Welcome to Part II of my lovely little Christmas story. Are you comfortable? Good. Got some eggnog? Eggnog's always good. Right. Onward we go.
[Friday]
So the man who was towing my car took it to the Dodge place in Hot Springs rather than the place where I got it. I drove my mom's car to work (it's not in very good shape, so I was secretly wondering if I'd have to get it towed later on) and was constantly calling people trying to find out something about my car. I told the dealership they would be waiting on my car. I called Wal-Mart to make sure they knew where it was going so they could send an adjuster, but I found out I needed to call at 11:00 (it was 8:30). I got a call from the dealership. The man said he had gotten my car and that "the engine won't even turn over." Well, great. It had completely locked out. I finally got a hold of the person I needed to at Wal-Mart after being transfered six times and then being dropped. I told the manager where my car was, and he said that he'd be sure to send someone to the right place. I found out later that that person was him. The next time I talked to him, he said the insurance company would be talking to me soon and that I "definitely need a new engine." He also said that they had put the wrong filter on my car, and that's why all the oil drained out of my car. Oh, literacy. How you have been underrated.
He also said that he told them not to touch my car until they had been contacted by the insurance agent. Since I was contacted around 4:00 that afternoon, I'm guessing they didn't talk to the dealership until afterward - maybe not until today or Wednesday. I was given a reservation number for a rental car. I was supposed to go ahead and call Enterprise to make sure they had a car for me. I called and they said they would have something available for me at the time I wanted to come in. I said 11:00.
[Saturday]
My grandmother was to be my chauffeur, and she wanted to leave about an hour early because of bad weather. Sure enough, as soon as we rolled into Hot Springs, the rain was coming down in sheets. We went to Enterprise, hoping to get my car and get out. When I told the person my reservation number, he said that they didn't have me coming in at all. He said they only had one vehicle left. A full sized Ram pick-up truck.
Oh, happy day.
So, to finally end a story that's far too long, I' m driving a full-size pick up until Wednesday, when I can change it out for a smaller car (post-Holiday season means more cars, I guess). Me in a huge truck. It's funnier than it sounds. My family, especially my grandparents, always opted out for vans and big trucks. I had a '95 Toyota Tercel for nearly five years, and just recently got an '05 Dodge Stratus. I still have trouble adjusting to driving a larger car. Now I've got that beast of a truck until they get my car fixed. Which will surely be next July.
Moral of the Story: Try to go somewhere besides Wal-Mart. Sometimes the convenience isn't worth it.
Merry Christmas to all those celebrating it, and Happy Holidays to all those who aren't. May you take this time to express how much you love and care for those around you. Including your (hopefully) not-busted car.
Oh my. Look at the time! Gotta go to bed so I can get up early to open presents. Huzzah!
Every once in a while it doesn't matter what you pay, because incompetence comes in all shapes, forms, and bill sizes.
Let me tell you the first part of a two part story concerning my recent "relations" with Wal-Mart.
[Wednesday]
Once upon a time, my car needed an oil change.
My car was a tad over on mileage (a tad being a smidge of an understatement), but my car was burning no oil and I had put in a liter to make sure that I would have enough. I'd not been putting it off so much as I couldn't go - I was under the assumption that Wal-Mart's auto service closed at 6:00, and I was working late with classes in the morning. So I was on may way home, and decided that once and for all I would stop and get the damn thing serviced.
I stopped at a place that proclaimed "30 MINUTE OIL CHANGE" on the side of its hanger-sized shop (should have been my first clue). Someone met me as I was walking to the office and told me that they only serviced semis. Of course. So I get back on the road and decided to go to the Wal-Mart in Benton, but there's a three car line that doesn't look it will move any time soon. Finally, I decided to stop at the Wal-Mart in Malvern, which is the closest one to my house on my way home.
Reluctantly, I tell the guy all of my information, just knowing that I was going to be at Wal-Mart forever (believe it or not, shopping at Wal-Mart was not something I could afford). So the guy took all my information and I went inside to "shop" - here meaning I looked longingly at all the things I wanted to buy. A familiar feeling, right? At any rate, I bought Flat Earth apple chips (which were really good) and cajun tuna (I wanted fish, dammit), and went to the back to check out. I waited about 10-15 more minutes for my car and then it was ready. I got in it and it was all ready to go - nothing perceivably wrong. I congratulated myself on keeping my car maintained voluntarily before something went wrong, and drove it home.
[Thursday]
The next morning, I left around 8 for work, an hour late. No hitches, no bumps. Around 3:30 that afternoon, I started home. That's when the trouble started.
