Our New Ride

Last week, my wife's 1997 Pontiac Grand Am was in the shop, and the issues with it were so bad, that we ended up just getting rid of it. We had actually accumulated quite a bill for the repair, but the shop just took the car off our hands and we didn't owe anything else. That did, of course, leave us with a gaping hole in transportation. So on Saturday, we went car shopping.

We went to four different dealerships and test drove 4 different cars (a 2000 Grand Prix, a 2004 Dodge Neon, a 2005 Ford Focus, and a 2004 Chevrolet Aveo) before test driving and ultimately purchasing a 2004 Dodge Stratus (our new-to-us car is pictured). We went a little over what we were planning on spending, but I think it was a good deal for a good car with low mileage (35,000). There were a couple small things they were going to do to it, most notably being the removal of the tinting on the windows. We didn't know if there would be any issues with it being too dark, legally, so we just decided to have them remove it (since they offered to do it at no additional charge). We've gone a couple days with only one car, but we'll be picking up the Stratus tonight after work.

At dealerships, we did see 2 Dodge Vipers and one Prowler (previously my favorite car, since replaced by the Aston Martin Vanquish). The Vipers and Prowler were around six or seven times our automotive budget.

My 2000 Chevy Cavalier is still running, but I don't know how long I'm going to keep it. Just last week it hit 198,000 miles. I know I want to drive it to 200,000 (and get a picture of that number), but then I almost would like to replace it sometime in the fall. It's starting and running rougher, and I have worries of taking it through another Minnesota winter. But we'll see.

When I do go shopping, I believe I'm going to be a bit pickier as to what kind of car I'll get. I'll probably look up cars online (mostly on Carsoup) and then have a list of cars and dealerships I'd like to visit. But who knows. I have a certain amount of hope that I can find a decent Mustang, Camaro, Firebird, or Eclipse in our price range. If not, I'll look at some other cars I like, like a Grand Prix. I would really like another two door car, at least something like a Cobalt or even another Cavalier. Part of me also wouldn't mind a pickup. (All these linked cars are ones I might put on my list to go test drive. That linked Grand Prix is actually the exact car we test drove on Saturday.)

The Month of Wordlessness

So yes, it has, in fact, been a month since I've posted. Crazy huh. Here's what I've been up to.

• In June (the day after my last posting, in fact), I went to Ohio and hung out with the family. We had a good time. I got to eat my favorite ice cream in the world (Graeter's) and go to one of my favorite restaurants (Damon's), neither of which is present in Minnesota.
• Erik and I also played a test round of my Reclamation card game. I do think that, each time we've played it, it's been improved, and I left with a bunch of notes for additional changes, most of which I've already made in the rules (but haven't had a chance to play test yet). I'll bring updated decks and rules when I'm back in the Eastern time zone around Thanksgiving.
  
• For my birthday, Erik and Gina gave me the book The Game Inventor's Guidebook: How to Invent and Sell Board Games, Card Games, Role-Playing Games, & Everything in Between! It is interesting and should be useful. I had done some work on a board game called Myridia last year, and wouldn't mind picking that up again and perhaps playtesting it in November as well. I do enjoy designing games.
• I have been considering expanding a previous piece of writing (The Case for Death) into something more book-length. I already have a couple pages of notes, and have come up with the basic concept - 7 myths about death and why they are incorrect. But I may want to finish up my work on The Lords of Sargoff and get that submitted around for publication before I start on that too much, unless I decide to start work on the next Lords of Sargoff book instead.
• Over the 4th of July weekend, my parents and David and Becca were around. We had a good time, including a Twins game and the fireworks. They left on Monday.
• A couple weeks ago, I had a dentist appointment, and found out that for the first time in my life, I had a cavity. So yesterday I went in to get the cavity filled. It was a small cavity, and they did not numb me at all. This is what I get for not eating as well, and for not going to the dentist last year. Whoops.

Here's hoping it's not another month until the next posting.