The Death of Herman

It's been a good run, but seems the junky old blue Escort will run no more. At least, not for the time being. Transmission failure, and the easy solution to this is replace the car. Well, perhaps not the easy solution, but the cheaper one. Now comes the fun part of not having a car, nor enough money to put down on one until the end of the week. The net result of this is running around getting rides where I can and generally not looking forwards to car shopping.
First off, my credit isn't terrible, but not too great. Well, that's okay, I live pretty simply, so no extravagant bills are hanging over my head. Second, I'm not sure what I'm looking for, and would like to go used, but can see the advantages to a new car. There are all kinds of high-interest places around town, this, of course, being a military town, and furthermore, one where basic training and AIT are done. Like most military towns of this type, there are miles of pawn shops, loan sharking places and car dealerships. Well, actually since Oklahoma towns tend to be few and far between, this last makes a good deal of sense. There are also less scrupulous car dealers who will take new soldiers for a ride, literally and figuratively. Though to the credit of the industry, I have yet to encounter any of these. Generally you can tell which to steer clear of, and which ones will work with you.
But all that's neither here nor there. Car ads tend to point to car buying as an emotional decision rather than a practical one. Unfortunately, practicality has to come first for me. I'm planning on driving it, not marrying it. A lifetime with my lady love could also be summed up pretty well in a car commercial-type format, as it's been indeed filled with excitement and deep emotion. Then of course, there's the occasional fight, the occasional off day- much like life itself. Some days are good, some bad, some just there. But it's those just there days that mean a lot to me- not because it's a comfort zone, which it is, but rather knowing that she's there, and I'm there for her. These days are marked by nothing special going on, but also by a sense of deep love I have for her. And what that has to do with cars, I'm not sure. But the end result is this- that no matter what happens, no matter what trials and tribulations come, I know that much is true, that I know where my home is.