My 1998 Jeep
Yesterday as my husband was leaving for work he handed me a notification and told me the deadline for our vehicle inspection was that very day. It was nearly 10 o’clock and I had an 11 o’clock appointment, but I grabbed my diaper bag and started to get ready when my husband kindly reminded me that our jeep doesn’t have a back seat, which meant I could not take my son along for the ride.
“OK, no problem,” I told him. I know he’s been under a lot of pressure with his job and his business lately. As luck would have it the baby sitter was coming to watch my son and I already planned to have her stay an extra hour after my massage appointment, just in case things ran a little long. So after my massage I’d drive over to the vehicle inspection site. No problem.
After a relaxing 80 minute massage, (seriously my therapist is amazing), I felt calm and happy. I jumped into the jeep and drove the fifteen minutes to the inspection station. I checked the clock and realized I’d have just enough time to get the car inspected and return home to relieve the baby sitter.
As I pulled up to the station I saw only one car in front of me. Perfect. It wouldn’t take any time at all. And just then it happened. The temperature gauge on my 1998 jeep jumped to red, a tiny alarm began to ding and smoke began billowing out of the front of my vehicle. Part of me began to panic as I watched the smoke build and part of me couldn’t help but chuckle. What are the odds that the car would overheat at the vehicle inspection place.
Four attendants came running out of the station to inform me that I could not have my jeep inspected. My first thought was “seriously, you think you have to tell me that,” but instead I calmly asked if I could receive an extension for the inspection since it couldn’t be done that day. I went inside, answered some questions and walked out with a new deadline of Christmas day.
Then I emailed my husband who promptly told me to call AAA. My father has been purchasing a AAA membership for me since I turned sixteen. The first car he bought for me was constantly breaking down on the side of the road, so it was really a necessity. Over the years I’ve used my membership less than a handful of times, but since my dad insists on paying for it, I can’t argue with free.
For those of you who think it’s odd that my dad still pays for this I kind of agree. I’ve told him more times than I can count that I could pay for it myself, but he likes the idea of taking care of me during an emergency. I think that’s pretty sweet, so I let him pay for it for me.
Luckily the tow truck arrived quickly. In case you are interested I asked what it would have cost without AAA. The driver told me there is usually a $75 hookup fee plus $3 for every mile.
Later that night when my husband came home he told me he considered buying flowers for me. He was worried that I would be mad about the late notice he gave me, the fact that the car overheated, that I wasn’t able to get it inspected and that I had to be towed to the mechanic and picked up by my father-in-law.
But I wasn’t mad at all. The massage probably put me in a calmer, more relaxed frame of mind, but sometimes these things happen. Given the circumstances it actually worked out rather well. I got the extension, the tow truck came quickly and my father-in-law was able to give me a ride home.
I could have chosen to be grumpy about the circumstances, but what would I have gained by those thoughts? Nothing but bitterness and negativity.