More Than Money

Daphne took a "thank you" picture of Charlotte holding some presents that she received from our friends Rob and Nichole who live in Sioux Falls, SD. We had to leave town before they got off work that day, so we couldn't open our presents in person. Our car broke down on the highway about 30 minutes later, and this is the last picture I will have of Char in our RAV4.

We had the car towed to a Toyota dealership in Sioux City for an inspection. Apparently a rod broke in the engine and that did enough damage to ruin the motor. We could replace the engine with a used one, but the price of that repair is well above the car's value. It's time to let the RAV go.

This car did give us our money's worth. The RAV is a 2008, and we bought it used in 2009. Back then the model was so popular that you couldn't throw a stick into a parking lot without hitting a red RAV4. I drove it for years without a major repair or a car payment. 

Still, it makes me sad. I've got more than money invested in this car.

Charlotte was born in August of 2010, and the RAV brought her home safely from the hospital. 

I vividly remember putting Char's baby-seat in the back seat for the first time. Daphne and I were so nervous that she wouldn't be secure. I drove five miles under the speed limit and did my best to avoid every bump in the road. My speed slowed even more when we passed the Drake University campus. There were people everywhere as parents helped their kids carry stuff from their cars to the dorms.  I said to Daph, "Look, they're dropping off their babies while we're bringing ours home."

Five years later, the RAV helped mark Char's growth with her first booster seat.

She climbed into the RAV's backseat without a boost three years after that.

Char graduated to the RAV's front seat last year.

This is some rough math, but if you figure there's 180 days in a school year, then I have driven Char to daycare or school over 2000 times. That's a lot of daddy-daughter stories, singing, songs, and laughing in one space. 

I had the dad-idea that the RAV would also be Char's first car to drive, but that opportunity is going to someone else. One of the mechanics at the dealership is interested in fixing the RAV for his son. We made a deal over the phone, and he's going to mail me a check, the plates, and the odds and ends left in the car. I'll mail him the title in return. 

Daphne noticed that the check for the RAV will match the costs of the taxi ride and the rental car that we needed to get back to Des Moines. 

In a way, the RAV brought Charlotte home safely one last time. 

It's All About the End

We drove to Sioux Falls, SD to visit my mother last week. On the way home, despite two major repars this year, the oil light on our RAV4 came on. I quickly pulled over and shut off the car. The high that day was 25 degrees. I tuned to Daphne and said quietly, "We're screwed."

We called AAA, but the calling traffic was high, and we kept getting disconnected. Then we had to wait 15-20 minutes again to talk to someone. It also took awhile for the AAA operators to agree that we actually were where Daphne told them. Apparently AAA 's tech does not use Google Maps. The traffic outside the car was also busy. It's unnerving when your car rocks back and forth from the force of the semi trucks that blast past you. 

Two vehicles from AAA arrived three hours later. One tow truck took the RAV to a Toyota dealership in Sioux City. Because of COVID, we were not allowed to ride in the tow truck with our car. The other truck drove us nine miles to a truck stop near Vermillion, SD. The young truck driver told us three times, "Boss says to drop you off here at the Coffee Cup. You'll have to arrange transportation for yourself." Then he drove off. It was 2:00 pm. 

Walking around the inside of a truck stop without having a car on the outside is a very uncomfortable experience.

We downloaded the apps for Uber and Lyft, but nothing seemed to be available. Vermillion didn't have a car rental business, but Daphne discovered that they did have a taxi service. Daphne is a better thinker than I am in situations like this. She was able to get a hold of a taxi driver who was on a job 30 minutes away, and they agreed to come and get us. The car rental places in Sioux City were empty because of the holidays, but Daphne found a car that we could rent at the Sioux City airport. It was now 3:00 pm. 

We had to get to the airport before they closed at 5:00. We also had to get to the dealership by 6:00 if we wanted to get our belongings out of the RAV. All we could do was wait for the taxi and pray that we could get home safely.

While Daphne was making phone calls, I asked Charlotte if she was getting hungry? She replied, "Yes! I'm starved!" My heart sank. Char hadn't complained once about being stuck in the car, and she didn't admit to being hungry until I asked. As we walked the isles looking for something for her to eat, Char wondered if I was also going to get something? I said, "I don't think so, honey. I'm just too nervous to eat right now."

That's when Charlotte looked up at me and said, "Dad, this is all going to work out in the end. We're just not at the end, yet." How's that for a zen moment? I smiled and gave her a side hug. 

Char was right. With God's help, it did all work out. The dog-sitter could keep Ellie for one more night. The taxi brought us to the airport with time to spare. There was a car to rent. The the RAV was towed to the right place. We were on the road by 4:45. I parked the rental in our garage at 7:50. 

We had not even been gone for 36 hours, but it felt so good to finally be home.

Good to be Home

"Here in my car
I feel safest of all"
      - “Cars" by Gary Numan

We got the RAV back from the body shop last night, and it looks pretty good.

New tires and various repairs cost us a bit last summer, so we were glad the RAV wasn't totaled. With a little luck, knock on hood, I'll be driving this car for a few more years.

I'm not the only one who is happy to have the RAV back in the garage. Char celebrated the RAV's return by running around the living room with her hands in the air yelling, "Whoooo hoooo! We got our old car back!"

Charlotte detested the Ford Focus that we rented (trying to be a one-car family lasted one day). The cramped back seat didn't recline, and the car sat too low for her see much outside. I was able to get her booster seat clipped in, but for the life of me I couldn't get the seat belt to buckle in the correct receiver. We had to awkwardly connect to the receiver on the other side of the car. Getting her in and out was a pain for both of us.

Before we left home this morning, Daphne watched Charlotte smile and affectionately place her hand on the RAV's hood. On the drive to school I asked Charlotte how it felt to ride in our old car again. She leaned forward, gave me a thumbs-up, and returned to her reclined position.

It feels good to be home.

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