Today I visited Mt. Vernon and drove through Nashville and Burbank on the way back.

Driving on winding state routes through hilly, rural terrain really sucks when it's snowing.  There was one hill I nearly didn't make it to the top of.  It was a real balancing act between braking just enough on down slopes to maintain control but keeping up enough momentum to make it up the next incline without having to accelerate beyond the point of traction loss.  Needless to say, I'm glad to be anywhere but in my car right now.

Tags: cars, weather, work
Current Mood: cold

You might think that a company like Slave Labor Graphics, whose entire business is comic books, would know how to package them for shipping so that they don't slide around inside the mailer, thus allowing the corners of the three books on the bottom of the stack to get squished when the USPS workers dance on the package.  "Fra-GEE-lay?  What's that mean?  Must be from Italy."

Anyway... I can't let the little things annoy me too much this week.  I've got a new set of wheels to enjoy...



I've got me a Chrysler Ford, it seats about twenty, so hurry up and bring your jukebox money! ;)

Yes... the freeways are a lot smoother in this than they were in the Jeep.

Tags: cars, comics
Current Mood: busy

ZOMG it's been more than a week since I last posted to LJ.

Things have been crazy busy at work. Hard to believe it's already the middle of May, because it seems like only a few weeks ago it was snowing. Oh wait, it was. :P

I've started shopping around again for a new (to me) vehicle. I've had my Grand Cherokee for over five years, and I had another Jeep before that for about three years. I guess I'm just feeling a little burned out on SUVs (and the cost of a tank of gas at $3.25 per gallon) right now. So I'm trying to make up my mind whether to go with a van or wagon that would still give me the cargo space I'm used to having, or switch to a full-size sedan like the ones I love to rent when I travel.

I'm not going to buy new again, though. There are plenty of used 2006 and 2007 vehicles around with under 20,000 miles and the balance of the manufacturer's warranty still left, so it seems crazy to me to take the hit of 20% depreciation by the time you pull into your driveway for the first time that happens with a new car.

And of course... if I trade the Jeep for something else within the next month, I won't have to drop a few hundred bucks on a tune-up to make sure it's ready for the trek to Tennessee for The Gathering of the Gargoyles.

Tags: cars, gathering of the gargoyles