This is a story of a young woman who had to drive from California to Tucson, Arizona, to renew her car's registration. Her car was old and had issues. She embarked on the journey without air conditioning in the scorching heat of July. Along the way, the car started making strange noises and eventually broke down in the desert. Stranded and without a phone, she encountered some unhelpful girls at a gas station.
Later, she was offered assistance by four boys who took her on a tour of their small desert town. The situation got uncomfortable when one of the boys started expressing romantic interest in her. She eventually asked to be taken back to the gas station, realizing the risks she had taken that day.
1. The speaker is discussing their experience with a 1987 Oldsmobile car that they were driving at the age of 19.
2. The car was lent to her by her parents and was not in good condition. It had been repaired multiple times and was making strange noises.
3. The speaker's father was visiting Arizona and asked her to drive the car from Los Angeles to Tucson, which was approximately an 8-hour drive.
4. The speaker did not have a cell phone at the time and had to renew the car's registration papers in Tucson.
5. During the trip, the car started making more intense engine noises and eventually exploded.
6. The speaker was stranded in the middle of nowhere in Arizona when the car exploded and had to wait for help.
7. A group of boys came to her aid and offered to push the car to a nearby gas station.
8. The speaker was offered a tour of the town by one of the boys while they were waiting for her aunt to arrive.
9. The boy took the speaker to a high point on a mountain and read her a letter from his father, who was in jail.
10. The boy started to express romantic feelings towards the speaker, which made her feel uncomfortable.
11. The speaker eventually managed to get back to the gas station and wait for her aunt, who arrived to take her home.
12. The 1987 Oldsmobile was never revived after the explosion and the speaker learned from her mistakes.