we buy a car
We bought a car!
I am 44 years old and this is the first car I've ever owned. I bet that sounds pretty bizarre; it certainly is unusual for an American. I learned to drive at the minimum age, but as a teenager I shared a car with my mom, then I went to college in Philadelphia, where having a car was a toy, not a necessity. Once I settled in New York, there was no reason to own a car. Keeping a car in New York City is either a great expense or a great headache, or both. We rented dozens of cars over the years, but daily life was lived on foot or on public transportation.
But now we're suburban folks, and I'm excited about having our own set of wheels.
We chose a Chevrolet Optra Wagon, a Canadian-only model, the GM equivalent of the Ford Focus. There was a 2005 available, we got a good price, and we went for it. We're hoping to get insured on Monday morning and "take delivery," as they say, on Monday afternoon.
Our friendly Car Dealer Guy and the Final Pricing Guy were both very interested in why we (Americans) are here (in Canada). They asked enough questions that we got into the actual reasons, not my shorthand "we like Canada better than the US" answer. Once again, I see how much more mainstream our views are here. I suppose I'll be seeing this over and over, and I don't think I'll ever tire of it - considering it's the bottom-line justification of why we moved.
Interestingly, both men asked us about Fahrenheit 9/11. In the US media, the words "Michael Moore" are a buzzword for a ranting extremist. At a Chevy dealership in Mississauga, he's a man who made an eye-opening movie.
* * * *
We're taking the day off today, a much-needed breather from shopping and setting up and figuring things out. I know we both want to catch up on our blog-reading in the morning, then there's the very important baseball game in the afternoon, and the music festival in Port Credit to check out at night.
I am 44 years old and this is the first car I've ever owned. I bet that sounds pretty bizarre; it certainly is unusual for an American. I learned to drive at the minimum age, but as a teenager I shared a car with my mom, then I went to college in Philadelphia, where having a car was a toy, not a necessity. Once I settled in New York, there was no reason to own a car. Keeping a car in New York City is either a great expense or a great headache, or both. We rented dozens of cars over the years, but daily life was lived on foot or on public transportation.
But now we're suburban folks, and I'm excited about having our own set of wheels.
We chose a Chevrolet Optra Wagon, a Canadian-only model, the GM equivalent of the Ford Focus. There was a 2005 available, we got a good price, and we went for it. We're hoping to get insured on Monday morning and "take delivery," as they say, on Monday afternoon.
Our friendly Car Dealer Guy and the Final Pricing Guy were both very interested in why we (Americans) are here (in Canada). They asked enough questions that we got into the actual reasons, not my shorthand "we like Canada better than the US" answer. Once again, I see how much more mainstream our views are here. I suppose I'll be seeing this over and over, and I don't think I'll ever tire of it - considering it's the bottom-line justification of why we moved.
Interestingly, both men asked us about Fahrenheit 9/11. In the US media, the words "Michael Moore" are a buzzword for a ranting extremist. At a Chevy dealership in Mississauga, he's a man who made an eye-opening movie.
* * * *
We're taking the day off today, a much-needed breather from shopping and setting up and figuring things out. I know we both want to catch up on our blog-reading in the morning, then there's the very important baseball game in the afternoon, and the music festival in Port Credit to check out at night.
Comments
Post a Comment