Don't Need You Any More

I looked at the body, not young but still sleek and pretty much wrinkle free and said, You know what; I really don't need you any more. Fortunately, my sports car couldn't answer back, but if it could, I'm sure it would have had no problem turning about and running off to serve a new owner just as diligently as it had mine. The car may be seven years old, but there's still a lot of km to go in the old girl. The reason for speaking this way to my shiny red vehicle sitting quietly in its slot in the underground parking space, is that I read this afternoon, its flashing light saying, Oil Change Needed 3% . After just getting over holiday expenses, feeling the tax man looming and insurance deadlines approaching in the spring, I seriously considered parting company with my beloved four wheeler. I am not a driver of long distances, but I do love the wind and sun in my hair and feeling the acceleration as my car and I ply the highways and roads throughout the countryside, over the bridges above rivers and along sweeping green meadows and fields. But there are realities. It's time to do some adding and subtracting. During the coastal winter this year, one that was unusually cold and snowy for us, I took taxis here and there. I found it comparatively inexpensive and most convenient. A cab took me right to the door of my destination and picked me up the same way. I didn't have to drive around trying to find  parking spaces or shell out change or pop a card into a slot to pay for a spot that I thought my taxes had already taken care of, especially in  those hospital visitor lots. But that's another tale. Also, I began to add up insurance, parking, gas, oil, repairs, tires, other replacement parts and devaluation on aging. It adds up to far more going out of my bank account, than into it. The so-called convenience of having a car looked like an extravagance. I also remembered when, at one point, for convenience sake, I took the commuter train to and fro. It was comfortable, cheap. frequent, reliable and fast. I started to add up the cost of owning a car against the ways I could save by not having one. How often did I use it and for what purpose that could easily be met by taking a cab instead? While a car is a lovely convenience when you can toss things in the back seat or trunk, drive people hither and yon and be in out of the rain as you pass those poor souls waiting for a bus. But maybe the latter are the smart ones.  I can tell you, it would save me a bundle if I opted for taxis instead of car ownership. I hasten to say that when I had children and/or worked, it was good to have a car. There were late meetings and getting kids to their appointments and going on car trips and lots of shopping for a family. But now that I am single and in the elder stage, plus what with on-line buying and deliveries, easy-to-find cabs and appointments that can be planned well ahead, the only reason I need a car is that I want one.