Car repairs are much like a trip to the dentist

By By Leada Gore, Editor
As I write this, I’m sitting in the waiting room of a car dealership. There is no place I dread more, except maybe the dentist’s office.
Like many of our modern vehicles, my car is equipped with a warning light that comes on when something is amiss. I was driving home the other day when the light came on. And much like that feeling you get when the dentist says “uh oh,” I felt my stomach drop.
Being a thoroughly modern woman, I called my husband.
Me? Call the dealership? What about the promises we made when we got married? No, not the ones to love, honor and respect but the deal we made that I would handle items inside the house and laundry and he would handle yard work and car repairs. I reminded him of these vows and he offered to call the dealership.
He did so and called me back shortly.
I thanked him but thought twice about telling him that the previously mentioned vows would actually mean he would have to take my car in himself.
So, here I am. There are a lot of people in the waiting room, all looking rather anxious. One man said he tried to start his car this morning and nothing happened. Another lady said she came in to have new tires put on her vehicle. I chimed in that a light came on in my dashboard.
Each person thinks their problem is the worst. I am convinced mine is.
We all sit for a while, reading old magazines and watching a rerun of the “Andy Griffith Show.” One by one, each person gets called to the office to pick up their car and pay for their service. No one looks too happy.
I’m the last one in the waiting room. Finally, a man comes and retrieves me and takes me to the office. He tells me there was a problems with one of the sensors in my car and it was causing the check engine light to come on. They fixed the filter, changed the sensor and everything is working fine now. The entire thing was covered under my warranty so there’s no charge.
I leave his office smiling, something I’ve never done when I’ve left the dentist’s office, but that’s usually because my mouth is too numb.
I called Greg when I left the dealership.
Maybe not. But I still believe this trip should have been covered by the pre-wedding warranty, too.