I was limping down West Ferry yesterday morning to go to church. As I got through whatever Lacrosse themed event that dominates the Ferry Delaware corner, I was just strolling as best I could when the quiet was shattered by what looked like this White Nissan SUV coming to an abrupt stop. I didn't see any car hitting it. With good reason I guess. As I got closer, nobody was in the Nissan, but lying in front of it was a tire still attached to a wheel still attached to about half of an axle. The other half was still attached to a Blazer which had come to spark induced stop at the corner near my church. The driver was definitely having a bad day, curious unitarians aside, and I give him all the credit in the world. He got his car into a space without hurting himself or anybody else. Amazing times.
The limping? first bike accident of the year. Swerved to avoid a car near Anderson Saturday night and wound up bruising my calve. Didn't bother me Saturday night, but Sunday was tylenol time. Won't be wearing shorts for a few days. Suffice to say, I would not have been much fun at Artists and Models
Tis the season, was taking the kids home after dinner last night and a driver and cyclist met rudely at Ashland and Anderson last night. That cyclist wound up going to the hospital.
It's Monday, let's be careful out there.
Mrmike's Journal
My Podcast Link
06/02/2008 07:43 #44517
Bumper cars off ElmwoodCategory: miscellany
05/31/2008 14:05 #44498
Random NotesCategory: miscellany
Not sure what precipatated it, but I've been getting spammed of late with Cialis and Viagara emails. No content just a blank email about "your order." This internet has a strange sense of humor.
Just looked out my window and saw one driveway with a truck removing belonging and the other with a truck unloading. Wonder if anybody is trying to upgrade.
I mentioned in chatter that I came out of work one day and it looked like somebody was trying to get the flap door of my gas tank. Had the would be thief tried to open from the left side instead of the right, they probably would have been set, but not being terribly swift all they did was bend the hinge.
Rode my bike to work one day this week and was relived that I didn't die, despite the dog walkers, door openers that populate Elmwood in the early morning. Had the added thrill of dealing with some little twerp thinking he was cool by pretending to kick at my bike while he rode past. God bless my long reach. "just kiddin, mmmister" Uh-huh.
Reeled in 40,000 dollars for the Zoo in two days last week, but I'm getting little nervous anyway. Want to get somebody nailed down for a sponsorship soon. If your companies are feeling charitable, let me know.
Going to test drive an Elantra on Tuesday, to see how the whole thing feels. If ever there was a driver who could use an extended warranty, it's my sorry self.
Skipped the first Thursday in the Square in favor of beer that I already paid for and Lost. Lost may have confused me thoroughly. I can't decide if it was kind of awesome or downright maddening. But the beer was good.
Thought long and hard, at least a minute or so, about the letter Sam Hoyt sent out about committee positions. While the possibility of seeing the mechanics of local politics could be interesting, I never straight party voted for anything. I registered democrat for the sake of a primary vote, but am rare in that I know plenty of smart republicans and easily bumfuzzled democrats and the best stuff comes when all get together to form a policy. That hardly ever seems to happen anymore.
Despite that, I got to admit I like seeing Governor Paterson come out in favor of the gay marriage legislation. I completely respect that he is interested in leading than running for relection from the get go. I'm sure his in-boxes are filling up with loveletters from Pentacostals, Evangelicals and other fundamentalist party animals, but I respect the fact that he took a position, and a sensible one at that.
On the other side of the coin, Jimmy Griffin reaffrims the rock star notion of death being a great career move. The lionization of Griffin over the past few days amazed me. I was here during his "reign" and not a day went by that he wasn't fighting with somebody. Sure the ballpark is great, but none of the "tributes" mentioned his oft-indicted parks commissioner, how he fixated on a few projects at the expense of everything else in the city or the generally confrontational nature of things. I respected him because he never spun, he just did. (In that respect, he was infinitely better than Masiello). But hell, he wasn't St. Jimmy either.
Used to love the spectacle of Artists and Models, but I'm wondering if I'm getting too old to enjoy. Got a free night and everything.
Wednesday is economic stimulus night at the Bisons (got to love an always thinking promo department) Anybody want to go and buy one, get one.
oh well, off to refill the growler for the weekend. I heart the VBM.
Just looked out my window and saw one driveway with a truck removing belonging and the other with a truck unloading. Wonder if anybody is trying to upgrade.
