I’m No Dummy

More and more, I believe those who work with me are catching on.  I’m no dummy when it comes to automotive.  Yeah, I’m new to government fleet, but I’m not new to fleet and I am fairly well versed in automotive lingo.  GVWR, axle capacity, torque, and horsepower don’t scare me.  Male dominance in the fleet arena doesn’t intimidate me.  Since I’m not intimidated, I won’t back down when I know what I know.  Sorry guys, but you can’t just tell me change option “x”, that’s it for the changes, and think I’ll just roll with it.  Men you can’t really believe that I’m not going to dig through the specifications and talk to my vendors until I find every change that needs to be made or discussed before I spec out a vehicle.  You can try it, but just know that I’m no dummy.  Maybe it’s all those years I spent searching the country for cars, trucks, and vans, or quite possibly it’s all those order seasons that I spent all day curled up with vehicle order guides; whatever the reason, I won’t be punked.  So commit this to memory - SweetSpot Is No Dummy.

SweetSpot!

Rolling Along Just Fine

Today marked a big day for me in both my career progression and my tennis world.  I'm finally starting to feel like things are back on track and beginning to roll along just fine.  

In regards to my career progression, today I completed two months on my new job and thus far I’ve received promising feedback on all of my efforts.  Many of you are not aware, but I'm back in the fleet world.  I've moved from corporate fleet to government fleet, which doesn't sound like a big deal, but there is a huge difference, and for me, a huge learning curve.  Now instead of just cars, trucks, SUV's, and vans, my fleet world has expanded to included just about anything with a motor or anything that can be pulled or hauled by something with a motor. I learned a lot about fleet operations while working in corporate fleet, but that only represents a fraction of what I will be required to learn for government fleet operations.  Corporate fleet allowed me to deal with an automotive mix - everything from the not-so-sexy cargo van to the oh-so-sexy luxury vehicle.  In government fleet, sexy doesn't exist, especially when you're dealing with taxpayer’s dollars and refuse vehicles (that’s garbage trucks, in laymen terms).  It's not sexy, but I'm enjoying the new challenge, the environment, the people, and let's not forget get the checks.

While my professional endeavors have been slowly improving and gaining speed, my tennis endeavors have been more like a roller coaster ride until tonight.  This evening both of the mixed doubles teams I play on clinched division titles.  It felt good to have a season in which I am a part of not one, but two winning teams.  This feeling of success and elation comes less than a week after the end of my most disappointing women's season since I began playing.  Two regular season division champion bag tags are just the beginning of what I am anticipating on the courts.  I have city playoffs, and hopefully, city finals for both teams in the upcoming weeks, as well as the start of my women’s winter season.  It may be getting cold outside, but I think it’s about to heat up on the courts, well, at least on the courts where I play.

Things really are starting to look up in my world and I think I’ll just allow the momentum of it all to carrying me for a while.

Rolling!!!

SweetSpot

Blame It on the La-La-La-La-La-La-LaCrosse

If the old GM is dead, then someone might want to share that information with my great-aunt Zelma, or as we call her, Sister. While I can't tell you her exact age, I can tell you she is older than her sister, my grandmother, who just celebrated her 80^th birthday. Regardless, in her mind, age must only be a number because at 80+ years of age she has declared she is going to get her license (for the 1^st time) and she is going to buy herself a "brand new" Buick. Look out world, and I do mean look out world! Be on the lookout for an octogenarian 1^st time driver in a shiny, new Buick.

I'm almost certain Sister can't name a single Buick model, past or present, I'm sure in her mind there are still images of some Buick Electra 225 she held in high esteem, that represented success.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette thought at least one Buick model was "unmistakably modern and sure to challenge the stereotypes of consumers who still think a Buick is a dull car for the geriatric set," and I'm sure that is what Buick intended. Well, that image won't change if America catches a glimpse of Sister in the driver's seat of any Buick currently available.

Just wait 'til she gets a load of the new Buick lineup. Hmmm… Maybe she was paying attention when I picked her up in the new 2010 Buick LaCrosse GM let me demo for a week. I'm sure the combination of her ride with me and her agitation with her current source of transportation, my bossy, control-freak grandmother in her old Ford Taurus, is what drove her to seek a new Buick as a means of asserting her independence, and even a little one-upmanship.

In said case, I should apologize to both GM and Buick. I'm sorry. Truly, I am. I had no idea her ride with me in that LaCrosse would contribute to feeding a storm that was brooding. Obviously, that one ride in the new 2010 LaCrosse evoked old memories and made her remember why she used to love a Buick. I know I'm apologizing, but I should also say we (all of pre-retirement age family members) have absolutely zero belief that Sister will ever pass the driver's examination. Therefore, she'll have no need to purchase your shiny, new Buick. So Buick executives, you can breathe a sigh of relief, you don't have to worry about negative media images of any of your new awarding winning Buicks' being splattered across news channels in the form of a crumpled heap of metal. It ain't gonna happen, but if it did, then you might want to blame it on the LaCrosse.

SweetSpot

I Let It Fly

For some reason, I love this commercial…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ksZMfoJV8I

I had the hair, but what I didn't have was the courage to look like this…..

It could have been me, but today… Not so much. Sorry Jeep, but I cut my hair so there isn't much of it left to let it fly. Regardless, prior to my hair cut, it's highly unlikely that my hair would have ever blown so sensuously.

