2009 Ends
We've certainly gone through a lot this past year. Most of you know the stories and the trials and tribulations that were 2009. I was hoping against hope, but the story that was the year past had one more chapter to write. A few days before Christmas my ailing car, with a growing number of issues that seemed to have plagued it for the past year or so, decided to stay in 3rd gear. After spending the day at the service shop it turned out to be a battery issue. That pretty much clinched it. I recalled previous trips to the service shop and remember telling myself that this is the last time I'd put money into it. It cost a pretty penny just for it to pass inspection this past summer. Oh, and for those of you thinking "what's the big deal, it's just a battery", I can assure you that that was the least of the issues. The most pressing of these were two major components, the power steering and the computer in charge of the drive-train. Both were not cheap fixes and were really not the safest things to be having issues with. After seeing what was available on the lot we chose a used car that will get much better gas mileage, will have a 4 year warranty, has 4 wheel drive, and some other nice features for our expanding family.
You would think that buying a new car would be exciting, especially with the prospect of having everything work and be cheaper to own because it doesn't require premium, but it was far from a joyful experience. Frankly, I was parting with my dream car. Ever since I saw the LandRover Discovery, I was in aww. They are some of the most capable vehicles on earth, with styling and performance like no other SUV I have ever been in. I consider myself extremely lucky to have been able to own such a vehicle. As such, it was incredibly difficult for me to let it go.
Both Meg and I found ourselves quite emotional when we picked up the new car and said our final good-byes to a vehicle that had made the early years of our relationship possible. You see, we did long-distance for 3 years which meant a reliable vehicle was key to the weekend trips that were often through some of the snowiest roads in upstate. I never worried once about its ability to get me to where I wanted to be (with my future wife). It also took us to many of our adventures and vacations... or vacation adventures! We even found ourselves off-roading once or twice! I'll never forget the over 98,000 miles of memories it helped create. They are some of the most meaningful of my life.
So some of you may think I'm a little weird for getting teary eyed over a car, but as you can see it was never just a car. We've got some amazing things to look forward to in 2010 and some new memories to make in the new car, but I'll always look back on the past seven years in the 2002 Land Rover Discovery II SE with fondness.


