Meet My New Car, Pixie
Well friends, it's finally happened. After five years of being a one car family, Hollywood and I bit the bullet today and bought a new car. It's a Toyota Avalon. It wasn't a great deal, but it was a pretty good deal. It was 1100 below private seller blue book. It's pearl white. It's a '98. It has 85,000 miles on it. It has leather seats, (Hollywood thinks its kanagroo leather, because they didn't tell us otherwise) power everything (which will be so nice after having no power locks for so long, and the passenger door not being able to be unlocked from the outside), a moonroof (also known as a skylight), a nice stero with cassett and CD player, tinted windows, etc. I hope we aren't everylastingly sorry. It was fun to bargain with the guy. I used to be scared about doing stuff like that, but now I am not at all. It's funny because I honestly wouldn't have bought it for one penny more, and I don't think he would have sold it for one penny less. So bargaining works.
Hollywood was the master (mistress?) of getting everything ready. I found the cars I was interested in on Craigslist, but she called them, set up times, got directions, and basically acted like the ubercompotent secretary she used to be before she "retired".
I am OH SO GLAD to finally get a car. I waited a long time after I needed one so that I really, really am going to appreciate it. No more having to rush home after my sunday morning meeting to get Hollywood before church. No more carpools. No more taking the train. Just rollin' in my Avalon with the moonroof open and the nice stereo crankin' Handel's Messiah (i bet you didn't see that coming).
I also learned an interesting thing, which is that a lot of people have absolutely no compunction about breaking the tax laws. The lady who sold it to me repeatedly (and I mean five different times) offered to put the price lower on the bill of sale to save me money on my sales tax. I just kept nicely saying "no, that's okay. I like paying taxes, that's why I live in California." She kept saying "No one will know, since you are paying cash." I felt like saying "You are about to sign your name to something that says "I swear upon penalty of perjury that the above (including the price) is accurate." And just to save a few hundred bucks. Talk about a mess of pottage. The thing she didn't realize is that it made me much more apprehensive about buying the car. If she was so happy to rip of the government, why would I think she would have any hesitancy about ripping me off. The worst thing is that if everyone were honest, we would all pay less. So the honest out there end up bearing the cost for the jerks. The same, unfortunately, is true of the honor code at BYU. I hated the fact that they were so trusting of everyone. Why? Because you know one in a hundred (if not more) people will cheat on a test. And that hoses the honest people in the group. I say, set up the system to reward the honest (i.e. make it as hard to cheat as humanly possible).
Anyway, back to the car. I have a pattern of naming things that I like "Pixie." So far, this includes my Polish Dictionary, my baby, and now my car. Anyway, if you read this whole post, congratulations. I will post a picture of the car (maybe with the other two Pixies) sometime in the near future.
Tonight we are going to a theater for the first time in about six months. We are seeing "King Kong." Which I am told is about the king of hong kong, or something. A remake of the King and I. With Jack Black as Yule Brenner. Watch this spot for details.
Hollywood was the master (mistress?) of getting everything ready. I found the cars I was interested in on Craigslist, but she called them, set up times, got directions, and basically acted like the ubercompotent secretary she used to be before she "retired".
I am OH SO GLAD to finally get a car. I waited a long time after I needed one so that I really, really am going to appreciate it. No more having to rush home after my sunday morning meeting to get Hollywood before church. No more carpools. No more taking the train. Just rollin' in my Avalon with the moonroof open and the nice stereo crankin' Handel's Messiah (i bet you didn't see that coming).
I also learned an interesting thing, which is that a lot of people have absolutely no compunction about breaking the tax laws. The lady who sold it to me repeatedly (and I mean five different times) offered to put the price lower on the bill of sale to save me money on my sales tax. I just kept nicely saying "no, that's okay. I like paying taxes, that's why I live in California." She kept saying "No one will know, since you are paying cash." I felt like saying "You are about to sign your name to something that says "I swear upon penalty of perjury that the above (including the price) is accurate." And just to save a few hundred bucks. Talk about a mess of pottage. The thing she didn't realize is that it made me much more apprehensive about buying the car. If she was so happy to rip of the government, why would I think she would have any hesitancy about ripping me off. The worst thing is that if everyone were honest, we would all pay less. So the honest out there end up bearing the cost for the jerks. The same, unfortunately, is true of the honor code at BYU. I hated the fact that they were so trusting of everyone. Why? Because you know one in a hundred (if not more) people will cheat on a test. And that hoses the honest people in the group. I say, set up the system to reward the honest (i.e. make it as hard to cheat as humanly possible).
Anyway, back to the car. I have a pattern of naming things that I like "Pixie." So far, this includes my Polish Dictionary, my baby, and now my car. Anyway, if you read this whole post, congratulations. I will post a picture of the car (maybe with the other two Pixies) sometime in the near future.
Tonight we are going to a theater for the first time in about six months. We are seeing "King Kong." Which I am told is about the king of hong kong, or something. A remake of the King and I. With Jack Black as Yule Brenner. Watch this spot for details.
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