Showing posts with label shopping. Show all posts
Showing posts with label shopping. Show all posts

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Repair vs. Trade

Last week I took our Subaru to the dealership because there was a small gas leak in the engine and fumes were coming into the car, not the best thing to have with a newborn. So the shop said they could fix it, oh and by the way there's all this other stuff wrong too and it will cost you $2700.

The Kelly Blue Book value for the car is $3250, only $550 more than the cost of the repairs so I decided that it didn't make much sense to dump that money into repairing it but it would be better to put that money towards another car.

Dealerships in my area of New York are a lot like other places in the country only it has New Yorkers as the salesmen. So imagine a car salesman with New Yorker attitude showing you cars that you sort-of like and telling you that they are making you a huge deal on it and that you would be missing an opportunity if you don't act on it right now.

I went to five different dealerships and each one of the them want your contact information before they will talk to you about a car. This way if you leave without buying something they can send you a letter in the mail and call you to try and get you to back in there to sell you a car you don't want.

I finally found what I was looking for on day 2 of looking but it was a lot more than I wanted to spend. I couldn't get them to budge any further on the price so I left and told them I would think about it. This gave them license to call me twice the next day to see if I was going to come back.

I waited 2 days before heading back and making the deal. In the long run we decided it was better to spend the money on something that we really liked and that would hold it's resale value longer than the cheaper cars out there. I bought a certified used Nissan Murano from the dealer in Newburgh, NY.

I signed the papers on January 20th and in the middle of the process we stopped to watch Barack Obama take the oath of office. It will be an experience I won't soon forget.

Friday, November 28, 2008

Black Friday

After experiencing Black Friday madness first hand this morning it makes me realize just how crazy people can get. I know that the economy is down and that people are trying to make ends meet but things get a little crazy on these shopping holidays. For example, out on Long Island at a Walmart the crowd took the doors off the hinges and rushed the store killing one employee and sending a pregnant woman to the hospital (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27955316/). We went to Target, Kohl's and Babies R' Us but it wasn't anything as crazy as it would be at a Walmart on Long Island. I can only imagine the Brooklyn-ites out there pushing their way into the store, threatening to bust some kneecaps if the other shopper doesn't give up the LCD TV they want.

I'd like to say that this could only happen in New York, but I know that isn't true. When people get frenzied it doesn't matter where they are.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Too Old for Old Navy

For those who don't know I'm turning 30 this year. I've felt like I'm getting older, especially since I work with the youth group at church, but I don't really feel like I'm old. And ever since I started working around the broadcast media set I've found myself wanting to dress nicer. I used to only work around computer programmers who typically don't care about their appearance and show up wearing shorts and black socks or even wizard robes, Dungeons & Dragons style. So I've been trying to look nicer by wearing button-up shirts but I still love to wear my jeans. 

Since Old Navy opened in 1994 I've been buying jeans there because they are up to date and affordable. I even bought jeans from there when they went through the painter and carpenter jeans fad. So I needed some new jeans and I went to Old Navy to get the same pair I've been buying for a couple of years, the boot-cut dark denim jeans. I find the boot-cuts and I go into the dressing room because I'm actually smart enough to try stuff on before I buy it even if they're the "same" as what I'm wearing. Lucky I did because they must have gone to low-riders this season. I put them on and immediately I can tell they don't fit the same. The crotch on those things was about 2 inches shorter and I felt like my butt-crack was hanging out while I was standing up straight. 

That was that for me, I'd had enough. I gave the jeans to the glaring 16-year-old employee who seems to think I'm going to hide a pair up my shirt and I walked out. I've been shopping at Old Navy since I was a teenager and I'm not a teenager anymore. So I'll leave Old Navy to the those kids who can pull off the low-rider girl-cut skinny jeans. I mean how much Bohemian crap can one store sell?

So now I shop where other grown-ups buy their clothes and one day, maybe soon, I'll even give up wearing jeans to the office.