Tuesday, December 23, 2014

A Car For Christmas

You know those commercials where someone buys someone else a car for Christmas?  Well, the other day I told my husband that I had never seen or known or even heard of anyone who  gave a car as a gift.

Yesterday, I made a liar out of myself.  Kinda.

You see, since Hubs retired, we've been a one car family.  It's the same car I've had since before we got married.  It's seen me through a move from Utah to Colorado.  It saw both of through the move from Colorado to Missouri.  But, let's face it, the old girl is getting old.  And while she's still reliable, the chance of her breaking down somewhere out here in the middle of nowhere is always on the back on my mind.

One car.  It breaks down or even gets a flat tire, and what the hell would I do.  (I know how to change a tire, but I'm not physically capable of it anymore, and out here, the shoulders of the roads are more like drop offs.)  Call him and then he'd have to call a neighbor and ask a favor and... Well, we're not favor asking people. 

Anyway, we've been talking since we moved about getting a truck of some kind.  Someday, Hubs would like to have a small boat and he'd need something to tow it with.  So, he's been casually looking--doing research on various models, scoping out the used car sites, etc.  And I've been letting him know when I see a car for sale that looks worth investigating.

Last week, I saw an SUV with a nice price in the window along my route to Walmart, and I mentioned it to him.  Saturday, he drove over to look at it, but the owners weren't home, and there was only a price with no phone number on the vehicle.  I told him to check the paper, just in case.  There was an SUV for sale at a lower price, but it had an Arkansas number.  I nudged him to call anyway.  I mean, what the heck?  Can't hurt, right?

So he did.  And it was the car beside the road.  Together, we went to look at it.  We test drove it.  Kicked the tires.  Talked to the owner, who assured us of his diligence in maintaining the car (with the paperwork to back it up - this ain't our first rodeo), and while we were talking, he dropped the price again.  Cha-ching. 

It's a sweet vehicle--top of the line when it rolled out of Michigan way back when--and the price was something we just couldn't pass up.  So as of yesterday morning, we are a two car family again.  We spent yesterday buying the car, getting it inspected, driving up to the nearest licensing office, going from one office to the other to get all the paperwork in line, and then getting our license and registration and tags.  And we took the new car.  It rides like a dream. Don't know how it drives yet, but it's Hubs car and even though he insists that I can drive it, too, I want this to be special for him - at least for a little while. ;o)

Now, we joke that I got him a car for Christmas.  Ho Ho Ho.

(And now if I see a really awesome piece of furniture at the thrift store, we don't have to tie it into the trunk of my Cavalier and hope it doesn't fall out on the way home.  So it's a win-win.)

((Best part of the experience for me?  The old guy's dog.  What a cool dog.  So cool I almost asked the man if he'd throw the dog in with the car.  LOL))

(((Okay, really the best part was getting Hubs what he wanted and getting one hell of a deal, too.  I'm all about the deals, baby.)))

10 comments:

  1. Well look at you? I love that "new to me" feel about a car and it's nice that you're keeping it special for Hubs. I had mine serviced yesterday and was pleasantly surprised that it didn't need much more that new rear pads. Still a hit to the bank balance but at least the car will continue going strong. Good thing too as I've a 5 hour drive tomorrow to get to my holiday stop. If I don't hang out before, have a very happy Christmas.

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    1. Well, it's not just me being nice, Fran. Compared to my little car, that thing is huge. It'll be like driving a tank.

      Yay for just new rear pads. I cringe whenever I have to take the car in for more than an oil change. I'm so happy that your car will be safe for your long drive. Stay safe and have a lovely Christmas. :hugs:

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  2. Did you slap a big red bow on it? ;-)

    Congrats and enjoy!

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    1. LOL, we joked about that, too. All the commercials do it. I just don't know where one finds a red bow that big. ;o)

      Thanks!

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  3. Congratulations! It's lovely having a vehicle big enough to haul things around. My last three cars were toooo small for that -- I had to tie a screen door to the top of my car, years ago. A forty-five minute trip took over three hours. Oops.

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    1. Thanks, Deb! We've been hauling stuff with my little Cavalier, so I totally get it.

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  4. I love getting good deals. Glad you found one. They certainly keep "buyers remorse" away, don't they?

    And to put a bow on the truck, just take a picture and digitally add it. Who says it has to be real? Haha! :)

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    1. A woman after me own heart. Deal sisters! LOL

      I'll have to try the bow insertion later. ;o)

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  5. Yay! Congrats on the new car! Thanks for visiting Erica and Christy...even though it's been forever. Congrats on getting ready to publish! Merry Christmas! Christy

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    1. LOL, Thanks, Christy! And thanks for stopping by. It's been a while. Glad to see you around the interwebs again. =o) Merry Christmas to you and yours, too!

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