I mentioned in chatter that I came out of work one day and it looked like somebody was trying to get the flap door of my gas tank. Had the would be thief tried to open from the left side instead of the right, they probably would have been set, but not being terribly swift all they did was bend the hinge.
Rode my bike to work one day this week and was relived that I didn't die, despite the dog walkers, door openers that populate Elmwood in the early morning. Had the added thrill of dealing with some little twerp thinking he was cool by pretending to kick at my bike while he rode past. God bless my long reach. "just kiddin, mmmister" Uh-huh.
Reeled in 40,000 dollars for the Zoo in two days last week, but I'm getting little nervous anyway. Want to get somebody nailed down for a sponsorship soon. If your companies are feeling charitable, let me know.
Going to test drive an Elantra on Tuesday, to see how the whole thing feels. If ever there was a driver who could use an extended warranty, it's my sorry self.
Skipped the first Thursday in the Square in favor of beer that I already paid for and Lost. Lost may have confused me thoroughly. I can't decide if it was kind of awesome or downright maddening. But the beer was good.
Thought long and hard, at least a minute or so, about the letter Sam Hoyt sent out about committee positions. While the possibility of seeing the mechanics of local politics could be interesting, I never straight party voted for anything. I registered democrat for the sake of a primary vote, but am rare in that I know plenty of smart republicans and easily bumfuzzled democrats and the best stuff comes when all get together to form a policy. That hardly ever seems to happen anymore.
Despite that, I got to admit I like seeing Governor Paterson come out in favor of the gay marriage legislation. I completely respect that he is interested in leading than running for relection from the get go. I'm sure his in-boxes are filling up with loveletters from Pentacostals, Evangelicals and other fundamentalist party animals, but I respect the fact that he took a position, and a sensible one at that.
On the other side of the coin, Jimmy Griffin reaffrims the rock star notion of death being a great career move. The lionization of Griffin over the past few days amazed me. I was here during his "reign" and not a day went by that he wasn't fighting with somebody. Sure the ballpark is great, but none of the "tributes" mentioned his oft-indicted parks commissioner, how he fixated on a few projects at the expense of everything else in the city or the generally confrontational nature of things. I respected him because he never spun, he just did. (In that respect, he was infinitely better than Masiello). But hell, he wasn't St. Jimmy either.
Used to love the spectacle of Artists and Models, but I'm wondering if I'm getting too old to enjoy. Got a free night and everything.
Wednesday is economic stimulus night at the Bisons (got to love an always thinking promo department) Anybody want to go and buy one, get one.
oh well, off to refill the growler for the weekend. I heart the VBM.
metalpeter - 05/31/08 17:21
I have never been to Art & Models, I know a peep (e:robin) has some thing there so maybe you should check it out. I think she says what it is on her post. I think that if you liked it before then you would still like it, besides you are free so I say you should go and have a good time, Maybe even take pictures.
In terms of Patterson I like what he did with the gay marriage thing. But I think he did it to soon. He is basing it on the fact that California will legalize gay marriage but there is still about a two or three week period before that happens and with there being some oppostion it might not really happen. What I like is that he isn't saying gay marriage is ok or that he approves of it or even that it should be legal, he is saying that since other places grant gays rights of marriage that if they came here and didn't have those same rights anymore they could sue or litigate.
I have never been to Art & Models, I know a peep (e:robin) has some thing there so maybe you should check it out. I think she says what it is on her post. I think that if you liked it before then you would still like it, besides you are free so I say you should go and have a good time, Maybe even take pictures.
In terms of Patterson I like what he did with the gay marriage thing. But I think he did it to soon. He is basing it on the fact that California will legalize gay marriage but there is still about a two or three week period before that happens and with there being some oppostion it might not really happen. What I like is that he isn't saying gay marriage is ok or that he approves of it or even that it should be legal, he is saying that since other places grant gays rights of marriage that if they came here and didn't have those same rights anymore they could sue or litigate.
05/23/2008 07:42 #44426
Wonder what Simon thoughtI'm not much of an American Idol fan but this was one of the better acts.
05/23/2008 20:26 #44432
Random Notes from a cluster of a weekCategory: miscellany
It's been a tough week and this might be what's left of my mind.
