Big News

In my last post (which feels like a month ago) I said that I couldn't get to the yarn store and it was "a long story". Well, the story just kept getting longer, and this is the first I've felt like blogging about it. Sometimes emotions are just too raw to send out into the internets, and a little resolution and perspective is required.

So I'll try to keep this short, without yadda yadda-ing the whole thing.

Friday afternoon I had some car problems which were new. My car has 165,000+ miles, so problems are periodic, but I can usually fix them at least temporarily. Well, after much time on the phone with my father and reading the service manual we weren't sure what the problem was and it was beyond my confidence to attempt to fix it. (Besides, I don't have a garage, and some work you just don't do in a parking lot.) I was stranded for the weekend. On Monday I took it to the closest service station, rented a car, and they called me later at work with the verdict: your horse has a broken leg, and has to be put down. There was no compression in the fourth cylinder, requiring an overhaul or replacement of the engine. The mechanic didn't even try to get me to do it. He just told me it wasn't worth it.

I cried. I cried a lot.

So, moving along, as most of you know, finding a car to buy can be a long process. I hadn't been looking or thinking of buying a new car. I had a bit of money saved, but not as much as I would have liked. Renting a car long-term is expensive. What to do, what to do? Long story short, I had looked around the internet at used cars, but a co-worker happened to mention that because we work for a company owned by DuPont, we get a special deal on a lot of new cars. Ford was one of the few makers with rebates available, and I had rented a Ford Focus a few years ago, and had been pleasantly surprised. My mother vetoed the Chevy Cobalt due to poor reviews, even though it's available in purple. A Corolla, a replacement for what I had, would be expensive new or used, considering my lack of financial preparation.

So, I went to Ford.com, "built my vehicle" and found the exact car at a dealer nearby. I sent off an e-mail requesting a quote, but it was after business hours. The next morning I got the quote, I applied and was approved for credit online, and that afternoon I headed out to the dealer where my car was already gassed up and washed for me. I took it for a test-drive, kicked the tires, and bought it for less than a used Corolla. I didn't cruise the lot on a Sunday afternoon, I didn't amass a pile of glossy brochures and business cards to match, I didn't read any Consumer Reports books (but my mother did), I didn't compromise on color or extra features or anything. It was the most surreal car shopping experience I've ever had.

So here it is, the reason I won't be buying much yarn for a while (gonna have to get used to those payments):


It's been a bittersweet experience. I'm still despondent about my old car, but I find New Car Smell to be therapeutic.