Things tend to go badly for me. Not always, of course, but usually my luck doesn’t run so good. When I got into a car accident that ultimately totaled my car–a car that I loved–two weeks after replacing the water pump and 4 months after putting on new breaks, I thought it was more of that bad luck.
A little background for those who don’t know: I don’t actually like driving that much. I do it because I must, and I do it well. It’s everyone else on the road that’s terrifying. I am one of those cautious drivers who follows all the rules and doesn’t speed. Okay, sometimes I speed but never by much. And if I’m going somewhere with other people, I always get them to drive. But even though I don’t like driving so much, I love cars. Classics especially, but just cars in general. (And Chevys in particular. Pretty sure Chevy love is in my DNA. Or perhaps generational conditioning.)
Anyway, after my little Lola was deemed a total loss, and after we sorted out all that paperwork and I got the check and it cleared the bank…it was time to get a new car. So Saturday I took my sister and we went to look at cars. I knew what I wanted and how much I wanted to finance and for how long. And I was fairly certain we weren’t going to find that or it wasn’t going to work out (because my luck isn’t that good. And also I have generalized anxiety disorder so that makes me worry extra hard).
But the stars aligned. In a way they hardly ever do for me. The right car for the right price and low mileage. All the fancy amenities and perks she had were just a bonus. The right sales person who was full of stories and tattoos and LGTBQIA friendly. And the right time because they were able to give me same day delivery.
I went in at noon expecting to test drive a few cars and walk away with a better idea of what I wanted. I drove off the lot five and a half hours later in a 2020 Chevy Equinox that’s so fancy it makes my techy heart sing.
It wasn’t completely smooth sailing, as it took two trips home and back to the dealer for various things. But it wasn’t very far. And I had signed half the paperwork before I realized they had my middle initial wrong and they had to reprint all the paperwork.
She’s certainly not as gas efficient as my Sonic was. But she’ll be a heck of a lot better in Central New York winters, which was my big need when looking. The all wheel drive is a big plus. Plus there’s a lot of convenience features that just make driving nicer.
The automatic lift gate might be my favorite bonus, but there are a lot to choose from.
But when I say the stars aligned, I’m not kidding. It was a perfect storm of everything falling into place. I’ve probably used up all my good luck, but I’ll take it. Because now this chapter is done and I can put it behind me. And it’s a stressor gone from my life.
Kris T. Bethke--Author of M/M Romance 