Blew up at an account executive. This woman from a local magazine fishing for business came to my office with her rep, who I knew quite well. The Exec decided that being a recent Zoo addition translated into me just starting in marketing work. She reminded me of the actress who plays the all knowing secretary in The American President if only the Exec could have been that interesting. She decided it was okay to lecture to me like I was 14 and I was taking Dad's hot rod out for the first time. One passing comment, I can let go, but after about 10 minutes of being talked at like I was "Special," I caved and voiced my displeasure, reminding her that I have done this work and that I didn't get hired because I look good on casual fridays (I do). By this time, I'm standing and my boss is observing me from across the hallway. Exec: "well, what should I do?" Me: "Walk to your car" Her rep mouthes "I'm sorry" as they leave. My boss told me that shouldn't become a habit, but I was right. Certainly not real high on the professional behavior scale, and I'm not proud of verbally chasing somebody away, but there has to be limits, especially when I'm the friggin client
I hate that kind of shit. I'm not particularly good at it, not relishing conflict and all, but sometimes you got to be ready to tell somebody to shut the fuck up. It messed up my flow for the rest of yesterday, so I went straight from work to go watch Indiana Jones. Yesterday's creative writing had to wait till today when I was just empty creatively. I had two early presentations that messed up any movie going plans on Wednesday.
Feh, ready for the weekend
Anybody else get nervous in traffic when you see a car coming up behind you and the driver is a little too into their phone conversation.
I think I journal here a lot to keep those writing skills easier to come by. Had to crank out a series of ads and my first billboards for the Zoo, a lame pun on how you won't use much gas to get there.
Minor apartment tragedy: One of the most thoughful gifts I received in recent years was at the first estrip secret santa. The lovely (e:ladycroft) set me up with a series of little items that left me very moved. One of the items was a "ONE" bracelet that became part of my daily costume. Yesterday it snapped after 18 months of use. Might have colored my bias against the travesty that was thursday. Left for work strangely upset by that. Maybe the exec paid a little harshly for her crimes, but hell she deserved it.
(e:joshua) is right on the money with Lagniappe's, just came back full of fried crab po'boy. The afterglow is a good feeling.
Still mulling over directions on car purchases. My shaky credit and I got approved for a lease on a Corolla, but I can't help but wonder if a n Intrepid purchase make more sense.
Miss (e:theecarey) 's vision in these pages
Indiana Jones was fun. It ain't Raiders, but what could be. Whatever Harrison Ford and Karen Allen are drinking, I'd like some, please.
A three day weekend couldn't have come at a better time.
Eat, drink and be merry ya'all
Blew up at an account executive. This woman from a local magazine fishing for business came to my office with her rep, who I knew quite well. The Exec decided that being a recent Zoo addition translated into me just starting in marketing work. She reminded me of the actress who plays the all knowing secretary in The American President if only the Exec could have been that interesting. She decided it was okay to lecture to me like I was 14 and I was taking Dad's hot rod out for the first time. One passing comment, I can let go, but after about 10 minutes of being talked at like I was "Special," I caved and voiced my displeasure, reminding her that I have done this work and that I didn't get hired because I look good on casual fridays (I do). By this time, I'm standing and my boss is observing me from across the hallway. Exec: "well, what should I do?" Me: "Walk to your car" Her rep mouthes "I'm sorry" as they leave. My boss told me that shouldn't become a habit, but I was right. Certainly not real high on the professional behavior scale, and I'm not proud of verbally chasing somebody away, but there has to be limits, especially when I'm the friggin client
I hate that kind of shit. I'm not particularly good at it, not relishing conflict and all, but sometimes you got to be ready to tell somebody to shut the fuck up. It messed up my flow for the rest of yesterday, so I went straight from work to go watch Indiana Jones. Yesterday's creative writing had to wait till today when I was just empty creatively. I had two early presentations that messed up any movie going plans on Wednesday.
Feh, ready for the weekend
Anybody else get nervous in traffic when you see a car coming up behind you and the driver is a little too into their phone conversation.
I think I journal here a lot to keep those writing skills easier to come by. Had to crank out a series of ads and my first billboards for the Zoo, a lame pun on how you won't use much gas to get there.
