I found a car!

It was a stressful time and experience but overall a good one.

It took a major mindset shift for me, from planning on how to live a nomadic life in a camper van, to a more “normal” existence with a car.

Ryan and I spent last Saturday morning checking out several cars I had found online and had made appointments to see. The first one was the one that I had a feeling about, right from the start. But I had to do my due diligence, and after seeing the others, I knew my gut feeling was right. She’s a Honda CR-V LX and has everything I need. She’s been maintained at a dealership her entire life, has new tires, an updated, really good sound system and has been owned by a single-family, first the sister and then the brother who actually sold her to me.

Huge Relief

Ryan asked me if I was excited, which of course I was and there were lots of high-fives, but more than anything, I felt relieved. I don’t have to figure out getting anywhere now and it was exhausting using Uber and Turo and figuring out how to get from here to there to there without it costing an absolute fortune. And the public transportation system in this country is dismal - getting from A to B, and sometimes from A to B to C and D, would often take me all day when by car would take me 1-2 hours. And it was such a schlepp lugging my bags around on and off trains and buses.

Now, the car may sit for a couple of days, I don’t have to drive it every day or go somewhere every day. I just know that I can and that I don’t have to rely on anyone else to get me anywhere. It is a huge relief.

So then, it was just a matter of giving her a name. I put it out on Facebook and I got some wonderful suggestions. They range from classics like Daisy to cute like Lulu, and Gray Ghost and then Michael suggested Bert! (I do know a girl called Bert!)

Daisy was a big contender for me because growing up, Dad always has little old black Austin’s and Morrises undergoing renovations, parked under the custard apple trees behind the house. And one was called Daisy.

And her name is…

But, I have decided on Lucy. Not because of the Peanuts character or any other comic or friend or family member or…

But because of Waze! I’ve always called the lady’s voice in my navigation systems Lucy! And I talk to her and yell at her when she goes the wrong way - “Damn it Lucy, why are you taking me this way?” or thank her for sending me the right way when there’s a lot of traffic. So this is just giving the car a voice.

I can see some road trips coming up - Montana is on the horizon this summer. And Lucy will get me there in style.