Stop with the brakes, already!

Garn!

That's probably enough to say, but I will go farther.

This weekend, I noticed that my front brakes were grinding, so I decided to change the pads (front) and shoes (back). Saturday morning I stopped by the parts store and got the parts, and then proceeded to my parents' house (since my Dad has a lifetime's worth of tools that I don't have). Well, the pads came off and went on very easily (I LOVE disc brakes). The shoes.... Well, I have a long-standing personal disagreement with drum brakes. See, I don't think they should exist any longer. Disc brakes are so much better, and easier to work on. SO. I changed the shoes on the driver's side; and, since I had been messing with the cylinder, bled the brake fluid a bit.

Let me interrupt myself to say that some people have commented that I don't know my own strength. My Wife has claimed that jars are easier to open when they are new compared to after I have closed them. My Brother has compared me to Lenny (_Of Mice and Men_). A smart Lenny, that is. I just think of myself as an average strength kind of guy. Doesn't everyone think of themselves as average, though? Well, I have a tendency to get ahold of the tools with the weakest metal, I think. I claim this because things tend to break in my hands. What is that all about? Ok, so I might have a little problem acknowledging my own strength. Now, back to our story....

Having bled the brakes, I proceeded to tighten the bleeder screw..., a bit too much. So, I sheared the bleeder screw off, flush with the back of the cylinder. Garn. The solution, of course, is to replace the screw. But first I had to get the old screw out of the cylinder. To do that, I had to go buy a tap. Well, after about an hour of trying, I broke the tap off in the screw. Double garn! I got a bit upset at this, and decided to go inside and have a rest and a can of Dr. Pepper. Sigh.... As I attempted to open the can, the opener tab broke off without opening the can. Garnity garn garn garn!! I give up. I put the tire back on, and decide to give it a try again tomorrow.
Sunday morning, I take the task back up again. The first thing I must do is remove the tire I put back on Saturday evening. And what to my wondering eyes should appear? No, not even a glimpse of reindeer. I sheared off one of the lug nuts. Garnity garning garn garn garn!!!

And that's it. That all I broke. The rest of it went very smoothly. Thank you.