Minor apartment tragedy: One of the most thoughful gifts I received in recent years was at the first estrip secret santa. The lovely (e:ladycroft) set me up with a series of little items that left me very moved. One of the items was a "ONE" bracelet that became part of my daily costume. Yesterday it snapped after 18 months of use. Might have colored my bias against the travesty that was thursday. Left for work strangely upset by that. Maybe the exec paid a little harshly for her crimes, but hell she deserved it.
(e:joshua) is right on the money with Lagniappe's, just came back full of fried crab po'boy. The afterglow is a good feeling.
Still mulling over directions on car purchases. My shaky credit and I got approved for a lease on a Corolla, but I can't help but wonder if a n Intrepid purchase make more sense.
Miss (e:theecarey) 's vision in these pages
Indiana Jones was fun. It ain't Raiders, but what could be. Whatever Harrison Ford and Karen Allen are drinking, I'd like some, please.
A three day weekend couldn't have come at a better time.
Eat, drink and be merry ya'all
imk2 - 05/29/08 18:00
i dont think anyone would hate you for buying a gift someone already had. it's the fact that you did get it that counts. come on peter, you have to participate next year. if you want, i'll help you pick out what to get.
(e:ladycroft), you've got a deal.
i dont think anyone would hate you for buying a gift someone already had. it's the fact that you did get it that counts. come on peter, you have to participate next year. if you want, i'll help you pick out what to get.
(e:ladycroft), you've got a deal.
metalpeter - 05/24/08 17:53
First of all the entire thing at work sounds a little bit crazy. Yes there are people who do talk down to people and who do lecture them at times when they shouldn't (yes there are times when they should, but not here) but what makes it odd is that the Exec was new to you but you knew the rep. Unless the Exec all ways talks like that you shouldn't have to said anything the rep should have jumped in and said something first like "um excuse the way you are talking is out of line" If they know you and you are being disrespected they should step up for you and not just do nothing. It sounds like even though you where given support you should have been given more. Sounds like your boss should have walked out of the office and said "It is one thing to explain something to someone in a slow manner and to talk down to them, this guy knows what he is doing and if I hear you talk down to him or anyone else on my staff I will remove you from the zoo My self". Granted I only have you side of the story so I don't really know what was said but I think it is good that you stood up for your self, there is only so much you can take.
In terms of Indy. I saw it today and thought it was very good.
No offense to anyone else, but I do agree that this place isn't the same with out (e:theecarey) if you are reading this you can have the love of your life and still post.
(e:imk2) somehow I missed that story about you (and not in the good way) getting stiffed from Secret Santa, sorry about that. That is one of the reasons why I didn't do it either year was because I don't know what to get anyone and the people that I could get something for they might all ready have it. I didn't want to be the guy who think he bought someone a great gift that they hate and then they smile and say thanks and are cursing in their head.
First of all the entire thing at work sounds a little bit crazy. Yes there are people who do talk down to people and who do lecture them at times when they shouldn't (yes there are times when they should, but not here) but what makes it odd is that the Exec was new to you but you knew the rep. Unless the Exec all ways talks like that you shouldn't have to said anything the rep should have jumped in and said something first like "um excuse the way you are talking is out of line" If they know you and you are being disrespected they should step up for you and not just do nothing. It sounds like even though you where given support you should have been given more. Sounds like your boss should have walked out of the office and said "It is one thing to explain something to someone in a slow manner and to talk down to them, this guy knows what he is doing and if I hear you talk down to him or anyone else on my staff I will remove you from the zoo My self". Granted I only have you side of the story so I don't really know what was said but I think it is good that you stood up for your self, there is only so much you can take.
In terms of Indy. I saw it today and thought it was very good.
No offense to anyone else, but I do agree that this place isn't the same with out (e:theecarey) if you are reading this you can have the love of your life and still post.
(e:imk2) somehow I missed that story about you (and not in the good way) getting stiffed from Secret Santa, sorry about that. That is one of the reasons why I didn't do it either year was because I don't know what to get anyone and the people that I could get something for they might all ready have it. I didn't want to be the guy who think he bought someone a great gift that they hate and then they smile and say thanks and are cursing in their head.
ladycroft - 05/24/08 07:30
awww. i'll have to look into getting you another one! i'm still glad you liked your gifts.
imk2: i'll be happy to take over secret santa. i can feel more a part of it all being so far away :)
awww. i'll have to look into getting you another one! i'm still glad you liked your gifts.
