CAR TROUBLE

By Lisa Harmon

Sunday was the day from hell, but I won't bore you with the details, let's jump right into me electrocuting my car.

The new phone charger didn't light up when I put it in my car's lighter. I saw a piece of paper in there (I think). I used a tire gauge that was conveniently located in my glove compartment to get the paper out. That's when I electrocuted my car. Spark, flash, paper burned, wisp of smoke, electrocuted car. They can't put you in jail if it was an accident, right?

No radio, no clock, and no horn. No big deal. I've just got to get home. I turn east on 58^th street.  In the right lane there's a car that is on fire. Not smoking. Burning. Large flames and clouds of toxic black smoke. That is what I could see from the back of the block.

 

 

Everyone is in the backed up in left lane, what with the fire and all in the right lane. Finally I'm halfway up the block and there's only one car left in front of me. I'm waiting for him to drive and he panics. He's sitting there, not taking either option – straight up the left lane (the light was green) or left turn into a pedestrian plaza that went through to 59th street. He just froze. And I'm right behind him with nowhere to go, black chemical smoke engulfing my car.

I'm furiously banging on my horn that doesn't work. I roll down my window (manually, thank you very much – my car is old) and I yell - “LET'S GO!” That did the trick and we both got out of there.

When I got home, I told the Super how I had an awful day and how I ACCIDENTALLY electrocuted my car, and he said he'd take a look at it. I was pleasantly surprised that it was fixable!  He was able to fix it! I had only blown a fuse.

He said “Lisa, it was very simple. I looked at the owner's manual and it said there was a tool in the glove box to change the fuse. I used the tool, changed the fuse, and everything works.”

I was incredulous. I said “You mean to tell me that you read the manual, followed the instructions, and it worked and everything is fixed? I CAN'T believe that!”

The Super said, it was the simplest thing to do. He said that's what I should have done. I should have approached the problem asking myself “What's the simplest way to fix this?” I said “I did, I asked you.”