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I Test Drove a Honda Element Today!

What I've Been Up To

I test drove a Honda Element today!!! After wanting one for probably 2+ years, I finally drove one!

It’s really peppy! You sit nice and tall and high in the drivers seat. It turns really easy and sharp. We took the Alabaster Silver Metallic one out. I really loved the Kiwi Green Metallic one in the show room – it has the new painted panels rather than the black plastic ones.

I don’t figure there is any way I’ll ever afford one, but at least I got to drive one! Here are the numbers he gave me – these numbers are for an automatic, 4WD model (the Y package)

To finance:
Total Amount to Finance: $37,255 (incl. tax, license, etc)

Term: 60
Interest Rate: 3.90%
Monthly Payment: $684.42

Term: 48
Interest Rate: 3.90%
Monthly Payment: $839.51

Term: 36
Interest Rate: 2.90%
Monthly Payment: $1081.76 (yeah right!!)

Alternatively, the leasing arrangement would be:
Term: 48 months
Interest Rate: 5.90%
Monthly Payment: $563.16 (incl. tax)
Due at Signing: $839.41 (=first month’s payment + license + fees)
Residual Value at lease end: $14,122.00

He said if he got a lease back with not too many km’s on it, he’d resell it within the week for $17K. I think that is my best bet. I love how the 2006′s have the painted panels. They also have side air bags and the volume controls on the steering wheel – but those new features probably aren’t worth $20K.

I’m a little concerned about how easily the plastic scratches inside. The one we test drove had just under 200 km’s on it, unless that was a trip meter I was looking at, but anyway, the plastic on the inside of the driver’s door was already significantly scratched up, as was the floor inside of the door.

I guess I just really have to get rid of my student loan first. Then I need a life plan, and I need to see if a Honda Element fits in it. Used mini-vans are much cheaper, but they just are NOT cool, and they have no resale value.

For now I just try to keep my truck on the road. The rear differential is leaking again – I should probably get that looked at.

Okay, off for a night of kabobs on the BBQ, scallops, Heinekens, fire, the season finale of Battlestar Galactica, and then UFC 60 !

The Dream is Dead

What I've Been Up To

What dream is that?

The Honda Element dream.

I have seen the light. I still think Honda Elements are cool, but I don’t want one anymore.

Why?

Well because they are $32,000. Think of everything that I would be giving up to afford a $32,000 vehicle. Plus the interest – heck it could end up being a $50,000 vehicle with interest.

I want to have a new and fun vehicle. I want to have a safe vehicle. But I don’t want to give up future vacations, home improvements, vet visits, shopping trips, gift giving, and dog toys to get one.

So I am going to drive my truck until its next major repair. Then I will get a line of credit for maybe $5,000 to $8,000 and I will buy a used SUV. It will still be fun and it will be new to me. I think an SUV will be best so I can have Monty travel safely in his crate, and still be in the same climate controlled area as me, not in the back of my pickup under the cap like he is now.

So I’ll be taking my Honda Element fundraiser drive off the side bar. It was a valiant effort. I raised $3.12. You will have to stay tuned for what I decide to do with that pot of money. Maybe return it to the donators, maybe just go wild with it. I haven’t decided yet.

I can afford a Honda Element now!!

Monty,

I can afford a Honda Element now!!

Well sort of!

I was talking to Monty’s breeders last night and they said that a man from Korea wants a puppy out of Bumper (Monty’s mom) and is willing to pay $25,000 for one. So they presented me with the offer.

Mmmmmm, that’s a lot of money.

One of the breeders then told me about being at a dog show and a man from Korea fell in love with Dakota (Monty’s dad). He started his offer at 5K. Joanne refused. The man kept on going up, and eventually ended up following her right into her hotel room! and made his final offer of $50K. She said no way.

Of course I’m not going to sell Monty. Nice to know that he is worth $25K though. Think the bank will list him as collateral for a vehicle loan?
:-)

Girls Night In

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Ahhh Girls Night In.. Or I guess that is just Girl.

J. is out with the men tonight. I just had my first bath in my bathroom since it got remodelled. I love love love love my bathroom. It couldn’t be any better. I think bathrooms should always be wood. It’s so warm and cozy. I had a nice bath with my lemon verbena candle on, a drink on the side, and Zeus on the toilet watching the flickering candle up high.. ahhh.. so relaxing.

Of course then I spilled the candle wax all over the new glass shelves and on the top of the toilet tank, but that was easy enough to clean up!

Just a tip I wanted to mention. I always bought bathmats at Walmart. This time we happened to be in Sears and they were 40% off, but still way more than Walmart, but to save a trip I bought them there. The difference is really remarkable. The Walmart bathmats are much much thinner and look like they need washing all the time. This one from Sears is so much thicker. Two thumbs up Sears!