It started with a rapid clicking noise coming from under the hood. I knew that wasn't right, but when I revved my motor and the sound went away, I thought it was gone. When the RPMs fell back down, the clicking got louder. I was in a wreck - a very small one (less than 5 MPH) - nearly two months ago, but it shifted my radiator up. I thought that my engine was vibrating and making the radiator move and rattle. It was a logical explanation.
I started driving on I-30 on the way home. I was in the left lane when my dashboard lights started coming on. Less than 10 seconds later, my engine cut off. I was going 60 MPH. I coasted my way over to the right line and pulled over. I let the car rest for a minute, racking my brain for the rhyme and reason. I started the car again, and proceeded at about 35 or 40 MPH, trying to get somewhere where I could pull over safely.
It wasn't long at all before the lights came on again. This time I saw the oil light come on first, and the only thing I could think was "surely not." My engine cut off again, and I coasted off onto the Colonel Glenn exit and stopped. I popped the hood, the whole time telling myself "It's definitely not the oil. Not the oil. Not the oil." I checked the oil and, sure enough, it was completely bone dry. Oh, I was angry. I flash-boiled. I called my mother and told her what happened, and that I needed someone to come get me. It would be a full hour before they would even be able to reach me, and that was without traffic.
My mother called my grandmother, who called the wrecker. My mom told me she was on her way. I waited.
I was listening to an NPR review of Sweeney Todd (I thought it was hilarious that the reviewer feared that Depp's singing voice would turn "Sweeney Todd" into "Sweeney Manilow") when my mother called me and told me to call Wal-Mart. Cue hilarious exchanges.
Note: I had calmed down around two minutes after I realized what happened, so I was particularly calm.
I call the Wal-Mart number on my receipt from the oil change.
Customer Service: Hello. Thank you for calling Wal-Mart. How may I direct your call?
Me: Ah, yes. I need to talk to a manager. I came in yesterday to get an oil change, and my car stalled while I was driving it. Now I have no oil in my car and I'm stranded.
Customer Service: Oh my... Let me transfer you. I wouldn't know anything about it! [nervous laughter]
--Hold Music for two seconds before the automotive department picked up.--
Auto Service: Hello, thank you for calling Wal-Mart automotive service and parts [or whatever the hell it's called]. We sell tires for less. This is _____.
Me: Ahhhhh... yes. I was in yesterday for an oil change. My engine stopped running while I was driving it, and when I pulled over to see what was the matter, I had no oil in my car. And I'm stranded right now.
Auto Service: OH MY LORD. Let me get the manager. [Phone clicks as it's laid on the counter. Cashier screams, "DAVID!" and relates to him in a very jumbled way why I want to talk to him. The phone clicks as someone picks up the phone.]
David: This is David. How can I help you?
Me: Hello! I was in yesterday for an oil change. Today on the way home my engine stopped running while I was driving. When I pulled over, I had no oil in my engine-
David: OhmyGod.
Me: -and I'm stranded.
David: [audible deep breath] Where are you?
Me: I'm in Little Rock, but I have a tow truck coming for me. That's been taken care of.
David: Where are you having it towed to?
Me: My parents wanted me to have it towed to Wal-Mart.
David: Okay. That would be good. Let me have your name and phone number.
As soon as I got off the phone with David, a man pulled over ahead of me and stuck his head out the window. "Are you alright?" I nodded and told him I had a tow truck coming. He told me he just wanted to check and I thanked him. I called my grandmother and my mother back (as they had both called me in the five minutes I was on the phone), and found out that the guy that we called to come tow my car was stuck in traffic nearly 75 miles away, and that I would have to wait on him to give him the key to my car. Lovely. I called my best friends and got no answer, so I settled in for a pleasantly unplanned reading of Slaughterhouse Five.
The tow truck guy called and tried to make sure of where I was. One my best friends called me back. My mother and my grandmother called me again. An army soldier stopped and checked on me. A state trooper stopped and checked on me. He told me my license plates didn't match my car, but this turned out to be his error. Then he became really jovial and told me to make a paper airplane of the warning ticket he had to write. All in all, I read about 10 pages of my book.
My mom and sort-of-stepdad (long story) came and got me, and we met the tow truck at Benton to give him the key to my car. We went out to eat for dinner, and my grandmother called me and told me that the man who was towing my car suggested that I not take it to Wal-Mart, because they could "fix" whatever it was and claim it wasn't their fault. He said he had seen it before, and would hate for it to happen to me. So we decided he would lock it up for the night and that the next morning take it to the dealership where I bought it. Then we changed the plan and decided to take it to the dealership for the car maker (Dodge) instead of the dealership where I bought it (Ford).
Part II of this riveting epic due before Christmas! I know you're waiting anxiously.
