It Was a Good Run

I sold my car yesterday.

I bought that car when My Youngest was eight days old - June 19, 1998. I sold it thirteen years later - June 20, 2011.

My car had just over 110 km on it when I bought it. It had just reached the 239 km mark when I sold it. We had some challenging times around the 175 km mark ... but other than that? That car was very, very good to me.

It got me everywhere I needed to go. When it felt the need to break down, it allowed me to hobble home ... or to the garage ... or to the destination city we were headed towards. The one and only time it let me down is when the battery gave out on me in a McDonald's parking lot. Anyone who knows me, would understand the significance of that. If I was to be stranded on a desert island ... I would be fine as long as those golden arches were within sight.

It is the only car that My Youngest has ever known. We had toyed with the idea of keeping it until he got his drivers license. But that is still three years away. Instead, our neighbor's son (who just got his license) bought our car. Our car now resides right across the street. My Youngest wondered if perhaps our neighbor would still have that car when he was ready to drive.

As I emptied out the car and readied it to put up for sale, I wondered why am I selling this?? It is in good shape, I trust it to get me where ever I need (or want) to go and I like it. I really like it.

But the mileage is creeping up there and one day I would have needed to let it go. I thought it was a better choice to start planning for the inevitable, rather than find myself stranded somewhere other than a McDonald's parking lot.

I wasn't even looking for a car. The series of events this past week has been nothing short of a miracle. My new car found me. My car found its way to a happy new owner.

I provided full disclosure of all of my car's idiosyncrasies, every single receipt of work completed since I bought it and a recently filled tank of gas. What goes around, comes around. I was given the same consideration (and then some) with my new car.

It doesn't hurt to buy a car from an uncle. This particular uncle was very close to my dad. I heard my dad's words in my uncle when he tried to talk me down in price (yes ... you read this right. I had to bend my uncle's arm to take a little more than he was asking). My uncle checked this car over with a fine tooth comb. He fixed what needed to be fixed and just kept on looking. As it would have been with my dad, my uncle was consumed with the concern of something going wrong with this car and wanted me to be absolutely certain of my choice.

There are no guarantees when it comes to a used car. You go into the deal knowing that. Full disclosure is a sales feature that is rather illusive these days. Buyer beware. Sold "as is". What you see is not always what you get.

That is not my motto. It is my goal to treat others the way I would like to be treated. That is exactly what happened with this business deal. No guarantees ... but we both walked into the deal with our eyes wide open. With the added bonus of a relatively full tank of gas (and at today's gas prices ... that is nothing to scoff at either!).

So begins another saga with another new-to-me-car. This car will take me down many new roads. I look forward to yet another good run.