How far is too far to drive?

[badgercat]

Is your car in good shape?
Are you prepared to deal with mechanical problems? Flat tire?
Got credit cards in case of repairs or other emergency?
Cellphone?

These are all very good things to keep in mind for the solo long-distance driver! I'd always been pretty proud of the fact that I knew my way around the basics of my car... and then learned that I wasn't as comfortable changing a flat tire as I thought when I got a flat on a busy interstate this summer. I chickened out, since I had never done it all alone before (and didn't really want to find out whether or not I'd done it right by merging back into 70mph traffic!), and called upon the roadside assistance service I have with my cell phone plan. When I eventually got to my parents' house, though, my dad showed me how to do it again and I practiced it a few times start-to-finish by myself until I was comfortable with it.

ANYWAY. The moral of that story is always be prepared, and stuff. I'm getting rambly in my futile attempts to avoid my homework.