The Good, the Bad and the In-Between

Seeing both sides of an issue is something I seem to always have been able to do. At times, I consider it a blessing; other times, a curse.

Most recently, it’s a mix, as it most often is.

You all know how financially challenged I am. No matter how hard I try to cut back and cut back, cook almost everything from scratch, resist the frequent urges to grab fast food at a drive-through, there always seems to be something that comes up to drain the shelter-expense funds.

Folks without money worries don’t always notice all the little expenses that pop up all year long. The ones I am talking about are the ones that just come up once a year. Car registration, smog tests, computer backup program fee, first-month of an insurance cycle...lots of things. They do need to be paid.

Anyhow, I almost giggled at the latest. Maybe I’m losing it.

For the past three days, every time I went out to start the car, I had to turn the key almost to the dashboard to get this old 2001 to start. I began to think the keys were bent and old. Then I thought maybe it was the ignition system.

However, eventually I noticed that I did, each time, get it to start. And once it started, it was fine for every stop afterwards. This morning, Eureka! I realized it very possibly is the battery! When I transferred notes from the 2016 calendar to the 2017 one, a while ago, I remembered noticing that the car battery would be 3 years old this year. It seemed logical that it might be that battery. Once it started, it charged itself for that trip while I was driving, I reasoned.

Here in Las Vegas, with our frequent 118 degree days, it’s rare for a car battery to live as long as a manufacture suggests. Three years is great.

So, this morning, when it gave me grief again, I managed to get going, and I did my errands, and then stopped to see “my guy.”

Yep - it was the battery all right.

Now - the good, the bad and the in-between.

The good is that I was able to get it to my guy and it is replaced and good to go a few years.

The bad is that it cost well over $100. Now add that to the $60 I must pay for my annual backup program fee this month, and I’m out almost $200. To some, that’s nothing. To me, it’s late fees on bills that can’t be paid because of it. December was actually the first month in years where I had no late fees. Back to square one.

The in-between is that I did not panic, I took it to my guy, and I got it fixed. After all, I could have been stuck somewhere very inconvenient when the battery finally died. I am so grateful I caught this in time.

I am very blessed.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for always being there for me. Thank you for giving me little clues which help me to take action in time in cases like this. Thank you for the strength to keep on keeping on. And thank you for loving and looking after this old human.