The Car Conclusion

On Friday, the 26th, my parents were heading down to Florida for my aunt's visitation and funeral. So they left at 5am and I rode with them as far as Indianapolis to see what we could do about my car. When we got there it initially started; we put some coolant in the actual radiator but it didn't seem to be too low. I called my uncle to ask about a mechanic in the area which he recommended, but he said he would meet me there and take me. So we shut the car off and waited for him, which was when I found out I had left the window open. When he arrived we tried starting it again but it wouldn't do so this time. So fortunately he had a big cord/strap which we hooked up so he could tow me, since it was only a short distance with very little turns. He towed me to the mechanic, I checked in with them, and then headed back to his house, at which point my parents also left to continue on their trip. I got a call an hour later from the shop telling me what they had found out and what needed to be done. It turned out my alternator was completely shot and because of that the car overused the battery which was also now completely shot, they also had to replace the serpentine belt! So 4 hours later they called saying it was finished. The total damage was $550 - OUCH! Luckily I had enough from the recent unemployment payments, but not much more which will make things interesting. So now it runs fine (I hope it stays that way) and I was able to drive back to Danville without any problems.