MONDAY

'Better come back in one piece. I'm not trying to build a puzzle. Too much work', I heard my son say as I left this morning.

The mobile car guy never showed up. He ghosted me. Again. I contacted him last Tuesday to come out for a fan sound I heard coming from the engine. It's not one I have heard before, and I wanted him to see what was wrong.

He informed me that he wouldn't be able to make it on Wednesday, due to his kid's soccer game. On Thursday morning, I texted him to see if he would be able to make it, and if not, to let me know of a shop he recommends. He informed me he would not be able to make it on Thursday, but recommended Dave's Ultimate Automotive and the shop where he works. I then asked when he would next be available. His response was '...sometime this weekend'.

Well, that 'sometime this weekend' never came about. I texted him Friday evening. No response. I texted once more on Sunday, shortly before noon, when he finally replied that he's doing his best and will text me 'as soon as I'm finished'. That was the last time I heard from him. My final attempt at any sort of communication was Sunday evening when I texted: 'Do you have an ETA?'

And that was that. No response. Nothing. He simply ghosted me. Which is what brought me to my leaving early this morning. For an appointment at Dave's Ultimate Automotive shop to see what the issue was, once more, with my car.

I arrived earlier than my 8,00 appointment, explained the issues, and handed over the key to my minivan. I explained that I did not have a ride and would wait. He informed me that they had a loaner car and returned with the key to a Honda Accord.

As I sat in the car, I was taken aback at how low the seat was positioned. I was not used the such a low viewpoint after having driven the minivan for most of the past 20 years. But, I made it 'back in one piece'.

Today was the final day of the children's five-day weekend. I had promised to take them out for coffee at Runaway Luna in Bee Cave, even though I vowed never to return there. I texted my younger daughter to ask if she was still interested in going. She was. My son got ready and we went with the loaner car to pick up my daughter.

Once we arrived at the coffee shop, we were reminded why we stopped going.

'Prices at Luna make you really run away', I heard my daughter say as she browsed the menu. I was amused at the play on words of their name. But truly, the prices seemed even more outrageous than the last time we were there. After deciding to sit outside, we walked up to the counter to see which sweets we would want.

'How much for the scone', I asked.

'$9.50', the young girl replied as I repeated the price and stared in disbelief. She went on the explain that it was a special Australian scone. To me, it looked like a simple cranberry scone.

After going through the few offerings they had displayed, we settled on a chocolate croissant for my son and a lemon loaf for my daughter. I ordered a small cappuccino for my son and a large one for me and my daughter to share, as $7.00 for a large cappuccino was an unbelievable price, though only a dollar more than the smaller one.

We enjoyed the warm autumn air and talked about our move. My daughter would most likely wait until after she graduated high school, as it didn't make much sense to start at a new school as a senior halfway through the year. But my son and I would return for her graduation and to hopefully get our belongings out of storage.

After our last visit to Runaway Luna - for real this time - we walked around some of the shops before driving all the way back to Austin to go to Costco and then to drop off my daughter back at her father's house.

Though the weekend did not go as planned, we made the best of the situation.

But still no update about our minivan.