|now candy|

Another tip from the Socialite Deluxxe, helping you boost your self-esteem one frivolous thing at a time.

Socialite Deluxxe Tip on Being Seen #769: Color coordinate your tiny slick cell phone with your ultra-fabulous automobile.

Super Star: Socialite Deluxxe prodigy know they are well on their way when a friend asks what color their car is and, looking down at their mobile, they reply, "Actually, it's _this_ color." This is punctuated best with a confidently winning yet warm smile.

Lame-o: You are a pretentious jackass if you went from dealership to dealership holding your cellphone out to the salesman saying, "Do you have anything that matches this?" and follow with "No, that won't do, too metallic."

Let me just apologize for the past, present, and future. Apologize for grammar/spelling/punctuation errors in the posts.

I hate it when lazy asses can't even take the time to read over their post before posting.

Apparently I've been a lazy ass. Well, more hasty than lazy, but end result is the same.

I've fixed a few posts I caught, but it'll happen again.

So, with that, let me just say that if it doesn't make any sense, then either (a) I'm posting like a lazy ass, or (b) I'm not making sense.

Speaking of live music...

I'll be seeing the Yeah Yeah Yeahs tomorrow down in DC!!! Me and hopefully as many friends as possible.

I'm new to this band, but what I've heard so far is utterly satisfying in that rock-you-ass-off-and-beg-for-more-Where-the-hell-did-all-these-bruises-come-from way.

Yeah. They rock.

Connected to me going to DC, in ways not yet fully played out but I'm sure of it, is the following:

There is a lunar eclipse this weekend and it has been the most bizarre two weeks for me and most of my closest friends. A few points:

1) My sweetie-pie out in Colorado was going to see if he could come out last weekend. Usually this would have been the greatest news short of me figuring out what the hell my life is about. But work was going to tie up at least my entire Sunday (and the first half of my Friday night), so all I would have been able to see him for was Saturday, and that would have sucked almost as bad as not seeing him. Our "schedules" are tough because, not only are we two time zones apart, he's trying like hell to wrap up grad work.

2) I bought a CAR!!!

3) _This_ week, unforeseeably, was almost a "light" work week, and as of tonight, I was able to get enough done to go to DC this weekend. ("Light" in the sense that I was able to leave at 6:30 pm Tuesday and Thursday and can still go out and play this weekend.)

4) Truss got news, in the absolutely most convoluted way that I won't even try to explain, directly from his dear friend in England that she was going to have to fly home to PGH the next day (two weeks earlier than she had planed) because her dad passed away a few hours prior.

5) Leatha Weapon, who has always held a standing invitation for me to stay with when visiting DC has had the most ridiculous re-roofing situation imaginable the past few days. House is without a roof. And, as of this afternoon, might be _moving_ tomorrow. (No worries about a place to stay in DC, the options abound. Poor Leatha, however, will have quite a Saturday and Sunday ahead.)

6) AP has decided to stay in The Big Boring Square State for another year, partly based on career choices and partly based on an entire host of very reasonable reasons. She is also miserable from a vertebrae disk situation and will have to take drastic measures to remedy it.

The list goes on. The things that makes all of this post-worthy is this. Almost every bizarre and interconnected thing that happened in the past two weeks is laid out. The woman who runs that site is shit hot for November. And it's only the 7th.

And for the record, no I don't plan my life around astrological forecasts. However, sometimes, things align in undeniable ways.

So, with that, this weekend is entirely unpredictable. Truss is riding down with me (it was he who pointed out the Yeah Yeah Yeahs were coming to DC) and the fabulous new car is rearing to go.

All I ask is that no one gets hurt. Bruises are OK.

Toll House break & bake cookies are the greatest thing since boxed soy milk. And I'm a big fan of boxed soy milk.

Among many favorite things about the break & bake cookies, is the little tiny warning just above the baking instructions:

Bake cookie dough before consuming.

And every time I see it I reply: My ass!

Yes, clearly, cookie dough should be baked before consumed so that you won't have to go to the hospital when you end up dehydrated and near death from the salmonella brought on by the egg products contained within.

But it is just _sooo_ good.

And convenient. No way in hell would I mix up a tasty batch of scratch cookie dough to just eat it and not actually make cookies with. Yeah, eat some, spoon some onto the pan, eat some, spoon some, &etc. But you can bet your pants I'm baking some effing cookies after all that work.

But the break & bake– just open the fridge, open it up, break off a few squares, and you are ready to go.

