My cousin, Katia, is insisting that we go on a road trip up north for new years’ eve. Of course, she doesn’t want to drive – that’s my assigned role in the shenanigan, along with providing the vehicle. It just so happens that I have a six-seater van, and Katia has four pals who are keen to come along for the ride.Naturally, none of them have a valid drivers license. They’re up for chipping in for petrol, apparently, which is all well and good in theory. In my experience, it can often be an empty promise, with someone saying they’ll send through thirty bucks here and twenty there and proceeding to forget all about it, even when you repeatedly send them follow up texts until finally you decide you’re never lending them money, or petrol, ever again.
Can you tell I’ve been burned by Katia’s road trip plans in the past? There’s always some ‘unmissable’ Hobart music festival or ‘important’ astral event that can only be viewed from some obscure country truck stop to rope me into, and then I get stuck doing all the grunt work.
Well, this time, I’m going to get some returns on it myself. I’ll tell Katia that I’ll do it if the gang pays for me to first take my ride for a trip to get a car service in the Hobart area. Locals can surely recommend somewhere that’ll get her in good working order quickly? I’m stuck here at my aunt’s house with Katia until the designated departure date, and I don’t really know the region.
What else can I get out of the deal? Maybe I should get a car aircon regas in Hobart. It can get pretty darned hot at this time of year, and I can’t deal with making this trip with a subpar car cooling system.
I don’t think I’m being too shifty here. Honestly, these long trips take a toll on the car, and if I’m not going to be paid for petrol, I think it’s fair to get that money through a different avenue – specifically, an up-front one.