Good Grief, John Boy - Part Seven
Long before I'd even heard about Earl Hamner, Jr's magnum opus, The Homecoming, I started having problems with my car.
There was a sort of scraping (or screeching or scritching, whatever) coming from the front, right tire at regular intervals - kind of like "skree, skree, skree, skree ..." It would start when I turned to the left and would then continue. At first it was intermittent ... then not. For a while I could make it stop by lightly pumping my breaks ... then not. I tried the time-honored tactic of Ignoring it/Wishing it would go away. That didn't work. I tried wishing for the Fix-It Fairies to magically come in the night and repair it for free. I left them offerings of cookies, old AAA Trip Tics and 30 weight, you know, like you're supposed to. They didn't come, but my neighbor's broken lawn mower magically started working again. Goddamn Fix-It Fairies.
Finally I gave in and called the mechanic. What was the soonest I could bring my car in on a Monday and wait there while it got fixed? (I was calling in the first week of November.) "The 21st." Sigh. It had finally happened. It was easier to see a doctor than the mechanic.
But it was okay. I mean, Charlottesville's a small town. It's not like right then I needed my car for long trips or anything.
So Boomie calls me and asks me what I'm doing. Negotiations ensue, and I, as you know, tell her about my car. It's good for driving around town I'm pretty sure (re: I have no idea but I sure as Hell hope so/I never leave home without my cell phone and AAA card and only go back and forth to work and the grocery store.) but I don't want to risk it on a highway drive to Nelson County. So Boomie hooks me up with Gregg, who's playing Clay Boy, Sr. and who also lives in town. For my first couple of rehearsals, I'm getting rides there and back again from him.
Finally, the 21st rolls around, and I take my car in. The guys at the dealership say that what I've been hearing is a Break Pad Indicator and that my front and back breaks on the right side need to be changed. I think, this doesn't sound like any indicator I've heard. It's more like a "I'm Broke-acator." But I have an annoying passive streak, and they seemed pretty sure about what they were saying. Plus, thankfully, they weren't charging an arm and a leg. (Now, the several thousand mile overhaul that they also recommended is an arm and a leg so that will have to wait until the new year.) I agreed. They fixed. I paid. Goodbye screech (or scrape or scritch or whatever). Finally I can drive my own car to Nelson County, just in time for a rehearsal that night and the final dress (with me in a safety pinned black cloth) on Wednesday. Tomorrow would be opening night and the beginning of our two week run.
So on a chilly Thursday morning, I put my shoes (I'd promised Boomie shoes) and my dark red plaid shirt into my car; picked out the CDs for the trip there and the trip back (Before These Crowded Streets, The Dave Matthews Band - Quadrophenia, The Who); and I headed off to work, a little cold, slightly curious about what tonight's costume would be, and grateful to have once again a working vehicle.
So the City towed my car.
There was a sort of scraping (or screeching or scritching, whatever) coming from the front, right tire at regular intervals - kind of like "skree, skree, skree, skree ..." It would start when I turned to the left and would then continue. At first it was intermittent ... then not. For a while I could make it stop by lightly pumping my breaks ... then not. I tried the time-honored tactic of Ignoring it/Wishing it would go away. That didn't work. I tried wishing for the Fix-It Fairies to magically come in the night and repair it for free. I left them offerings of cookies, old AAA Trip Tics and 30 weight, you know, like you're supposed to. They didn't come, but my neighbor's broken lawn mower magically started working again. Goddamn Fix-It Fairies.
Finally I gave in and called the mechanic. What was the soonest I could bring my car in on a Monday and wait there while it got fixed? (I was calling in the first week of November.) "The 21st." Sigh. It had finally happened. It was easier to see a doctor than the mechanic.
But it was okay. I mean, Charlottesville's a small town. It's not like right then I needed my car for long trips or anything.
So Boomie calls me and asks me what I'm doing. Negotiations ensue, and I, as you know, tell her about my car. It's good for driving around town I'm pretty sure (re: I have no idea but I sure as Hell hope so/I never leave home without my cell phone and AAA card and only go back and forth to work and the grocery store.) but I don't want to risk it on a highway drive to Nelson County. So Boomie hooks me up with Gregg, who's playing Clay Boy, Sr. and who also lives in town. For my first couple of rehearsals, I'm getting rides there and back again from him.
Finally, the 21st rolls around, and I take my car in. The guys at the dealership say that what I've been hearing is a Break Pad Indicator and that my front and back breaks on the right side need to be changed. I think, this doesn't sound like any indicator I've heard. It's more like a "I'm Broke-acator." But I have an annoying passive streak, and they seemed pretty sure about what they were saying. Plus, thankfully, they weren't charging an arm and a leg. (Now, the several thousand mile overhaul that they also recommended is an arm and a leg so that will have to wait until the new year.) I agreed. They fixed. I paid. Goodbye screech (or scrape or scritch or whatever). Finally I can drive my own car to Nelson County, just in time for a rehearsal that night and the final dress (with me in a safety pinned black cloth) on Wednesday. Tomorrow would be opening night and the beginning of our two week run.
So on a chilly Thursday morning, I put my shoes (I'd promised Boomie shoes) and my dark red plaid shirt into my car; picked out the CDs for the trip there and the trip back (Before These Crowded Streets, The Dave Matthews Band - Quadrophenia, The Who); and I headed off to work, a little cold, slightly curious about what tonight's costume would be, and grateful to have once again a working vehicle.
So the City towed my car.
posted by - caj at 10:17 PM
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