I have this longstanding superstition. I’ll never put a new music player in an older car. I’m sure the moment I commit to some nice little luxury like that the vehicle will come down with a dreaded car illness — beyond repair. <\/p>\n
The CD player in the Xterra never worked properly, but never got replaced in the five or six years I owned it because … doom.<\/p>\n
Old Blue doesn’t even have a CD player, just a radio that jumps randomly every few seconds from NPR to heavy metal to Mexican oompah music. So I never use it. I’ve missed having pleasant sounds in the car, but I’ve MUST follow my no new music systems<\/em> rule. OR … doom.<\/p>\n After Blue’s December breakdown, I got to casually pricing low-end Hondas and Toyotas. Fits and Yarises. Used ones, five or six years old. And I was pretty shocked at the prices you have to pay these days for “older but reliable.” I ended up telling myself, “That’s it. I’m keeping Old Blue as long as I can, and I’ll pay whatever it takes to get her fixed when she breaks — unless maybe the engine blows up or the transmission fails. Then I’ll go on foot. Done it before; can do it again.”<\/p>\n Old Blue’s been running really well since December, though. Like she’s going to last forever. And you know<\/em>, I thought, if I’m keeping her I sure would like some music<\/em>. <\/p>\n Yeah. I broke my rule. I defied my superstition. I bought a Kenwood CD player on eBay. Older model, but still with Bluetooth and USB and other good stuff. It arrived late last week.<\/p>\n My mechanic texted me just now with his diagnosis of the mystery problem Old Blue developed during my travels: transmission’s failing. <\/p>\n I know the gods find this sort of thing absolutely knee-slappingly hilarious. But I am not amused.<\/p>\n I guess by the standards of gods, I’m now supposed to be grateful that at least it’s just<\/em> a dying transmission, not a dying transmission plus surgery. I’ll try to work up my gratitude for that. Later.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I have this longstanding superstition. I’ll never put a new music player in an older car. I’m sure the moment I commit to some nice little luxury like that the vehicle will come down with a dreaded car illness — beyond repair. The CD player in the Xterra never worked properly, but never got replaced in the five or six years I owned it because … doom. Old Blue doesn’t even have a CD player, just a radio that jumps randomly every few seconds from NPR to heavy metal to Mexican oompah music. So I never use it. I’ve missed…<\/p>\n