Hibiscus

Three blooms on my red hibiscus today! I am hoping I can overwinter this one and that it will bloom again next summer.

Ongoing truck problems - Almost 2 years ago I had the truck in for an oil change at one of the drive thru places, they told me I had an oil leak. A couple of months later I took it to the place I had been using for repairs, they told me there was no oil leak but the oil filter was crooked. Three months later I go back again, tell them the spot in my driveway is getting bigger. That time they told me I had a leak around the valve seal covers. They were supposed to give me a quote, but never did until I called them a couple of months later. I had decided it was time to move on and find a new mechanic. Around the same time someone posted in a FB group asking for recommendations for a mechanic that did not see $$ signs when a woman walks into the shop. I took it to one of the places that was mentioned. They confirmed it was a leak around the valve seal covers and in January 2025 I had them do the repairs. By April I noticed the oil continued to leak. I took the truck back to the shop, they looked at it, told me the oil leak was around the head and that possibly it was cracked. They suggested another shop for me to go to since they did not have the proper tools to fix it.  With my busy season starting I have not had time to get it to another shop. I have been topping up the oil when needed. Last week I stopped at a shop near where I live, asked them to check the oil and top it up for me. He asked when I had my last oil change and I told him what had been happening. The other shop did not do an oil change in April because of the oil leak. I booked an oil change for today, and asked for their opinion on the oil leak. They say it is leaking around a valve seal cover, and they said that the place that did it, did not do a very good job ensuring there were no more leaks. So tomorrow I get to have a talk with the place that did the job, and see if they will do it again, no charge. Plus they will have to cover the cost of a truck rental for a day or 2, whatever is needed for them to do the job. Or I can get someone else to do it, but they still need to cover the costs.

In other news, of course my students will be going back to school soon, leaving me only with Albert and a couple of part time workers. This afternoon I had 2 phone calls from people looking for work. Both had been referred by friends. Both are available 5 days a week and can work thru till the end of the season. So I will hire both of them. Plus Bishnu knows people and all I have to do is let him know what days I need extra people. Someone up there is looking out for me.