A Photo A Day For 6 Months: Day 133~ A Hubcap Diamond Star Halo?

"Money may not buy happiness, but I would rather cry in a Jaguar than on a bus."

~Francoise Sagan

I wouldn't mind owning a Jaguar. That being said, I also don't mind driving a car that is actually within my means. That being said, my beloved Lilith, a 2007 Saturn ION is sending me scary, mean, nasty, little codes once again. As you might remember, earlier this year Alan and I spent close to $4,000 fixing her various boo-boos. It sucked, but I figured that now that all her peculiarities had been addressed, I would have several years of joyful, blissful driving.

(Insert personal cuss word of choice here) Personally, I prefer FUCK!

Okay, the writing is on the wall, it's time to give up the ghost. So. Hmmm. What to do? Where to go? What to price? Hmmmm again. Well, at least it's very nearly the autumn, and that means all car dealerships are beginning to hold "All Cars Must Go" sales, and "First Look" sales, so I decided to see what my options are. Here is what I found that out...

Meet The 2013 Chevy Spark (


Okay, here is the lowdown...

 

2013 Chevy Spark

Starting at $12,245
10 Airbags
85 HP
31.2 Cubic Feet Cargo Volume
38 MPG HWY
28 City
And it actually comes in some pretty nice colors. I like Pink Techno and Denim, but Jalapeno is fun to. But lets face it, the color has very little to do with anything. God I hate it when a car salesman comes out to greet Alan and I and the first question they ask me is, what color I like the best? Just once it would be amazing to have them ask me what kind of gas mileage I am shooting for. I guess that's just the hazard of being a drop dead gorgeous female! LOL. I look dumb. LOL. Actually, I am pretty sure only Alan and maybe an ex-boyfriend or two are the only ones who would describe me that way. LOL. But you get my drift.

I am already mourning my lovely Saturn ION Lilith. But the truth is we simply can't afford putting money into a car that was that poorly made. It has become a money pit. Alan works too hard for us to keep throwing our money away. I wish Saturn had remained the company they were when I bought my first Saturn back in the late 90's. Those cars preformed well, we got a lot out of them in terms of dependability and gas mileage, and Saturn had a good maintenance program that helped us keep them in good shape. Unfortunately, Saturn changed, seemingly overnight, when they stopped operating as an independent company from Pontiac.  When our late 90's Saturns came to their natural end, we didn't hesitate to hit the local Saturn dealership for the next generation. That will always be the worst automotive mistake in our marriage.

I can't and don't want to dwell on it. I just want to quietly move on. I love inanimate objects, it's one of my worst character traits. I get attached to things that have NO way of loving me back. Stuffed animals, paintings and art, movies, but its different when you have a car that you are sure loves you. I believe (don't laugh) my cars have genuinely loved me back, and in Lilith's case she didn't mean to be a pain in the ass... it wasn't her fault... she built with substandard materials. There are no bad cars, only CROOKED CAR MANUFACTURERS. There is a long list of complaints about the later Saturn IONs, including all the various problems we have had. Someone else should be picking up the bill for these lemons, but that is not how the world works.

Sigh.

I am ready to move on. It's going to be fun. Well, at least until the inevitable buyers remorse sets in. I really like the Chevy Spark, and so does Alan, and so does Car And Driver magazine. Okay, I am good to go, but one thing... with my fear of fire, I just wish it wasn't called a SPARK.

LOL.

Lemon Law Complaints About Saturns

GM Lemon Law

Barnabus Collins: How soon can the horses be ready?
Elizabeth Stoddard: We don't have horses... we have a Chevy.

~From the Tim Burton's Dark Shadows

Note: Here is a little music for you. I have had "Get It On" (Bang A Gong) in my head since I saw the movie Dark Shadows earlier this year. One thing... I get what the song is about, but, um... "a hubcap diamond star halo?" Odd... very odd methinks.

Get It On (Bang A Gong) By T Rex

~Me :)

Now, go and pay a visit to my pal JR. He has been a faithful participant of my APAD project, with perfect attendance. He is awesome. Both as a friend and an amazing photographer. Go check out his blog.

JR
http://jrclinephotography.blogspot.com/2012/09/padf6-129.html

A Photo A Day For 6 Months: Day 50~ RRC-Keys

"No one can drive us crazy unless we give them the keys."


