It has been a busy couple of days trying to put a nice capstone to this situation. There were a couple of things I had not thought through. Even though the new apartment is furnished there are a bunch of little things that are still needed for a comfortable life –sheets, pillow cases and pillows, blankets along with dishes, glasses, mugs and cookware. It took a couple days and several shopping trips to collect all the needed items.
A call to the apartment building owner indicated everything was ready on his end. He casually mentioned that the apartment was on the northern end of town on the north side of the 465 belt highway around the city and there was really no mass transit in the area. The apartment is actually in the town of Carmel, Indiana which is a lucky break since the Carmel schools are considered the best in the state, far better than Indianapolis. However, it was obvious that Jennifer would need a car.
It has been a long time since I have gone car shopping and now I remember why I hated it. Hucksters trying palm off every lemon in the lot. Nonetheless, I found a 2006 Nissan Altima with only 41,000 miles on it. We settled on $4,300, there were a few dings on the body but it ran beautifully. We loaded the car and I drove to Knoxville, Tennessee to pick up Jennifer. When arriving at the agreed location the reunion between Jennifer and her daughter Amanda was just like a movie version and frankly the best Christmas present I have gotten in a long time.
The trip from Knoxville to Indianapolis was uneventful and a fairly easy 4.5 hour trip. We arrived, thanks to GPS, at the new apartment building and were met by the owner. We brought up all the supplies and when Jennifer signed the one year lease, she received the keys along with a reminder that her job starts the next Monday a quick walk two buildings away. It was then I dropped the car keys in Jennifer’s hand. The emotions of all of this hitting Jennifer at once was too much as she broke down sobbing at her good fortune – her daughter, a job, a home and a car she kept asking why? I tried to explain I was probably the luckiest man to walk this earth and others deserve some luck in their lives. Jennifer has promised to pay $50/month or whatever she can afford to repay for the car. This will be the first car she has ever personally owned.
A UBER to the airport and I was on my way back to New Jersey. We will keep in touch for Jennifer and Amanda are now as close as any family member.
Read the earlier article on this” The REAL True Meaning of Christmas” HERE.