Approaching 100,000 Miles...

My Car that is, the Neon my parents bought me as an early high school graduation present is going to roll the big 100K - The Neon and I have been thru A LOT - we've lived in different cities, we've driven to different jobs, and different boys houses.. ha - It no longer has air conditioning, the "check engine light" is permanently on, when it rains I get puddles on the passenger side floor from a mysterious leak that we cannot find, and the hum of the engine buzz's loudly even with the radio turned up, because of course half the speakers are blown.. I got that car in May 2002 and it had 80 miles on it, 80! I remember thinking I had never seen a car with less than 10k, and I remember the road I was on when I rolled 10,000 miles - I remember how jealous all my friends were because I got a brand new car, and I remember the reason I got a brand new car is because the week that my parents finally agreed I needed a safe ride to get me to Fremont where I was working and taking college classes, was the same week my Mom saw a special on 20/20 that said people are hiding drugs in used cars and then the owner of the used car gets charged for the drugs even tho they had no idea they were there... so my dear Mother decided I could not afford a drug charge and she wanted to buy new.. a Neon? Well, my sister drove a neon when she was in high school and she rolled it (no surprise, my sister rolled or totalled several cars in her day and it's a Givens curse to roll a car when you are 16) but anyway, she rolled the neon and didn't get hurt so my Mother concluded it must be a safe car.. My Dad? Well he knew they were cheap, and because he picked his battles with Mom, he chose not to pick this one. When we went to look at the dealership, there were three neons, it was really a goldielocks situation, there was the Neon I wanted it was white with a sun roof, spoiler, rims, 6 disc CD changer, automatic windows, locks, the works... and then.. there was the neon Dad wanted, it was ugly tan with hubcaps, it had crank windows, and a tape player... luckily as Dad and I glared at each other across the car dealers parking lot, each standing by our respective cars.. the saleswoman sensed a battle and steered us over to the middle of the line Neon- it had a spoiler and rims, it had automatic windows and locks but only in the front, the back was crank, it had a CD player and it was a shiny gray blue color... and lucky for me it was closer to the price range that Dad had set in his mind- Of course he was still going to haggle this poor saleswoman, he laughed as he did it too because he loved the game of negotiation. He stood up ready to walk out of her office at least twice until she came down on this price, and this fee, and anything else he could argue her on. I also could barely stay in my seat only because I was soo excited to have my very own brand new car! My perfect little blue Neon the keys sat on the desk that seperated Dad and I from the saleswoman, just sparkled in my eyes, it even had a remote to lock and unlock! Now, you have to understand what I drove for practically 4 years before the Neon came into my life- although I had some deep emotional connections with this previous vehicle and there are days I wish it was still around, it was definately the complete opposite of the Neon..

My Little Black 4 wheel drive ford ranger, with tires that were so big they would rub on the wheel well if I turned to sharp, it had a silver roll bar that I spray painted because I didn't like the rust teal that it had been previously. It had a great stereo in it and even subs- it's previous owner (my big brother) had "pimped" this truck to be a total dude mobile- however, it fit my tom boy personality and after I painted the roll bars and added some girly items that hung from the rearview mirror, I was satisfied that this truck, my first vehicle ever could take me to the end of the earth and it would get me there in style with good music. I got that truck because I was almost 14 and would be able to get my school permit and because my brother at the age of 25, needed money but rather than my parents just giving it to him they asked if they could buy the truck for more than it was probably worth. Jarad and I still joke that that truck was the reason he fell in love with me- I had to hop in and out of it as it was to tall for just a normal step, so imagine a 14 year old neighbor girl, with old cut off jean shorts and a tank top hopping out of a little but very tall truck coming over to hang out with the new neighbor boys... Oh and I must not forget to mention that it was a manual, a stick shift and even I knew that the fact that a chic was driving a manual was very impressive to Jarad...it might as well be a country song but when it was happening, I never thought anything of it, I never thought Jarad thought of me as anything more than a friend who tried her best to look out for him. The story of Jarad and I could take over anything I write but this time I'll try to get back on track.... So I had a beefy little truck that I had a lot of fun in, and was great for getting to school in the snow and/or getting stuck in the mud on the minimum maintenence road.. but it wasn't so safe for going 60 on Highway 30 every afternoon. Thus, we sold the truck and went Neon shopping...

So after test driving the Neon with my Dad and the Saleswoman, and then listening to my Dad finagal the price down, he had to go back to work and Mom came in to complete the paperwork, It felt like we were there the entire day but when I look back it may not have been that long, it just felt like it because I wanted that car, I wanted the pedal under my feet and I really wanted to show all my girlfriends! Although while we sat in the office it felt like the moment would never come.. it finally did - My Mom handed me the keys and said you better be careful and wear your seatbelt...

I climbed in and went straight to Audio Video, I had to show my brother and I had to get a stereo system put in it! He oohhed over it as much as any big brother would, especially since it was a Neon, he didn't have much enthusiasm but did get excited about selling me a stereo- I left the papermats in the car for at least the first couple of weeks, and I wouldn't let any of my friends eat or drink in the car... I became the typical "new car snob" but eventually that wore off, over the years my brother put subs, a new cd player, and a remote start in my car- he offered to do blue underglow lights but something about the lights and a neon didn't seem right to me, so I opted for the remote start instead, he also tinted my windows for me- I left my car at his shop for two days after I got my wisdom teeth pulled and Mom drove me home, when I came back to pick it up the windows were tinted.. it was one of the sweetest things my big brother ever did for me, and of course he brushed it off like it was nothing, but I'll never forget it. Although the car had its fair share of "upgrades" it also had it's fair share of problems- I hit a deer in it, which managed to break one of my fog lights and the front grill.. the deer of course ran off with what I imagine is only a scratch because there was a tuft of deer hair stuck in grill... Also there have been random engine problems, mostly because I let my cousin drive it and he hit what he thinks was a giant piece of tire, while he was going 65 on the interstate, this apparently busted the engine mount and god knows what else, I've had numerous flat tires on the Neon and every time I've been fortunate enough to have kind people, including cops, random strangers, and my best friends come to my rescue to help me change it. While I was in college it got Keyed, and then the house I lived in in Omaha had narrow garage doors and I was not able to back out of it without either scratching the car on something in the garage or catching the side mirror which is now busted to pieces but still sort of usable on one half of it.

The neon has transported a lot of things, people, and animals- Chloe has made the back seat her own.. I don't know if it's possible to actually ever remove all of the dog hair from back there... I've moved almost entire apartments in the Neon, packing it from floor to ceiling including the passenger seat with everything I own, at one point in my life even a Great Dane shared the backseat with Chloe, how they both fit I never quite knew but somehow they made it. When people say they are "living out of their car" I grasp that term quite well, when I was making the drive to Fremont every afternoon, I would have everything I needed for the entire day and evening, clothes, food, drinks, I never knew what I was going to do after work or after class or who I would see, or if we would go to the lakes, or to a movie, I didn't know if I might end up staying the night somewhere and need extra clothes the next day.. yes indeed- I lived out of that car for quite a while.. It may seem weird that I'm so nostalgic about what is now basically a crappy car but it's gotten me thru quite a bit, I'll be sad for a moment when I finally get rid of it.......

I say for a moment because at least hopefully my future car will have Air Conditioning!

I'd like to dedicate this blog to everyone who currently has or ever had a crappy car that got them thru the glory days, hate to see them go but love to watch them leave...