Oh, no! Denzel thought. Where’d THAT come from? He was looking at a big red dry stain that was on the carport where he always parked his car.

There was only one thing to do: check his power steering fluid and his transmission fluid, both of which were red. The power steering fluid was at the proper level, so that left the transmission fluid. A small leak could result in a damaged transmission, which could cost $1,000 to $2,000 to repair or replace. Denzel did not have $1,000 or $2,000.

Denzel was not sure about how to check his transmission fluid level. But he found the instructions in his car manual. They were not complicated.

He ran his engine for about 15 minutes to get it up to normal operating temperature. Next, he shifted the transmission through all the gears, and then let the car idle for three minutes in Park. Then he pulled out the dipstick. The fluid was at the correct level. Denzel breathed a sigh of relief.

As he drove off in his car, he wondered if he would ever find out the cause of that stain. Or would it be one of those mysteries of life, like the mystery of why his last girlfriend had left him.

“Why did you break up with me?” he had asked her on the phone a while ago. “I thought everything was going well between us. Then, wham, out of nowhere, you told me we were through. You needed more space, you said. What does THAT mean?”

“It’s a long story,” she replied.

“Go ahead,” he said. “I’ve got plenty of time.”

“I’ve got to go,” she said.

“Women!” Denzel muttered as the phone went dead.