Never over-estimate a quarter-tank full of gas.

I should listen to my mother more.

She always tells me to NEVER let my gas tank go below the one-fourth line because she says that by doing so, I run the risk of letting the sediment in the gas tank circulate throughout the engine of the car, thus affecting the car's life span. She says that once these problems start up, it can trigger a chain reaction where the gaskets can blow, the timing belt and fan belts get loose and what not. In general, I try to listen. However, since I received a BDO Emerald Rewards card which earns me points if I gas up in a Petron station, I tend to be more careless about it because I keep delaying gassing up until I come across such a station.

Last Sunday, I got in my car and saw that the indicator read a wee bit before the 1/4 mark. I decided that it would be okay enough to drive to the mall where I was supposed to meet my friends and to gas up in the Petron station nearby. Little did I know that there was a massive traffic jam due to the Tears for Fears concert PLUS a campaign rally being held along EDSA. I got held up in traffic for over 3 hours and yes, that 1/4 tank of gas started to run out! I was panicking like all hell!!! I was imagining the worst already because I was stuck in the major thoroughfare with no end in sight! And yes: there were no nearby gas stations!!!

Lesson learned: listen to your mother!!! I guess she was right when she said be cautious about the maintenance of my car or else it could end up like my friends honda accord or her toyota corolla which have gotten old and dilapidated and....well....not even the Humpty Dumpty or car repair companies such as San Francisco auto repair could put them back together again!