Throttle cable ball and joint

Hey, the weirdest thing happened to me, and i know its happened to someone else on here:

I was driving just fine, and i took a corner, then all of a sudden my car went idle and the gas pedal went slack... I pulled over and popped the hood, and after about 15 minutes, i realized that right by the throttle cable, a ball and joint rod came off which was preventing me from revving the engine.

The bad part is there was absolutely NO effort to get the joint back onto the ball, it comes right on and off; does anyone know what im talking about, and where can i find this part? i have the eerie feeling someone will say 'only at a junkyard' but please let me know if this piece is available somewhere, thanks.

(Damn, everything's goin wrong with this car, she's too old ^_^)

ok so its called a throttle connecting rod (researched on the forum); now how do i get it without having to order it???

yea i got my info from that thread... in any case, i visited advance auto parts and was told it is in fact a dealership only part, and that the associate owned a nissan and bought one just the other day from them for like 7 bux... so i guess i know what i have to do tomorrow!

BTW, i looked at my fuel filter and apparently it hasnt been changed, in a VERY LONG TIME (talking years here). i bought a new one and im gonna install it tomorrow, but is there any way i can clean out the lines or something???