And the Van Goes...Nowhere- 04/10/2010

I realize I have been overly judgmental in the past. Especially regarding people who sleep in parking lots. Even worse, people who sleep in Walmart parking lots. I fell asleep last night under the gentle fluorescence of the familiar superstore logo. I start my day the Walmart way, with the gentle sounds of the store's patrons slamming doors, berating their children and hollering to friends across the way. We make coffee in the van and savor the natural beauty of our location.

We made ready to set sail towards the Green Swamp (and it's 14 varieties of carnivorous plants) and cruise smoothly out of the parking lot. After a quick stop at a local shop we are good to go. We pause to give Esther our destination, and then...klunk, klunk kerchunk on a repeat loop. Minutes later it stops. I know a little about cars-from unfortunate experiences with my own vehicles- and try to comfort my driver.

"It's just a belt" I say confidently, "Cheap to fix." We make a left turn out of the parking lot. "Is it hard to steer?" My companion nods the affirmative. "Yep, that's a serpentine belt all right, shouldn't be to hard to fix."

We scouted the area earlier in the day and are very lucky that there is a AAA center less than a mile down the road. We arrive safetly and pop the hood. There's a frayed, worn belt hanging limply from two pulleys. We settle in to wait.