Day 137 - 1993 Saab (Tow and Throw?)

This may be premature, but my little car broke down today and I think it might be finished.  I had a lousy day at school, then play practice just made me anxious because opening night is just over a week away and students are still using their scripts as crutches (!!!), and then, driving home around 5:30 pm, my car radio stopped working.  The one thing that still functioned on that car!  But that was just foreshadowing.  The "Check Gear Box" light came on and I just wasn't getting any acceleration.  I was just about to pull over and restart the car (which has "solved" the problem in the past) when the car decided to beat me to the punch.  Fortunately, we were able to coast onto a long gravel driveway and out of the way of traffic.

Melissa had to come get us.  The car would only make a strange clicking sound when I turned the key.  We tried jumping it - knowing it was a slim hope that there was only a problem with the battery - but it didn't make one volt of a difference.

I've spent most of the evening alternately stewing and living in denial.  You can ask Melissa - I was not much fun to be around.  I'm feeling paralyzed regarding what to do next.  For a year now I have been anticipating that car giving up the ghost - I figured it was just waiting until the most unopportune time.  (It hates me.)  I have been dealing with its rough running mainly by pretending it wasn't that bad. 

Now I think it really might be dead. 

From the Drama Queen (age 8) and Dats (age 9) in the backseat came a suggestion that was already in my mind:  "Hey, Daddy, is this going to be your Throw of the day?"  Maybe so.

But what if it's not quite dead?  What if a couple of hundred dollars will get it back on the road strong enough to last another year or so until we're ready to move to Haiti?  On the other hand, what if I take it to a mechanic and spend several hundred just to get an estimate in the thousands?  I only paid $2,000 for it and it's already had its fair share of expensive repairs.  Should I just send it to the junkyard and see if I can get a couple hundred out of it to put towards some other junker? 

I guess that's the direction I'm currently leaning, but like I said, I feel a bit paralyzed about making the wrong decision.  We can't really afford a thousand dollar mistake.  I need to go to bed, pray about it, and maybe it will be clearer in the morning.


There it sits.  I was tempted to push it another quarter mile to the river.  Dats reminded me to take a picture of it for the blog, and I just happened to have my camera along, so I did.  Don't let its looks fool you - it's a junker!