Please Service Engine Soon

I am not a car expert, not at all. The most I know about the automobile industry is which luxury class vehicles I would like to own someday when all this hard work pays off. I can honestly tell you I don't know how to change the oil in my car. Why should I? About a year ago I bought some expensive tires and they came with a lifetime of free oil changes. I am fortunate enough that I have never had to change a flat tire, and I believe that I just jinxed myself for mentioning that, but that's the truth.
When I was 17, I was taught how to drive on a Dodge Colt, it was stick shift and I was sweating profusely after the first lesson, which was driving 3 blocks to the gas station down the street. So, the next lesson a few days later I did better, but then I never received anymore tutoring until my neighbor decided to move on in life and get rid of his 1986 Chevrolet Caprice Classic. So I decided to purchase that thing that looked like boat to me and with only less than basic driving skills, a lack of a driver's license, and 300 dollars later, I drove off from his driveway to mine. That was a big stepping stone in my life. At age 17 I've had purchased my first ride, I have never owned anything that big before. So with that mentioned, I was almost self taught on how to drive, so I must admit to not being the best driver on the block. That Caprice Classic at its price had some complications and since I wasn't eloquent enough to fix it, the next logical thing to do was to sell it and find another car in hopes of not having engine problems. I was glad to sell it for the amount of 500 dollars.
In essence, I've had a few numerable incidents with vehicles that just proofs my ignorance about mechanics. It truly scares me. I don't like to see all the lights shining telling me all this things that could be wrong. I work in healthcare and feces, urine, vomit, burnt skin, open fractures, lacerations and needles don't bother me at all, but once those beeping and blinking ornaments on the dashboard start flaring up I panic instantly. What could possibly be wrong? Let it be something minor! I pray each time that occurs.
I prayed today. My car decided to serenate me with sounds and visual effects of yellow and red colors. And naturally, I had some anxiety over the situation. I took instant action and I decided to take it to the shop, my car needed that free oil change anyways, so timing was perfect. What wasn't so perfect was the price to digitally diagnose what all those lights and beeps where all about. Seventy dollars to plug my car to a computer system and detect why was the Service Engine Soon light was on? Well, if i didn't done so, I would have never found out about some upstream and downstream caps, rear and front hoses that have been plugged up with some sort of buildup for quite some time, causing all the carbon monoxide to be enclosed, flowing into my ventilation system. Yes, you have guessed right. I was inhaling it. I've had some CO breathing treatments on my way to and from work. Oh, and to the grocery store, to the clubs, to the mall, and to the veterinary clinic. I had just figured that my brief daydreaming moments in front of the stoplights were just consequence of my physical and emotional exhaustion. I was getting high while listening to satellite radio. I was causing my blood to become bright red, since that wonderful gas tints your blood as a side effect.
What could've happened if I had ignored that signal? What would've happened if my car didn't have that feature? Could I have been one of those statistics of "driver falls asleep on road causing fatal accident"?
Was that light on my car today a double signal? Maybe it was my cue to wake up from my carbon monoxide dreams and start taking action about servicing my own engine soon.
Shouldn't life have that light that turns on when you confront a harsh emotional condition? Wouldn't things be much easier that way? Service Engine Soon, mend that broken heart, fix your unstable mind, and plug yourself to to get your own disfunctional feelings together.