Goodbye Mr. Boat

Do you remember your first car? Was it sparkling brand new or a dusty old car?

You see, not all of us are fortunate to get brand new for a first car. Not everyone can afford it. If your blessed to have gotten a new one, then good for you, you must be rich. For the not-so-rich people like me, who just got her license not so long ago and had just gotten a job, I couldn't afford it, so my goal was to save up for a few months to make a down payment.

Some of us may not even have one right now, but when you're here in the US, a car is a must. 'Di katulad sa pinas na may padyak, tricycle at jeepney kung gusto mo pumunta sa kanto, makakasakay ka, makaka-"kuya, dyan lang po sa kanto." ka. JUST IMAGINE KUNG MAY TRICYCLE SA AMERIKA, tapos pwede sya sa freeway? Daaaaang.

Philippines represent!!!!

Tapos pano pag caucasian yung driver, 'eto ang dialogue.

"Sir, I'd like to go to Asia Buffet right by the corner."
"Okay, that will be a dollar."
"Okay, just drop me off by the side."

Kung ano-ano na lang naiisip ko. LOL. but wouldn't you be excited to see a tricycle or even a jeepney here? Kung meron lang dito yun, a car won't be necessary anymore if you can't afford it. Pero nafefeel ko, ganito reaction ng mga tao pag nakita nila yung tricycle dito.

Naalala ko noon how hard it was when you don't have a car. I couldn't go anywhere. Most of the time, I was always stuck at home, watching TV, cooking, reading a book, name it, I do all sorts of stuff when I'm bored. The worst part of it was, we had to get someone to drive me if I needed to go some place. It was frustrating not to be able to get out of the house when you wanted to.

I can still remember the first time that I rode the bus just to get to a place, but it was only a few blocks away from our apartment. Most of it was a lot of walking to the bus stop and to the building itself. It was such an inconvenience  kasi dun lang naman sila humihinto sa may main street. Di tulad sa pinas, pag pumara sa ka sa bus/jeepney, hihinto agad, kahit nasa gitna ng daan.

So back to topic, getting my first car for free was the best part of it all, but of course, free meaning....

Just Kidding!!!

It was a badass Mercury Cougar '96...

It's an off-white, automatic, V8 (eats a lot of gas), and the 7th generation of its kind. It was shipped from Louisiana to California. My dad worked on it a little, so that It won't give me any problems when it got here. It was a hand me down from my parents, but I don't care how old it was, at least it was free, running, and I had means of transportation. They said it was perfect for a beginner driver like me, they thought I drive like this....LOL.

We had a lot of memories together!! I started driving it August of last year, I was in San Diego, it was my first week since my move, I wasn't familiar with the area and I remember the first day I got my car, it was also my first time driving it. I had to test drive my car to my school and it was night time, I was actually with a friend that time, thank God, he kept me on my toes. I was driving like this...

and my second day with my car, I almost got into an accident because I was going fast, and I was going to miss my exit, I think I did hit my brakes while trying to exit the freeway and the truck almost hit me... So, you guys drive carefully!!

Actually, remember when I said, I didn't care if it was old? Apparently, some people cared. When I moved to San Diego, of course, they noticed my big ol' dirty car parked on the street so that made them aware that I was their new neighbor, when they saw me driving it, one of our neighbors had a comment and said that it was big for a little girl like me, that it didn't suit me and that I should buy another one. This is what happened to them...

in my head!

Okay, I admit, it was waaaaaaaaay older and bigger for me, but do I have a choice? Can I afford a new one? NO right? So what do you care? Another car encounter was at school, one of my classmates actually said to my face: "Your car is too big, why are you driving a boat?" I'm like....

Really?????

So that was the start of everyone calling my car, the "BOAT", I admit, it actually looks like a boat because it was white and it had this boat-shaped-like body....

Looks like its ready to float in water LOL.

but, it was my car, my second home. </3 Actually deep inside, whenever my friends and I talk about my car, when they refer to it as the BOAT... It stung a little, it actually affected me in some way, whenever they drive their nice cars around me, I envied them so much, it made me feel sorry for myself too because I felt left out that I had the oldest car. Sometimes they would make fun of me and my car, and every time they do that, I'd be like....

but I just try to suck it in and try to laugh it out with them like this....

I couldn't do anything about it because I can't afford to buy a nice one. So my plan was to really save up. They can say whatever they want, and look down on me all they want, but even when it hurt me, I just think about the future, and kept in mind that it was just temporary. It's all good!!!

So, now, I'm going to say my goodbyes Mr. BOAT, you were reliable and you didn't disappoint me with your speed, you didn't catch the attention of any cops because you were old, you were very sturdy except for the times when my battery drained and the engine overheated, I'm sorry for the times that I would bump into something, and thank you for taking me to wonderful places in California, and what's most important was that, I made it from point A to point B. You were good to me.

For that 8 months that we shared together and when you finally retired, March 3, 2013, I will never forget...

I'm lying on my bed, currently waiting for a call from the towing company to come pick you up. I'm going to miss you. Last ride in my boat. Farewell my friend, you we're awesome. Thanks for everything.

Oh well, I think that's it for now, Ta-tah!!

Smooches, 

P