I couldn’t open it! I’d serviced that car since 1984 and owned it since 1996. I’d never had trouble opening the hood. I thought about using a sledge hammer and chisel, but I didn’t want to blemish it.
I decided to take a walk. So what if I couldn’t get the hood open for now? I’d think it over!
As I walked, it occurred to me that except for a 1978 F-150, every vehicle I could remember that was made since the 1960s had a remote hood latch. I wondered if my car had one, too.
When I got home, I automatically opened the driver’s door and pulled the hood latch release. Well, how about that! My car has one, too!
I don’t remember what I don’t think about. I’ve been opening that hood 30 years without thinking about it. If I wanted to open the hood, I’d open the door and release the latch. The rest was automatic, without a thought in my head. A couple of days ago, when I was already standing at the hood, I couldn’t remember that there was something before it in my mindless sequence.