ROAD TRIP TO BUFFALO FOR ROLLERMATICS ENDS IN DISASTER!

[whirlcool]

Did you figure out why the washer exited the back of the truck?
That's the first thing to do. Then you will know that it won't happen again to you.

If that were me, I'd still be on the side of the road jumping up and down in pain! I'd feel sick for weeks to come.

But accidents do happen and hopefully this won't happen again and you can go back to collecting again with a happy heart.

Dropping a stove on a cop car? I'd imagine that the cop was really mad!

On the freeways around here, someone once dropped a 12' ladder on the road right in front of me. I swerved, but still hit the corner of it tearing up a tire. I was lucky.

I have seen sofas, refrigerators, chains of all kinds, chairs, and even a dryer once in the middle of the freeway here. Kinda makes you wonder how that happened? Oh and yes, I did see an 18 wheeler once hit a sofa at near full speed. The sofa exploded!

 

[kic]

WoW!?!

a sad thread to read. all the wonderful, obvious and sometimes confusing..."Soberleaf" is not hard to see the significance to the meaning of two words that fit together hand in hand as if they were meant to be one. I imagined you had this name long before becoming a member here. Please be careful. I am a recovering addict myself. I am 25 yrs old and was horribly addicted to crack/cocaine by age 14 and not a rebellious schoolboy either i mean everyday hardcore!! i left school in std5 and the rest is just one long binge for many years that ended tragically.i am clean 3 years and still feel i dont belong/fit into socially, but you have so much more recovery than me so many years to be proud of. why let this get you down? sometimes i say to myself "is this it"? "is this what regular living feels like'? do you perhaps feel like that and by getting this machine took the feeling away until the worst happened and it manifested into how you feel right now? all I say is don't let the addict take control by manipulating yourself or finding excuses... im sure you know what you really should be doing. maybe you have i don't know but if you have not then do it.
Louis, KIC

 

[combo52]

We learn from each other

Frigidare solid tub washers are very top heavy if you can not tie them down very well its better to lay them down no need for any one else to have this type of loss in the fruture some could have been killed

 

[runematic]

I've dropped, scratched, damaged, destroyed accidentally more things than I care to remember. When we bought our building a few years ago, we moved a lot of our antique cast iron stoves to one of the floors from our basement at home. Well, I dropped a rare (1850's-ish rare) crown piece at the top of the stairs and watched it break into piece after piece as it hit each step on it's way back down from whence it came. I know I'll never find another piece like it. Yeah well. What are you going to do. What's done is done. It's now in the past and on it's way to being a funny memory/story for you to tell, AND LAUGH ABOUT. Don't beat yourself up over what's done. Life's to short to beat yourself up like this. Sulk for a day and move on and enjoy the rest of the collection that you didn't f-up yet (JUST KIDDING! LAUGH LAUGH LAUGH & YOU'LL FEEL BETTER!!)

 

[frigilux]

Oh god, my heart breaks for you, Soberleaf! As much as we love washers around here, and as much bad as you must feel, it was only a thing. An object. There are other Rollermatics out there, and you'll get one! You'll have an extra one for parts, to boot.

 

[runematic]

Peter, I just wated to add....Just think, you made all the other turquiose rollermatics more valuable! One less one in good shape out there! Runs & ducks...lol. It'll only get better from here

 

[rapunzel]

I, too, felt like reaching for the sick bag when I saw those pics. What a dreadful disappointment and such a beautiful machine too. Though, as everyone has already pointed out, you were very lucky. If I believed in angels I would say that someone was looking out for you. It could have ended so much worse. They say that we learn from our mistakes - but sometimes we really don't need the lesson. I guess you were so over the moon about your trip that you let your guard down. It happens to all of us and then life slaps us back to reality. After all it was only a machine. Now that you've analysed and understood where you went wrong, this sort of thing will never happen to you again. There are people out there who don't have your level of insight, so you are very fortunate. Now it's time to move on and live your life to the fullest - be happy and find yourself another rollermatic. And you are not your own worst enemy, but human like everyone else.

Good luck!

rapunzel

 

[jdinstl]

Peter...

...please add my condolences to those of the others. Indeed, to see the pictures are heartbreaking.

But even more heartbreaking is to see you beating yourself up so. You say that this sight is for preservationists and that you don't deserve to be here. But the depth of emotion that you feel over this shows that you are EXACTLY WHERE YOU NEED TO BE and that's RIGHT HERE ON AW!!!!

You've shut your other machines away, and have this one displayed as a monument for which to punish yourself. But that's not fair to you -- or to the machines. The others exist, and exist as a statement of your passion for preservation, fine workmanship, and for a time when the words "quality" in an advertisement could be trusted.

Break this fellow down for parts. Straighten anything that can be straightened, preserve and save what can be preserved and saved. This cannot possibly be the last rollermatic in existence.

I think everyone who cares about this old stuff has a disaster/horror story. You, and the others have spoken about yours. I'm sure there are many others who whispered to themselves "been there done that" or so forth. In this hobby, these things are going to happen. And there's always the learning curve, be it how to repair something, how to take out a dent, how to polish something, how to fix a timer, fix a motor, transmission, what have you.

Because I live in an apartment, my collection is limited to small appliances. More than one has kissed the bottom of the dumpster because I botched. More than one has become a "donor machine" stripped for parts.

You now have a "war story." When you find another rollermatic, and I bet over time you will, this will become a part of its history. Folks will compliment you on your restore and you will answer "You wouldn't believe how this came about...I had one before, and was bringing it home..." And because of that, you'll appreciate your appliances and your work even more.

No more beating yourself up, ok? Break this guy down for parts, save every possible thing you can. Bring your other appliances back out of the spare bedroom and return them to their rightful places. Right now, you are understandably focused on your part in this -- but the appliances have a "dog in the fight" as well. Actually, when it comes right down to it, all that we do is really about the appliances, not about us.

All the best,

John

 

[jdinstl]

"Even a gold plated washer is still just a washer"

Somebody actually said this?

*GASP*

I'm gonna faint!

HERETIC!

 

[soberleaf]

THANKS, THANKS, THANKS!!!

can't believe all the wonderful notes and good words of wisdom given to me here and sent to me in personal e mails! i am overwhelmed! all i can say if that i am very thankful to you all for caring enough and i am out of my joan crawford mode! it's done! can't change it! gotta get on with things here!

i did a seperate post of thanks here as well!

you're all wonderful

pete

 

[autowasherfreak]

It's a tragedy that this had to happen to you. I know I would feel same way. I hope you have better luck in the future.