Now Watch Me Whip

These past ten days of Thanksgiving break have been unbelievably great. The people I saw, the times I had, and the changes I went through were truly some to appreciate.

One particular event that happened to me over break was one of misfortune. I was driving back to Lima on state route 309, the dark plains of Hardin county were filled with deer and one found its way into the road and in front of my car. Seeing the deer, the only thing I could think to do was to speed up so the deer didn't ride up on my hood. I hit the deer and my car was pretty damaged. I managed to make it home with a headlight out and my horn honking the entire time, but still home in one piece. As for my car, it was not in one piece. The front bumper was hanging off, my airbags were deployed after impact, so my steering wheel was funky to drive with, and grill was cracked.

The Ford Explorer seen to the right is my first car.
 I always wanted to name my first car and in honor of my dad's service in the military, I named it 'Nam. I named it that because my dad was in Vietnam and it was his car before it was mine. Also, for those that know me, my car has been through Nam and back with how many problems and breakdowns its had. It always found a way to be fixed and come back to the road somehow. Now, after the deer made its fatal hit on 'Nam, it was time to come to terms that I had to give up my baby. I have had that car for so long and so many memories have been shared in that car, that if you were a part of them, you would understand why I had a legitimate tear come to my eye when we traded it in.

The old was past and the new was to come. Having a few days to reflect on my car, I had to choose what car I would get to replace my old one. I looked at some of the 10 and Under lots in Lima and found a few options I liked, but one in particular caught my eye. A 2005 Nissan Frontier. I wanted a truck and I wanted to have a 4 door truck so people could get in and out of the car freely instead of waiting on the front passengers.

On Friday the 27th, my parents and I had scheduled an appointment at Reineke Family Dealership in Lima to go hunt for a new whip. I had always wondered what it was like to go through this process. When you see a commercial for people at the car dealership, it is supposed to be quick and painless. This appointment was not quick and not painless. I had to wait for 6 1/2 hours until an agreement was finally made between my bank and Reineke. I would be paying for the car myself and will have to make a car payment of $254 a month. This seems to be a challenging task for me since I don't make a whole lot of money, but it is something I wanted to step up and accept as a young man. I got to purchase my first car and take my first step into adulthood.

As one chapter of my life closes, another one begins and nothing is more exciting than a new beginning. To all the miles yet to be traveled!