And, it makes those rare times when I actually break a few squares onto the little toaster oven pan oh so worth it. I mean, really, hot baked cookies beat raw ones. But when put in the proper light, they can be enjoyed as two entirely unrelated delicacies.

Of course, another reason I love them is I can't help but think of the person at Toll House that must have tried like hell tried to get "Bake before consuming" printed on there.

Oh how I can't wait to pick up The Shins' newest, Chutes Too Narrow.

OK. The author of the above review apparently loves to see himself type, it goes on and on waxing poetic about how James Mercer (and the rest of the band) kicks the living shit out of all the other bands who trip over themselves trying to live up to their fist flooring release.

No matter. I saw James Mercer (Shin Numero Uno himself) live last year at Iota in Northern VA. This was all thanks to Andi. The same person who sent me a fresh burn of their "Oh Inverted World" drafted a fabulous contract that, among other things, promised to terminate our long standing friendship if I did not go.

She lives in Iowa.

Fucking Iowa, as we affectionally call it.

And no good bands stop in Iowa.

However, many many good bands stop in/around DC. Since Andi couldn't see him, somebody damn better should, and that somebody was me.

And it was no sacrifice to go. A few months ago I poked around in my iTunes to see which songs/albums I had played the most over the past year. The Shins won. Hands down. I think I played them on straight repeat for, oh, two months. At least.

So, I went to the show. And I was spellbound. Oh, James Mercer!!!

Sub Pop sent a few of their finest new comers out on a tiny little acoustic tour. And they sent their star-child James Mercer with them (them being the sublime Sam Beam of Iron and Wine, the delicate and beautiful Rosie Thomas, and some guy who I can't remember but he was kind of whiney anyway so he doesn't matter).

James Mercer.

He can melt butter in the snow with his sweetie-pie passion.

Here he was, riding high on the wave of the Shin's hit hit hit first album, and all he could do was heap praise on Sam Beam for his wicked tight guitar skills. And I loved him even more. It was true, Sam Beam could pick the pants off most indi-label guitarists. And it looked like James Mercer was trying to learn all he could from Sam on this tiny short little tour.

OK. Clearly I think James Mercer can do no wrong. And The Shins can do nothing but right.

Can't wait to hit up Paul's CDs tomorrow.

What's better than having all your laundry done?

Clean sheets!

Why can't laundry just do itself?

Thankfully, it's colder outside today. Don't get me wrong, I'll take 70 fall days any day.

Except when I'm out of clean 70 degree shirts. Sweaters. The key re-wearable clothing is sweaters.

Love the sweaters.

Number of days until I stop going on and on about the car: unknown.

Number of weeks left in PGH: approximately 13.5.

Amount that this surprises the hell out of me: a lot.

Amount that I like PGH: a lot.

Amount that I miss friends in DC: a lot.

Amount that I appreciate a PGH friend: a lot.

Amount that I've been thinking: a lot.

Amount of sleep I am about to get: four hours.

Amount that I want to brush my teeth before going to bed: not much.

Amount hungry I am right now: a lot.

Amount lazy I am and just want to go to bed, despite hunger: greater than a lot.

I'm not just saying this out of lust.

I'm a logical person. Willing to give sensical things a try. Most of the time. And I'm sure I will be behind the driver's seat of many cars.

And I just know that I will probably never own anything but VWs.

Yes, I had an Acura for a few years. And that was the sensical thing to do. It was _free_ and the old GTI was in need of help. But I know what it is to drive a Volkswagen. No matter how old or how new, it's right.

Tonight my brother shared this with me:

"There is just something about driving a VW. No other car in the world will give you the same feeling as you will get from a VW."

My brother is amazing. And right.

On a sobering note, a good friend here in PGH received a phone call from a very upset friend yesterday. Her father died. Unexpectedly.

He'll be helping her out over the next few weeks.

Take a moment to tell your friends and your family thanks and that you love them.

"I own a new Volkswagen. I own a new Volks--Wa-gen.

And I really like it. And I really liiiike it."

Everybody sing along now:

"I own a new Volkswagen. I own a new Volks--Wa-gen.

And I really like it. And I really liiiike it.

I own a new Volkswagen. I own a new Volks--Wa-gen.

And I really like it. And I really liiiike it."

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So, check this out.

I see *my* car for the first time last night. Yes: it's beige. A very fresh, hip, and stylish beige. Don't squish your nose–this is not your grandmother's sweater beige. Think of it as a soft and beautiful powdery gold.

mmm... Powdery gold...

