A Series of "Did That JUST Happen?" Events

First, a warning - this might be a long post (since I haven't written in a few weeks), so if you want to read the whole thing and look at the pictures, make sure you have a few minutes to do so. You might actually make it through my entire play list of songs while reading this.

A couple of weeks ago, I stopped by the gas station to get some gas... and take a picture of the price of gas, because I thought the picture might last longer than the price itself.


Yes, this picture is already outdated. But I was flabbergasted. I hadn't seen prices this low for ten years! And then, when my little car was done filling with gas, I was even MORE amazed at what was being debited from my account.

YIKES. I had to take a picture of THAT too, since it probably won't last either.

Those of you that talk to me on a regular basis know that I've been messing with the idea of getting a new car for several months now. A month ago, I went with my brother to watch him lease a car - he was trading his car in for something with all-wheel drive. Mostly I was curious about the transaction, and how it would work, in case I decided to eventually trade my car in too. Talking with the salesman led me to the conclusion that I could probably get more out of my car if I tried to sell it myself, then use what I made off that sale as a down-payment. Made sense, so I decided to give it a try.

Only, I never got around to it.

I put off cleaning my car out and was too busy (or lazy?) to go get estimates done of what simple repairs would cost. I did a little research to see how much my car was worth, but that's about it. I thought maybe I'd see how I fared with one more winter in my little car. But then it snowed last Monday morning - and that decided me. I was on the phone with the guy who sold my brother his car by 2:00 that afternoon. By 4:30, he had worked the numbers and came up with a pretty decent trade-in deal for me, and a car lined up for me to look at. At 8:30 Tuesday morning, I went and picked up my new baby.

It's a Nissan Rogue SL, Phantom White, with pale gray/tan cloth interior. It has a Bose sound system with a 6-CD changer, a moon roof, it's wired for bluetooth, and most importantly - it has ALL-WHEEL DRIVE. I drove it in the snow this past weekend, and it handles beautifully. I feel safe driving in snowy and icy weather for the first time in three or four years! Yes, I realize I have a car payment again... I loved not having one for the past four or five years, and enjoyed a little extra play money. But a little more safety - and the "new car" smell - is TOTALLY worth it. Plus the fact that even though she takes mid-grade gasoline, I will fill up for a cheaper price than the last time I filled up my Sentra with low-grade gas. Huh. Anyway, I haven't named her yet, so I'm taking suggestions.

Speaking of this past weekend... I spent Friday night at the Grand America hotel with my mom and sisters. The Grand is the only 5-star (or 5-diamond, depending on the review you read) in town, and my sister Kate works in the spa there. So we got KILLER discounts on the room rate and spa treatments! (We got pedicures.) Pays to know people, I guess. But I've always been curious about that place, and it didn't disappoint. It was amazing. The rooms were HUGE, and the bathrooms were incredible. We shared two rooms (since there were five of us) and the views from the rooms were awesome. Kate showed us around a little, and we ate dinner at the restaurant there - the Garden Cafe - and the food was delicious. We sat in the hot tub, and ordered a movie (which cut out right in the middle, but they sent someone up to fix it for us. Very professional, but kind-of embarrassing since we were all lounging in our PJ's by that point). We ordered room-service for breakfast - again, YUMMY. It was so fancy! We had a great time together.

*SIGH*

Reality kind-of stinks after a weekend like that. BUT - I still have my new car to drive! HOORAY!