I was driving Sunday, enjoying the sunny skies and listening to Ryan Adams when my car started to wobble. At first, I thought it was just the wind tugging my vehicle back and forth across the road. But then I was hit with that feeling of dread -- I had a flat tire.
There's not really any good spot to pull over on Interstate 20, but I found a little cubby and parked. I did what any hometown girl would do in case of an emergency and called my brother. Chris, familiar with my damsel in distress routine, seemed a little irritated but hurried over to fix my flat.
I have to admit, I know there are nuts to unscrew and a jack you have to lift your car up with, but beyond that I'm just left scratching my head. I had to retrieve the instruction book just to find the tools. Then there's the whole issue of what you do once you've found them. I consider myself to be extremely independent, but when it comes to fixing tires or moving furniture I'm helpless. I figure this is why I was blessed with two brothers and no sisters.
Now, $440 and four new tires later I'm a little bitter about life's unpredictable moments. I don't know about you guys, but I'm not really at the point in my life where giving up $440 doesn't sting just a little bit, especially around the holidays. Looks like I better find a good recipe for fruit cake.
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5 comments:
Oh my GAWD! There's nothing that pains me more than having to shell out hundreds of dollars for tires or any car-related issue. Especially those sudden repairs that come out of nowhere that you didn't even know you needed when you took your car to the dealership for a routine oil change! Argggh!
I'm so glad I'm not the only one! My boyfriend routinely gives me crap about not being able to change a tire. He tried to teach me once, but I'm not sure how much of it stuck.
Invest in some kind of roadside assistance like AAA
http://www.ouraaa.com/memberserv/index.html
For one person, it costs no more than $50 a year and it's worth the peace of mind, especially if you are travelling and brother may be hundreds of miles away.
I've been lucky in that I've always broken down on a major interstate. Shreveport is one of the few cities that has free motorist assistance program offered through the Department of Transportation. But, they only patrol the major interstates.
We should take a tire-changing class.
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