Dear Prudence Can't Come Out to Play Anymore
This is the time of year that EVERYONE and their brother's girlfriend's roommate's hairdresser is putting together their "Year in Reviews." It's that special time of the year when people reflect on the events of the last year in an attempt to make sense of the passing year and to garner the strength to face a new one. If I were to reflect on this year, I'm not quite sure what kind of review I would provide. I would have to say that it has been a roller coaster ride. I know by now that life is full of ups and downs. I have had my share of ups, but I have had plenty of downs-and I have desperately tried not to puke during those descents down the rickety wooden rollercoaster tracks of my life.
To sum of this year I would have to say that if I were to every marry again, or rewind my life and choose another spouse, I would seriously consider marrying an auto mechanic. No offense, sweetie. 2005 will be known as the official Year of the Car Problems for me. If I added up how much money I put into both my and my husband's car I could have paid a car off by now (hyperbole, yes). Not to mention the total and complete aggravation of getting stuck, stranded and broke down. The year started with major head gasket leaking in January, transmission work in February, a $700 brake job in August, a couple of new batteries, and a series of electrical problems that manifested in the ignition switch that ended up costing about $650 to resolve after all was said and done. I have to confess though that both of our cars are old and have high milage (180,000 7 years old and 171,000 and 13 years old. So it became quite apparent that it was time for a change when my transmission blew out again last week and was going to cost at least $1500 to get it fixed.
Ok, after this unfortunate turn of events, I started to think that my blog was being read by the Karmic Society who decided to dole a little just desserts to me for being so flippant about feng shui in my last post. Here I was marvelling about my stroke of good fortune after hanging a crystal and feeling rather complacent and smug about the whole thing. So when faced with this transmission dilemma last week, I was ready to check out of this crazy life and bury my head in the sand- ostrich-style. But instead, I decided to look for the silver lining and make some lemonade and whatever other cliche type activity that would help be out of this jam. And I bought a new car! Well it's not brand new, but it's new to me. And I do love it! It's got a warranty!!! I do love it! And a CD player-no more cassette tapes for me. Woo Hoo!
But I have to say that I'm sure gonna miss that old car of mine. We had a lot of memories together. Getting stuck in the mud at Shakori Hills and being pushed out by a group of muddy boys. Campouts in the mountains. Road trips. The travels, the miles, the places we traversed. You were always there helping me to get from point A to point B and all points in between. It was rather sad getting my license plate and emptying out all the junk that had accumulated in my back seat. I bought her just before my daughter was born in 1998 and she was like a part of the family.
So goodbye Dear Prudence may you rest in peace you the greatest Grand Am of all ! Oh yeah, we name our cars. My husband's first car was a Mercury Monarch and it was named Bertha. Our Ford Ranger pickup truck with camper shell on the back was Bessie Mae. When we got the Grand Am we thought about what name we wanted to give this new hunk of metal. We decided on Dear Prudence. We were making a prudent decision in buying this car that would allow a car seat to safely fit. And we are avid Beatles fans, so it just stuck. Now, I guess I have to come up with a new name for my new car.
Other than car issues, this year did have some other bad spots. My good friend with two young children was diagnosed with colon cancer in June. She seems to be holding up and only has 4 more treatment to get through. That was a blow. So you see, my car issues pale in comparison to the obstacle she is having to hurdle. In my moments of despair this year, I think of her and her strength in getting through this.
The best thing about this year was that I did buy a house, which is an accomplishment I have waited quite some time to get to. So, all in all I have to remember that I am blessed. There are others who are suffering far worse predicaments than car problems.
Keeping things in perspective is what has saved my sanity...
"I WILL GET BY, I WILL SURVIVE" (Hunter/Garcia)
To sum of this year I would have to say that if I were to every marry again, or rewind my life and choose another spouse, I would seriously consider marrying an auto mechanic. No offense, sweetie. 2005 will be known as the official Year of the Car Problems for me. If I added up how much money I put into both my and my husband's car I could have paid a car off by now (hyperbole, yes). Not to mention the total and complete aggravation of getting stuck, stranded and broke down. The year started with major head gasket leaking in January, transmission work in February, a $700 brake job in August, a couple of new batteries, and a series of electrical problems that manifested in the ignition switch that ended up costing about $650 to resolve after all was said and done. I have to confess though that both of our cars are old and have high milage (180,000 7 years old and 171,000 and 13 years old. So it became quite apparent that it was time for a change when my transmission blew out again last week and was going to cost at least $1500 to get it fixed.
Ok, after this unfortunate turn of events, I started to think that my blog was being read by the Karmic Society who decided to dole a little just desserts to me for being so flippant about feng shui in my last post. Here I was marvelling about my stroke of good fortune after hanging a crystal and feeling rather complacent and smug about the whole thing. So when faced with this transmission dilemma last week, I was ready to check out of this crazy life and bury my head in the sand- ostrich-style. But instead, I decided to look for the silver lining and make some lemonade and whatever other cliche type activity that would help be out of this jam. And I bought a new car! Well it's not brand new, but it's new to me. And I do love it! It's got a warranty!!! I do love it! And a CD player-no more cassette tapes for me. Woo Hoo!
But I have to say that I'm sure gonna miss that old car of mine. We had a lot of memories together. Getting stuck in the mud at Shakori Hills and being pushed out by a group of muddy boys. Campouts in the mountains. Road trips. The travels, the miles, the places we traversed. You were always there helping me to get from point A to point B and all points in between. It was rather sad getting my license plate and emptying out all the junk that had accumulated in my back seat. I bought her just before my daughter was born in 1998 and she was like a part of the family.
So goodbye Dear Prudence may you rest in peace you the greatest Grand Am of all ! Oh yeah, we name our cars. My husband's first car was a Mercury Monarch and it was named Bertha. Our Ford Ranger pickup truck with camper shell on the back was Bessie Mae. When we got the Grand Am we thought about what name we wanted to give this new hunk of metal. We decided on Dear Prudence. We were making a prudent decision in buying this car that would allow a car seat to safely fit. And we are avid Beatles fans, so it just stuck. Now, I guess I have to come up with a new name for my new car.
Other than car issues, this year did have some other bad spots. My good friend with two young children was diagnosed with colon cancer in June. She seems to be holding up and only has 4 more treatment to get through. That was a blow. So you see, my car issues pale in comparison to the obstacle she is having to hurdle. In my moments of despair this year, I think of her and her strength in getting through this.
The best thing about this year was that I did buy a house, which is an accomplishment I have waited quite some time to get to. So, all in all I have to remember that I am blessed. There are others who are suffering far worse predicaments than car problems.
Keeping things in perspective is what has saved my sanity...
"I WILL GET BY, I WILL SURVIVE" (Hunter/Garcia)
posted by amyd | 9:00 PM
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