(no subject)
So... today was shitty.
I've taken it to Canadian Tire twice now. First was to replace the fan belt. Second was to replace the battery and alternator because of a faulty fanbelt.
It's been squeaking for a while now because the fanbelt is slipping. I planned on taking it to the Mazda Dealership tomorrow and getting it fixed, hoping they'll do it right once and for all. The car had other plans though.
Today on the drive to work, I noticed it was squeaking a bit more than usual. I was a little worried. It has only been less than a month since I got it fixed a second time. I was hoping I had more time before the car actually died (like it has before). All of a sudden, the battery indicator light turned on. I got a little worried. I didn't want it to stall like last time. I decided that I'll drive to work, and if anything, I could leave the car there overnight.
About 5 minutes away from work, I noticed the thermostat gauge needle was hovering past "H." Seconds later the check engine indicator turned on. I was stuck in traffic on Dunsmuir and Howe and I was panicking a bit. I didn't want it to stall in the middle of a downtown road. I had to get to work in 10 minutes. I really don't want to pay another $75 for a tow truck. I realized the lane to my right was clear and I could drive ahead and maybe bypass whatever was slowing the middle lane down. From the back of my mind I remembered that I had just passed a red light. And I looked at my rearview and no cars were coming. So I turned my signal on and started switching to the right-hand lane.
Then, a flash of blue! I see a car come up seemingly from out of nowhere and I panic again and even though everything felt like it was happening in slow motion, I couldn't break not steer away fast enough.
I hit the car.
I can see the girl in the blue car in shock and freaking out. She wasn't happy. Understandable, but it's me who has more to worry about. She moves her car to the side and doesn't give me enough room to maneouvre my car parallel to the sidewalk so I'm there blocking whoever's behind me. She gets out and talks to a couple in the car in front of me and gets their information. I grab the black notebook in my bag that Katie gave me and my pen and my driver's license. I stand outside my car and wait til she's done writing down the couple's information. Then she turns to me and asks for mine.
I'm pretty much in shock as all this is playing out. I barely say anything, save correcting what she wrote down when she didn't notice the address amendment sticker on my license.
I just remember her saying, "So do you have insurance to deal with all this?" in grinding condescension. Bitch. Of course I do. I'm sure she knew, she was from BC too. I felt like smacking my notebook in her face. That would've felt amazing. I behaved, though, and just politely said, "Yeah of course." I got her information and went back to my car.
I called Katie informing her of the accident and that I might be a couple minutes late. The car drove fine and I made it to my parking spot. I texted Sean and Dante as well. Sean texted back and before I could reply, called me and asked if I was alright. Nice of him. Dante was asleep and didn't reply until much later.
I worked.
I looked at my car's engine and I think the fan belt is completely gone. Not that I know anything about cars, but I didn't see anything remotely fan belt-y. Of course, I didn't want to risk driving my car. I decided to leave it there overnight for now. Sean offered to give me a lift and I hesitantly accepted. I told him to meet me at Metrotown, I skytrained there. We hung out for a bit.
I don't know what to do now. I failed to mention that the girl drove an old Jaguar X16. Not sure if that makes it more expensive to fix or not. She has a ding and scratches. Minor body damage. I have a turn signal light dangling from the front of my car. Poor car.
I think I should just sell it. The car seems cursed. Use the money to pay off my debt. Find a place to move out of close to transit/work. Downtown preferably. I would definitely need a roommate though.
*Sigh* We shall see.
I've taken it to Canadian Tire twice now. First was to replace the fan belt. Second was to replace the battery and alternator because of a faulty fanbelt.
It's been squeaking for a while now because the fanbelt is slipping. I planned on taking it to the Mazda Dealership tomorrow and getting it fixed, hoping they'll do it right once and for all. The car had other plans though.
Today on the drive to work, I noticed it was squeaking a bit more than usual. I was a little worried. It has only been less than a month since I got it fixed a second time. I was hoping I had more time before the car actually died (like it has before). All of a sudden, the battery indicator light turned on. I got a little worried. I didn't want it to stall like last time. I decided that I'll drive to work, and if anything, I could leave the car there overnight.
About 5 minutes away from work, I noticed the thermostat gauge needle was hovering past "H." Seconds later the check engine indicator turned on. I was stuck in traffic on Dunsmuir and Howe and I was panicking a bit. I didn't want it to stall in the middle of a downtown road. I had to get to work in 10 minutes. I really don't want to pay another $75 for a tow truck. I realized the lane to my right was clear and I could drive ahead and maybe bypass whatever was slowing the middle lane down. From the back of my mind I remembered that I had just passed a red light. And I looked at my rearview and no cars were coming. So I turned my signal on and started switching to the right-hand lane.
Then, a flash of blue! I see a car come up seemingly from out of nowhere and I panic again and even though everything felt like it was happening in slow motion, I couldn't break not steer away fast enough.
I hit the car.
I can see the girl in the blue car in shock and freaking out. She wasn't happy. Understandable, but it's me who has more to worry about. She moves her car to the side and doesn't give me enough room to maneouvre my car parallel to the sidewalk so I'm there blocking whoever's behind me. She gets out and talks to a couple in the car in front of me and gets their information. I grab the black notebook in my bag that Katie gave me and my pen and my driver's license. I stand outside my car and wait til she's done writing down the couple's information. Then she turns to me and asks for mine.
I'm pretty much in shock as all this is playing out. I barely say anything, save correcting what she wrote down when she didn't notice the address amendment sticker on my license.
I just remember her saying, "So do you have insurance to deal with all this?" in grinding condescension. Bitch. Of course I do. I'm sure she knew, she was from BC too. I felt like smacking my notebook in her face. That would've felt amazing. I behaved, though, and just politely said, "Yeah of course." I got her information and went back to my car.
I called Katie informing her of the accident and that I might be a couple minutes late. The car drove fine and I made it to my parking spot. I texted Sean and Dante as well. Sean texted back and before I could reply, called me and asked if I was alright. Nice of him. Dante was asleep and didn't reply until much later.
I worked.
I looked at my car's engine and I think the fan belt is completely gone. Not that I know anything about cars, but I didn't see anything remotely fan belt-y. Of course, I didn't want to risk driving my car. I decided to leave it there overnight for now. Sean offered to give me a lift and I hesitantly accepted. I told him to meet me at Metrotown, I skytrained there. We hung out for a bit.
I don't know what to do now. I failed to mention that the girl drove an old Jaguar X16. Not sure if that makes it more expensive to fix or not. She has a ding and scratches. Minor body damage. I have a turn signal light dangling from the front of my car. Poor car.
I think I should just sell it. The car seems cursed. Use the money to pay off my debt. Find a place to move out of close to transit/work. Downtown preferably. I would definitely need a roommate though.
*Sigh* We shall see.