Gym Report

My internet is wonky so I went to the gym to let it heal in peace.

I did 5 minutes of weights and stretches - I abused my back somehow yesterday, not badly but it was happy for the attention.

Then 25 minutes on the treadmill. I was glad I got there and out when I did. It's going to be hot today and that sun was just getting ready to flood the joint when I left,

Gym Report

My internet is wonky so I went to the gym to let it heal in peace.

I did 5 minutes of weights and stretches - I abused my back somehow yesterday, not badly but it was happy for the attention.

Then 25 minutes on the treadmill. I was glad I got there and out when I did. It's going to be hot today and that sun was just getting ready to flood the joint when I left,

So, yeah, I bought a car

My connection to the internet was impossible this morning. The first time I called Comcast they said they were too busy to take calls. The second time I called they said that my address told them I was in an area that had a big outage and they expected it to be fixed in a couple of hours.

So I went and bought a car.

I drove to the dealership (about 20 minutes from here) and walked in. Two people were at the first desk. They turned out to be Bud and Linda. This was Linda's 3rd day on the job. Bud was the salesman. I said "I need you to sell me a smart car, please"

So he did.

I sat in one and looked at them and then test drove. They even had one fully loaded (like I wanted) that was last year's model with 10,000 miles on it ('the lady got transferred to Europe') - that's the one I drove. I stopped and turned and parked and got out and locked it and went into 7/11 for water and then came back and drove it some more.

Then I went back and told Bud that I wanted to buy it.

Oh, I should mention, that the used car was gray but he said he could make it any color I wanted. Ya gotta love that. 'It was blue but when she bought it, she wanted gray.'

I told him I wanted it green. And he said 'fine, we actually have two brand new - just off the truck - green ones right here with everything the used one has. (Price diff, by the way was $3,000.)

But, he was wrong - it was different in a very key (to me) - the used one had a CD player (what decade are we in anyway??)... the new one has, instead, a fabulous little tray that pops out to put my phone and spare change in!!!

And... how smart is my smart car??? It's so smart, it has a USB port!!!! The used car had only the aux jack which is good but the new one has the aux jack and the USB port. Way way better.

So Bud started on the paperwork and I started clearing my crap out of the filthy ford. I got my CD's out of the CD player (in the trunk - what a POS that was), I said goodbye to the broken radio (no AM and the FM was getting spotty)... I got everything out except the garage door opener - of course.

Then I called Geiko and got the nicest people who set me up - swapping the cars on my policy and adding collision.

Then I signed 478,297 pieces of paper. Wrote a check for $17,500. And came home.

On the way home I kept going 70 on the highway (where the speed limit is 60)... But on non-highways, it so easy to drive. It drives differently than any other car I've ever driven and I can see how people might not like it but I really do. I feel like I have so much control.

It's way easier to get in and out of than my ford. And it's cleaner. And it doesn't need an oil change like the ford did. Oh, I traded it in. (Bud was very clear that I could likely get more for it if I sold it myself and I thanked him and gave him the keys.)

I had a spare garage door opener here so I parked in front and ran up here to get it opener and then back down to park in my spot. What a DREAM to park. Oh yeah baby. And it's so cute.

I have to go back to the dealer this weekend and take my other keys and the car title and pick up the garage door opener but it will be a nice road trip.

Now the internet is back and I have work that really needs to be done.

So, yeah, I bought a car

My connection to the internet was impossible this morning. The first time I called Comcast they said they were too busy to take calls. The second time I called they said that my address told them I was in an area that had a big outage and they expected it to be fixed in a couple of hours.

So I went and bought a car.

I drove to the dealership (about 20 minutes from here) and walked in. Two people were at the first desk. They turned out to be Bud and Linda. This was Linda's 3rd day on the job. Bud was the salesman. I said "I need you to sell me a smart car, please"

So he did.

I sat in one and looked at them and then test drove. They even had one fully loaded (like I wanted) that was last year's model with 10,000 miles on it ('the lady got transferred to Europe') - that's the one I drove. I stopped and turned and parked and got out and locked it and went into 7/11 for water and then came back and drove it some more.

Then I went back and told Bud that I wanted to buy it.

Oh, I should mention, that the used car was gray but he said he could make it any color I wanted. Ya gotta love that. 'It was blue but when she bought it, she wanted gray.'

I told him I wanted it green. And he said 'fine, we actually have two brand new - just off the truck - green ones right here with everything the used one has. (Price diff, by the way was $3,000.)

But, he was wrong - it was different in a very key (to me) - the used one had a CD player (what decade are we in anyway??)... the new one has, instead, a fabulous little tray that pops out to put my phone and spare change in!!!

And... how smart is my smart car??? It's so smart, it has a USB port!!!! The used car had only the aux jack which is good but the new one has the aux jack and the USB port. Way way better.

So Bud started on the paperwork and I started clearing my crap out of the filthy ford. I got my CD's out of the CD player (in the trunk - what a POS that was), I said goodbye to the broken radio (no AM and the FM was getting spotty)... I got everything out except the garage door opener - of course.

