dragonfare (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
dragonfare) wrote2008-06-12 04:18 pm
dragonfare) wrote2008-06-12 04:18 pm
(no subject)
I had to forego the nap, because I'm waiting for a call from an insurance claims person. *sigh*
But I did get the bath and food, and feel much better.
A brief rundown of my trip:
I went by Greyhound, changing buses in Dallas and Houston, and once more, an unscheduled change (that pissed me off) in Mobile. I think Mobile is unlucky for me. Any time I have trouble on a trip, it's always in Mobile. Anyway, it wasn't an easy trip, and took 24 hours total, but it could have been worse.
My visit with my family went well. I wish I could have stayed longer, but poor Randi sounded like if she had to do the animals by herself again once more, she was going to fall down and just give up and lay there. I had lots of fun with my parents, and got along well with my sister for a change. Since my parents are elderly, and my mother and my sister have health problems, I'm always glad to get the chance to visit them.
Naturally, I drove myself back. That wasn't too hard. The new car is very comfortable, and I don't mind being alone. My MP3 player kept me company (and awake) with audiobooks and a musicals playlist. I made a few wrong turns, but they were brief delays. I started at about 9:30 Wed morning and reached the hotel in Monroe LA about 6:30. The next morning I woke at 5:00 AM for some reason, so I left there about 7:15 (after my complimentary breakfast) and got home about noon.
I have dozens of stories to tell about the trip, but they're tiny, idle things, so I won't put them here.
Now, about the new car [with some comparisons to the old car]. It's a Buick LeSabre [Honda Civic], 1998 [ditto], in almost-new condition [beat up, sun faded, slightly hail damaged, dented], and only has 57K miles on it [282K]. Brand new, it cost $30K. In 1998. State of the art and lots of luxury. Man, it's the nicest thing I've ever owned! It's white with a burgundy Morrocan leather interior, and trim that I think is walnut. It has a "concert sound" package which enables me to hear my music with all the nuances, as well as in my house [road noise so intense, the only way I could hear much at all was to turn the volume all the way up and move the balance all to the drivers side, which distorted a lot of things]. It has AC [haven't had AC for 2 years now]. It has power everything, along with bells-n-whistles like 8-way seat adjustment, zonal temperature, automatic lights-on lights-off... you name it. Just as an example, if the light coming in through the back window is too bright, the rear-view mirror automatically takes on a tint. I think if I had a heart attack in the thing, it would bring out defib paddles and revive me. It even told me (with a series of pings) that I'd forgotten to turn off the right turn indicator. (The fact that it did it in Mobile, when I was already tense, and freaked me totally out since I didn't know what was wrong, is not the car's fault...) [The Honda: power windows and side mirrors.] It gets about 26 mpg [36 mpg], which isn't bad. There's enough room on the drivers seat for my butt and a pack of Fig Newtons to sit comfortably [my butt, barely]. I'm not sure if it'll be any easier for my roomie to get in and out - there's only about 2" more room - but I hope so.
I have pictures, which I'll put under a cut:
Although I loved seeing my parents, I am also very glad to be back with my friends. :)
But I did get the bath and food, and feel much better.
A brief rundown of my trip:
I went by Greyhound, changing buses in Dallas and Houston, and once more, an unscheduled change (that pissed me off) in Mobile. I think Mobile is unlucky for me. Any time I have trouble on a trip, it's always in Mobile. Anyway, it wasn't an easy trip, and took 24 hours total, but it could have been worse.
My visit with my family went well. I wish I could have stayed longer, but poor Randi sounded like if she had to do the animals by herself again once more, she was going to fall down and just give up and lay there. I had lots of fun with my parents, and got along well with my sister for a change. Since my parents are elderly, and my mother and my sister have health problems, I'm always glad to get the chance to visit them.
Naturally, I drove myself back. That wasn't too hard. The new car is very comfortable, and I don't mind being alone. My MP3 player kept me company (and awake) with audiobooks and a musicals playlist. I made a few wrong turns, but they were brief delays. I started at about 9:30 Wed morning and reached the hotel in Monroe LA about 6:30. The next morning I woke at 5:00 AM for some reason, so I left there about 7:15 (after my complimentary breakfast) and got home about noon.
I have dozens of stories to tell about the trip, but they're tiny, idle things, so I won't put them here.
Now, about the new car [with some comparisons to the old car]. It's a Buick LeSabre [Honda Civic], 1998 [ditto], in almost-new condition [beat up, sun faded, slightly hail damaged, dented], and only has 57K miles on it [282K]. Brand new, it cost $30K. In 1998. State of the art and lots of luxury. Man, it's the nicest thing I've ever owned! It's white with a burgundy Morrocan leather interior, and trim that I think is walnut. It has a "concert sound" package which enables me to hear my music with all the nuances, as well as in my house [road noise so intense, the only way I could hear much at all was to turn the volume all the way up and move the balance all to the drivers side, which distorted a lot of things]. It has AC [haven't had AC for 2 years now]. It has power everything, along with bells-n-whistles like 8-way seat adjustment, zonal temperature, automatic lights-on lights-off... you name it. Just as an example, if the light coming in through the back window is too bright, the rear-view mirror automatically takes on a tint. I think if I had a heart attack in the thing, it would bring out defib paddles and revive me. It even told me (with a series of pings) that I'd forgotten to turn off the right turn indicator. (The fact that it did it in Mobile, when I was already tense, and freaked me totally out since I didn't know what was wrong, is not the car's fault...) [The Honda: power windows and side mirrors.] It gets about 26 mpg [36 mpg], which isn't bad. There's enough room on the drivers seat for my butt and a pack of Fig Newtons to sit comfortably [my butt, barely]. I'm not sure if it'll be any easier for my roomie to get in and out - there's only about 2" more room - but I hope so.
I have pictures, which I'll put under a cut:
Although I loved seeing my parents, I am also very glad to be back with my friends. :)
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*hugglesglomps*
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Yay for air conditioning!!!
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Pic. #2 says it all: "I'm in love with my car!"
Ain't gonna be no stoppin' you now....
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Is that a quote from the Queen song? *giggle*
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I'm jealous. I'm still driving my 1991 Honda Civic that doesn't even have *airbags*. Might be time for a new car, if I could stop just being so cheap.
So are you going to do a cross-country trip now, and take us all for a ride??? Huh???
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Honda Civics are great cars, and I'd still be driving mine if I could afford to get the AC fixed. I may drive it in the winter anyway, to save gas, if we keep it.
As for the cross country trip... I WISH.
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Thanks for the pictures. :-D