It's VW's ploy to get people to drive gold cards. "Beige" would not have come to mind if someone asked "What color is it?" except for that's the color VW calls it. Hipsters don't drive gold cars. They don't drive beige either, but beige gold is HOT. It's the new silver.

So, there's my _beige_ car. Looks great. But of course it does, it's a freaking new VW. Me: "Holy crap! It has four doors!"

Salesman: "What? You never said three doors!"

Me: "Four doors is even better. Now I know why you folks wouldn't come down in price!"

I'm beaming as we walk inside to go over all the paperwork. I'm smiling because (a) I got a four door for less than the invoice of a two door, (b) I got four doors, (c) this is completely typical. Typical in the sense that despite my meticulousness, I overlooked something. (Not unlike when we flew to DC to look at apartments and I was so on it that I had our first ten hours after landing (at 8:00 am) fully planned with open house appointments and public transit schedules. I had left my checkbook in Colorado.)

Ford had wanted to put me in four doors so bad that I was ready to fucking make a flash card to hold up every time he said "Would you be interested in a four door?" It would have read: "No, you jackass." It would have been handy for some of their other questions as well.

Thinking back, you would think I would have said "two door" during the conversation with the VW salesman. However, it is entirely possible I didn't. Sure, he put me in the more expensive car without lengthy discussion about my door preference and the merits of my preference, so shame on him. However, I'm fucking stoked. I have _four_ doors. It's not something I really care about–I don't ride in the back of my own car much. However, presented with a four door that I got for the price of a two door, I'll take it with glee.

Sure, I could have saved a little money with the two door, but I don't think more than $500, $1000 max. To hell with it.

This also explains the invoice price he told me. Of course. It's the exact invoice price of a four door. (No, I wasn't clever enough to look up the price of a four door. I had three door in my mind.) He wasn't making shit up after all.

AND, I win again. They had calculated the price with 7% sales tax and PA tags. Well, I'm getting it registered in FL, with 6% sales tax. Together, this took off about $200. In the end, my monthly payments are $271.72. I rock.

Another thing that rocks, other than me, is the SOUND SYSTEM. Oh, this makes me giddy. I can (a) listen to NPR, (b) listen to my sweet-ass cds, and (b) play my iPod. Sure, most people can do things things in their cars. But I have not been able to, for at least five years. And now I can ROCK OUT in the car, and it is good.

OK. I need to wrap this up and get in the shower and get to work. And I'm going to _drive_ that entire 0.75 mile commute in pure joy.

Let me share a little poem submitted by none other but El Padre himself:
________
Well, our gal did the deal
on a new set of wheels.
Jus' put the sign on the bottom line
and drive off feel'n real fine.
Congrats be the word at this time.
________

Alright. All I have to do is go down tomorrow, look things over, and sigh the paper work. I'll leave out a few details, but here's the end deal:

final selling price = $14,700.00

monthly payment multiplied by term of loan = $16,473.00

The Kelly's Blue Book and Edmunds list slightly different numbers from each other:

invoice: $14,845 and $15,134
retail: $15,870 and $16,170
blue Book: $14,993 and $15,783

My VW salesman says invoice is $15,300 and the sticker is $16,150.

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Of course, I've gone over and over in my head just how the conversation went at VW on Saturday. I've also run just about every scenario trying to think if I could have done better. I'm pretty sure this was the heart of the negotiation (the in-between chit-chat is left out):

Saturday when I walked into the VW dealer, I said: "Well, I'm looking to get into a Golf for $300 or less a month, no lease, but it can be used." I also told him the deal I had so far on a Focus. This was followed by me admitting you can't really compare the two, the VW comes with everything the Focus left off, but the Focus sure is inexpensive and I'll buy one if I can't get a good deal at VW.

Once we started talking about a new car and I had a feel for what the dealer was asking (about $16,000) I ran some numbers through the calculator: "What's tax, tag, and title for this car?" He tells me. "I want you to eat that."

Salesman: "You want us to pay for the tax, tag, and title? OK. We can probably do that."

Me: "What's the best APR?"

Salesman: "For 60 months, 2.9%."

Me: "VW's site says 1.9% for '03 Golfs."

Salesman: "I'll check on that." (Turns out the 1.9% was only for 36 mo term, and I was able to verify that at either Kelly's or Edmunds.)

