Neo, my new Toyota Matrix

The end of my 39-month lease of "Robin", my old Inferno Red 2006 Jeep Liberty Limited, was coming up on December 3rd. With its low mileage of only 13356 miles, I was considering extending my lease for another month, so I could wait to make a decision of what to get next after the L.A. Auto Show on December 4th-13th.
Today, I decided to just go around the different dealerships to see who still has a good lease program in place. After checking out several, I ended up at Toyota in Santa Monica, CA at the end of the day. With it being the weekend after Thanksgiving, and Bill's great negotiations skills, I got a great deal that was way to good to pass. Went out to buy a loaf of bread, a container of milk, and a stick of butter...and came back home with a brand new Magnetic Gray Metallic car, the 2010 Toyota Matrix S. Presenting my new baby, "Neo" (Keanu's character in the movie, "The Matrix". Even if I've never seen the film trilogy, I felt this was the perfect name...or should I go with Keanu?...lol). Here he is in front of his sister, "Robin".

10K mi. on a 26.5 mo. old car of a 2 yr. old homeworker

I should normally, at the least, be at 10,000 miles at the end of a year on my car.
Today, as I reached my 2 year mark of working from home, my car (which I have had for 2 years, 4 months, and 13 days) has finally reached the 10,000 mile mark on the odometer. Ahhh...some of the perks of working from home: Save on money on gas expenses, mileage, normal wear & tear, and keeping my sanity from avoiding having to deal with the L.A. traffic. Woohoo! I am grateful for this opportunity.

9,999 miles and counting...

10,000 miles!

Out of Whack with Crack

Two Sundays ago, while driving north on the 405 Fwy, an unidentified flying object hit my windshield, right above the windshield wiper on the driver side, leaving a quarter-sized spider-web-like crack. "F+_)(*&^%$#@K!". The next day, a bird dropped a big wad of poop around the same area. Bill on impulse ran the windshield wipers and soapy water dispenser. Right before our eyes, I saw a crack line expanding away from both sides and ended at a dollar bill length. Double F+_)(*&^%$#@K! The change of temperature and water caused this. Had it not expanded beyond the original crack, I would have been able to have it fixed with some sort of resin via some repair service that comes to the house. Now that it has expanded, I have no choice but to replace the whole windshield. So pissed.

Caught Another Bug!

No, I did not start the year by getting sick.

On the first weekend of the new year,

we helped my niece, Czarina,

get a great deal on her second car.

She replaced her 2004 VW Golf GL

with a fully-loaded 2008 VW New Beetle.

This is the 4th Bug we now have had in our family.

Presenting "Bullet", the Platinum Gray Metallic Beetle!

the new kid on the block

with turbo engine, heated leather seats, and 18-inch alloy wheels

parked inside the garage for the first month only

***

Check out the interior details:

comes with a laptop

flat screen TV

mini-bar

reclinable heated leather back seats

***

Yah, right! LOL

From Lady Bug to Lady Liberty

Alas, sadly the time has come to return "Brooke", my Blue Lagoon Metallic 2003 VW New Beetle GLS Turbo, after a three-year-long love affair, and get a brand new car...

I grew up learning how to drive with a "Bug". My parents got me a White 1970 model, a Herbie look-a-like, shortly after I was born. As soon as my high school buddies and I had learned how to drive, they would frequently tease me, "Here comes Sean again, driving "The Egg"!".

Six years ago, when I finally got tired of spending four hours a day taking the bus to/from work in spread-out Los Angeles, I decided to get my first car in the U.S.A..
Wanting to stick with tradition, I got and drove, for the next three years, a fully loaded New Volkswagen Beetle,
"Coby", my Cool Cobalt Blue 2001 VW New Beetle GLX Turbo.

Now, after having three "Pods" in a row, and with the latest models not having the turbo engine anymore, I felt it was time to go with something higher (No, not all Asians like their cars lowered...LOL), has side protection (since I drive to work via a shortcut through the "ghetto" filled with uninsured motorists), and a pop-up back window (so that my dogs could ride with me). I wanted something affordable and easy, small but cute, rugged on the outside but sophisticated in the inside, high maintenance but reliable, has a sexy body in spite of high fuel consumption...Oh darn, I'm talking about myself again! Well, they say, "You are what you drive!"...LOL. I wanted a small SUV that was fully loaded with all the bells & whistles, and high-end exterior/interior add-ons, which came only in the limited edition. Even if I am not from San Francisco, I still like my leather, so my car seats had to be in leather. After several weeks of researching, test driving, pitting dealers against each other...with my surprisingly impressive credit score, my publicist/agent/manager was able to negotiate the best deal, and I finally got my new baby...

Presenting my
2006 Jeep Liberty Limited,

"Robin", my Little Red Riding Hood!...

FrontBack
safe in her new home

out with the old, in with the new

Yup, I broke the VW and the "blue" cycle. I am really not a "red" kind of guy, but I really liked this Inferno Red Crystal Pearl coat. She's gorgeous! I was going to name her "Rosie", since she's pretty like the flower, but she then might be seen as a certain abrasive butch lesbian celebrity. So, I named her "Robin" 'cuz I wanted a name that is androgynous: Colorful like the bird, feminine and strong like a red-lipstick lesbian, but masculine and athletic like the Boy Wonder...LOL.