Sunday column: Car troubles

Despite the ever-increasing cost of gas, I know there are many people out there who will refuse to sacrifice their summer vacations this year. If you’ve got your heart set on the sugar white beaches of Florida, the mountains of Tennessee or the water parks of Texas, don’t give it up without a fight. Here’s a tip: Spend a little less on your vacation wardrobe and pack an ice chest of food so you won’t have to eat out for every meal, that way you can still afford the trip you’ve been anticipating.
Heaven knows I’ve gone to some great lengths just so I can leave the familiar sights and sounds of home in the dust for a week or so. Sometimes, you just need to get out of town, and nothing is going to stop you.
While you may think that nothing can stop you, actually, there is one small detail that must work in your favor in order to take a successful vacation. That would be your car. If you car can’t make it to the beach, neither can you. I’m speaking from experience here.
For some reason, despite the fact that my dad is Mr. Fix-It, in the relatively short amount of time that I’ve been driving I seem to have had more vehicle mishaps than the average driver.
It’s not that I’m an unsafe driver, mind you, I’m just an unlucky driver. Allow me to illustrate my point.
A few years ago, my best friend and I planned a much-deserved trip to Gulf Shores, Ala. We had it all figured out: She’d fly into Lafayette (where I was living) from Chicago (where she was living) and the next day, we’d load up my car and head for the beach. Simple enough, right? Maybe not.
She made it safely to Lafayette, and we decided to swing by Target to pick up a few last-minute necessities (margarita mix, sunscreen, snacks, etc.) We were in my car, sunroof open, radio up, cruising down the road when all of a sudden, my car lurches and smoke starts billowing out from underneath the hood. I notice my engine temperature gauge is deep in the red — not a good sign.
I managed to pull into a parking lot and call AAA. An hour later, a tow truck arrives and I watch with a heavy heart as my car is hooked up. After dropping it off at a repair shop, which was closed, my friend and I look at each other and wonder, “OK, now what?”
Since we were both determined to get to the beach, the only logical thing to do was to rent a car. We took a cab to the airport, which was the only place in town that was still renting cars at that late hour.
Bright and early the next morning, we head back to the repair shop to find out the diagnosis.
“Ma'am, you’ve got a hole in your radiator,” the repairman said, dryly.
“How long will it take to fix it?” I asked, feverishly trying to calculate repair time, drive time and hotel check-in time in my head.
Let’s just say his response was not to my satisfaction. There was no way my car would be fixed in time for us to make it to the beach.
All we could do was load up the rental car and come to terms with the fact that our credit card debt would be higher than we’d planned, because nothing was going to stop us from getting to the beach.
In the end, it was a fantastic vacation, and I guess the whole radiator debacle gives the story a little more drama. But, I definitely could have lived without it.
On a different vacation, I managed to have bad car luck even when I wasn’t even driving my car (go figure).
Some friends and I packed into a Jeep Cherokee (not mine) for a road trip from Louisiana to Colorado. I left my car safely parked in my parents’ driveway for the duration of the trip. Or, so I thought.
My younger brother somehow got his hands on my keys (thanks Mom and Dad) and took my car out for a drive. I was relaxing in a mountain-top cabin in Colorado when my cell phone rings and my dad says, “Emily, I’ve got something to tell you.”
My brother had wrecked my car. And this was no fender-bender, it was an honest-to-goodness wreck, on the interstate. Thankfully, there were no serious injuries, but my car was in bad shape.
You know, I still haven’t figured out a way to get my brother back for that one ...
Between those two major mishaps, there have been various and sundry other breakdowns, accidents and inconveniences. At this point, I figure all I can do about it is try to remain calm, and never go anywhere without my trusty AAA card.