Never. Again.

*Flops in* Ow. My everything hurts.

Next time, I'll just SAVE UP the darn $1500 to pay for having my transmission fixed instead of doing it myself.

Four days. And it rained the past two.

Finally done (though I have to take my truck in to a muffler shop to have them realign the exhaust, since we didn't have the tools for it), but seriously, NEVER AGAIN.

My father used to believe that cars and trucks break down on purpose just because they like to see us suffer and hear us curse.

I'm starting to agree with him.

Look on the bright side.

You accomplished something that most (to include myself) wouldn't have a clue how or where to begin.

My stepdad helped (and occasionally my uncle, when we needed a third pair of hands), but yeah, it was mostly just me and my stepdad. And I spent $500 on a new transmission, we just had to change it out (I say 'just', but we had to take off the drive shaft, cross section of the frame, and exhaust to do it).

There's a reason that my everything hurts. The cross section was a PAIN to get back in, the frame had popped back in and my stepdad had to borrow a hydraulic spreader from his work to push it apart.

But yes. NEVER. AGAIN.

And isn't amazing how when you crawl under vehicles they always seem to have a little bit of rust or some dried mud to drop down into your face whenever you have to look up?

Oh yes. And all sorts of other oils and fluids, too.

Transmission fluid EVERYWHERE. And that stuff STINKS, if you've ever had to smell it. I'm kinda glad it rained (even if it's freaking cold), at least it washed away some of the smell.

Oooh, yes, transmission fluid. The capillary action is so high that it "crawls" everywhere. It almost takes steel wool to get it out of your hands.

One of my favorites was when I was helping my father work on a car and a wrench somehow slipped and busted a brake line, dumping brake fluid in his face. I learned a couple of new cusswords that day.

I spent 5 years in the navy (as an engineer, which is how I'm able to work on my truck). I already know all of the cusswords.

And they all got used over the course of these four days. Thankfully my truck runs now, that's about the only good thing I can say. Work is NOT going to be fun tomorrow.