For those of you, that like myself, drive beater cars, every day is an adventure in whether or not you can get your vehicle moving. It’s like a game of surprise: what will go wrong today? Which part of the engine will break? Will it be my left or right front wheel that flies off while I’m on the freeway and almost kills me?

Around a month ago my car started doing that “I’ll start eventually, but only if you try a few more times” thing. Then it became “I’ll start sometimes, but there may be times when you need to bust out the jumper cables.” Then it was “I probably won’t start, but as long as you’re cool with always asking your room mate/ boyfriend/ neighbor/ a total stranger in the middle of the night to help you jump my battery you should be fine.”

I did not care for this.

So, I did a little research, and found this nifty little contraption– an automatic, charge-in-your-car, jump-the-battery-by-yourself machine. No other car required, no other humans necessary, and no sticking your head under the hood of your car in the dark. All you have to do is plug it into the adapter (cigarette lighter), and it charges your battery in ten minutes. The auto-jumper will recharge as you drive, so you are never without some resource of power. The self-reliance is what sold me– you don’t have to ask for or wait for help, seriously diminishing the dangers (and frustrations) of being stranded on the side of the road in the middle of the night.

$40.00 from Wagan.