WHEN most of the people around you don’t see the need to have a car, you most likely will not have one. But all of you would prefer to ride in a car if given the chance.
Six years ago, ill-advised and with no financial stability, I told myself to get a red sedan and prayed to God that I will be able to pay the monthly amortization for the next five years. With only my salary as my certain monthly income, things got really bad.
It then got worse. I realized that I will be spending more for periodic maintenance, fuel, car tint, insurance, registration, and some minor fixing here and there.
And worst. Two collecting agencies, emails and phone calls, text messages about penalties and surcharges, flat tires, fuel gauge warning signals, car scratches, reprimands from traffic enforcers.
Every end of the month, for more than five years, I panicked as to how I would be able to come up with the amount for the amortization.
Looking back, if I only knew how financially stressful it would become, I never would have gotten a car.
Then, finally, a text message from the financing company:
“Greetings from the Financial Services! We are pleased to inform you that you have completed your vehicle financing with us…”
I went to the company office beaming with pride. And spent some time looking at the SUVs displayed in the showroom.
Consumerism and ego at its best. But along the way, I also learned a lot. Allow me to share with you some of the lessons I learned while driving.
1. Defensive or “protective” driving
I now drive carefully not only to avoid harming other people but also to avoid denting my car. To me, a dented car is like a disfigured face. It speaks a lot about the driver/owner of the car. I know that this remark may offend others. It offends me too.
On the brighter side, owning a car and taking care of it teaches one to be more responsible and considerate of others.
2. No parking, no driving
I have experienced getting a taxi to go to SM City when my car was just actually park at Atria. On weekends, I prefer riding a jeepney or bus.
A parking space, or the lack of one, is now a personal concern to me. It is now a work-related activity. And one good reason for me to arrive to work early so that I can avail myself of those “first come, first served” parking spaces.
3. Calculated cruising and stopping smoothly
I now have this habit of seeing to it that when I make a full stop, it has to be as smooth as possible that I wouldn’t even feel a slight forward movement. This is my way of maintaining my peace of mind when driving.
But I admit that the more careful I get in driving, the more annoyed I am about the driving style of other people, about how people cross the road, and about how roads are maintained or utterly “left to ruins.”
In conclusion, I may have learned a thing or two about being counted as one of the private vehicles. But I still cannot comprehend as to how and why we have allowed the use of glaring (LED) headlights (almost like in high beam) as normal headlights when driving—and even while parking!
I can somehow understand why jeepneys, buses, tricycles, and motorcycles have glaring headlights. But to the private cars—which almost resemble like mobile lighthouses, I cannot see the connection between glaring headlights and safer driving.
Such lights can affect or distract the vision of the oncoming vehicles. Instead of preventing a mishap, it can likely lead to one—an accident waiting to be seen.
I think that next time, I will just opt to install the darkest nano ceramic tint./PN
