Karma?

Something bad happened today. I think I killed my truck. There has been a serious of cold days in which snow and ice has shut down the city for the most part. I rarely drive so when I did this morning I ran into a problem. It seems that the coolant froze and then leaked out. On top of that I drove 5 miles at 5 am until it decided to stop.

I was literally in the middle of an intersection. Something blew off the top of my engine. It was bad. There is no coolant in it. To make matters worse, I was in the middle of an intersection. So in my work attire, tie included, I began to push.

Just when I got it into a parking lot, I saw the sign: private parking. The sign clearly spelled out the fact that I would be towed. Considering leaving it there, as there was some ice on the ground and I was late to work, I saw a man in the window of the business. He started with a look of disapproval. I knew he would get me towed.

I called my roommate in distress. He was up and about to leave for work. He was not about to come tow my truck or even swing by. Where is help when you need it? Everyone else in the world was asleep. I tried a few people and then realized what I needed to do.

Reluctantly, I pushed the truck back into the street. My pants were ruined with grease and grime and I was breaking into a pretty good sweat despite the freezing temperature. I managed to move down the block and attempted to enter a pizza parlor parking lot. I figured the chance of getting towed here was minimal. The driveway was steep and an icy puddle stood at the bottom.

I made three attempts to get the truck in the lot. It was almost futile. A car pulled over and watched as I struggled. It was probable entertaining. I had no choice it was time to man up. As I pushed it backwards and then forward for momentum I nearly made it. And then another set of hands grabbed the tailgate.

It was the hand of God. He helped me push it. Well, not really. It was a scroungey looking construction worker in boots. He took pity on my bald white business attire and predicament. Up the truck went and into a curb. Crap. We backed it up and tried again. Whew.

I put the brake on. Adrenaline was flowing and my heart was racing. I left a note begging not to be towed and headed to the nearest bus stop. I had to take off my coat and try to cool down while piecing this altogether.

Is this a sign? Maybe my bad karma got me back. Or can this be something good? Everything happens for a reason. I have been talking about going car-less for quite a while now. This could be the tipping point. I have a bus pass; I usually ride a bus downtown to work anyway. I have been driving less than 500 miles a month so it sort of makes sense. I could save the hundred bucks I pay for insurance too.

Then there are other options. I could buy a car. I would rather not spend the money on it and I will not make payments. I still have my scooter as well. Since I am good with cars I could always rebuild the engine and keep driving it. So much work though. Maybe I will just buy a bike and toughen up.

I don’t need a car anyways. It will make life more interesting.