subject: Stranded on the Road [print this page] Stranded on the Road Stranded on the Road
Driving a car is easy. You read up a little on how to drive the actual car, witness your parents doing it for years and then take and successfully pass your road test and you're on your way right? Well, it is often that easy for many of us, but what we are often unprepared for is the inevitability that we will one day break down, or that something will happen to our car on the road that will leave us temporarily stranded as we try to contact someone to help us out.
When I went home to visit family a few months ago, I was staying at my parents' house and was laying down in my bedroom watching television. Suddenly, my phone rang and before I even answered it, I knew that it was my mother by the ring tone. She was at work and was scheduled to get home late, so I wondered what was wrong. When I spoke to her, she said that she was in the parking lot of her work place, stranded. She had been in the middle of backing out of a parking space when her car battery just died. I quickly threw on my jacket and some shoes so that I could go and be with her at her job. The last thing that you want is to be stranded outside in the cold as a lone female, waiting for Triple A to come.
It turned out that when I had arrived, she was already being tended to by a couple of guys who worked with her at her job. However, they were unsuccessful in getting her car to start. My mother had no expertise knowledge on how cars work and did not know how to jump start her car or anything. We waited a few minutes before Triple A arrived and recharged her battery. Still, it doesn't change the fact that whenever you have car troubles, it can really come as a blow. I couldn't help but think of what would have happened if she had been driving on a major highway through an area that she was unfamiliar with. How long would she have had to wait by herself before help arrived? I shuddered at the thought and quickly placed it out of my mind.
In my mother's case, she simply likes to drive cars; she doesn't dabble in the things that can go wrong with them such as flat tires, dead batteries, etc. In her case, signing up with Triple A was a smart thing. However, for the rest of us, whenever you purchase a new car, try to make an effort to read through the owner's manual. It may just save you the hassle and frustration of having to wait for someone to come by and help you get on your way. Also, keep an extra hand written list, or memorize the phone numbers of a few key people so that you know who to call in the case of an emergency.
