My buddy

If you remember from a previous post, I’m not a big fan of spiders. Yet somehow I now have a spider buddy who goes with me everywhere–literally. That is because he has made my car’s passenger side mirror his home.

My buddy's work in Chicago

I first noticed my buddy after my car sat for two weeks while I was in China at the end of July. Stephen and I made jokes about how I need to drive more before my car is covered in spiderwebs. I didn’t think much of the web on my mirror and my driving destroyed it. I came out several days later to drive again and noticed a new web. Once again I drove and the web was destroyed. But my buddy is persistent. Every night he comes out and builds a new web. I have yet to see him catch anything in it, so I’m not quite sure how he is mustering the energy to spin so often, but he does. While I am driving he hides inside my mirror. The little bugger is smart, except for the whole web-placement-on-a-moving-vehicle decision. If only the web could withstand driving, he would have a feast, especially if the web caught half the bugs that my windshield did on my drive to Cincinnati Thursday. That’s right, on Thursday I made the 300 mile drive from Chicago to Cincinnati for possibly the last time ever. I was certain my buddy had found a new home or perished from lack of food. But I came out on Friday morning to find a large intricate web on my window–my spider buddy made it to Cincinnati with me! I almost felt bad destroying his web once again. I was outside tonight and actually caught him in the act. So far he caught a dandelion seed in his web. Hopefully he gets some insects soon.

My buddy's work in Cincinnati

I’m heading back to Chicago tomorrow on a one-way Megabus. It’ll be hard to leave behind not just my family and car, but also my spider buddy. Hopefully my mom won’t mind giving me spider updates.

How to Succeed in [the Car Repair] Business Without Really Trying

This is what a real city car's bumper looks like. Mine isn't this bad!

(Two posts in one day!)

I always seem to have random people encounters in my elevator or on the street. Today I had one while driving. I believe that’s a first.

I was on my way back from Dominick’s (the grocery store) and stopped at a light. I was minding my own business, sipping my green tea frappuccino (which happens to be the exact same color as my car) and jamming to Ellery. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed the guy in the passenger seat of the car next to me talking and pointing to my rims. I drive a cyber green Beetle with special edition cyber green rims. It’s not something you see everyday, and every so often someone will roll down their window to tell me just that. So I rolled down my window a bit to hear what this guy had to say.

“Hey I work for [such-in-such dealership or mechanic, I don’t remember]. We can get those marks off your bumper.”

Beetle’s transition from Kentucky garage life to Chicago street life wasn’t exactly smooth, and it has the scars to prove it. They’re not horrible compared to most city cars and my dad had already mentioned getting some touch up paint.

I politely told the guy no thanks.

“Are you sure? We could do it for about $80!” he shouted. I again politely declined. Then he called me gorgeous and drove off. I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if I said yes—would he have jumped out of the car and slipped me a business card? Or tried to throw it through my window? Or ask me to shout my telephone number? Who knows.

I then remembered that the guy looked familiar. He was in the car that had blocked me in my stop at Dominick’s because he was talking to the people who got out of the car next to mine. I thought he was asking for directions, but he was probably offering to fix their car too. I guess his technique is cheaper than making fliers.