The Deal is Done

 

What Jim really wanted. A go anywhere RV.

And this tow car.

What we got. A 2011 sage green Subaru Forester. Check out that ground clearance.

Now this is what my dear husband wants to do with it. This is an older model Forester. I have a feeling we are in store for some disagreements.

Jim used his old negotiating skills from his claims adjuster days and got them to come off a little more on the price. We took it for a longer test drive, and I drove about 10 miles through Albuquerque traffic to see if I could tolerate driving a manual transmission. It’s been over 25 years since I drove one, and I was shocked by how well I did. No stalling or lurching. Funny how things come back to you after so many years!

We had to get the tow brake system off the Chevy, so after hours of sitting around at the dealer and signing paperwork, we still couldn’t take the Subaru home. Luckily some of the Lazy Daze folks arrived at Balloon Fiesta Park that day, so we went over and our mechanically inclined buddy John Leach helped Jim remove all the parts and wiring. That was a big help, and we were able to go back and swap cars before they closed at 6. By this time rush hour traffic was pretty bad so we stopped back to visit with the Lazy Daze group and kill some time before the drive back to Cochiti Lake.

Tomorrow we have an appointment to get the base plate and tow brake put back on the Subaru. We’ve also ordered a hitch which Jim and the guys should be able to easily install at the Balloon Fiesta. We’ll be glad when this is all finished.

By the way, our 30th wedding anniversary is next week so the new car is our gift to each other.  Back in our old life we would have planned a nice trip to celebrate. A friend gave us this comic when we first started out fulltiming. I still get a chuckle out of it because it is so true.