Is Hitchhiking Illegal?

Published on Thursday, March 8, 2012 by Katherine

13 Comments ↓

 

It was initially supposed to be a four-dollar fix.  Or it would have been for anyone else in this world.  But this is me.  Remember… Shoot Me Now?

This is how it went down:

• “Katherine, your left headlight is broken.”
• I go to the auto supply store during lunch.  I tell the gentleman my make and model. He provides me with a new headlight.  I put it in the front seat and drive back to work.  This was the $4.00 part.
• I open my hood in the parking garage at work.  I remove the old headlight.  Being careful not to touch the new bulb, I attempt to install it.  And try again.  And again.  I compare the two and realize the gentleman gave me the wrong bulb.
• After work I fly back to the store and make it ten minutes before they close.  “Oh, I gave you the wrong bulb?”  He hands me the correct bulb and follows me out, locking the shop door before getting in his own car.  I lift the hood and put in the new bulb.  I turn on my headlights.  The left one is still out.  I lower my head as the employee drives away.
• The next day I decided to take the bulb out of the right one and place it in the left, making sure the left headlight plug actually works.  I reach down, pull the lever for my hood and … <silence>.
• I reach down; pull the lever for my hood and … <silence>.
• I reach down; pull the lever for my hood and … <silence>.
• Bottom line, my hood latch has broken.
• Adding insult to injury, I reached for my car’s manual, flipped to the headlight page and discovered the second bulb the man gave me was also the wrong kind.  If he had given me the correct bulb at least once, I would have two headlights.  Bad luck not only once, but twice.

This leaves me with the following:

1.  One headlight.  $4.00
2. A car in desperate need of an oil change, with no way to open the hood to do it.  $40.00
3. A hood latch that needs replacement. $350.00
4. Brakes that need repair.  My Nissan Quest goes through four sets of brakes every-single-year. $200.00  LOW BALLED.
5. Two tires that need to be replaced.$250.00 LOW BALLED

The kicker?  My car is due for inspection by the end of this month.  Yup, you added it up right.  It will cost me $900 to $1,000 to fix my car before it is due for inspection.  And you guessed right when you assumed I don’t have $1,000 to fix my car before the end of March.

How much have I saved?  $160.  Yea, I know… I’m rolling in it!

I’ve actually thought about how I can get along without a car.  We have a light rail next to my house that stops directly in front of my work.  Of course, this would leave my 11-year-old daughter walking alone for several miles to school and back across dangerous traffic and panhandlers.  Scratch that!

Perhaps I can grow wings and fly.  In fact, when I think about this entire situation, I begin to fantasize that I can indeed grow wings and fly away where no one will ever find me.  Except for the kids.  They will ride shotgun.

People, I am ready to just give up.

What do you do when you feel completely helpless?  When you work as hard as you can, only to find yourself drowning over and over and over again?  What do you do when you are ready to simply call it quits?