Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Decisions, decisions...

Spouse met with the insurance adjuster on Mon, signed the paperwork, and got the check for the loss of our Honda CRV.

Yesterday we returned the rental car, a Dodge Nitro that we didn't like very much, due to its low door height and cramped foot wells. So starting today we are down to 1 car (not counting Big Ella), which Spouse drove to work. Since I work from home I don't really need a car during the day, everyday. If I do need to go somewhere, I can fire up Big Ella.

Our 1st reaction to knowing we had to surrender the rental yesterday was to start looking for a replacement for our '04 Honda CRV. I emailed our friend Bryan who has a used car dealership and told him we'd like to replace our CRV with the same thing, since it was practically perfect for us. He didn't have any on his lot but said he'd look for one for us.

However, we did look online at small/medium size SUVs like the CRV to see if we might want to consider something else, in case Bryan is unable to find what we want/had. We found a few that might be decent substitutes, but they don't come cheap. We're trying to spend only the amount the insurance company gave us so we won't have a car payment, but everything in our budget has too many miles. Sigh.

So it appears we'll have to compromise in some way. Maybe a year or 2 older; maybe higher mileage than we had; maybe a lower quality/lower cost SUV that fits our budget; maybe we 'bite the bullet' and get what we want but have a car payment for a year.

In the spirit of yesterday's Simplicity post, we are not worried about rushing out to replace the car immediately. We can live with just 1 daily driver for a while; maybe a few weeks, until we make a decision. But we will definitely get another SUV.

You see, our current car is a 2-seater (roadster). That means there's literally no place for Jordan on our weekend trips back to VA. We will board her this weekend when we go, but that is not a viable long-term solution. Plus with all the weekend company we have, we absolutely need a 4-door vehicle. One with a cargo area for Jordan and the occasional big box purchase is perfect for us.

So that's where we are right now: giving ourselves time to make the right decision.
Crush du Jour: Ted Dibiasi Jr.

10 comments:

Sam said...

If you can only have one car, that one is pretty darn nice.

Stephen said...

maybe you can get by with the 1 car + Big Ella...?

cb said...

Your crush looks an awful lot like John Cena.

And I vote for getting a Subaru!

John Going Gently said...

our car was previously owned by a guy in a wheelchair!!!

RAD said...

wanted to pop in and say happy pattys! Hope all is well with you boys! XX

Romance said...

Wanted to drop by and say Hi to you and Spouse. I love my Subaru-Lesbian-Mom car - its that wagon-ey mini SUV - I bought it through Subaru Leasing- totally great experience. Great dog car.

Unknown said...

whoa, lotsa cars!!!

but the yummiest guy is in town.. whoa...

Paul Benjamin said...

First of all, John Cena? YES SIR!

Second, that is a beautiful car. I think you'll be just fine with any car you are able to choose.

Anonymous said...

FYI... that crush is John Cena not Ted whoever....

Steve said...

FALSE PICTURE POSTING !!! THAT'S JOHN CENA NOT TED DIBIASI... You should check these things better