Buying a car

A new chapter in our automotive life has begun.

As a victim of East Providence police and an idiot Rhode Island driver, my husband found himself on the guilty side of an automobile accident. On his way to an interview, of course, he was t-boned and his car was totaled. Jean Claude Van Damme required an inspection and a thorough clean-out and we said goodbye to the car that took us across the country and home again. Luckily, Michael was a-okay, excepting some soreness in his knee which he bravely attributes to the New England weather.

Upon receiving the alert, I headed home from the market to gather the insurance information. My next task was to retrieve my husband from the "Hot Rods" mechanic shop in EP. Alas, Mansfield had other things in mind for my vehicle, for when I emerged from my apartment, insurance papers in hand, my tire was flat. Two cars down in one day.

My car was not beyond repair and so with a new set of tires, a vacuuming, and a new air freshener I was back in business. Michael, however, needed a new car. And so, like real life adults, we began to scour the internet for anything affordable and stylish in our price range. It is only when you must make a decision of this magnitude that you are forced to be clear about your expectations. You know how they say that a car tells a lot about a person? That's because depending on the make, model, year, and bells and whistles, you are defined by the thing in which you spend most of your day.

We purchased a Chevy from a Subaru dealership. Yes. You read that correctly. After much internet searching we met Fast Eddie, who ran our credit so fast we hadn't even walked on his lot yet. "I have the car," he said, before we even told him what we wanted. He tried to convince us that we were to pay him $100 just for "hooking us up" with a rate projection. He didn't even show us a car first!!! We walked out knowing that Shannon Motors was our LAST resort. They did have a nice Impala on display. Michael had chosen, but I was not thrilled about the puke brown color, so we went home to scrounge online again.

A dealership in Hanover was open on Sunday and held true to their word. They did indeed have the car, and a nice gentlement who was so laid back about selling a car that we were not even sure that it was really going down. Anti-climactic would be the term I would use to describe it. The deal was made, the credit was run, the papers were signed, the car was inspected. It took a total of 45 minutes to actually buy a car, with financing.

Silver Galaxy Metallic 2004 Chevrolet Impala, with a remote starter, power everything, and enough space to drive a small horse to the ferrier. Rawk.
Saturday night was date night. We were going to hit a movie. Instead, we opted for the drive-in, so we could spend some more time in the car. Not such a bad idea;)

We're glad to have you as part of our family, Vlad the Impala.
Now, any suggestions for a road trip?