FanStory.com - Vehicle Maintenanceby Bill Schott

One sometimes rides in a vehicle as if it is a magic carpet. Jump in, turn the key, ride to the next place. Seldom does the possibility of failure hitch a ride.

This morning, I realized that the heater fan in the van did not work. After a quick check, I saw that everything else did work. So, either the fuse for the heater blew or the heating element burned out.

It then occurred to me that I had another vehicle -- the pick-up.

I was then reminded by that dependable memory of mine that I was supposed to have the clawing brakes fixed on it. In the midst of this revelation, I realized I had not started the truck in over a month of frigid weather. A quick check of cold's effects on a car battery led to the discovery that it was indeed dead.

This new piece of information flipped me into a flashback of the last time my truck battery was dead. I pushed the truck out of the garage in order to jump it, but went too far, dropped off the cement approach, and ended up being dragged across the driveway in a foolish attempt to keep my beautiful truck from careening into suburban traffic. The open driver's door hit my heroic flowering bush, over-extending it, but stopping the truck from further disaster.

I guess I should fix things.