Me: "I don't care how you work the numbers, but I want to be in this car for $250 month."

Salesman: "We can't do that, not for a 60 month loan."

Me: "See what you _can_ do."

Salesman comes back from from the mysterious manager area:"$275 a month."

I run this through. $275 X 60 = $16,500. Not bad. I'd like to do better.

I run the total cost for $260 a month. It's $900 difference.

Me: "$260 a month."

Salesman: "I don't think we can do that. Let me go talk to him." ("Him" being the manager.)

Salesman: "No. We can do $275 if you agree today."

This "agree today" bullshit bristled me, and I told him, but let it slide. The day wasn't over.

And, I believe I told most of the rest is down in Saturday's post.

It was fun calling him today. When I told him I was talking to the other dealer he went and got my e-mail and proceeded to flip out. We were talking all over each other, pretty loud (but I wasn't angry).

He says: "This isn't right! You said you were alright with the $275 when you left Saturday. I thought we had a deal!"

Me: "Yep. I _was_ alright with it. And like you said, time kills deals. I ran more numbers when I got home and I want a better deal. I haven't signed _anything_ yet."

He: "But I'm sending someone to get the car this morning! This isn't right, we had a deal!"

Me: "And you just tell the people getting the car to wait for an hour. This is my money and I don't really care that I was OK with it Saturday. This is Monday. Get me a better deal."

He: "I'm telling you, we can't. This is it, our best price. This is it, I'm telling you we can't go under $275 a month!" (He sounded so desperate. He's 22 and it showed here.)

Me: "OK, chill. Relax. I'll call you back in an hour, have the beakdown of the numbers for me and I want to see where you took my trade-in. I'll call you after the other dealer tells me what he's got." (The tone wasn't bitchy here at all, more like a "stop having a crisis" tone.)

&etc.

I'm going down there tomorrow evening:)

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So, I feel good. Who knows what profit the dealer is making, but I'd like to think he's made more off of other people. He absolutely would not budge any more on the final price, and another dealer I talked to actually said he couldn't do much better since he also doesn't have an '03 on the lot. The other dealer did give me a very competitive deal on an '04, but after looking things over, I'm sticking with '03. I don't think the trade-in value between the two will make up for the price difference now.



And, the excellent thing: I'LL BE DRIVING AROUND IN MY NEW VOLKSWAGEN IN LESS THAN 24 HOURS!!!

Yeah. I'm stoked.

Obsessing about soon–to–be–had new car...

Here are two fortunes from cookies with last night's Chinese cary out:

(1)
Front:
Sometimes a stranger can bring great meaning to your life.

Back:
(nothing)

(2)
Front:
There is a prospect of a thrilling time ahead of you.

Back:
Learn Chinese: Airplane. Fei-ji.

Just how connected is the front and back of the fortune?

I _love_ fortune cookies.

I take it back. The Ford salesman did not have the personality of a sock.

Worse.

A cheap plastic spoon.

A car is just a car.

But a Volkswagen is _love_.

I went through all the practical arguments.

I test drove the:
Honda Civic Si
Ford Focus ZX3
Volkswagen Golf GL

Knowing:
I can't afford the Civic Si (but wanted something to comare to)
The Focus is cheap
I always have and always will love Volkswagens

I came away with:
The Civic Si drives _great_
The Focus is still a Ford
I will buy a VW Golf

What a day.

The Honda Dealership:
The old one-and-a-half-armed man at the Honda dealership was awesome. I started with the question: can I get into this car, new or used, for $13k. "No." Can I drive it anyway? "Sure thing." And we drove, and it was great. And I left.

The Ford Dealership:
I must have gotten the salesman (and manager) that hates his job. He had the personality of a sock. A very boring sock.

OK. Not a problem. They didn't have the car I wanted on the lot. No big deal, we drove the one five door manual instead. I have to say, the Focus handles great. Clearly not like the Si, but hey, it's a heck of a lot cheaper.

We started dealing. He pulls some numbers and I say "bullshit" as I pull out my spread sheet and calculator. He literally said "Wow." It was a simple Excel sheet with a mere five lines comparing three cars (2003s and 2004s), on which I had listed all the things I care about, including: MSRP, invoice, gas mileage, incentives, rear legroom, cargo room, torque, horsepower, and warranties. This was in part thanks to Andi: slay them with your homework. Thanks Andi.

