A not so funny thing happened last week on the day that I was to drive my
beloved and our daughter to the airport, so they could begin their
vacation.
There was a meeting on a country road between my pretty red 2005 Buick
Allure and a deer.
Now, this was a sudden and unavoidable collision. No one was hurt—well,
no humans were hurt. The air bags didn't even deploy inside the
car.
The deer, unfortunately, wasn't as lucky.
There were no clunks, grinds, or any other noises as the car traveled
from the site of the impact to home. It was not yet full dawn, but there was
enough light to see the results of this meeting. The vehicle was a mess, and I
posted a picture of it on Face Book.
This didn't really interfere with our plans for the day. I was still able
to take Mr Ashbury and Jenny to the airport; we used her car, and I would have
her vehicle at my disposal for week they were gone.
I figured, that most likely, by the time I contacted my insurance company
and took care of all the paperwork and reporting, the car would be repaired and
back, if not in time for me to drive to the airport again, then certainly by the
next Monday.
Well, that didn't turn out to be the case at
all.
The damage to my car (that I'd had for not quite two full years) was
sufficient for the insurance company to deem it a total
loss.
Here is where you learn one more embarrassing fact about me. I kind of
get attached to my stuff. I used to think I was a packrat until that reality
show last year that I never completely watched, but saw enough of to wipe my
brow in relief. But I do get emotionally attached to my things, and I sometimes
even name them.
I liked my car. It was a Buick. It was mine. It was paid for. I wasn't
ready to part with it, and I really didn't want to consider getting another
vehicle at this time.
One thing I have learned, however, is that sometimes what we would prefer
in life has absolutely no relationship whatsoever to what we actually get, or
have to deal with.
This was one of those times.
Mr. Ashbury was away, but that didn't really change the situation. Years
of finding our rhythm together has resulted in our behaving for the most part in
very predictable ways. Yes, I was ticked about the car being written off. But
how I felt about it didn't change the reality of it. I had to deal with the
matter.
We've both long ago realized that you can reduce the stress of
unpleasant, unexpected problems by focusing on finding a solution, instead of
lamenting your bad luck.
Moments after that call from the insurance company telling
me they were giving me a pittance for my car, I went on line and began the task
of looking for another vehicle.
I like Buicks. The '92 Buick I had before this last one,
when it died, had more than 390,000 miles on it—or, in Canadian, 650,000
kilometers. Yep, that's a lot, and a marvel, and sold me forever on the
Buick.
Now, I've been pretty fortunate the last couple of times that I had to
get a car. The right one revealed itself to me fairly quickly. Actually, the
last one Mr. Ashbury found, while I was away at a
conference.
We don't buy new cars. We're just not convinced in the value of
them—that's just us, and at least we feel the same way on the matter. So I was
perusing the Internet for a "pre-owned" vehicle.
And this one I found, while my beloved, unawares, was sunning on
the beach. My new Buick is a 2009, and fully loaded, including leather seats, a
moon roof, and a digital display of information that's going to take me a while
to master.
I haven't named it yet—but I probably will.
Love,
The only dream I've ever had was to be a published author. It was a dream formed in childhood, and held on to through the business of growing up. Life intruded, as life does, and my dream was put on hold. But now, through hard work, faith, and luck dream has evolved into reality.
Romance is a wonderful genre that accommodates every other. Comedy, mystery, paranormal, suspense, or science fiction, romance embraces them all. Erotic romance gives all of that, and so much more.
For readers who want all the best traditional romance has to offer – great characters, compelling stories and a happy ending – and who crave that extra bit of heat – I invite you to read one of my novels and let me know what you think!
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