imk2: i'll be happy to take over secret santa. i can feel more a part of it all being so far away :)
imk2 - 05/23/08 23:19
oh and the other thing i was going to add....is that i'm glad that you've gotten so much joy from your secret santa present. however, i will not be doing secret santa next year, because i got completely stiffed last year and was so hurt by it that i've sworn to myself that i will never put forth the effort again. so if anyone else wants to take over next year, they're certainly welcome to.
oh and the other thing i was going to add....is that i'm glad that you've gotten so much joy from your secret santa present. however, i will not be doing secret santa next year, because i got completely stiffed last year and was so hurt by it that i've sworn to myself that i will never put forth the effort again. so if anyone else wants to take over next year, they're certainly welcome to.
imk2 - 05/23/08 22:58
ok, few things to add here....
i agree with drew, buy don't lease. and don't buy anything other than a hyundai. i have had two hyundai's in a row, and have been saved over and over by their incredible warranty. it always amazes me why anyone would buy any other car when this car comes with a 5 YEAR BUMPER to BUMPER warranty and a 10 YEAR power train warranty. so basically, that means that if anything goes wrong with your car within the first five years, (except for the normal wear of breaks) you get it fixed for free. no questions asked. and it also means that if within the first ten years if anything goes wrong with your engine or transmission, you have that covered.
also you know that if a company makes a warranty on their car for 10 years, they HAVE to be making a quality product.
for example, we all know that cars are hit or miss, you can buy a brand new car and it can have a million things go wrong with it from the get go. my first hyundai had virtually nothing wrong with it for the 10 years we owned it, except for a fuel pump that went within the first few months of purchase. this second hyundai has had the engine light come on twice in the first three years i've had it. however, since my car is only 3 years old, and my bumper to bumper warranty is for 5 years, i brought it into the dealer both times. i also get the perk of not having to go to sketchy mechanics when i'm most vulnerable (i.e. without a car and in desperate need to have it fixed). since i can go straight to the dealer and know that i will get quality parts and quality work. (i actually trust my dealer, because we've been dealing with them for the past 13 years)
so anyway, the first time the engine light came on and i took it in, and they ran the diagnostics and actually found nothing wrong, they took a sample of the gasoline and found some impurities and suggested i switch gas stations.
about a year later, it came on again, and it started having symptoms of car sickness. every time i would fill up the car with gas, it would not want to start and i would have to pump the gas to get it revved up. once it did start, it would kind of chug and not want to accelerate and i would have to keep pumping the gas for like 30 seconds to get it going.
so i brought it to the dealer, dropped it off, got a free loaner, and went to work. by the end of the work day, i had my car fixed. i can't even recall what was wrong with it, but it now works perfectly. and what did i owe the dealer for both of these incidents?
nuthin. not one single dollar. no hidden fees for anything. no fee for running diagnostics, no fee for parts, no fee for labor. it's a beautiful thing.
and although you do have to maintain the car, and preferably have some kind of proof that you do, you certainly dont have to do it at the dealer, where it would cost you an arm and a leg. (i think that's where they try to recoup their money, as a 30K maintenance check up is 450 dollars). so you can just take it to your regular mechanic, and do your oil changes and tune up's and when something actually does go wrong, you take it to the dealer.
i bought my car from the orchard park hyundai dealer, because the northtown ones are assholes. when i went in there to talk about buying a car, the guy talked to me like i was an idiot and would not even tell me the price of the car unless i agreed to buy it first! and when i tried to leave, they practically blocked the door. i swore i would not buy a car from them even if it was thousands of dollars less than the other huyndai dealer. (there are really only two in town)
when i went to the southtowns one, after a few questions that they threw out there to feel me out before giving me a quote, (like, will you be financing the car or paying for it out of pocket....they do this because they know that they'll make money on you if you finance and so they can give you a lower price on the car up front....if you intend to buy the car out right, and they know that, they will quote you a higher price....so you have to answer that question by saying that you want to talk about the price of the car right now and that's all you want to talk about) so after they realized that i've done my research, they had the manager come in and lay it down to me straight.
he said that he knows that i've probably gone over to northtown, and that since he worked there for many years, he just about knows what they offered me, and that this is the absolute bottom price he can give me for the car.
