It has been a while since I posted. But let me assure you there has been a lot of work. During the last several days I have been bickering and negotiating with a scheister who is more typically called a car salesman. My wife needed a new vehicle and hence I was called in to make sure we found a vehicle at a reasonable price. I REFUSE to get taken advantage of by the scheisters and hence it takes a while. We ended up getting a 2004 vehicle that had a MSRP of $24,000 for just a tad over $15,000 and some change. This of course included the $2,500 we were given for our trade-in vehicle which had amongst other problems.... 155,000 miles on the odometer, a cracked windshield, horribly weathered paint, and a few minor dings. Additionally, many of the electrical doo-dads did not function any longer (interior lighting, power locks, etc. The cretins started out by offering us a "deal" of $500 for our vehicle, and I promptly proceeded to roll my eyes at the idiot.

Therefore, from the start of Monday morning until we agreed upon the price on Friday and took the new beast home, we started at a price of $24,000 and a $500 trade-in to a vehicle that cost $17,654 and a trade in of $2,500.... plus I demanded that we be given an extra set of floor mats. Therefore, our net cost for the new vehicle was $15,154.... plus the extra floor mats.

I know I did a reasonably good job of negotiating when the salesperson was grouchy at us as we finalized the sale. Again, I do not like getting taken advantage of, and therefore, I make sure it does not happen. His grouchiness was the exact inverse of my furry-faced grin as a I shook the fellow's hand and took the keys of the new vehicle for the wife.

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To celebrate the good deed I did of the automotive purchase, I coaxed my wife (not a hard thing to do) to take the vehicle on its maiden shopping trip.... with the understanding that we would bring the vehicle over to show her father.... and that I would be dropped off with him for a few hours while she and her mother shopped to their heart's content. Before you wonder how this was a celebration, my elderly father-in-law and I hunkered down before the television (it was a cooler day... low 50s... so we did not feel like being outside), discussed politics, drank several seven-and-sevens until we were feeling quite jolly, and smoked our pipes until there was a comforting blue-grey haze about 5 feet from the floor in the television room. Our raucous afternoon continued when both of us snoozed a boozy snooze on our respective Lazy-Boy recliners until the wives (my wife and my mother-in-law) rolled back in from their shopping spree. I traipsed out to the new van and let my wife drive us home.

A splendid Friday was had by all.... except the scheister salesperson!

PipeTobacco