Staging

We are moving...down the street! For the remainder of our time in Toledo, we will be house sitting for some friends who are moving to Columbus for school. It's a beautiful home and I'd like to feel like we are helping them out, but I struggle with changes and I struggle with lifting things I don't want to. We still have quite a bit left to do, but we've been gradually packing up the house in prep for a big move coming next weekend. For those of you who are curious how the cats are helping:

She who must not be named

Phyllis....
just to update those who haven't heard my rant, I'm carless again, in a sense. See, I have Phyllis, but she's illegal to drive. I truly wish it was as exotic as it sounded. A week and a half ago, I drove downtown to the DMV to get the car registered. While waiting for Nate in the parking lot, some chic threw the door of her Cadillac open and hit Phyllis. I wanted it to be my turn to hit...something? I got out of the car, checked it out and fortunately there is no damage. It was also really nice to hear no words of apology from the culprit. Anyway...

So we first found out that Phyllis is a salvage car. Ask me if I care 3 weeks ago...no. Ask me if I care today, yes! Apparently, in Ohio, a salvage car is kind of the unwanted stepchild (I'd say red haired stepchild, but I happen to really like red hair). With a salvage car, one needs to first purchase a salvage title for the state we live in (car was originally from Wisconsin), then one must purchase an "inspection packet". In this case a "packet"=a receipt that says I've paid $50 for a highway patrolman to check out my car....in a month. I called and the soonest appointment available was September 16. Huzzah! So on top of all that, I'd been driving this car illegally for 2 weeks with no idea...the one time I'm totally risky, I don't even realize it; shameful.

I've been without a car for an additional 2 weeks, and I'm getting more walks in, and (hopefully) getting a bit more patient with waiting for rides. After a bit of time, I've come to terms with my resting car in the garage. I haven't come to terms with my feelings toward the DMV, but luckily I've got plenty of time to do so.

On the bright side of all of this, we took Phyllis in for a physical and she only needed a bolt and a back tail light replaced. I need to find more bright sides to this...I'll let you know when I think of them.

Introducing Phyllis

I'm happy about my new car. I am. I'm happy that, for the most part, my interaction with State Farm is now at a normal level. Hopefully, I'll never have to tell another claims adjuster that I want to file my claims through the other person's insurance. I won't have to remind them that the accident wasn't my fault ever again. Right?

A week and a half ago, we found a car that I liked and was in our price range. We bought it from a guy from Ann Arbor who seemed honest enough and very emphatic about political awareness. Since Nate and I are almost apolitical, our conversations were short...

So, without further ado, I introduce my 2001 Toyota Corolla, Phyllis!

She's a good car, and it's exciting to have my own car again. However, I don't trust her yet. I knew Carol's history, what I'd had fixed, what noises she made and approximately how much it would cost to get those noises fixed. With Phyllis, I don't know...there are noises, some are harmless enough, but honestly, I'm not really sure how harmless they are. According to my dream last night, the repairs (my car died on an imaginary road trip) would be anywhere from 1500.00 to 2000.00. I can't quite get those numbers out of my head, so I still feel nervous. I really shouldn't pay attention to my dreams though; if I did that, there's a 10 story high semi truck (made of bricks/cement) driving around downtown Chicago. I saw it!

I'm sure I'll get over my fears of a new car soon; welcome to the family, Phyllis!