I’ve been tooling around in the rental car for a several days now. It’s a four-door Accent. It doesn’t have the rear wiper blade and power doors and windows, but it’s still very comparable to my poor toad. But driving it is another matter. I experienced the same thing in California in 2007 when I rented the same type of Accent.

First off, what happened to fuel efficiency?! When I got the rental car, it had a quarter tank of fuel. With my Accent, I could drive about 150km on that quarter tank before the gas light would come on, and then I’d be able to do another 30 to 60km without running out. I took the Accent home from Enterprise (about 10KM) then drove it to the hotel (about 85KM). About 10KM out from the hotel, so I’d driven 85KM on that quarter tank of fuel, the gas light came on! I put in half a tank of fuel. In my Accent, I could do 300 to 400KM on that half tank, depending on if I was driving in the city or on the highway. With the automatic Accent, I did just over 200KM and the gas light came on. That’s insane! BTW, that comes out to a fuel efficiency of 24MPG with the automatic Accent, while my manual got 30 to 40.

The automatic Accent doesn’t drive smoothly, something that I’ve experienced with all the automatic vehicles I’ve driven, including Miranda. The transmission just isn’t as smart as is a human in knowing when to shift gears. It is so frustrating to know that I should be in a lower or higher gear, but the transmission refuses to shift, resulting in an unnecessary loss of speed or an inability to slow down, both of which can be dangerous. With this Accent, whenever it’s thinking about changing gears, I literally feel it pull back and then push forward as it tries to decide what it’s going to do. It’s really annoying.

I also hate having to keep my eyes glued to the speedometer because there is no other way of knowing how fast I’m going. In a manual car, until 5th gear, I always have a maximum speed I can reach, so it makes it very easy not to speed. Stuck in a 25MPH zone? Stick to 2nd gear. 45MPH? Don’t shift into 5th. This Accent is so quiet that I have hit 70MPH in a 55MPH zone without intending to.

Which brings to braking. With a manual, I just downshift until I coast to a stop. With the automatic, I have to relearn braking distance and have had quite a few sudden stops because I misgauged my speed and distance from the stop sign or red light. This is the only thing I will admit is DUE (dumb user error) and I know braking would become second nature once I got used to driving an automatic car again. Which I hope happens when pigs fly, the moon turns to cheese, and hens get teeth.

My first car, a 1992 Honda Civic, was an automatic and really didn’t enjoy driving it. I only bought it because it’s what was available in my price range from a trusted source at the time. There was no question my next car would be a manual. When I went for the test drive on my 2004 Accent, I hadn’t driven stick in about six years, but the salesman said he would never have guessed that. This is because I learned how to drive stick. I never learned how to drive automatic. And, frankly, beyond what I need to operate Miranda safely, that’s not a skill I would care to master.

It’s going to be interesting to hear all you automatic fans chime in and tell me what a dolt I am (in kinder words, of course *g*). But do I have any other readers who prefer to drive a manual?

I’m driving a North Carolina plated car right now, have a wallet full of Jacksons,  my cell phone area code is for North Dakota, and whenever someone asks for an address in the US, I have one in Virginia to offer. I think I could pass as an American to the casual bystander, but I definitely need to work on my twang! 😀 The accent here isn’t nearly as strong as what you get when you hit the Carolinas and Georgia, but’s still a little tough.

I was raised to believe that wealth is defined by your bank balance. Then, as I said at the RV show seminar, I discovered that material wealth is very fleeting and that we are wealthier in our memories than in how much money we have.

This past week, I have discovered yet another measure of wealth. This realisation has resulted in a profound paradigm shift, one that is rather overwhelming. Wealth can also be found in a community that bands together in hard times. The individual members might not have a lot, but together they can make things happen.

For the first time in my life, I truly understand what it is to truly live in a community of like-minded people with comparable stressors and life experiences, to be part of something bigger than myself, to not be alone. I have always felt so alone because even though I was surrounded by lovely acquaintances, there was no support in bad times, no one to turn to so I could unburden myself.

When the problem with the rig started, I moved from, “I can deal with this by myself” to “I can’t do this on my own.” When the issue with the brakes happened, I felt I was to blame and that it was my burden to carry. But this time I am a victim. I loathe that word, but it is accurate, and I need support to get through this.

I reached out to my community and the response has been touching. I feel supported, cared for, valued. People have responded in whatever way they could, from legal advice to financial help. Knowing that I can unload about what’s going on to people who actually understand what’s going on is doing me a world of good.

I’ll be fine, but I’m holding it together in the meantime thanks to all of you, my readers. Thank you, thank you, thank you.