There are not many things in this world that stress me out more than my current car.
Right now, I drive a tiny 2002 Saturn that I named Stella after the All Time Low song of the same name.
I have been driving this car since I first got my license three years ago and I am lucky that I haven’t had too many problems with it up until recently.
Now, I cannot really be mad at this car at all due to the fact that I have quite literally driven it into the ground.
I have put over 50,000 miles on it throughout the three years I have owned it.
So in reality, I cannot be upset that the car is starting to give me more problems than it used to.
It really didn’t start to give me big issues until over this summer.
One of the worst experiences I have ever gone through with my car would be when my fiancé, Josh, and I were celebrating my birthday by visiting a mall in Ohio and my car’s brake lines stopped working.
I had never felt more stranded in my entire life.
My parents could not come help us because they live in Pittsburgh and I do not have any family where we were living.
We were in a mall parking lot about a half hour away from our house with no help.
In the end, we were able to get the car towed home and the tow truck driver took a very emotional me and a defeated Josh back home.
It was easily the most stuck and alone I have ever felt.
I was able to get the car fixed in time to come back to Gannon, but since then, I have been absolutely terrified of my car.
Driving it any more than to the grocery store makes me feel sick and I honestly don’t think I’m overreacting.
Since coming back to school, my car has been out of commission more than it has been running.
If it’s not one issue, it’s another. It seems to just never end.
I have reached a point where I despise having to go start my car because I am always convinced it will just give up.
This is extremely scary to me considering I will be graduating soon.
I rely on my car so much for my freedom. It is how I get around.
I cannot imagine graduating and having no way to travel on my own.
I also cannot even allow myself to think about how difficult finding a job after graduation would be without my car.
These are all worries that come into my head each time I turn the key to try to start the car, so I feel as though my anxieties are valid.
Until my car started to give me bigger problems, I never realized how much I actually depend on it.
I absolutely love my car, but at this point, it causes me so much stress that I can barely focus on anything else.
I am just hoping that my car will continue to chug on throughout the end of this semester and make it until I can find a stable job that will allow me to buy something more reliable.
Until then, I will just hope and pray that I don’t get stranded in Ohio again any time soon.
HARLEE BOEHM
