an arm and leg.

I am OK with the AC not blowing cold air. I apologize to my neighbors if the alarm goes off at night. I was not going to fix these issues. I left and headed back to work. The price we have to pay to maintain these cars is just ridiculous. I am going to use the smaller shop for the jobs.

A couple of weeks ago, the speaking on the sliding door on the passenger side produced static sounds. My kids kept asking me to replace it. In order to replace it, I have to rip open the panel. I kept pushing it off. Yesterday Xuân told me the static had gone. It had, indeed, gone. I supposed it fixed itself. I hope that would be the case with the alarm and the AC.

Ever since we moved into our house, I never gave a thought about winterizing our spigots because I had no idea I need to do that. Last winter, I didn’t even disconnect the hose from the spigot. When we were driving back from skiing on a snowy day, my wife told me about it, she made me worried. I was praying the pipes wouldn’t bust. I disconnected the hose from the spigot the next day. Fortunately, we didn’t have any issue and I started looking into winterizing out spigots.

A few weeks ago, my mother-in-law noticed that the spigot in front of the house started to leak. Although tightened up the screw stopped the leak, it was time to replace the old spigots with the hose bibb round wheel handles with the ball valves. I called my handyman Ricardo.

I watched him replacing the spigots and learned so I could be more confidence if I have to replace them on my own. When he cut up the ceiling for the back spigot, we discovered a shut-off valve to winterize the spigot. I asked him to replace the valve as well. Even though we didn’t discover a shut-off valve for the front spigot, I asked him to put one in as well just to make sure we won’t have any issue in the winter.

While I had him in the house on Monday, I asked him to replace the shut-off valves for the kitchen faucet. I could have replaced them myself, but I rather had the professional taking care of them for now. He recommended Sharkbite technology for the plumbing works even though he could also do the soldering. I now have a peace of mind knowing where all the pipes are and how to fix them.

Here are the products we used:

• 2 American Valve 1/2-in FNPT Brass Quarter Turn Sillcock ($10)
• 2 SharkBite Brass 1/2-in Push-to-connect x 1/2-in Push-to-connect Ball Valve ($25)
• 1/2 in. Compression Inlet x 3/8 in. Compression Outlet 1/4-Turn Angle Valve ($10)
• SharkBite Brass 1/2-in Compression x 3/8-in OD Compression Quarter Turn Dual Outlet Valve ($17)

The labor was $400. He also fixed the leaking PVC pipe that drains from our half bath. I forgot what the part called.

Last Saturday, the alarm from our 2011 Toyota Sienna went off at 7 pm, 12 am, and 3 am. I lost my sleep and decided to find a fix for it. I searched up YouTube and found this video, which seemed to have similar issue with a 2011 Toyota Sienna. The sensor right underneath the hood latch was clogged up; therefore, it triggered the alarm. The fix was to clean the latch.

Products:

• Engine Degreaser: $5
• Brake Cleaner: $5

I cleaned the latch on Sunday morning. The alarm hasn’t gone off since. I hope that did it.

Last year I bought a pair of used Head skis for $50 and spent $75 on tuning. I also had to wait for a week for the service. With 6 of us skiing in the upcoming season, the tune-up alone will be expensive. I decided to take the matter into my own hands.

I am putting together a ski-tuning station in our basement since my wife bought the Demon Complete Basic Tune Kit. I had the table setup and bought a pair of WSD Tuning Vise. Of course, I learn tuning from watching YouTube videos. The guy from Adventure School gives enough details in his three-part series: sharping the edges, repairing the base, and waxing.

I am working on four pairs at a time. I am in the middle of fixing the base, but I ran out of Ptex candle. I ordered some more to continue the job. Scraping off the Ptex with a razor blade worked really well in addition to the stainless scraper, which should be used first than the razor blade.

I can’t wait to get to the waxing part. We are still looking into buying a pair of skis for Xuân and a snowboard for Đán.

Parts:

• Demon Complete Basic Tune Kit ($80)
• WSD Tuning Vise ($40)
• Ski & Snowboard P-TEX Base Repair Kit ($15)

I am transitioning the lawn-mowing responsibility over to Đạo now that he is 13. Two weeks ago, he did a decent job for the first time. Today he hit the curb and bent one of the blades. I tried to straighten it back, but it was impossible. I even took off the blades, but I couldn’t hammer it back either. I had to get two new blades.

While I had the blades removed, I might as well give the lawn mower a tune up. Other than changing the oil every year or two, I haven’t done anything to the lawn mower ever since I bought it about ten years ago. The Honda engine is unbelievably reliable. I bought it used from my brother-in-law after my brand new Troy-Built broke down after three or four years. My brother is allergic to grass; therefore, he couldn’t use it.

Ever since I took over, today is the first time that I gave it a tune up. I replaced the blades, the spark plug, the air filter, as well as the oil. The tune up was not that difficult at all. I just had to buy the socket to remove the spark plug. I also cleaned up all the dirt and debris. Now the machine works so darn good. I should have done these tune ups regularly.

I haven’t done anything to the mower because I was expecting it to die any day now, but the Honda engine is just so darn good. I looked at a brand new one for $600. It’s expensive, but it is definitely worth the investment if you are looking into buying one.

Parts for tune up:

• Honda HRR Blade Set ($40)
• Honda 2 Pack Genuine Spark Plug ($8)
• Honda Air Filter ($7)
• Honda 08213-10W30 Oil – 12 oz (2 Pack) ($17)

Replacing the water heater has been on my mind for about a year now. I don’t want it to bottom out and flood our basement. A few months ago, I asked around for a few quotes and the price range was between $4,000 to $6,000. Thirteen years ago, I had a water heater replacement for $600 or $800. I can’t remember the exact number, but $4,000 to $6,000 is a bit too much.

When Ricardo came by last Wednesday to fix the dripping pipes, I asked him about our water heater. He told me it still looks good. A water heater could last 20 to 30 years, but if I wanted a peace of mind, he can replace it for me. I just need to buy the tank and he only charges the installation. I also asked him about flushing it, but he said it is OK since our water heater is electric.

After thirteen years, I finally flushed our water heater. I didn’t even know about it until recently when my brother-in-law casually mentioned to me and I started to look into it. This morning, I decided give it a shot after watching this helpful YouTube video from AmplifyDIY. I followed his steps closely and I flushed it about six or seven times. I saw rust coming out of the pipe as I drained the water. I wonder if it should be replaced. I’ll call more companies for estimates.

While waiting for the water to drain, I came across The Grumpy Plumber who suggests that we should not have to flush our water heater. If I came across this video before I started the job, I would have just said, “Fuck it, let’s just leave it the way it is after thirteen years.” The process was actually quite simple to do. I might as well just do it every year to maintain its lifespan. Yes, another job added to the growing list of owning a house.