Odds and Ends

I know its time to write a post, and I’ve been doing little things, but nothing worth an entire post. So I’ll tell you about all the little things…

I bought a car. Its new to me, but not new. I tried to buy a new car, I really did. I took each of the boys with me and test drove new cars. I brought my husband back to drive a model I really liked. I expected that the car buying process would go about the same way that it always had, but the last time I bought a car was 2020, when Covid was crashing down around our heads. It was actually the first thing we did once businesses started opening up again. The rental car companies had just dumped millions of cars on the used car market and so the prices were lower than we were expecting. We got a really good deal on our slightly used Subaru. I kept that car for nearly 4 years. I did a lot of school drop offs in it, and lots of family trips. It had a lot of miles on it and and a few dings. Things were starting to go wrong, and I just don’t need a big car anymore. No one rides with me- every person in our house has access to a vehicle and a driver’s license. We also have 3 trucks. If I need to haul furniture or a Christmas tree, I’m covered. I wanted a more fun, less “mom” car.

I like Japanese cars, I find them reliable and well made, and I test drove all the usual suspects. I liked the way the Toyotas looked, but they were kind of boring to drive. I think the new Hondas are ugly. After that rather frustrating morning, my oldest son (the car enthusiast) recommended that we go to the Acura dealership. I really liked the Acura Integra, and so did he. My husband liked it too. They just wanted too much money for it, and refused to come down on the price. I had a suspicion that might happen at the Toyota dealership when there was a “package” added onto the price of every car. The package had nothing I wanted in it and cost $7000. Dealers got very used to the car shortage and not having to negotiate much on the price of a car. But I didn’t need a car, I only wanted one, and I wasn’t going to pay top dollar for something I didn’t need.

The price of used cars is beginning to come down, and expected to decline even further later this year. I am generally happy to buy a nearly new car with low mileage on it, so that’s what I did. I bought an electric blue 2021 Honda Accord with 24,000 miles on it, for a price I was happy with. (I saved $13,000 over the price of the Acura I passed on) And like every Honda I’ve ever had (this one is number 3) its fun to drive! One of my friends is very amused by the bright blue color- she says it nearly glows. Its really easy to spot in the grocery store parking lot though! Today we sold the Outback- the dealership offered me just $7,500 for it, but we were able to sell it ourselves for $13,500.

We also accidentally sold two other pieces of property. Someone called asked if they could buy a piece of property we own at the river. We hadn’t advertised it as being for sale, but we had discussed selling it. It had a pier on it and we’d used it before we bought our cabin, which is just a few houses down. The cabin has a pier though, and since it also has a bathroom and a refrigerator, we stopped using the other one.

We also got a call about a piece of property my husband inherited. It was in the town where he grew up, and we don’t go there much anymore since his parents have passed away. He saved it to see if his nephews might want to buy it, but they didn’t. The young man called several times and my husband threw out a price. I think he’ll call back and buy it. We’ll use some of the proceeds to do some repairs on our river cabin, but I need to start thinking about where to invest some…

I modified my new year’s goals a bit- I do want to be healthy, but also happy. Since I’ve retired I’ve discovered that I have a tendency to sit in my house, but that I feel better if I socialize a bit and go outside. The Camino reinforced that I am happier with social interaction. So I’ve made it a point to have some social time every day. This month I also vowed to have lunch with all of the people I’ve been saying I was going to have lunch with and we never seem to get around to it. I called my son’s best friend’s mom. They’ve been friends since they were about 3 (they’re 16 now) and we used to catch up as we dropped kids off at each others houses pretty regularly. They drive themselves now, so we don’t see each other as much. We had a good time comparing teenager notes.

I also had lunch with a former neighbor who moved away. We bump into each other in the grocery store now and again. It was a nice lunch, but we really don’t have very much in common. Next up is lunch with a former client that has since moved- we haven’t had lunch in a while and she wants to hear about my trip. Also this month is lunch with a high school friend and a co-worker who still works where I used to. I’ve also started having coffee with different people. One thing that all of the blue zones have in common is close knit communities with a lot of social interactions. So I’m having fun AND its good for my health- win, win!

Speaking of social interactions, I’ve been volunteering at a facility that does physical therapy on handicapped children with horses for several years. I was originally recruited by a friend who has since died of breast cancer. I really thought the barn would fail without her, but it has been hanging in there. One of the reasons I have stayed is because of the wonderful group of women who volunteer there- and also the hours of walking and time with the horses. Last week two of the women announced they were leaving. I was planning on taking a break for the summer, but perhaps it is time for me to find another volunteer opportunity. We’ll see who comes in to replace my friends.

I am actually tracking my expenses again. The first month back doing this paid for itself with the first session. I discovered that I hadn’t cancelled my older son’s health club membership after he went back to college. Of course the cost of college itself is FAR from free. He’s glad to be back though, and seems to be much more focused on his studies.

Our new year came with new insurance. Its much cheaper per month than our old insurance, but of course some of our medication costs went up. I expect that more things will be covered though. The shingles vaccine, which was not covered under my old insurance (and $700 out of pocket) is free on this plan. I need to make a few appointments soon, because healthy is important!

I just had my birthday. 52 sounds awfully old, but I feel great, and I’m working hard to stay that way. I like to do something fun for my birthday, and this year I talked my husband into taking me on a river cruise that is also a murder mystery dinner. The audience gets to participate in the mystery, and everyone had to guess who the murderer was. I guessed the murderer correctly! I’m also working on vacation plans this year, and looking forward to two concerts we have coming up. Its been a good start to the year!