He pulled some more numbers that were suddenly more reasonable. I look at it and say "Try again." While he's away, I'm busy determining just what I want to pay per month. I already knew my budget, but now I was working with a new goal: pay as little as fucking possible per month over four years. He came back, saw all the numbers I had written down, and asked "So, what do you have?" Oh no, fucker. "You're the salesman, what do _you_ have." He had $330/mo for four years. I had $225/mo for four years, for the 2003 that they didn't have on the lot. It's well under what I had budgeted and I wanted to see how much he wanted to sell me this car.

"I don't think we can do that." "I don't care how you work the incentives, but come back with the best you can do." Don't read into the tone here, I wasn't a bitch. I just knew they could do better. Annoyingly, he kept pushing me towards a five year loan. No_fucking_way for this car. It would be quite depreciated after four, I was not going for five. Not for the Focus.

I was still opting for the Focus. I figured I could get him/them to come down, it handles well, and is cheap.

By the time I left, we were looking at $317/mo for the '04 and $294/mo for the '03. "Alright. Well, I'm heading over to Volkswagen. Call my cell and let me know what you can come up with, I'm not paying $14k total cost for this car. I'd like to have a Focus because it's cheap. This isn't cheap." The manager came down and said they'd do what they could but they couldn't do much. Whatever.

He called me in 15 minutes. Suddenly the '03 was $12,428 total cost. I asked him to work on the '04.

The VW Dealership:
Now it's 3:30 and all the dealerships close at 5:00. I find the same guy I had just called on the phone who gave me directions and I had tasked with finding me a used Golf.

He was 22 years old and had most of the charisma the Ford guy lacked. But he wasn't cheesy, so time flew. We talked about a lot of options (the dealer going to the auction, &etc.) and we finally got down to business: a new 2003 Golf. He said they hadn't gotten the '04s yet. Pretty soon it looked like I might get into a VW for $275/mo over five years.

Checked the new voice mail the Ford man had left a while I was working with the VW man. Things were better, not as cheap as I wanted.

I needed a little time to think. I'm looking at my spreadsheet with the Golf MRSP and Kelly's Blue Book. I wasn't getting a steal. It was a decent deal, but not a steal. I was comfortable with the current numbers, but wasn't sure how firm he was. Me: "It's time to drive."

My. God. This is my car. As soon as I sat down, I knew this was my car. The way the seat adjusts, the way cockpit feels, the way all the little knobs operate, this is it. All the _standard_ features, including AC and a kicker little stereo.

We take off. Me: "OK. Sell me this car. You're the salesman, tell me why I should buy this." He found great amusement in this, I was having fun, and we came back about twenty minutes later having talked about everything from the warrentee details to why he drives an Acura.

Before we had left, word from the manager (via the salesman, of course) was that I could get $275/mo if I committed today. Horseshit. This annoyed me, but the day wasn't over. By the time we had come back, I was OK with $275/mo. It was after 5:00 and the salesman was ready to get out of there. I filled out the credit check application. And left, with a tentative date to come back Tuesday when the car would be there.

Now, I didn't sign _anything_. The credit check was the only thing presented to me, and it was supposed to be signed. If he had presented purchase papers &etc I would have walked. As it was, it was a verbal agreement that I found $275 acceptable. A verbal agreement and a credit check. He was in a hurry and I asked for a Xerox of it. We both left and I came home to see if I could get a better deal (talking on the phone with above mentioned Andi for most the drive, extremely excited). It dawned on me I never signed the credit check. Fantastic!!! This is the best accidental maneuver I've pulled in a while.

Home:
I called my brother (long time VW man) and ran things by him. Three points:

(1) The VW will have better trade-in value in five years than the Focus will at four (which I knew, but hadn't really been centering on).

(2) On January 1st, my "new" 2003 will be one year old. The 2004 will be "new" for an additional twelve months.

(3) Find the dealership with my car on the lot and start the dealership-death-match. Get them to beat each other's deals and you'll get a better deal than you started with. You never know what is the best possible deal you can get, but you can always try to beat a deal that already sounds decent.

I found a bigger dealer a little further out of PGH (but same distance from me), and he has 2004s on the lot. 2004s that I bet I can get for the above mentioned price of the 2003. I'll see. I want them to beat it.

The VW salesman from today will find in his e-mail Monday mornign that he has to do better. Some person at the other dealership will find something in his e-mail box that will make him call me Monday also.

Ah, I can't wait. It'd be nice to be driving the sweet little new ride soon.

["And the 'Longest Post Award' goes to... ]