and it was a fair price, and i appreciated not being dicked around and i took it after a few more questions and some discussion. he also told me that he'd throw in a deal that anytime i brought in a car for maintenance or problems, they'd give me a loaner car for free without any problems. i asked if he would be willing to put that in writing and he did. but frankly i've never even had to use that letter, because as long as i call ahead and schedule an appointment for a day that they have a loaner available (sometimes they run out) i was given a replacement without any problems. on days that they do run out of their rentals, they actually use enterprise and eat the cost.
in addition, huyndai has free roadside assistance on all of their cars for 10 years, so you'd never have to buy AAA again. and i've used that many, many times, when i've locked myself out or when i had a flat tire. so if your car ever broke down, you would have it towed to the dealer and fixed for nothing!
so the moral of the story is that you'd be doing yourself a disservice by getting a car that did not have a 5/10 year warranty on it. think about all the things that can go wrong in the first five years. and think about the cost of replacing a transmission 8 years into owning a car. you would have the peace of mind knowing that if anything ever went wrong, you wouldn't have to worry about having to pay for it. it literally would be like throwing money down the drain if you went with a different make.
that's just my two cent though.....but i have faith that you will make the right decision ;)
ok, few things to add here....
i agree with drew, buy don't lease. and don't buy anything other than a hyundai. i have had two hyundai's in a row, and have been saved over and over by their incredible warranty. it always amazes me why anyone would buy any other car when this car comes with a 5 YEAR BUMPER to BUMPER warranty and a 10 YEAR power train warranty. so basically, that means that if anything goes wrong with your car within the first five years, (except for the normal wear of breaks) you get it fixed for free. no questions asked. and it also means that if within the first ten years if anything goes wrong with your engine or transmission, you have that covered.
also you know that if a company makes a warranty on their car for 10 years, they HAVE to be making a quality product.
for example, we all know that cars are hit or miss, you can buy a brand new car and it can have a million things go wrong with it from the get go. my first hyundai had virtually nothing wrong with it for the 10 years we owned it, except for a fuel pump that went within the first few months of purchase. this second hyundai has had the engine light come on twice in the first three years i've had it. however, since my car is only 3 years old, and my bumper to bumper warranty is for 5 years, i brought it into the dealer both times. i also get the perk of not having to go to sketchy mechanics when i'm most vulnerable (i.e. without a car and in desperate need to have it fixed). since i can go straight to the dealer and know that i will get quality parts and quality work. (i actually trust my dealer, because we've been dealing with them for the past 13 years)
so anyway, the first time the engine light came on and i took it in, and they ran the diagnostics and actually found nothing wrong, they took a sample of the gasoline and found some impurities and suggested i switch gas stations.
about a year later, it came on again, and it started having symptoms of car sickness. every time i would fill up the car with gas, it would not want to start and i would have to pump the gas to get it revved up. once it did start, it would kind of chug and not want to accelerate and i would have to keep pumping the gas for like 30 seconds to get it going.
so i brought it to the dealer, dropped it off, got a free loaner, and went to work. by the end of the work day, i had my car fixed. i can't even recall what was wrong with it, but it now works perfectly. and what did i owe the dealer for both of these incidents?
nuthin. not one single dollar. no hidden fees for anything. no fee for running diagnostics, no fee for parts, no fee for labor. it's a beautiful thing.
and although you do have to maintain the car, and preferably have some kind of proof that you do, you certainly dont have to do it at the dealer, where it would cost you an arm and a leg. (i think that's where they try to recoup their money, as a 30K maintenance check up is 450 dollars). so you can just take it to your regular mechanic, and do your oil changes and tune up's and when something actually does go wrong, you take it to the dealer.
i bought my car from the orchard park hyundai dealer, because the northtown ones are assholes. when i went in there to talk about buying a car, the guy talked to me like i was an idiot and would not even tell me the price of the car unless i agreed to buy it first! and when i tried to leave, they practically blocked the door. i swore i would not buy a car from them even if it was thousands of dollars less than the other huyndai dealer. (there are really only two in town)
when i went to the southtowns one, after a few questions that they threw out there to feel me out before giving me a quote, (like, will you be financing the car or paying for it out of pocket....they do this because they know that they'll make money on you if you finance and so they can give you a lower price on the car up front....if you intend to buy the car out right, and they know that, they will quote you a higher price....so you have to answer that question by saying that you want to talk about the price of the car right now and that's all you want to talk about) so after they realized that i've done my research, they had the manager come in and lay it down to me straight.
