S.U.V. Woes

I have been without my car for the past 3 1/2 days now. It's been with the guy working on my clutch. He had originally told me that the job would take about a day, two tops. Great, I could borrow one of the many automobiles that are parked outside of my parents' house. Maybe even my brother's . . . a zippy little Honda. Instead, on Friday, I end up driving my sister's Ford Escape SUV. She's out in Camp Le Jeune in one of the Carolinas. I forget if it's north or south, the fact is . . she's not currently using it.

Initially I was fine with the choice. Then, I started noticing the handling on this behemoth. Now, the Ford Escape is the smallest of the Ford SUV line, their compact choice if you will. Still, coming from driving a Focus, it is quite the change. I noticed decreased turn radiuses, a decline in handling, and the fact that I could not work the clutch like I did on my own car. All in all, it was a pretty shaky ride. Comfortable, but I felt off in that car. So high up, and always wondering if I was going to make the car tip over with a sharp maneouver.

Monday comes around, and the guy assures me that the clutch job will be finished by that night. As usual the wife and I head out to my parents' for Monday night dinner. This is a ritual we dare not pass up, since the home cooking is stupendous. Always something delicious and extremely filling. I still feel like a growing boy when I go there . . except . . . it's not vertical but horizontal growth that I'm putting on. I call the guy after dinner, and he tells me that he's having a hard time finding some sort of a seal that the transmission needs, or else it will leak oil all over the place. He tells me he needs one to two days extra, so he can do the job properly.

Ok, fine, I'll just keep borrowing the Escape and deal with the shitty handling. The only problem is, my mother needs it the next day, but she offers up her Cherokee. There's nothing I can do about the choice. I take it. Before we leave, we are told that it's pretty smelly in there. Apparently, during the winter, she forgot to roll up one of the windows and rain got in . . . the claim is confirmed when we get in to drive home. It smells bad. Woodsy.

If you've ever been camping for an extended period of time or know someone that has and then smelled them or have been smelled upon your return, then you could approximate just what the inside of this vehicle smells like. I'm grateful to have it so that I can go to and from work . . . it's just that the smell is terrible. The only good thing about it is it's automatic transmission, which will ensure a smoother ride while I'm using it. Other than that, the 15 minutes it takes me to get to and from work is going to be almost murder. I hope I can get my car tonight. Yeah, I'm saving 500 bucks on a repair, but it's costing me in other ways.

*Music I listed to while coming up with this entry:
Combat Baby - Metric
Looks Just Like The Sun - Broken Social Scene
Plans - Bloc Party
Let Go - Frou Frou
Michael - Franz Ferdinand
Stray Dog And The Chocolate Shake - Grandaddy
The Past and Pending - The Shins
Staring At The Sun - Simple Kid