Then I called Geiko and got the nicest people who set me up - swapping the cars on my policy and adding collision.

Then I signed 478,297 pieces of paper. Wrote a check for $17,500. And came home.

On the way home I kept going 70 on the highway (where the speed limit is 60)... But on non-highways, it so easy to drive. It drives differently than any other car I've ever driven and I can see how people might not like it but I really do. I feel like I have so much control.

It's way easier to get in and out of than my ford. And it's cleaner. And it doesn't need an oil change like the ford did. Oh, I traded it in. (Bud was very clear that I could likely get more for it if I sold it myself and I thanked him and gave him the keys.)

I had a spare garage door opener here so I parked in front and ran up here to get it opener and then back down to park in my spot. What a DREAM to park. Oh yeah baby. And it's so cute.

I have to go back to the dealer this weekend and take my other keys and the car title and pick up the garage door opener but it will be a nice road trip.

Now the internet is back and I have work that really needs to be done.

Me and my new car - proof!

Me and my new car - proof!

My personal car facts

I took the car out. A stop at Office Max and a stop at the terriyaki place. I love love love it.

For one thing, the ride is high. At Office Max there was this cute guy in the very cute sports car and I could totally look down on his bald spot. He gave my car a long look and then - I shit you not - winked at me.

Riding high is fun but it also makes getting in and out of this thing so wonderful.

The radio is tricky. But I think I'm getting it. I love all the info. I can listen to music/navigation on my phone via the aux jack or the USB port. (And charge via the USB port or car lighter outlet - it has no car lighter but it does have the outlet in a very handy place.) I slapped some tunes on an SD card, slipped it into a little usb reader and plugged it in - bam! Yet another tunes option.

And there is so much storage. There are little cubby holes and hidey places - even a drawer for my cellphone - all over the place and the glove box is ample. There's a cabinet in the back door that has plenty of room for jumper cables, my umbrella plus shopping bags.

Hmmm wonder where that battery even is?? I downloaded the PDF's of the manuals. Ok, the battery is under the passenger's feet. Ok.

And, of course parking is amazing. My teriyaki place has the world's smallest parking lot with the world's smallest spaces. I rocked. Getting in and out of my parking space here is fun.

I'm going to go get machupicchu and take him to the airport - I want to drive it when it's not bright sun daylight and it will be fun to share the fun.

Then I'm going to let it rest. Tomorrow will be a full work day. My bug queue is bulging with work.

My personal car facts

I took the car out. A stop at Office Max and a stop at the terriyaki place. I love love love it.

For one thing, the ride is high. At Office Max there was this cute guy in the very cute sports car and I could totally look down on his bald spot. He gave my car a long look and then - I shit you not - winked at me.

Riding high is fun but it also makes getting in and out of this thing so wonderful.

The radio is tricky. But I think I'm getting it. I love all the info. I can listen to music/navigation on my phone via the aux jack or the USB port. (And charge via the USB port or car lighter outlet - it has no car lighter but it does have the outlet in a very handy place.) I slapped some tunes on an SD card, slipped it into a little usb reader and plugged it in - bam! Yet another tunes option.

And there is so much storage. There are little cubby holes and hidey places - even a drawer for my cellphone - all over the place and the glove box is ample. There's a cabinet in the back door that has plenty of room for jumper cables, my umbrella plus shopping bags.

Hmmm wonder where that battery even is?? I downloaded the PDF's of the manuals. Ok, the battery is under the passenger's feet. Ok.

And, of course parking is amazing. My teriyaki place has the world's smallest parking lot with the world's smallest spaces. I rocked. Getting in and out of my parking space here is fun.

I'm going to go get machupicchu and take him to the airport - I want to drive it when it's not bright sun daylight and it will be fun to share the fun.

Then I'm going to let it rest. Tomorrow will be a full work day. My bug queue is bulging with work.

And one more thing...

I have never worn seatbelts. I understand the ramifications, I chose not to wear them. However, this new car will be changing my ways.

Where other cars screech loudly when you don't fasten them, and then shut up, this car does not.

In fact, it does not even mention it... until you are rolling. Once you are underway, it starts quietly, kind of sweetly, whining at you. It took me a while to figure out that the sound was coming from the car and then what it was. But, once I figured it out, I also figured out that the only way to stop it was to put on my seatbelt. Which I now do.

Sigh. Oh well, it will probably save me a ton in fines. It was only a matter of time before I got caught.

And one more thing...

I have never worn seatbelts. I understand the ramifications, I chose not to wear them. However, this new car will be changing my ways.

Where other cars screech loudly when you don't fasten them, and then shut up, this car does not.

In fact, it does not even mention it... until you are rolling. Once you are underway, it starts quietly, kind of sweetly, whining at you. It took me a while to figure out that the sound was coming from the car and then what it was. But, once I figured it out, I also figured out that the only way to stop it was to put on my seatbelt. Which I now do.

Sigh. Oh well, it will probably save me a ton in fines. It was only a matter of time before I got caught.