I spent the early morning working on my father's car. I used a portable jump starter to get the car going. I drove it around for 30 minutes to charge the battery up. I parked it and went inside the apartment for a little while. When I came back out to do more in the car, I discovered it wouldn't start even after all of that effort getting the battery recharged.
Ah, Dad's old but (mostly) reliable 1999 Honda Accord. Sure, the bumpers are falling down a little, and the environmental control panel no longer works (even with a replacement). It does drive smooth and is a decent get around the neighborhood car. I would not want to get stuck in traffic with it more than a few miles away from home though. I would not drive it at night, but only because one of the headlights is bashed in. I would not drive it much in the summer heat with the Air Conditioning not working, and never in the winter because the heater and defrost isn't working - both due to the control panel not working. If I were much younger, yes, I would drive it in those conditions. But not at my current age and physical disposition. Those days are behind me; The size of my butt should be a good indicator of that.
So, I tried to get it a going, and got it going, but I'll have to repeat the battery jumpstart steps every time I want to move the car. It isn't doing it any good sitting in a parking space not being used. It is nice having a backup car, but at the same time the cost of that is too high. At my father's age his car insurance jumps up in price every time he has a birthday. His 89th birthday will be in August. His current monthly insurance payment is almost $150.00. That's nearly $1800.00 a year.
The apartment complex management are having repaving performed on our parking lots this month. Our parking section is scheduled to begin in 3 days. I needed to get that car running to be able to move it to a different parking space.
I was actually in the process of clearing things out the car and trunk because I decided that we are sending the poor old soul to a junkyard as soon as we can. Dad can't and won't be driving anymore, and we don't need 2 old cars (mine is not a spring chicken either) that require constant and costly visits to the mechanic. Plus, since dad isn't going to be driving anymore, that $1800.00 expense for his car insurance would be a complete waste of money. Adding him as a listed driver on my insurance would be a waste too, because it would skyrocket my rates due to his advanced age.
I decided to give it a try to sell it to a junkyard site online. After some research I chose [Peddle.com]. The process was simple, straightforward, and very easy to do. I listed the year, the make, model, VIN, mileage, body damages, and hit enter for an offer. The offer for the car: $265.00 and free tow away.
The site informed me that we'd have to have the title signed and notarized. So, I called a local mobile notary [louisvillenotaryservice.com] and scheduled with a nice lady who was going to come to our apartment at 11:00am for a price of only $40; She called back shortly after and asked if it would be alright to come at noon. Sure, I said.
At 11:30am I got a call from a local auto company [Al Blossom Auto Sales] that is apparently buying the car via Peddle Dot Com, and who informed me that I didn't need to sign and notarize the title because it is going directly for parts and scrap metal. What I will have to do is take the title and the car plate to the country clerk's office, provide the receipt from the company that took it away, and say it has been sold for salvage. To have the title signed and notarized would be a waste of $40. So... I called the notary back and canceled the appointment. If she had come on time, we'd have had it done before the Auto place called me. Serendipity!
[This has been updated in the next blog post. It didn't turn out as expected.]
*whew*
It was easy, but a lot of back and forth, and some wasted effort. But it is done. The Auto company will be here to get dad's Honda on Monday, give us a check, and all I will need to do next is go to the county clerk and turn the plate and title in. I am sure there will be some complications to THAT. I am 99.99% sure of it. LOL
I wonder what the next week will bring to the mix. I have been a little overmixed this week, and this month. I am beginning to feel flattened out. But that is life sometimes. Not all pancakes are fluffy, and not all days in life are fulfilling or enjoyable or inflated, so to speak. The bubbles are not there in the Coca-Cola of life. Flat.
I hope your life is better today, not as flat, or not too fluffy. Fluffy can be a bad thing too, sometimes. *chuckle*
Best regards,
M.W. Van Dyke
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