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kimgraves
Feb 28, 2007, 4:20 PM
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Registered: Jan 13, 2003
Posts: 1186
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I’m running late for my annual physical. I pull on a lightweight sweater and layer my windproof over it. I have a wool hat and gloves. Everything else I’m wearing is cotton. I haven’t eaten in four hours. I jump in the car and roar across the Brooklyn Bridge and up the East side of Manhattan on the FDR Drive at 60 mph. The drive up to 34th Street won’t take me more than 15 minutes. Five minutes from home on an elevated and isolated part of the FDR, the motor quits. I glide to a stop as far to the right as I can pull. Still it’s rush hour and traffic piles up behind me. The car will turn over but won’t start. My Camry is 15 years old; with 112,000 miles on it (you can tell I live in The City). Timing belt I think – though I had that changed at 70K.
I call 911 and they dispatch a tow truck. I call the doctor and cancel my appointment. I call Masha and tell her what happened. What did people do without cell phones?
Just as the tow truck pulls up an unmarked NYPD car does as well. The cop waves off the truck and tells me he’ll push me to the nearest exit. His priority it to clear the major rush hour backup. He pushes me, very expertly, to Houston Street. Without the power assist, steering and breaks are very sluggish. I pull into a space in front of a fire hydrant (the only consistently open places to stand in this town), and the cop doesn’t even stop to see if I’m okay. He just takes off. I call 911 back to cancel the tow truck dispatch and to get them to redispatch one to my location. They tell me that since I’m off the highway I have to find my own tow.
I am in the middle of nowhere. Unlike every other block in Manhattan, this area is in the middle of housing projects and it's deserted. There are no stores or anything else for blocks. What’s more I can’t leave the car without risking a $125 ticket or missing the tow. Masha calls our insurance company (note to self: put the insurance company phone number in my cell) and they dispatch a tow – 60 to 90 minutes they say.
It’s 35 degrees out and lightly raining. The car hadn’t been running long enough for the heat to come up, and the car is dead anyway so I’m without heat. While I’m wearing enough insulation to keep me warm if I’m moving, sitting in a cold car, I’m cold. I search the glove compartment for a leftover ClifBar or something – nothing. No water either. I try to tough it out but I’m getting colder by the minute. I’ve buttoned up everything, put on my hat and gloves. It’s not enough.
I rummage in the tire well and find a large plastic bag. It’s big enough to climb into like a bivi sack. It doesn’t cover my head, but I can pull it up around my shoulders. I feel like a homeless person wrapped up in a garbage bag. I’m still cold, but I’m no longer freezing. I can manage this. The minutes tick by as I wait for the truck. 60 minutes gone, no truck. 90 minutes, no truck. I use isometric exercise to generate warmth. I call the tow company – 30 minutes they say – it’s on the way.
The truck finally comes two hours and fifteen minutes after being dispatched. I extract myself from my improvised bivi. The truck cab is warm. Two and half hours later, after a trip to Queens and an hour on the subway, I’m home having dinner and a glass of wine.
A cold wilderness can be found even in Manhattan.
Best, Kim
(This post was edited by kimgraves on Mar 4, 2007, 4:23 AM)
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reg
Feb 28, 2007, 4:59 PM
Post #2 of 7
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Registered: Nov 10, 2004
Posts: 1560
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oh boy - a winter senerio that we all should be prepared for - in my van i have a "portable buddy" - a 99% effecient propane heater - 9hrs at 5000 btus, a set of winter work coveralls, insulated boots, winter socks/hat/gloves and some food (mres, power bar etc. (i'm thinkin now i should add a pint of jim beam) and I live in maryland! hey - for you kim it could have been worst! when things are going good - that's when ya gotta be ready to duck!
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sidepull
Mar 1, 2007, 4:24 AM
Post #3 of 7
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Registered: Sep 11, 2001
Posts: 2335
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I don't see this getting published in the next Patagonia catalog, but maybe Sears is looking for some "in the trenches" human stories to spice up their collection.
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iceisnice
Mar 3, 2007, 9:31 PM
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Registered: Jun 2, 2004
Posts: 874
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my motta has always been.........there's no such thing as a bad day. there are good days....and there are training days.
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ottoman
Mar 6, 2007, 1:17 PM
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Registered: May 26, 2003
Posts: 149
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Hey Kim, I have 189K on my Camry, I think I'll drive it till the wheels fall off!
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j_ung
Mar 6, 2007, 2:48 PM
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Registered: Nov 21, 2003
Posts: 18690
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Hey, that was a great little story, Kim.  Glad you made it back in one piece.
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kimgraves
Mar 8, 2007, 10:38 PM
Post #7 of 7
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Registered: Jan 13, 2003
Posts: 1186
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Update:
While I survived this little ordeal, my car did not. "The wheels have fallen off" and we're donating it for a tax deduction. It will be sad to be without a car I can just jump into, but ZipCar is just too cost effective. We'll end up saving half our annual car costs: no insurance, no car or depreciation costs, no parking, no gas costs. Plus I get a new car with all the modern safety gadgets. Finally, it ends up being much Greener to rent a car when I need one rather than owning one. Of course it doesn't hurt that the pickup place is just in back of our building. It makes a lot of sense for city driving.
Best, Kim
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