When last we left off, it was Tuesday of this week and things were not looking good.

It’s now Friday of this week and things are still not looking good.

But let’s back up…

I kind of expected to hear something from my contact/service guy at the dealership on Wednesday. But I didn’t. Not a call. Not a text. Not an email.

My sister, who has been kind enough to keep checking up on me and the status of my car, took it upon herself to get involved. Since she worked in this dealership’s service department for as long as she did, prior to her move to Nashville, she still has some pull with the powers that be.

So she’s made some phone calls on my behalf. She also suggested that I get in touch with the guy who is the manager of the service department and April’s former boss. By this point on Wednesday afternoon, it was likely too late to catch the manager by phone. So I set out to email the guy.

I figured this was better anyway. I’m a lot better with the written word than I am with the talking. And by writing it all down, I knew I could include the entire timeline. If I called, I’d probably forget something important. The email was… how do put this?… a little wordy. But I made sure to cover every aspect: I hated going over my contact’s head, I’ve repeatedly been given expectations that haven’t been met, all that jazz.

Thursday morning arrived. And then Thursday afternoon arrived. I got no response from this manager.

April had been in contacted with another of her former bosses throughout the day. This lady was just as irritated as me. She arranged for me to be given a rental car, free of charge. This is great because it has allowed me to make my trip to Raleigh. I’m currently typing these words from the comfort of my hotel room. Isn’t that nice?

After I drove away from the dealership in the rental, I received a call from contact guy. He let me know that the latest problem is the fuel pump. It’s working at 17psi when it should be at something like 40psi. Great, something that’s fixable. Looks like that’s only cost a little under $500. That is fantastic.

I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned this, so if it’s a rerun, I apologize. I’ve signed a lease on a new apartment in Roanoke. I’m looking forward to moving there because it will mean no more long I-81 commute to and from work. And while it’s not a crazy expensive place to live, it’s more rent than I’ve paid in recent years due to constantly have roommates. The most obvious way I can afford this place is because I don’t currently have a car payment.

So I’ve reached the point where I can’t afford to ditch my current car to get a new (used) car, and I’m not sure I can afford to get my current car fixed.

Yeah… dark cloud. But… silver lining… I’ve got this rental at no cost to me until my car is ready to be picked up. No clue when that will be, but at least this means when I get back from Raleigh, I can go back home.

I mean it when I say I appreciate my mom and stepfather letting me stay with them throughout all this uncertainty. But I miss my space.

Here’s hoping the fuel pump is the last thing that needs to be fixed. For the next five years.