Parking lot

DD came stomping into the house from the garage the other day.

“Don’t even start on me!” she snarled.  ”I know I parked like a dork!”

I looked at her.  She warned me, but I still tried.  ”What do you mean, you parked like a dork?”

“I mean I parked all crooked and far away from the wall!”

“I thought you figured out the size of your car already.  It can’t be that bad,”  I ventured.  ”How far away from the wall are you?”

She thought for a brief moment.  ”About a foot, I think.”

I should have known right then.  You see, DD is not of my generation.  She is of the generation of Canadian kids who learned metric measurement, not Imperial.  She understands centimetres, metres and kilometres, not inches, feet and miles.  Actually, being a teacher, I understand metric rather well myself, but I also understand Imperial measurement as well.  DD does not.

When I went out to the garage to put the garbage out later that night, I literally could not carry the can between the two cars.  She had backed in THAT close to The Mighty Hyundai – not that I cared about it, but I’d certainly like to see her new car as ding-free and scratch-free as possible for as long as possible.

And that “foot” between the car and the wall?  It was closer to a metre and a half.  How the hell did she get a little Honda Fit wedged in like that?  And how the hell did she get out of it??

Of course, DD’s next parking attempt was perfect.

A tale of two cars

Big night for Darling Daughter yesterday:  she took delivery of her brand new shiny red Honda Fit and she is over the moon!  Transportation at last!  Freedom!  Independence!

The car (and the first year’s worth of insurance) is a 21st birthday gift from her grandma, my mother. Grandma is a bit old-fashioned in that 21 signifies adulthood to her, not 19 as our provincial government has decreed.  And since 21 is a big deal, your gift should be a big deal, she believes.  (If you’re wondering, yes, my 21st birthday was also a big deal way back when. My parents gave me a beautiful cedar chest that I am still using and am proud of today.  It wasn’t a brand new car because they had already bought me a second-hand car three years previously when I started university and needed to get there somehow.  The bus system in Vancouver was pathetic back then – but that’s another post.)

So DD and I went to pick up her car, which entailed a lot of decisions regarding additional warranty coverage, insurance, signatures, cheques exchanging hands, and in our case, a rude awakening as well.  To make a long story short, we were absolutely shocked to find that a year of insurance for her is 4000$!  There are a number of reasons for this (one of which is a small accident that she had while driving my old car almost three years ago), but it is still an enormous number.  However, Grandma was paying, even though none of us had anticipated the cost being quite that high.  I guess we should have done a little homework on the insurance website first so we at least had a inkling of what was coming.

After all the paperwork was done and the keys had been presented to her, DD drove straight to Grandma’s house, whooping all the way.  Grandma was suitably impressed, particularly with the roominess of the Fit. It really is a lovely little vehicle – especially to someone (me) who is currently driving The Mighty Hyundai and is anxiously awaiting delivery of her own new BMW 135i.

Interestingly, it also happened that today was the day to return to the rental place and extend my time with said Mighty Hyundai.  When the fellow checked the car over, he noted that one of its tires was low and that it needed an oil change.  I looked a bit dubious at that point, and wondered aloud how long this would take and should I wait.  He said I could do that, or he could give me a different rental car.  He had an orange Yaris available.  I shuddered.  I said, “I don’t DO orange. I look hideous in orange.”   He laughed.  I didn’t.  

There are now two new cars in my garage.  One is DD’s new red Honda Fit.  The other is Another Mighty Hyundai.  It’s blue.