an epic

now playing: standing still // pre-fall jewel. moment of silence. that's enough. thanks.

Hey guys. Wow. WHAT A DAY!!!! Imagine this: a trip to Toronto, to check out cars. The Gurr(Starsky) and Myself. And dealership options out the wazzoo. And by that I mean 4 within the area we were going to, two that were within a block and a half of each other. and this is where we meet our hero, Starsky. We pull up to Standard Auto at about 10:30. We get out, and we begin to look for the 2 or 3 cars that we wanted to check out. Immediately, we checked a corolla, and then went inside and looked at a jetta (which was hot, but maybe a little overpriced). Anyway, we go back out (keys in hand) to look at this little Mazda protege for 2490 etested and certified, which I decide I don't like (why? We don't know). Anyway, we go in, and decide to at least run the jetta, even though it's higher than we wanted to go. Won't start. Won't idle. Not very promising. They pull it outside, and make a comment about the idle motor, and that it's been sitting for 3 months (promising, we think... they'll need to move it). Anyway, it still won't run, so we say "we'll be back to see it... going to check some other dealers." And, we walk up the street. To a dealership called "International Union". While here, we talk to a guy who I'm sure is named Samir, and he shows us an 89 camry with some horrible rust problems. But, he says he'll give it to us for 2000, etested and certified, and he'll do all the body work. It runs like a charm too. Beautifully. However, being a camry, it wouldn't get the greatest gas mileage (which is a concern, cause it adds up) and, it was a little older, and quite beat up. But, with the work, we thought it'd be a good deal. The Jetta was still in the back of my head, and now we had dealing material: "the guy down the road has a camry for 2 flat". So, we return to our friends at Standard Auto, who have done nothing for the jetta but drop a little more gas into it. However, it seems to be running better, so we go for a test drive. It's pretty shaky, but okay. Starsky and I had decided that we'd probably go 2200 etested, and certified, and so, Starsky starts to go at it with the guy, as we drive. The guy thinks he could sell it quick, if he'd just advertise it right. He drops to 2400, plus etest and certification for like 199.99 So, not really dropping at all. So, Starsky's like (as we get out): naw, we'll go talk to the guy about the camry. At this point, Standard Auto dude decides that there is a car he can drop on: the Protege. Yep, we step out, and he drops the protege a full 490 bucks. I was like... wow... lets check this out again? So, we do. And as we head over, Starsky says: remember, you gotta LOVE it, or it won't be worth it. Obviously, anything I bought was going to be less than perfect, so his point was, if I wasn't going to love it for what it was, i'd never be happy with it. So, we walk over. And yeah, it's a very rad colour. And it's a decent size inside (actually, rather more than high enough for us tall guys, which is good). And the stereo worked, and it only had 210k kms on it. And it was actually in good shape. And boy did it run. As in, the first thought through our heads was: "how do you budget for speeding tickets"? There were a few problems with it (missing door handle in the back, lock that didn't work, a couple of lights out, etc.) But, we brought them up, and he said "yeah, I'll do it all.". And I looked at it, and I saw nothing but promise. This was it. It was destiny, or fate, or... something. So, we said "can you do it by 3?" (at this point, it was just before 1pm) and he said... I think so. So, away I went, to call insurance, and to get money from the bank. (side note: Upon calling insurance, I found out that the last company I decided to call (last ditch) was going to insure me for a LOT less than my next best quote. Yeah, I'm saving 150 bucks a month!!! //end side note) Anyway, we went back, and long and short of it, they didn't have it ready by three, but tomorrow morning, I'm picking me up a protege. My very own car. YAY! I have to say, everything happened so providentially, from the jetta incidents getting us a discount, to the insurance, to even the guy at the bank with whom I withdrew a lot of money. It all went so well, it was unreal. God is good. So, pray for safety for Starsky and I as we go back up to toronto in the morning, and for me as I drive 401 for the first time. What a good day. What a providentially led day. Rock on! Keep it real folks.
photo journal on getting a car to come.