RIP Alternator (Day 3552 - 8/16/19)

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Stephen and Mallory are jumpstarting their car since it died when they went to go get gas at a gas station. After jumpstarting the car, the engine still doesn't sound good so they drive to the car repair shop which is conveniently located across the street from the gas station. Stephen says that it was good that the car died at a gas station and not in the middle of the road. He mentions that for the past few days problems have been happening that are unrelated to the car. The car repair shop is still open for another 20 minutes, so they still have time to get there. Stephen called his parents, but neither of them are answering so they have to find a way to get a ride home.

Back at home, Stephen says "RIP Alternator 2004-2019". They had to pay $600 to replace the original alternator in the car which is 15 years old. He then talks about how they know that their car is not worth much. Stephen says that they deliberated about whether it's worth it to continue fixing the car or just buying a new car. They decided that it's still worth it to fix the car since they just spent $700 a couple weeks ago to change the tires, change the oil, and get the lines flushed. This could be the start of a bunch of other problems with the car, but they decided to fix it anyway. The fact that they are going on a trip soon and will be driving for 2,500+ miles played a part in them making this decision.

Mal had a doctor's appointment today. She has been having health issues lately. They don't want to talk about it just yet because they don't the full extent of it. Stephen doesn't want people to worry too much though since Mal is doing okay. Then, he talks about how they also went to the optometrist recently. Stephen's prescription didn't change so he just kept his glasses. But, Mal's prescription changed so she got new glasses. She doesn't wear her glasses often though. Mal got her glasses at Costco because it was cheaper. She liked this glasses frame the best out of the other ones available, but she also doesn't really like this one either. Stephen says that she looks cute in them. Mal mentioned that they went to go get her glasses on the day Karley arrived, so they took Karley with them. She had to get her glasses adjusted while closing her eyes since she was wearing her contacts. If she opened her eyes, then she would get a headache from wearing contacts and glasses at the same time.

Mal just started wearing her glasses today, but she got a really bad headache. She was told to go back to the place where she got her glasses from and they fixed it for her. So, she no longer as a headache and they also got some groceries from Costco for dinner at the same time. While getting groceries, she realized that she couldn't read the text on the signs that were far away. She went to the Costco Prescription Office and they told her that her prescription is wrong. Her old glasses had astigmatism correction, but her current glasses don't. Mal had to do trial runs for different types of contacts and then tell the optometrist which one she preferred. She says that when she called the optometrist office to let them know, they asked her for the number of the contact lenses. So, she suspects they made a mistake somewhere at that point. The issue with Mal's glasses is bad timing since they are trying to finish preparations for their upcoming trip.

Then, he talks about how the car had been fine and they even drove up to Charlotte 2 weeks ago. He says that after they stopped by the bank, the AC in the car stopped working. The car also started smelling weird, so they turned the AC off. Then, the battery light came on when they were planning to go get gas. The car ended up dying at the gas station, but they had jumpers which was a good thing since there were no cars at that gas station. After taking the car to the repair shop, his dad drove them home. Stephen says that he is not ready to buy a new car. He would rather keep paying money to get as much use out of the car as possible. The repair shop told them that they might not get their car back until Monday since they have to order the alternator. They also have to get vaccinations tomorrow, so Stephen asked his dad to drive them there.

He talks about how he has made peace with all these bad situations by looking at the brighter side of things. For example, their car broke down across the street from a repair shop that was still open for the day. Stephen says that he hasn't been able to work a lot today due to them having to take care of all those problem today.

Later, he feel better after he worked on some stuff. He hopes the car feels refreshed. Mal jokingly says that the car went to the spa since Stephen said "refreshed". Stephen says that the car repair shop is like a spa for cars. He says that he knows that the car is not going to last forever, but he's gonna make it last for as long as he can.