I try not to be a typical girl. However, there are a few things I just can’t get past. I am not okay with getting dirty or sweaty when I’m wearing decent clothes, football positions are impossible to differentiate, and embarrassingly, I know a very minimal amount about the mechanics of my car.
Last week, adding air to one of my tires became a nightly ritual. Hoping for a quick $10 patch job, I took my car in. The guys jacked up my car, spun the wheel, laughed and asked if I was ready for new tires. Did I have a choice?
They informed me that my tire was going to blow up if I didn’t get new ones soon. I called around town to a few of the 300-plus tire shops in Fargo-Moorhead. I haven’t felt that stupid since my first job as an intern.
Tire Man: “What size are the tires?”
Me: (cringe) “I knew you were going to ask me that… I don’t know.”
Tire Man: “We can look it up… is your car a 3 or 4 cylinder?”
Me: “I think it’s ahhh fffffoour? I know it’s a 1.3! Does that help?”
Tire Man: “Okay, it’s a four cylinder then. Looks like it’s 155-13.”
Me: “That’s all? Does that include everything!?”
Tire Man: “That”s the size, not the price.”
I ended up with Firestones. Through my research I learned they were some of the best tires I could get. It’s not like I needed the best of the best… I drive a Geo. I just chose the place because I had a coupon. Better yet, it was close to work so I didn’t have to spend an awkward hour or two in the shop endlessly flipping through car magazines.
Yes, that was my selection process: cheap and convenient. Most guys would happily spend an hour or two deciding what they want their tread to look like, what brand they want, and any other option that could possibly come with purchasing tires.
Guys understand why they want and need an alignment. I just knew I probably should because I probably needed it. Turns out, my car was in dire need of an alignment. And now, a week later, I wouldn’t doubt that I need another due to the unavoidable potholes and sunken manholes that speckle the roads of Fargo-Moorhead.
Anyway, this whole situation is inevitable: guys begin to inherit car knowledge the day they are given their first Matchbox car. Daily conversations revolve around sports, TVs, trucks, and cars. Unfortunately, most women remain completely helpless on the subject. If women’s conversations revolved around anything of the sort, not much would be said.
Shootin’ the Wit is a weekly column about everyday life that should never, ever be taken too seriously.
I’m a writer and photographer who loves old cars, big dogs and trying stuff for the first time. I believe everyone should have a bucket list because life isn’t about working, paying bills and having the latest and greatest. It’s about experiences. Achieving goals. People. Adventures. Travel.
I’ve never dyed my hair, broken a bone, or watched a Star Wars movie, and I don’t plan on doing any of these.