Luck is what you make it
So–initially I had to deal with my tire randomly flying off while en route to the Quiz Cottage. Apparently the tire was worn out. It was difficult to identify that the tire had issues because the noise of a loppy tire is disguised by the noise of uneven road surfaces along HWY 10. Fortunately I pulled over safely and was towed to El Monte Pep Boys. They did fine work that day.
In December, some wacko smacked into my rear right wheel. It was unnecessary to screw up and hit my car in that scenario. Nevertheless, I was T-boned, and my hub cap was damaged. A kind lady from the nearby mosque checked to make sure I was alright. Unfortunately the responsible party sped off in a silver Toyota hatchback–never to be seen again. I pray their front bumper looks like garbage now. Jerks.
What I didn’t know was that my rear brakes no longer engaged the wheel. Even though I had fresh brakes put on in August, driving from BBL to LA and back culminated in…
So once I noticed the lurching whenever I hit the brake pedal, I returned to El Monte Pep Boys. My car was also producing all sorts of bizarre percussive sounds, and seemed like it was on its last legs. Technically it was–since the struts were at the end of their useful life.
On top of requiring new brakes and struts, the bushings were worn on various parts–and the engine brackets were in bad shape. 9 hours later and after some last-minute miracles–VOILA!
One of the techs there was a masterful, Renaissance-man savant-type. It’s really nifty when chance results in having a person with advanced aptitude available during an emergency situation.
A person may view these happenstances as bad luck–or good luck–or as a mixture of the two. Life is populated with challenges-a-plenty. I figure my fortunes to be determined by the competence of the people I work with and my own capabilities. Admittedly, I can be really hard on myself, but I expect more–and better. That is why I am very eager to evolve the Quiz Cottage towards my vision. I just need to be patient.