Jul 7, 2006

ode to a 94 tracer...

Our car has decided to total itself. One of the cylinders dropped right into the engine, breaking a piston on the way, leaving metal shavings inside the engine....

the long and short of it: the engine block needs replacing. Which means rebuilding the entire engine. Which means 2500 minimum. Which means we're done...

I paid 2400 for that car two years ago.

And a wonderful two years it has been. That car has been my knight in green-blue shiny sheet metal. When I bought it, it smelled like the sweet dry grasses of my hometown... and I bought it from a good friend of my grandpa, who had lovingly maintained it all the years he owned it.

I dated skywalker while driving this vehicle. We took it on our honeymoon. I started a new life with this vehicle two years ago, when I got my job after graduating school, and became an adult officially.

Skywalker and I had expected to have this vehicle for another 5-10 years at least...

but things just happen.

I was actually very sad yesterday, somewhat unnaccountably considering the fact that this is a car we are talking about, not a family member. But we're donating it to charity, and so my consolation is that it will be put to the best use possible.

Still I can't help feeling that I am betraying it by giving up on it... kind of like my family had to put our great dane to sleep before its time because it swallowed a sock and the surgery was going to run 3,000-- more than my parents were willing or able to pay. Why is that?

Well, moving on, moving up... I guess our next stop is a (ugh) mini-van. But until then, it's back to the red intrepid for us... we're gonna run that thing into the ground and i will have NO regrets about that. Evil red intrepid.

just kidding. Cars aren't people.

3 comments:

Joy said...

I scraped up the bumper of my car a week ago. Nothing major, but I was sad. We get attached to those autos. Either to the money investment or because of the role cars play in our lives? I'm not sure.

Unknown said...

Yeah... I think it's the role, for this one.

ANd also, we had just spent $500 in maintenance so that we could safely take it on this trip. So the money investment was part of the sadness too. Probably most of skywalker's sadness was for this reason... he doesn't have the amazing tracer memories I have ;)

BD said...

Cars decide at the worst times...