So, I hadn't driven my car in about five weeks, and I hate when it sits for that long. I just replaced one of my two batteries because it seemed to be misbehaving, and I wanted to test drive it.
For all of the above reasons, I thought it was time to take it for a drive yesterday evening.
But I didn't really have any place to drive to. I just did a big loop to start (to stay close to home because of the battery issue). The voyage went just fine. The new battery worked great (although I STILL suspect that my alternator isn't working quite right. Hmmmm.) I still wasn't ready to park it. And I was getting hungry.
So I cruised into town to find some grub. Now, the main problem is that I still have a hot start problem that makes it difficult to start the car for 15 to 30 minutes after I've parked it. On the other hand, it was cold out, so I figured there was a pretty good chance it would re-start just fine. But I didn't want to take the chance/suffer the embarrassment, so I did the only other thing I could think of; I got in line at the drive-through.
Guys, If you haven't taking a Sterling/Sebring through a drive-through, you owe it to yourselves. OMG, it drew all of the typical stares and oogling as any 'typical' drive in a Sterling and then some. Problem was, it was starting to create a traffic jam of onlookers who were pulling up parallel to the drive-through lane.
Anyway, this was one of those joints that has two drive-up windows, one to pay and the other to receive your order. I had my side window removed, so, at the "pay" window, I just reached up through my window. But the angle was really awkward, and I figured it would be best to pop the top to get the actual food.
The thing is, I was already drawing gobs of attention, and I actually didn't want to draw much more as I was trying to juggle food and pull out into a tricky intersection with the blinding, setting sun hitting me in the face.
But after some quick deliberation, I popped the top and sat there waiting for my food. I was aware that people in the parking lot were going crazy over the canopy, but I was just trying to play it cool and ignore them.
Unfortunately, the poor girl at the second window hadn't really noticed me or my car yet, and when she turned to give me the food, the canopy was right at eye-level for her and she actually visibly jumped back and almost dropped the soda. She seemed surprised and a little disturbed, and then smiled and said in a delightfully Pensylvania-Ducthified accent, "Ooooo, dat's a nifty 'un!"
Always being the epitome of cool (...he says with self-depricating sarcasm), I suavely took my Coke and the bag of food, nodded a little James Bond-ish nod to the girl, and then...
Dude! There's no figgin' place to put a Coke in a Sterling!! *insane* *hee-hee-hee*So now I'm sitting there, Coke in one hand, food in the other, and I can't put either down, and I can't drop the top, and I can't shift or steer to leave the window, and there are about two dozen people watching me now. *laugh**laugh**laugh* and *whaah*
I looked back at the girl, laughed at myself, and said, "...and yet it doesn't have a cup holder." She laughed and said, "Oh well, it looks like it has everything else."
I crammed the coke in between my legs, dropped the top, and, with a still discernible amount of poise, slunk back out of the drive-through and continued on my way. I think everyone got a kick out of it. I know I did.
So again I say, if you've never gone through a drive-through, do so. But be sure to have a passenger and/or a cup holder handy. *laugh*
For all of the above reasons, I thought it was time to take it for a drive yesterday evening.
But I didn't really have any place to drive to. I just did a big loop to start (to stay close to home because of the battery issue). The voyage went just fine. The new battery worked great (although I STILL suspect that my alternator isn't working quite right. Hmmmm.) I still wasn't ready to park it. And I was getting hungry.
So I cruised into town to find some grub. Now, the main problem is that I still have a hot start problem that makes it difficult to start the car for 15 to 30 minutes after I've parked it. On the other hand, it was cold out, so I figured there was a pretty good chance it would re-start just fine. But I didn't want to take the chance/suffer the embarrassment, so I did the only other thing I could think of; I got in line at the drive-through.
Guys, If you haven't taking a Sterling/Sebring through a drive-through, you owe it to yourselves. OMG, it drew all of the typical stares and oogling as any 'typical' drive in a Sterling and then some. Problem was, it was starting to create a traffic jam of onlookers who were pulling up parallel to the drive-through lane.
Anyway, this was one of those joints that has two drive-up windows, one to pay and the other to receive your order. I had my side window removed, so, at the "pay" window, I just reached up through my window. But the angle was really awkward, and I figured it would be best to pop the top to get the actual food.
The thing is, I was already drawing gobs of attention, and I actually didn't want to draw much more as I was trying to juggle food and pull out into a tricky intersection with the blinding, setting sun hitting me in the face.
But after some quick deliberation, I popped the top and sat there waiting for my food. I was aware that people in the parking lot were going crazy over the canopy, but I was just trying to play it cool and ignore them.
Unfortunately, the poor girl at the second window hadn't really noticed me or my car yet, and when she turned to give me the food, the canopy was right at eye-level for her and she actually visibly jumped back and almost dropped the soda. She seemed surprised and a little disturbed, and then smiled and said in a delightfully Pensylvania-Ducthified accent, "Ooooo, dat's a nifty 'un!"
Always being the epitome of cool (...he says with self-depricating sarcasm), I suavely took my Coke and the bag of food, nodded a little James Bond-ish nod to the girl, and then...
Dude! There's no figgin' place to put a Coke in a Sterling!! *insane* *hee-hee-hee*So now I'm sitting there, Coke in one hand, food in the other, and I can't put either down, and I can't drop the top, and I can't shift or steer to leave the window, and there are about two dozen people watching me now. *laugh**laugh**laugh* and *whaah*
I looked back at the girl, laughed at myself, and said, "...and yet it doesn't have a cup holder." She laughed and said, "Oh well, it looks like it has everything else."
I crammed the coke in between my legs, dropped the top, and, with a still discernible amount of poise, slunk back out of the drive-through and continued on my way. I think everyone got a kick out of it. I know I did.
So again I say, if you've never gone through a drive-through, do so.
But be sure to have a passenger and/or a cup holder handy. *laugh*