Isn't this flashy? Soon it will be slightly less so, when I replace the high-performance tires. It will be nice when the insurance company resolves the situation with the old car, which you can see in the picture.
Because most of my storytelling is out of town, having a reliable and efficient car is essential. I was fortunate to find this '98 Honda Civic EX the day after my accident last week (thanks, MLH). Today it's mine. It has 76,000 miles on it, so all things being equal, I should be able to keep this car for years. Keeping that in mind, I'm planning to replace the radio with a combination radio/CD player/satellite radio. My good friends J and D gave me Sirius radio for Christmas, and I'm quite addicted to about eight channels. Great for those long drives.
I had to clean out the Corolla. Oh, my. I think of my car as an extended purse. Cleaning the junk out of it was humbling. Do I really need five ice scrapers? Have I ever used that revolting blanket? Is it necessary to keep eight empty water bottles under the front seats? How many bandaids do I need in the glove compartment? How old is that sunblock, anyway?
Here are some essentials:
- mileage log and several pens
- small pad of paper
- extra harmonica
- kleenexes
- a few bandaids
- one, maybe two, ice scrapers
- hairbrush (stop that snickering--I do sometimes use it!)
- small-format local phone book
- US Atlas (nope, I don't have a GPS)
- Kansas City map
8 comments:
Hairbrush? I had no idea you'd ever owned one!
Is the springloaded Buddha moving to your new dashboard? What about the other doodads?
Hmmph. I've had a hairbrush for years, but the cowlicks make that not so obvious.
The Buddha had to come in and have a bath. He's much refreshed. Once I get some more mounting tape, he'll go to the new car.
Kwan Yin is sitting next to the radio, but that may change when I get the new one. I did hang the jade ornament and Turkish evil eye protector on the rearview mirror. I no longer have the collection of bendy animals on the dashboard (the bendy Cerberus has been sitting in my living room for a while).
Oh, and I left out ibuprofen on my list of essentials.
Yay! What a pretty car. Silver is a great color, too--doesn't show dirt quite as badly as a dark color.
You mean everyone doesn't carry a trenching tool in their car? Amazing. how do you dig stuff up (like sassafras and ramps) and dig snow out when you're stuck?
Trenching tool. Good idea. I forgot that in one bin of stuff in the trunk, I do have some work gloves, and the floor of the trunk is lined with a giant plastic sheet in case I need to bring home some firewood.
I also have a quart of oil and a funnel in a plastic bag, though I haven't needed extra oil in my car since the days of the Tercel, pre-2000.
This car is definitely very pretty! I think the silver makes it look very sleek and elegant. Did you in fact change out the tires? Did you get this car new or used? Lastly, do you still have it? I hope it has been very useful to you without giving you any trouble!
Four years later, I still have this car. It got new tires today, and is still driving well, though not with those same flashy wheels. I'm hoping for a few more years.
Hello, Priscilla. It feels great to still have this car, right? I really admire you for taking good care of it! Well, a car is good investment and nowadays, you cannot simply buy whenever you want to. You have to worked hard for it. So, you should really be in good shape all the time!
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