In fact, people have been mentioning to me for awhile that Walmart was really getting a lot of cheap merchandise in. I’m such a Walmart faithful I didn’t really notice, until I was looking for bathroom accessories last weekend. The quality was really cheap. Of course the prices were cheaper too. Maybe I’m just growing out of the cheap-will-do student phase of my life. Eee gads! My tastes sure are changing.

So if you notice I’ve started my Lisa’s Honda Element Fund. (You can donate on the right hand side of this page if you are so inclined – by PayPal or Credit Card). I have a big glass vase that my fish Morris used to live in before he was upgraded to a full aquarium. This is where the Lisa’s Honda Element Fund is now. So far it contains 50 cents. At this rate my great-grandchildren will enjoy their Honda Element. hehe. No worries, I had a fantastic idea for a new website, and I’ve already built half of it this evening. I’ll show it to you soon. It should bring in some easy money.

OH, and I should mention, my contract is going to be extended. It was done at the end of March. It looks like I should be good through to the end of November. That is good news!

Alrighty, off to enjoy my evening. Tomorrow morning I’m meeting the guys from the retriever club so Monty can have his first retrieving outing. There are a couple of other puppies in the club so it’ll be good for him to socialize after our training session.

2006 Honda Element

What I've Been Up To,

Ohhhh baby I want a Honda Element so bad!

Honda Element

J. treated my outrageous dream of owning one by stopping into Honda on the weekend so we could look at the new one they have on the lot. I got to look inside of one!! The salesman said if we come back this week after they get it ready we could take it for a night to testdrive it!

So lots of conflicting thoughts. I know I absolutely can not afford one, so I can’t have one. It is nice to aspire to something though. They are $32,000 after all the fees and taxes for a new one that is 4 wheel drive. Why would I dream to waste all that money on something that is going to do nothing but lose its value. I don’t know.

On the plus side, they really aren’t depreciating much. I watch the Auto Trader and the 2003′s are still going for $23-28,000

I guess I can dream that my http://YouNeedAThong.com site will start making some SERIOUS cash, so much that I’ll have nothing better to do with it than go buy myself a Honda Element.

Or maybe we really should test drive it so I can find out I hate it and don’t want one anymore. But then I’d need a new dream! ;-)

Christmas List(s)

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Okay you want to know what I want for Christmas. I really haven’t thought about it, but I have been coming back here and updating the following lists when I think of things:

List 1 – Things that are Likely:

  • large frying pan
  • a good knife for the kitchen – to chop veggies and not fingers
  • puppy toys
  • MEC (Mountain Equipment Coop) – MEC Duffle Bag – XL – $32 and/or the MEC Travel All Shoulder Bag, Black, $15
  • Reitmans (clothing store) gift certificates
  • Home Depot gift certificate (my bathroom could use some walls one of these days)

List 2 – Things that are Unlikely, but Hey, why not Dream a little:

  • new windshield (1992 Chevy S10)
  • satellite radio for my truck
  • Queen-sized feather duvet
  • new laptop to replace my dead one, wireless & lots of horsepower
  • brown leather sofa (futon is falling apart)
  • 2006 Honda Element, 4×4, colour of your choice

List 3 – Please do not get me:

  • Chocolate, Tylenol, Oysters (this year’s new allergies)
  • Any pets
  • Things to make me cry about my lost dogs (unless you’ve already told me about it)

My current fav albums that you NEED to download to add to your music shuffle:

I’m still excited for my trip to the west coast. So many aspects of it to be excited about: new puppy, seeing old friends, seeing the west coast for the first time, maybe a mountain or two, being in Vancouver, biggest plane I’ll have ever been on, longest flight I’ll have ever been on, etc, etc. Still nervous about getting a puppy and I hope I’m doing the right thing.

It scares me how much I’m blocking Winger & Surf totally out of my mind so I can get through the day. I hope I’m not putting off some serious grieving, I just can’t think about memories of them right now, it’s just tooooooo hard. 2 o’clock in the afternoon is the worst, every day. It’s probably because I’m sitting at my desk bored, wanting to go home, knowing I have 2 hours to go in the day. I have to go walk around because I tear up every day at 2. When Winger died I felt I was always about 4 seconds from crying. Now I feel like I’m always a blink away. Just one thought of how much I miss them and poof, I’ll blink, and reopen with tear filled eyes. I’m sure when Surf’s ashes get delivered I’ll have another predictably bad day. It’s part of the good-bye process, so I’ll face it when it comes. It would be kinda nice if they come before all the snow comes back so I can spread them where I spread Winger’s without having to wait until spring.

Hopefully the puppy will not be a total terror and he’ll help me heal. A vacation should really do me good too. Too bad it isn’t for a month! HA