he said that he knows that i've probably gone over to northtown, and that since he worked there for many years, he just about knows what they offered me, and that this is the absolute bottom price he can give me for the car.
and it was a fair price, and i appreciated not being dicked around and i took it after a few more questions and some discussion. he also told me that he'd throw in a deal that anytime i brought in a car for maintenance or problems, they'd give me a loaner car for free without any problems. i asked if he would be willing to put that in writing and he did. but frankly i've never even had to use that letter, because as long as i call ahead and schedule an appointment for a day that they have a loaner available (sometimes they run out) i was given a replacement without any problems. on days that they do run out of their rentals, they actually use enterprise and eat the cost.
in addition, huyndai has free roadside assistance on all of their cars for 10 years, so you'd never have to buy AAA again. and i've used that many, many times, when i've locked myself out or when i had a flat tire. so if your car ever broke down, you would have it towed to the dealer and fixed for nothing!
so the moral of the story is that you'd be doing yourself a disservice by getting a car that did not have a 5/10 year warranty on it. think about all the things that can go wrong in the first five years. and think about the cost of replacing a transmission 8 years into owning a car. you would have the peace of mind knowing that if anything ever went wrong, you wouldn't have to worry about having to pay for it. it literally would be like throwing money down the drain if you went with a different make.
that's just my two cent though.....but i have faith that you will make the right decision ;)
paul - 05/23/08 21:36
Crab Po Boy - yummy, yumm, yumm ;) I feel I need to hit up Lagniappe's this weekend.
Crab Po Boy - yummy, yumm, yumm ;) I feel I need to hit up Lagniappe's this weekend.
drew - 05/23/08 20:37
Don't lease. buy.
Don't lease. buy.
05/19/2008 19:57 #44394
I'm a bad geekCategory: film
Two passes for tonight's preview of the new Indiana Jones movie were tossed on my desk a few days ago and after watching a large portion of the Sci Fi showings, I made plans to go, easily done since who is free on a Monday evening. I drove over to the Regal after work and saw people in line at 5:30 for a 7:00 show. I was going to exchange my pass for a ticket and go drink at Wild Wings for an hour or so.
I walked in and thought this is ridiculous. The movie is going to play for next few months, including downtown on thursday where the popcorn is so much better. What is to be gained by shoehorning myself into an overstuffed theater? Not a damn thing, only thing to be gained by going to a preview is that Jeff Simon might be in the next seat hating whatever is going on on the screen. I know of no one who would be impressed by getting in tonight. Give me the real butter of the Market Arcade.
Instead of fighting for a seat I didn't want all the badly, guinness and wings at the Anchor Bar were a much better solution.
I walked in and thought this is ridiculous. The movie is going to play for next few months, including downtown on thursday where the popcorn is so much better. What is to be gained by shoehorning myself into an overstuffed theater? Not a damn thing, only thing to be gained by going to a preview is that Jeff Simon might be in the next seat hating whatever is going on on the screen. I know of no one who would be impressed by getting in tonight. Give me the real butter of the Market Arcade.
Instead of fighting for a seat I didn't want all the badly, guinness and wings at the Anchor Bar were a much better solution.
metalpeter - 05/20/08 17:21
I will admit I have never really gone to a preview. Granted it is a preview and not a premiere but the thing that is supposed to be the thing about the Preview is that you see it before a lot of other people then you can tell people about it, then there is that exclusive thing about it. Granted it isn't like being a test audience or private screening but it might be nice to have been the first (e:peep) to see it, but I do get the not wanted to be crowded thing. It sounds like you still had a great time not going.
I will admit I have never really gone to a preview. Granted it is a preview and not a premiere but the thing that is supposed to be the thing about the Preview is that you see it before a lot of other people then you can tell people about it, then there is that exclusive thing about it. Granted it isn't like being a test audience or private screening but it might be nice to have been the first (e:peep) to see it, but I do get the not wanted to be crowded thing. It sounds like you still had a great time not going.
fellyconnelly - 05/20/08 08:23
mm guiness. good choice!
mm guiness. good choice!
I wouldn't make it as a biker in the city. I'd likely be squished before the day is out.
Hope you have a quick recovery!
yeah, i had a number of close calls while being a bicycle commuter. be careful out there!