...and the New Car comes in--with accessories!

After extended research and a short survey of what was available for purchase within our budget, I decided on the following.





Those of you who know what I drove before are undoubtedly scratching your heads in wonderment.

A station wagon? Really??

I'll admit she was not my first choice, but let us review what the requirements were. [Click Here]. Go ahead. I'll wait.

Based on these criteria, I got what I wanted. This car meets ALL of wifeness' requirements (although the ugly factor is, I suppose, a matter of personal preference, she did not say it was too ugly to drive.). It also meets ALL BUT ONE of my own (there was NOTHING out there with a sunroof! What the crap?!?! Who wouldn't want a sunroof??).

She is a decided step down from the 4-Runner, but given the budget constraints and the fact that, frankly, an SUV doesn't meet my driving needs (I drive 70+ highway miles a day during school and no off-road driving), she presents a perfectly good solution. The biggest downside is the POS stereo. I'm grateful for the cassette player because I listen to books on tape a lot, but who doesn't put a CD player in a 2001 model of any car out there?? Come on! Oh, well. Christmas is coming. (hint, hint, Wifeness :] )

Also, please note the birthday present on the top of my new ride. A great big thank you to Wifeness for organizing the funds to pay for it, and to Caleb and Maeve and AuntieAlex for contributing to my sanity! I've been wanting a kayak for a while because our 14' canoe is just too big and bulky to take out alone. This one is much smaller (9'6") and much lighter (39 lbs). It's just perfect for me to take out for an afternoon of flatwater exploration! It's not really a whitewater boat and is not real fast in stronger current, but I don't do much of that stuff. Right now, all I really want is to go find a lake or stretch of quiet water on a river and poke around. In a couple of years, I hope to add to the fleet a longer boat I can use to do overnights and ocean touring. By then, maybe I'll have time.