Goodbye Friend

A couple days ago I talked about the torrential rains that struck Louisville and my mom's car was stranded in a flooded parking garage. It is true that it was my mom's car, but it actually used to be my car.

It was 2001 when I bought my first car. I remember it being a cold night right before Christmas when the dealership gave me the keys to the 1992 Volvo 240. It wasn't anything fancy, but it was still an upgrade for me and I was ecstatic about my purchase. I was a waitress at the time and worked hard every month to pay over and above what the minimum monthly payment was until it was entirely paid off. It was a pretty smooth ride the first few years, but then it started to break down and it felt like we were constantly having it worked on. Eventually the air conditioner went out, the stereo no longer worked, part of the trim fell off the door, and the bumper started to droop down on one side. What was my pride and joy was quickly becoming a piece of junk.

In April of 2008 my mom and I were in a roll over accident in her car which was then totaled and she was left with nothing. By that time I was no longer driving the Volvo so I gave it to her. It wasn't the most regal ride, but it was a way to get from A to B. So for the past year and a half she has driven it. Then today my mom got a phone call from the mechanic giving the official report that the old Volvo 240 was dead and gone for good. Cause of death; drowning in a natural disaster. They said it can't even be used for parts due to all of the water damage. We expected to hear that, but it was still kind of a Marley and Me moment. I think this quote by John Grogan taken from the end of the book sums it up:

“You know all that stuff we’ve always said about you?” I whispered. “What a total pain you are? Don’t believe it. Don’t believe it for a minute, Marley.” He needed to know that, and something more, too. There was something I had never told him, that no one ever had. I wanted him to hear it before he went.
“Marley,” I said. “You are a great dog.”"


The same goes for the old Volvo, we might not have always said it, but it was a great car.



The photo above is of the old Volvo and that is a friend of ours that is leaning against it.