Conversation from approximately 4 months ago:
Dad, the brake light lit up today and stayed lit.
Alright, go pop the hood and I’ll look at it right now.
Thanks, Dad.
Later that day:
Sis, I couldn’t find anything wrong with your brake system. There must be a short in the dash causing the light to stay lit.
Ok, Dad. Thanks for checking it for me.
Today:After Alannah’s workout this morning, we decide to stop by Maggie’s Crochet since we’re on that side of town. I want to see if she has any wooden hooks in stock – I need a hook that is completely round and I want to hold it in my hot little hands before I decide to buy.
As we pull out of the lot, I notice the brake pedal is a little mushy. Making a mental note to broach the subject with Dad again when we get home, I start looking for the turn off we need to take. Alannah and I start talking, and I don’t notice the 4-way stop sign until we’re right.on.top.of.it. My eyes widen, and I see a truck pulling up to another side of the intersection.
I stomp on the brakes.
We slow down slightly, then I hear an odd “thunk” from the rear of the van. Alannah yells at me to STOP!!! as we roll drunkenly through the intersection.
Stamping on the brake pedal as hard as I can (yes, it IS possible to push that thing so hard you leave dents in the carpet), we finally came to a stop 200 yards from the stop sign – and 20 feet from The Busiest Intersection In Town.
By now, Alannah is thoroughly freaking out, so I had to calm her down before I picked up the cell to call Mom/Dad/SOMEBODY and let them know that I have no brakes. Get her calm, dial the phone and…
listen to it ring.
It’s 7 miles home, but fortunately it’s a straight shot with few lights. The speed limit through downtown is a gracious 20 mph, and the road quickly goes from city to country. Stopping by the shop isn’t an option right now – I don’t know if that shop is even OPEN on the weekend, and since I can’t get anyone on the phone, I’m not willing to go and just SIT waiting on my van to be repaired.
We only had one more “panic” moment after that – turning off the main road. Traffic was coming from the opposite direction, and I very nearly overshot the turn.
Thus concludes the horror of my morning.
And I STILL didn’t get to Maggie’s to view the goodies. **insert poorly acted heavy boo-hooing here**
Glad you’re ok! That sounded kind of scary.