Armed with my new haircut, I have a renewed confidence in my appearance. With all my hair gone, I can now achieve open air freedom and let vanity fly right out the window, but it won't be in a Jeep. I won't have to worry about looking like Buckwheat afterwards, either. Now, I feel the freedom to take a note from the advertisers. I'll just have to roll down my windows, open the sunroof, and let it fly (once it gets warmer, of course). Thanks for my cue to experience freedom. I think I'll take that advice, and apply it to every aspect of my life. It can be achieved, and it doesn't have to be experienced "only in a Jeep". ;)

Let it fly!
SweetSpot

I’m a Fan of the Wagon?

I've become a fan of crossover vehicles (CUVs), and at this time I'm completely smitten with the new 2010 Cadillac SRX Crossover. To me, crossover vehicles are SUV-like, but smaller and more efficient, which makes them better suited for my lifestyle and my wallet. I have to admit I haven't been a fan of every CUV that has hit the market, but over the last couple of years automotive manufacturers have upped their CUV game. I would have to assume they needed to find a happy medium vehicle that allowed Americans to still experience the comfort SUVs had provided while sizing them down to make them more efficient. With plummeting sales that can be (at least partially) attributed to the mass exodus of consumers suffering with rising fuel prices, as well as consumer and government pressure for more fuel efficient vehicles, the CUV has offered a reasonable alternative.

Until 2 days ago, as far as I was concerned, a CUV was a vehicle type similar to a SUV. I didn't put great thought into its vehicle classification until I read a commentary, by Automotive News' John K. Teahen Jr., discussing the CUVs impact on the car market. Mr. Teahen explains while CUVs are counted as trucks, they are the current day station wagon. Eeerrrr….Stop! Oh no, no, no, no, no! Please don't tell me I've been had. The latest and greatest vehicle type introduced to the automotive scene that has me so intrigued is a glorified station wagon? That just bites! While I hate the assertion, when I think about it and look at the evidence provided by Mr. Teahen, it does make sense. Don't get me wrong, the station wagon met certain needs and had its place (until the introduction of minivans) with moms, but I'm not a mom and a station wagon, even the label station wagon, is sooo….WACK (for lack of a better term). A wagon has no place in my life; my needs are on the opposite end of the spectrum.

My needs may be at the opposite end of the spectrum, but at least the manufacturers' have created a middle ground vehicle with the ability to merge the needs of more than one automotive consumer segment. It works for women with no family, such as me, and my solo income that can't sustain a gas guzzler. It also works for the mother who has the family, but is over the minivan and definitely isn't considering a wagon. As a future vehicle choice, it isn't a bad one. Unless lottery-like statistics work against me, and I become a mother to quadruplets, it is an option that has transition potential. I may be a SINK (single income, no kids) today, but who knows, that may change within the next five years and I may need the flexibility offered in a CUV. According to John Teahen's article, through November, there were 1.8 million CUVs sold in 2009 – this provides some comfort in knowing I'm not the lone fan of a wagon. Until the next great vehicle hits the market, I will submit to being a fan of the CROSSOVER-wagon (emphasis on crossover, please).

Quet

An Alternative Source

The call for a replacement vehicle beckons, but must be ignored. While I'd love and prefer a new car, it is a far-fetched idea. A more reasonable compromise is a used car. Although it is more a more feasible option, I typically purchase new vehicles. During a breather from the waiting area, I stepped outside for some fresh air and noticed there were several vehicles parked in the lot that appeared to be for sale. I counted at least three vehicles (all lacking license plates) located throughout the lot that obviously weren't there for service work.

Of all the cars on the lot the burgundy Lexus stood out, it was an older model LS sedan with a clean interior and only a few body dings. I have patronized my repair shop for years, and throughout that time countless vehicles have been parked in Jeff's lot by his customers and friends to accelerate their efforts to sale them. Many times, Jeff's shop has handled all of the service work on the vehicles and he willingly answers any questions about them. I stepped back in to inquire with Jeff, the shop owner, about the car and he gave me a little information about the Lexus. According to the Jeff, the car belonged to a customer who was ready to sell it. While I didn't get all the details on the vehicle, and I didn't drive it, Jeff was able to tell me it was in good condition and valued at $3500, but the owner had priced it for sale at $3100. He then went on to say the gentleman who sold the vehicle was so ready to sell it that he had taken an offer of $2500 just a few days earlier.

Most of Jeff's customers (including me) are women and we are longstanding, repeat customers. While I can't speak for Jeff's other customers, I can attest to the fact that I've never had to take my car back to his shop for the same problem and he doesn't try to sell me parts and services that are not necessary. As a matter of fact, he won't. I once tried to get him to replace both of my headlights because I wanted them to glow at the same brightness and he flat out refused because he said the other one worked just fine. Additionally, he's always giving me breaks on parts or freebies. I think he gave me 4 sets of wiper blades in one year because I refused to replace the windshield that was damaging them. The short of all this – I trust him. Since I am a woman who hates being played for a patsy, I need a used car from a source I can trust. Buying a car that has been serviced by my repair shop is a great option. I've never seriously thought about it because I've never needed a vehicle. With the need for a vehicle and limitations on cash for a purchase, alternatives must be considered. Just because a car is at a repair shop doesn't mean it's ready for the junkyard. Who knows Jeff just might have the right car at the right time, priced just right.