Power steering

A very full, enjoyable day.

This morning Dad, Laura and I drove to Fawkner of all places to go check out some cars (Laura buying, not me). I essentially was only tagging along to do all the driving. I can now say I’ve been on a freeway – it’s about time.

She got one after we looked at several, a Nissan Pintara (1992) a sedan- must say, she’s got a bit more money than I have to spend. It’s pretty nice for a first car, white 😉 have to say the colour. Dad knows what he’s looking at, having come from a family of mechanics and blue collared dutchies.

Ha! The contrast between salesman no.1 and salesman no.2 was phenomenal. We originally went to check out this pulsar and a corolla. The pulsar was okay, the guy there was well, very out this way (despite being across Melbourne). Bogan could be a term useful to describe him.

The second place, which is what Dad saw while test driving the other car was where the corrolla was meant to be. Instead was this car in it’s place. The guy called up and they got the corolla around, I had one look and thought nup don’t bother. So we ended up driving (Laura got a go this time) around the nissan. The guy was greek and a heck of a lot more professional/friendly, still salesmanish but not horribly pushy.

They had really good coffee 😀

Nah… anyway she signed her life away. Needs roadworthy and few things Dad made them fix up, got a decent price (so says I, who knows absolulute zip about cars), not quite as cost effective as a Corolla, but in way better nick than the one there.

I drive back, we stop for lunch. I crash the car… no not really.

I find my Christmas present sitting on the doorstep 😀 – so I am now offically Sixpence None the Richer obsessed(three oldest CD’s in one lot), I own every singel one. Thats all, no more to get, until Leigh Nash puts out a new CD.

Wait around for Kathy (my aunty) and Jaclyn (Cousin) to show up. Meanwhile, my uncle Roger calls Laura, saying he’s found a potential car. So the call gets handballed to me as Laura has sort of already taken care of all that. Its a Corolla, auto, very good price. I have no time to go check it out, but Dad says he’ll go down and have look.

Please understand that if ever buying a car or if mechanics ever come into my life either my Dad or Uncle/s seem to know rather a lot, seeing as they all are/were mechanics bar Dad who knows more than enough to get by. Still I wouldn’t ever let him get anything without prior approval.

So we go off for our ‘girls shopping trip’. Leave Dad to worry about that.

My aunty Kathy has no kids, she’s almost (or is) the newest member of the B’s family – my uncle’s second wife, mind you that’s been quite a few years now. She drives a converatble something or other, they go travelling rather a lot. She’s the kind of cool aunt you never thought you’d get. Despite the car/travel thing, is pretty wise with sharing what she has and helping out those who need it, the kind of person who loves hanging out with old people, or using her time for others benefit. (This is the not a Christian one, who asks loads of questions etc…)

Last year she took all the girl cousins, so that is me, all my sisters and my cousin Jaclyn on a shopping trip. This means we get a budget from her pocket and we pretty much go shopping. We get to good old Eastland (how I loathe that place) and she’s like okay, go spend up to $60 each or there abouts. Here’s where ‘poor little missonary kids’ and ‘perfectly aussie kids’ eyes fall out of our faces. More than what she said last year.

So I wander with Laura for a while, then she goes into ‘The Tree of Life’ store which stinks of insensene and stuff which I absolutely hate, so I leave her. Roamed around for ages, tried on various things. Couldn’t find anything. I run into Hannah in Myers, nothing, it’s so boring shopping on your own but she loves it so doesn’t let me tag along.

Wander into JB to look at their SD cards (how typically Rebecca). Too much and I figure I shouldn’t be like that and come home with just this bit of plastic to show. I have been trying to find a dark brown knee lengthish skirt fo absolutely ages and could not find one. I think it was half my problem, having such a specific idea.

Anyway, I eventually find this skirt in ValleyGirl, which I quite like and like even more when I try it on. $30. We meet up again at the designated time. I go with Kathy and Laura to buy the various items. Find our way to meet the others (as they needed more time) at Assecorize or whatever that jewelery/bag/shoe shop is called. I end up getting a bag – plain colour satisfyingly useful. The others get various things.

We somehow end up in Glassons, where I had already looked. I see a skirt I missed the first time, brown and knee length (I do the Bah Humbug thing in my mind as I can’t return the bag as it was on sale), another time perhaps.

Come home. Thank Kathy profusely. Should probably write her a card or something.

I ask Dad about the car.

It is a 1985 Corrolla. So older – not so great, but there are I guess a lot of cheap parts around if needed. It’s bronze, but colour is not everything, and Dad’s definition of bronze could mean anything. It’s in very good condition. Needs a few little things done of course (they hoisted it and checked it all out). Good price, what I can actually afford – even after Roadworthy etc. which I didn’t think was possible at the moment. Aircon is stuffed 🙁 but hey – it’s Melbourne, the heating works fine.

Then Dad mentions that it doesn’t have power steering, which is really not that great. So, ‘erm…’ But tomorrow he’s taking me down so I can drive it around/park it and see if I can deal with having none.

I don’t know how keen I am, but apparently for what they’re charging and what it is, it’s a pretty good deal. Talking roughly $1,500 after roadworthy/all else etc…
It shall all have to wait until tomorrow. Mum’s all thingy about, “What if it breaks down its too old blah blah”. Dad thinks it’d be okay. I will have to see.

Who knows, within the week I could own a car.

For now I’ll just sit at home, listen to my new CD’s and blog away in the comfort of my chair pretending I don’t have to think about money or booking my P’s or what power steering will do to my rsi prone wrists.