The Blog is Back..A Tribute to the World's Best Car

After a very long break from blogging, I'm back to write a tribute to the world's best car.

Let me begin this tribute by setting the stage. I am a knitter. I will knit anywhere and everywhere. I can tell you about the subtle nuances of just about every yarn on the market, their strengths and weaknesses, their stitches per inch, the yardage, etc. I can decipher an intricate cable pattern and solve almost any knitting problem that arises. These are great skills for Knitwits. But, if you ask me for directions to the shop, I will have to get you someone else to answer that dreaded question. I have zero sense of direction and I don't know the difference between 71, 75 and 275 or KY 18 and 42.

To make matters worse, I only like to make right hand turns so I will often drive a circuitous route from point A to point B to avoid making lefts. To make matters even worse, I cannot knit while driving-so, I prefer to be a passenger. With all that said...I am going to admit to two things. #1: I know nothing about cars and have little interest in learning about them. #2: If you ask me to take you to the airport, I will pick you up and have you drive me and my car there.

I think the stage is now set, so let me begin my tribute. The last time I bought a car was 1990. I asked a boyfriend that I had recently broken up with to find me a new car because he loved negotiating and getting deals and he knew that I needed a good, solid, reliable car for the driving impaired. He wheeled and dealed and told me go to an Acura dealer with a check, so I did. I drove away with a Black 1991 Acura Integra R-something. Twenty years and 84,000 miles later, I am still driving the darned thing.

Last week, I got in a little accident on 71 or 75 (doesn't really matter which one). Someone a couple of cars in front of me slammed on their brakes and I ended up hitting the brand spanking new Jaguar in front of me. No one was hurt and the Jag had a hairline scratch but my beloved Acura Integra R-something had a smashed up headlight, a crumpled front bumper and the hood was smooshed down. The Acura didn't look good before the accident, but after the accident it looked---well, pathetic.

I drove my crumpled car to Don's Garage, a really great place in Erlanger if you ever need car stuff done, to see if the car would be okay to drive. They crow barred the hood open and checked everything out and said, "She's good to go but don't drive at night until you get a new headlight."

The new headlight would cost more than the car is worth. To the relief of my family, Janet, Janet's dad and probably my neighbors, I admitted that it was time for a new car.

The Acura Integra R-something is still running like a top and much to my surprise, the headlight that disintegrated upon impact still has a little flashlight bulb intact that lights up like a beacon. She's been stolen, keyed, neglected, rusted, spilled in and on and used like a heavy duty hauling truck over the years-she has served me well but it is time to park her.

Tomorrow, I will pick up my new ride-A 2009 Silver Honda Fit Sport. (Janet test drove it for me.) Tonight, the sadness of retiring the Acura is greater than the excitement of a new car. That will probably change tomorrow-but for tonight, the sadness was enough to break the blog silence.

Thank you Acura Integra R-something and thank you everyone (Steve, Not Steve, all 6,000+ others and especially Comair Steve) for helping me find her replacement.