Six and a half years ago, my brother and his wife sold us their Dodge Neon for a great price. We were very grateful for the reliable car and Kevin drove it daily for years. The Neon is bright blue and Ricky dubbed it “Sally” from the movie “Cars.” She was no porche, like the original Sally, but the boys have loved having a celebrity around.
About a year and a half ago, Kevin took Ricky to school in Sally. He put her into park, let Ricky out, and then went to drive away. Sally refused to change gears. We managed to get her home and parked her. She’s been parked next to our grapes since.
I’m sure it wouldn’t have been a hard fix, but we had the suburban for Kevin to drive and winter was coming, so we just left her. The boys have talked to her, watched icicles form off of her, seen the bees buzzing around her, and asked us when we were ever going to fix her.
The answer to their question is never. We decided to let someone else have that pleasure. Sally did have a few problems (a leaky trunk among other things) that we felt better suited another family. We put a for sale sign on her one Saturday afternoon, and by Tuesday afternoon, she was sold. The best part for us is that the man who bought her owns a repair shop. Maybe someday soon we’ll see Sally restored to full glory and cruising the streets once more.
So long, Sally!