Well, dear readers, the major miracle cat is out of the bag. Yes, you heard it here, dear readers, the major miracle cat is out of the bag and the news is that I no longer have to deal with an ailing and probably beyond repair eleven-year-old Infiniti. I no longer have to have a battery charger with me. I no longer have to start the car twenty minutes before leaving or have to worry whether it locks properly so it doesn’t drain the battery. And why is that? Well, I’ll tell you why. It is because I, BK, am the owner of a pre-owned motor car that is now BK-owned. And what that car turned out to be, well, that’s the tale, isn’t it? As you know, I was at the end of my rope with the motor car. And so, about two weeks ago I began the looking for a pre-owned car adventure, limiting myself, of course, to the Infiniti Q50, the model that replaced my G37. What I found out was that pre-owned sales are outrageous. Why? Because human nature, that’s why. The chip for smart cars’ new models are hung up and not being delivered – they’re finally starting to get to the manufacturers now. But because of that, suddenly everyone, having the patience of a gnat, couldn’t wait for the chips to arrive and they began buying up pre-owned motor cars and the prices rose and rose, almost by 10K from a year ago when I was nosing around. And so every Q50 was at least 5K more than I could spend and when you add tax and license and stuff it becomes 8K more than I could spend. The only Q50s that were even in the ballpark were from 2012 and had large mileage, which, on an Infiniti, is not a good thing.
And so, I began thinking outside the Infiniti box, which turned out to be a smart move. Now, history: I’ve always dreamed of having a Mercedes Benz motor car, as far back as fifty years ago, when I was desirous of that sporty Mercedes two-seater with the hard top that was removable. But they were hugely expensive – 10K. Now they’re about 80K or more. Mercedes are still hugely expensive, even the least expensive models in the “C” class. But I lucked out almost instantly and found a 2015 C 250 that was in the perfect price range even with tax and license. It was a color I liked, in primo condition, and the only downside was the mileage, which was large. But I did research and found that the high mileage wasn’t really an issue if the car had been taken care of, and according to the Carfax on it, it had been. The research showed clearly that a well-cared for Mercedes could easily go to 250,000 miles and indeed there were some for sale with that much mileage. I immediately e-mailed the dealer who had it, a small company dealing in mostly pre-owned luxury cars. They got back to me instantly and asked if I could come see the car and I said I’d be there in thirty minutes, which I was. My salesperson, Trina, was the best. She showed me the car, I took it for a test drive, we talked about the mileage, she showed my other cars they had, too. There was no pressure at all. She even encouraged me not to make an instant decision but to go home and think on it.
Which is what I did. Before making a decision, I went and looked at a 2020 Nissan Altima, but reading up on it I knew it wasn’t the car for me. So, I pondered and decided to get it, called Trina, and then went back on Saturday to do the paperwork and put a little down to hold it while a transfer was made to the bank account. It was easy and effortless. And so, yesterday, first thing in the morning, I went to the bank, got a cashier’s check, and drove to the dealer. I gave them the check and they gave me the new motor car. They showed me the basics about how this and that worked, but I knew I’d need some tutorials on stuff, which I did. As you might imagine, you have to readjust your mindset because everything in the Mercedes is different than the Infiniti, so I’ll be on a learning curve for a while. Thankfully, I’ve already figured out a few things thanks to YouTube videos. So, today I’ll be trying out a few of the things I watched. I still have to go back because they had to order a light that had gone out and also the navigation module as they hadn’t realized that it was missing. They’ll both be in within a week. The car drives well – very different in feel from the old motor car – that one had a V6 and this one has a V4. But it drives very well. Naturally, some idiot driver made an illegal left turn right in front of me and if I wasn’t as quick as I am that would not have been pretty. Nothing like entitled idiot drivers. Here are some actual photographs of the new motor car.
That’s how I spent most of the day, and then I joined Robert Yacko for an early dinner at four at Vitello’s – I had fish and chips, new to the menu, and it was very good. We had nice conversation, then we walked back to the new motor car and he loved it and now wants one. I came home and for the first time ever, put the motor car in the garage – yes, that’s why I cleaned it all out, and the car fits in there perfectly.
Then I sat on my couch like so much fish and watched another documentary, entitled American Murder. Very well done and very compelling. Then I did a few things, had some telephonic conversations, and then I began a four-part documentary entitled Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich – really shocking, especially how law enforcement, especially the FBI, refused to do anything. I watched two of the four episodes and may watch one more before going to bed. And that was my day and evening.
Today, I’ll be up when I’m up, and then the first thing I’m doing is trying to program the garage door buttons in the motor car, trying out unlocking and locking the doors by touching the handle (I’ve been using the fob so far, but watched a video on all this stuff), and I also want to try the fob trick of actually starting the car without even putting the fob in the ignition. I also have to figure out how to get the iPod to work. I’ve got the air conditioning to where I like it and the seat is programmed the way I like it, and I set the time and date properly. And in another video, I learned how to use voice commands, so I’ll give that a whirl, too. Slow steps, but fun. I’ll hopefully pick up some packages, I’ll eat something fun, and then I’ll watch, listen, and relax.
The rest of the week is more of that, another Zoom with David Wechter, another Zoom production meeting, and then gearing up for our first rehearsal next week.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, be up when I’m up, I’ll try out the various things I learned on the video, hopefully pick up packages, eat, do stuff, and then watch, listen, and relax. Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Ask BK Day, the day in which you get to ask me or any dear reader any old question you like and we get to give any old answer we like. So, let’s have loads of lovely questions and loads of lovely answers and loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, so happy to have a new motor car.