Almost 9 years later, my friends still ask me, "When are you getting a new car?" Gee, I dunno, I sure like paying $43 for my license tabs---as opposed to the $800 a year my friend the Lexus owner pays. And the car loan payments ... oh that's right, I don't have any. Plus, it seems like such a waste to get rid of a generally quite serviceable mode of transport.
Amarilla has a very fine row of three dents on her. One day my friend asked, "Oh, what happened? It looks like you got into an accident." I said, "No, I've had these dents--I just washed my car, so now you can see them." But ya know, I figure, Aww Amarilla will only last another couple of months--it's not worth washing or fixing her dents. Just like I haven't gotten around to fixing the leaks. I have a leak on the passenger side that makes a nice puddle where your feet rest. And there's one on the driver side---that just drips on the left side of my left ankle and on the instep of my right foot.
I've had a few things replaced in my Dart over the years: an alternator, a new battery, a battery cable, some wiring, a circuit board, etc. But the repairs have never cost me more than $150.
There are benefits to driving Amarilla. I can find her quickly in a parking lot. (Have you noticed that there are not many yellow cars?) People can spot me in a parking lot (or on the highway). They toot at me, but their cars all look the same to me, so I can't tell who's tooting. Amarilla has a trunk large enough to fit an entire basketball team. (Okay, maybe a kids' basketball team.) No one is interested in breaking in to or stealing Amarilla. And when Amarilla gets in an accident, or a fight with other cars, she always survives intact. So far she has been rear-ended by a Subaru---the Subaru was totalled. And at 3:30 one morning, a very fresh drunk-driving Prelude plowed her up onto a sidewalk from behind. The Prelude was a crumpled heap.
In fact, the main problem with Amarilla is that she's kind of an eyesore, and doesn't really promote my highly sleek incredibly sexy successful urban professional image. But as I pass those people in their swanky sport utility vehicles or BMWs, it occurs to me that driving Amarilla makes me an individual. And I kind of like that. As one friend said many years ago, "You drive an old Dodge Dart---that's almost so nerdy, it's hip."