Birthday Do-Over
So my birthday wish is to have a do-over. I want to pick a different day and make it better than today. Oh, it was special alright!
It wasn’t an overly exceptional day to start. I stayed up all night working on a paper for my CS Lewis class on the problem of pain, specifically evaluating the statement "Pain is good." Its not the best way to spend a day, but I’m capable and strove forward. This evening I went to the other side of town for dinner at a friend’s house. She had bought delicious cake and we had a lovely time. The drive home is about 20 minutes where I had another CS Lewis book and paper waiting for me, along with a hungry kitty.
Just as I reached the edge of the college campus (still 8 miles from home), a little warning light appeared on my dashboard. I felt a change in the steering wheel, and looked closer as the traffic paused at a stoplight. It was the battery light. I may be car illiterate but I knew enough to know that was bad. There was a Firestone just beyond the campus. If I could get the car down there, I would leave it there for the night and figure out a way home. I had enough friends and family in the area, that couldn’t be too difficult. The next morning I could take the bus from my apartment up to the Firestone and figure out the whole mess. So I had a plan.
The traffic light turned green and I pressed the accelerator. My car casually rolled forward, clearly under no power of the engine. I began to panic. If I couldn’t reach the Firestone, I had to at least get my car off the highway. Desperate to reach the college entrance just ahead, I pressed a little harder and felt the car begin to move a bit faster. It was barely 50 yards to the turn lane, but as I turned into the lane I realized what the change in my steering wheel had been. Ever tried to drive without power steering? What about making a 90-degree turn? Afraid I wouldn’t get any more momentum, I grazed the brake as I wrenched the steering wheel first right on the campus and then a hard left into a parking lot and parking space. Actually into three parking spaces. More lights on my dash had appeared and my car began to shudder. I quickly threw her into park and turned off the ignition. The pain in my shoulder was sharper at this point and I broke down. This is my birthday! I called my mother, who was at choir practice, and listened to the choir sing to me. We made a plan and I was able to calm down.
A few phone calls later placed my car on the disabled list with campus security to prevent a ticket and secured a ride home from the friend I had just had dinner with. It was considerably cold outside and the car was providing limited protection. I walked over to the library, only realizing once I got inside how cold I really had been. The joints in my hands are still stiff. Thankfully, my friend’s husband is out of town visiting his family. She offered me the use of his van until he returned Sunday night. So tomorrow I’ll call Triple A and have my car towed to the Firestone down the street. From there, I have no idea. I have no idea what might be the problem or how much it might end up costing. This may be the death knoll of my baby girl.