Personal Dilemna

[Kieran Lavin]

"Hammer Down" wrote:

> I wll weigh in on this.  If you have a place to "store" the car (out of the
> weather when not in use) and it is not a personal financial burden, then

I must've missed the original post but I had a sort of (what sounds to me)
similar situation.  My car is by no means fun to drive around where I live
with all the potholes and such.  I have no need to drive it to work since I
live close to mass transit into NYC.  The only driving it usually does is
long trips to friend's houses, the supermarket, and to my wife's house (prior
to getting married in June)  For months before the wedding, I got so lazy
that I'd plan trips to the supermarket around when my wife would be down
visiting (usually 2-3 times per week).  After we got married, her car (02
Maxima) inherited my parking space in our condo building.  My car was sent
off to a parking garage that I was getting free parking at across the street
from the jobsite I was on.  That job ended last month and I had to face a
decision... what to do with the car.  Parking it on the street is very
difficult with the population density around me (others can attest to this)
and there are always kids playing (scratches on the side from kids falling
off their bike into the car, dents from footballs, etc, etc, etc)  Do I sell
the car or find another way to "store" it?  I know a friend on this list has
offered but I couldn't ask him to store the car.  Also, what if I need the
car in an emergency (something happened to my wife's car)?  So, I'm paying a
monthly rate at a local parking garage and have the car cover on.  The car
right now is pretty damned close to receiving an oil change per gas fillup
(I'm due for an oil change and am on the second or third tank of gas but
that's with a code for a front O2 so it's gulping and not sipping gas)

It was a tough decision and my family and wife keep telling me to get rid of
the car but I love it too much.  It may get tougher now that I'm not working
back in the city but 7 miles from home at a jobsite still in Jersey.  I'm
investigating mass transit but it seems that I'd have to leave the house 1.5
hours earlier to take a train to a bus and walk .5 mile.  If I have to start
working late hours, my wife's going to want to have her car in the evening
for running out for chores and stuff so I'll have to find an alternative
(including driving my car to work and bringing it out of "retirement" ;)

kieran