April 16, 2010

Miss Frizzle Frazzled: Ancient Woman Wrecks Magic School Bus

In honor of the magic school bus, a blog... It is officially gone- the magic school bus. The magic school bus has been a pivotal part of the community since it's inception in 2008: driving home many an intoxicated folk, making it through blizzards, and traipsing the east coast in search of good food. Following it's assault at the intersection of Court and State Street last Wednesday, the magic school bus (otherwise known as my subaru outback or the Mom Mobile by Carson) was declared a total loss by my insurance company and towed to a scrap yard outside of Syracuse, NY where it will live out the rest of it's life being plucked away at by vultures seeking to repair their outbacks. The accident occurred because an elderly woman ran the red light. I don't think she saw it change perhaps as there as a large truck in front of her. I didn't actually speak to her or attempt to claim it against her- my insurance company quickly informed me she was underinsured (no collision) and she was already trying to claim it against me and they would fight it out. BAD KARMA! In the end, hopefully, justice will be served. Sadly, my car was mobile after the crash-  the car itself didn't look too bad after the collision, and I even drove it away and then to the repair/estimate the next day. It was a survivor! Alas, we must say goodbye to the Mom Mobile and let it rest in peace...
(as you can see, the damage looked minor... but I guess there were some underside things... suspension issues on the driver's side rear... for example the tire tilted in at the top due to a mangled strut another concern was that driving it may have led to the AWD being messed up due to the tire tilt... the check engine light was on for the FIRST TIME EVER! )

Now, I wasn't really excited to see my car go. I even cried a little, and not metaphorically... But out of this ordeal I did get a new magic school bus-- which we'll call the SHORT magic school bus as it isn't a wagon... It is also less of a sluggish car and more of a bullet. Yes, it did cost more... but I'm pleased to have found another AWD subaru: they are almost impossible to find used as people never sell them. Even when you do find them, they are typically very beat up and/or have such a high re-sale that they are very costly.  I realize many people are choosing smaller and more fuel effective cars (and yes, this one is more fuel efficient) but I'm into functionality and safety (sorry planet.)  The other car that ran into mine was a hyundai and it DID NOT look okay/ had to be towed away.  So here's the new super-fast, Mom with a Midlife Crisis Mobile. (My father quipped," You're going to kill yourself in this car. You better be careful!" This coming from a guy that drives race cars! He also asked me if I was going to street race with it in the same breath. He stated,"It'd be fun for you." Uhm? Yeah, but the insurance won't! Sheesh!)

Definitely an upgrade... At the same time, I have to admit, I'm nostalgic for the security of a some what large and very sturdy vehicle I mean think of all the tiny cars driving alongside tractor trailers in the world and then consider what might happen if say a tractor trailer ran into a ford focus? I'll opt for the larger car, or at least the faster one that can get out of the way before I'd take a tiny one. I secretly have always wanted a sports car anyway so this works out...Now let's just hope it survives the term of the loan!


And that friends, is why we don't AGE AND DRIVE! They've placed tighter restrictions on the length of time young people have to have a permit before getting a driver's license and I'm all for placing restrictions on the elderly. For example, a RE-TEST after 40 years of driving and every two years afterward. I mean we've all been behind an old person driving 20 in a 30 or 30 in a 55 because they just... move slower. We've all also witnessed elderly people cause near accidents (and accidents) in situations like this... I'm all for some sort of regulation to keep us safe from slower reflexes, poor eye sight and a general obliviousness to recent/modern rules and patterns of traffic!

And so... we say goodbye and start over! RIP MSB! xo

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