The Wheels on the Car Went 'Round

I'm lacking sleep, and what does the boy do? Gets up at his regular time today. Why don't kids come with self-preservation techniques such as allowing their overtired and too-stressed parents a little extra sleep on days when there is no school?



Today we were car shopping.

Yeh, baby! We're car shopping!

We bought our last vehicle back in '03, and the one before that when we were married 5 days in the fall of 1992. That '92 Cavalier has seen better days. Many of them, in fact. She's been a real gem to us, and has seen us through 4 kids, several moves, a drive to and from Alaska, and more trips to the mall than any one car should ever be subjected to. But the old blue car, she ain't what she used to be. In fact, at this point she's been dead for a while and has reached zombie stage. There is absolutely no way she's passing inspection this June, try as we might. And we have a cap of $50 on repairs for her because that's about what her Blue Book value is.

We found her replacement, and we are thrilled nigh unto death. It's newer, it's sportier, it's more powerful, it's way fun to drive, it has 4 doors, and it's an automatic. I'm a little bit in love. Except that it reeks of smoke, but that's minor in the big picture. It gets fab gas mileage and will seat 5 much nicer than the Cavvy did.

But we didn't bring it home because it's been promised to someone else. That bites. It's obviously still there, and on Friday our tax return is due. I'm thinking that if we take cash down and wave in his face, he won't be holding it any longer.

Um, yeh. We're buying it with tax money, which means that it's super cheap. In fact, it's about 1/5 of our return. I love this so much that I get all hot and bothered just thinking about it.

Is it wrong to pray that someone else can't afford the car of their dreams so that we can?

I am coveting a 1997 purple Malibu. Call me desperate.

22 comments:

Burgh Baby said...

Need me to stand guard over your car? I'll totally do it.

Anonymous said...

Buying a car is hard. DearDR and I just went through this. We went a little more upscale than usual. I'm hoping it pays off.

Purple, huh? You're living on the edge!

ciao,
rpm

Karen said...

RPM - car shopping bites, doesn't it? We're going lower scale this time, but purple is hard to come by in newer rides.

Karen Deborah said...

what'sup with the smoking? Your not talking like engine problems are you? Purple is cool, Piglets car is purple and then she put surfer decals on it, yeah we are grooving out her in Mississippi 3000 miles away from the California surf. BUT we are cool!
If it's a good car for you then I hope you get it.

Karen said...

Karen Deborah - cigarette smoke in the upholstery - nothing mechanically wrong at all or we wouldn't be so excited about it.

AutoSysGene said...

A '97 purple Malibu...are you going to put pink fuzzy dice on the mirror? I'll be happy to send them to you! :)

Karen said...

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. I am all about the purple too. My last car was a light purple Nissan Quest. Yes, I know it's a mini-van....but there were and are many car seats to be squeezed into a vehicle.

BTW-activated charcol under the seats will help that smell go away pretty quick.

Michelle said...

Ooooo purple! Way cool for a car.

And ummm what are you doing getting a refund? Keep that money, don't let the government borrow it! :)

Keri said...

The other Karen is right. Activated charcoal will get the stink out. But coffee grounds and drier sheets will make it smell good. Park it in the sun with the drier sheets on the dash. It'll make you want to snuggle up and take a nap. Besides, where do you get activated charcoal - other than from inside The Mighty Hunter's scent-lok hunting clothes?

My brother had a purple Ford Ranger (he said it was "black cherry".) He replaced it with a taxi yellow Nissan.

Leanne said...

Purple? Purple is cool, as long as you don't nick name it Barney. And yes, I'd be excited about a new car too. But I'm not a good meter, I get excited about a new box of cereal. Oh, the possibilities.

justmylife said...

Not wrong at all! I would so love to replace my Cavalier, it has seen better days. Hope the other people can't come up with the money and you get your purple Malibu. heh!!

Quarantine Hobby said...

Purple! Love it!

I hope you get it. I second Burgh Baby: I'll stand guard, too ;)

Unknown said...

Hope you end up with the purple beauty!!

Trisha said...

Personally, I hate car shopping but give me a purple car and I am happy! Good luck with the car!

Danyele Easterhaus said...

super fun...and you know, you just want the little purple dream car...you don't wish the others bad, but, darn them.

Lynn C Mama to 3 said...

I envy your purple malibu. My tax refund (or part of it) is going toward a minivan. I am crying just a little bit as I type that.

Debbie @ Three Weddings said...

My neighbor has a Malibu. Not sure what year it is but she really likes it. It's not purple, though, that is too cool. Here's hoping the other person just changes their mind so you can have it. Keep the windows down and it will air out eventually!

CC said...

Woo hoo!!!!!! Vroom, vroom!

Irene said...

Good luck!!! You sound so much like us - our cars usually have at least 100K miles and are often purchased with our tax refund. Cash only here - we can't afford a car payment!!!

Hope it works out! Purple is cool!!!!!

Brandie said...

I'm still driving our tax rebate from 5 years ago. Good Luck!

Krista said...

Okay, now I feel really bad about saying that about your secret admirer being a multi-millionaire. He could come in handy about now. Along Karen's ideas I was thinking you could put something in the car to make it stink, like the Seinfeld episode. Then the other folks won't buy it and you can take it out when it's yours.

KG said...

My hubby got himself a VW bug. The new kind ... for $1500! It was so awesome. Anything to avoid taking on a car payment!