Goodbye and Thank You, Carmela

We took the painful but quick decision today to sell my dear Kia, Carmela, who was with me for almost 15 years.  You'll see her final record in the extra -- 553115 km., equivalent to a little more than 13 times around the world.  She toured the northern part of the European continent with me, and practically the whole of The Netherlands.  She took me to work and brought me back safely home again.  She was a snoozing cabin, picnic table, sounding board, disco, psychologist, devil's advocate, teacher, and all-round best friend.  She was always there when I needed her.  As you might see, I did my best to take good care of her, too.

What brought this about?  A simple letter from the local tax office pulled the trigger.  She has become too expensive.  There are 'milieu zones' now in several European cities, and I risk a steep fine if I ignore them.  Her road tax is a whopping 80 euros a month, every month, and this will only increase.  The fatal blow was that darned rock that I did not see last June in Maasland, which meant, even then, that she would most likely not pass her APK (MOT) this coming January, and it will cost me a fortune if I insist on getting her underside dent straightened out.  15 faithful, careful, consistent, high-performing, and highly adventurous years... I shed more than a tear.

The dealer, one of Son's close contacts, paid me more than I would have got from our regular dealer.  Carmela will no longer be sold here as the new owner will most likely not wish to pay the high road tax.  Instead, she'll most likely be transported to Turkey or Morocco, patched up there, and then get locally registered and sold.  She's too good to be broken up for spare parts.  That said, I will never know.  I wish her new owner as much joy with her as I had.  She was a plucky, tough little thing.  I think she and I were perfectly suited.

It was a grey, wet day the whole time, with the sun coming out only much later in the afternoon.  We hung around Son's place afterwards, and had a good chat with the family.  When I saw the sun later, I thought of the hunt, but then it was too late, of course.  So glad for these final shots.  The hunt will not stop, but will slow down.  Shouldn't be hard to do, with the weather as it is.  AW's car is even older than Carmela, but he's waiting another year before exchanging it.  Many job application forms online ask if the applicant has his own vehicle, and I'll still say 'yes' because I can use AW's if necessary, but I do hope now that if I find work it will be in the area.  Bus services are well-organized but not cheap, so if all else is not viable, I can still ride my bike.

Back to the MOOC in the evening, and some gaming, too, and the inevitable housework.  One extra empty parking space now in front of the house.  We'll see what the future brings.