I bought my car, and within some pretty lucky circumstances as well.

Yesterday I was looking through ads on craigslist and autotrader all morning without finding anything I was really interested in. We decided to go check out a black 06 in Fullerton to see if I liked the options for that year. The car was thrashed, it was dirty, the overhead light was missing, there were random cables sticking out of everywhere and it had like 60,000 miles on it. And on top of all that, the dealership had it listed at 14,000. Nobody really bothered us while we were there so Dad and I got to fiddle around with it as much as we wanted besides being able to turn it on. After a while we headed home. When we got there, right when I walked in the door I sat down at the computer just to go through the ads again before I got ready for work. Dad walked up next to the computer after he walked in the door and I found one that wasn't there when we left earlier and it was EVERYTHING I wanted. I called the seller and he said we could go look at it immediately, but my work wouldn't let me come in late so Dad really stepped up to bat and drove out to Glendale in rush hour traffic to check it out for me. He made a deposit on it and later that night he drove me back to look at it for myself after I got off work. The seller seemed really nice, a young Armenian guy with two little kids, and he even let me take it for a spin that night when I got there at 11:30. The price we agreed on was less than blue book value for the car I'm sure but I haven't checked yet, it's definitely thousands less than what a dealership would sell it for. Today we took care of the loan business, drove out again and picked it up. I drove home blasting the A/C and some sweet tunes :)

2006 Scion xB
Automatic
Polar white with black interior
Factory warranty
One owner
16,000 miles





































I was talking to my coworker, Keith, about buying a car earlier this week and he said something very important, and something that often gets overlooked during the heat of purchasing a car: "the small things become big things once you realize you're paying for them every month."

When I bought my truck, it was what I wanted, but it still wasn't a new car. Driving home today, I felt absolutely no reservations to what I've signed up for. A super clean, superbly maintained brand new/used car in the color I wanted and all the options I could have asked for. It even has a little jack that came factory installed that year for an Ipod. It really was a good feeling humming down the 5 freeway, quiet and chilly at rush hour, not having to shift gears or listen to a screeching fan belt. It must have been what it was like for you buying your new Jeep after years of Sammies.

Here are some songs I'm listening to. I dont have the money to buy the albums so I just search them on this Project Music Playlist website and download the ones I really like on Itunes.

1. A Song For Milly Michaelson- Thrice, The Alchemy Index Vol 3 Wind. This song reminds me of Death Cab For Cutie. Both groups I love. It's still strange listening to the four volume EPs from Thrice's latest release, they sound absolutely nothing like the first album of theirs I heard in high school. This is my favorite song from the Wind EP because they added wind chimes and xylophones in the background, really capturing the feeling of listening to air. I reviewed the water and fire EP's last year. You should definitely check them out.

2. Set Your Body Ablaze- Shai Hulud Misanthropy Pure. I really like direction Shai Hulud has taken in terms of being a hardcore/punk band. I love the way the guitars cascade over each other with little direction and especially the drumming. I've never gotten the chance to see them live, but I would definitely dogpile during this song.

3. Scream My Name- Over It Unreleased. This song hasn't been released on an album, only on the band's myspace. It's super catchy, and like the rest of their songs, fun. Not fun in a cheesy cornball kind of way, the kind of lyrics that don't really take much thought. Nothing explicit, no swearing, just good alternative punk to go surfing to. I recorded it streaming from my sound card using the same program I use to record my own songs. It sounds awful but I listen to it all the time anyways.