The funny thing about relationships is the way people talk about them. I've heard people who were dating each other claim they were not "in a relationship" because they were "only about sex" or were "only friends with benefits". Well, I am totally surprised by those kinds of statements because, as far as I recall, relationships have to do with how intimately we know other people and I think that sex is very intimate.

I see on Facebook that people I know, who are dating, sometimes claim they are "in a relationship" and the same for people who have moved in together, they often say they are "in a relationship". What is really interesting is the way I sometimes see two people, one of whom is "in a relationship" and the other is "single". I wonder how that feels for the person who is "in a relationship"? Is it weird being "in a relationship" with someone who is "single"? Is it someone with low self esteem who would be "in a relationship" with someone who is "single"?

Am I "in a relationship" with a "single" vehicle? I suppose I am, though my car was hit by another car and was not in a "single vehicle" accident.

For me, in some way, even the doings with our possessions can be termed relationships. I am quite attached to my favourite tools, for instance I clung to a certain paintbrush for years, as I liked how it worked a painting. I had friendly feelings toward that paintbrush.

I have had "a relationship" with my car, though I have never kissed it, not even once, and it has been whacked very hard and it is now sitting awaiting repairs or replacement. So, I have been thinking about my "relationship" with my car and I realize I don't date my car and I don't let my car in my living quarters. So, I suppose I don't really have a "relationship" with my car.

Yet, I am very sad over the possible loss of my car, not as much as I would be over the loss of a "relationship" with a human being, but still feeling very sad.

It has been a good car and, being human, I tend to anthropomorphize things and creatures other than human beings. I've been known to talk to plants and trees and sometimes the sky and the sun and the moon. I guess I have a lot of "relationships", though not in the true meaning of the word. You can check Wikipedia for the most recent meanings of the word... and there are many...

So, I think I really do have a relationship with my car and I am distressed to believe that it will be left in a wrecking yard some place. I find it disturbing that everyone is suggesting the poor car is too old to fix. I think it's fine to fix and I feel sorry for the car that served me so well, only to be tossed aside for a newer, unbroken model.

You tell me. Would I be so unhappy if I did not have a relationship with my car? Would it disturb me to think of it being deserted instead of repaired? I think I do have a relationship with my car, albeit one sided. My car sits there like the pile of metal it is, ignoring my sympathetic stares. The sparkle in the headlights is not a tear, merely a reflection from the sun. The pools of water nearby are from rain, not from weepy headlights, but I still feel sorry for my car.

A serious look at the car shows something not visible to a casual viewer. For example the distance between the right back wheel and the fender, is considerably shorter. The wheel well is suddenly almost touching the tire on one side. It's not a pretty sight, yet a casual person walking by might not notice these things, however they mean I can't drive that car the way it sits. Therefore, it's now a wait for a tow truck and a body shop or wrecking yard. Like all good things, my car may have met it's end.

Since arrival to Dawson Creek in 1960, Margo Hannah plants, paints and ponders.