~Doug Horton


RRC: Keys Hosted by Karen, of the blog, Outpost Mavarin






The current challenge subject for the Round Robin Photo Challenge is "KEYS." It's an ironic subject, because for the last month or so it has been a subject that has played LOUDLY for Alan and I. Keys to our cottage, keys to our cars, keys to our fence, keys keys keys. I was going to tackle this assignment by posting a little about all the different KEY situations we have found ourselves in, but at the last minute I decided to choose one situation to share. The quote above serves all the situations, and I know that someday it will all seem funny, but I am preferring not to dwell... for now.


So, how about we talk about my car Lilith...


 


We bought Lilith in late September of 2006. My old car Angelica, aka a 2001 Saturn SL1 had lived a good life, but was now ready to move on to her final resting place. Alan's car, was also tired from having served him well, so off we went to the Saturn dealership to find two new rides.


We both chose 2007 Saturn IONs. Alan chose a gold one, and I picked one in Cypress green. Well, actually, I had chosen a candy apple red one, but after further consideration finally took the green one. I love the color of my car. In the sun it is either green or gold or a combination of both when the sun hits it just right. Lilith is a confortable car, and we were both happy, until 3 weeks after my warrentie expired... and you guessed it... Lilith broke down.


The estimate was about $4000. It was two years after I bought her. She had 3 more years of car payments. And it was going to cost $4000 to get her running again. $$#@*&^! Coincidentally, Gov. Schwarzenegger had just decided to furlough state employees by taking 3 days pay out of their checks per month, and Elvis was becoming ill. It was a perfect storm of stupid. So, Alan and I made the decision to continue to make the car payments, and deal with Elvis's illness. The car is not a living, breathing thing, but my boy was.


So, though all the various ins and outs of the last few years. Alan and I are once again on an upswing. Don't get me wrong, we don't have endless piles of cash lying around, but we were able to get my car fixed, finally, about a month ago.Now, how does a key fit into all this... well... you see... Lilith ran well... for about a month, and then suddenly a couple weeks ago, the mechanism that the key fits into got stuck. We couldn't get the key out of the car. UGGGGGGGG! No worries, 2 days and $400 later, she is driving like a dream. Half waking NIGHTMARE and half SURREALIST COMEDY.

 

In that Lilith wasn't driven for 4 out of the last 6 years, she drives like a brand new car. And that's great because I always loved her, and while she might be a 2007, she is a gal with low miles. LOL. I am a happy camper. I wouldn't have wanted to get rid of her, and she should have a few more really good years left in her. She only has 30,000 miles on her, and besides, she takes me to see beautiful things like Golden Gate Park and the Monarchs in Pacific Grove. I love my car. She's my Lilith. So the key you see above... that is the key to a lot of happiness.






Although I did read not too long ago that the Saturn ION is one of the worst cars ever made. But I don't think I will dwell on it. LOL.


~Me :)

** Today's APAD Link...
JR
http://jrclinephotography.blogspot.com/2012/06/apadf6-50-51.html
 
**If you would like to see what the other Robins came up with for the challenge, just click here.

Round Robin Challenge: My Vehicle Of Choice

From For Ellipsis

"Natives who beat drums to drive off evil spirits are objects of scorn to smart Americans who blow horns to break up traffic jams."

-Mary McCleary

RRC: My Vehicle Of Choice
Suggested by Suzanne, of the blog, SuzyQ421's Photoblog

Suzanne had a really good idea with this one, basically we are to spend a little time pimping our favorite rides! Above you see my car Lilith. I bought her in late September of 2006. She is a 2007 Saturn ION, in Cypress Green. Alan has a matching on in Golden Cashmere. We bought our cars on the same day. There are a lot of pluses to doing things that way, but a lot of minuses as well, like having both registrations come due at the same time. Sheesh. It will $450 out the window in the next couple months, just for car registrations. Oh well, I love my car. She is dependable, and easy to drive, and she is a good fit for me. She is actually the second Saturn I have owned, my previous one was a 1999 Saturn SL1, in black and white, and when I bought that one, Alan also purchased an SW1 Wagon. As you can tell, we love the Saturn line of cars, and we were sorry to hear about the possibility of the brand being done away with. Hopefully things will work out in the end.

Here is my other favorite ride... my bike. We love to take our bikes across the bay, and ride them along the Marina Green, Fort Point and the Promenade at Chrissy Field, in San Francisco. It's beautiful there. :)

From For Ellipsis

Well, that's it for me! How about you, what do you drive? Thanks you Suzanne, I loved this idea! Now, go see what everyone else came up with, just follow the links...

Linking List (Welcome New Members)

1. Suzanne... SuzyQ421's Photoblog
Posted!

2. Carly... Ellipsis
Posted!

3. Betty... A Corgi in Southern California
Posted!

4. Monica... Shutterly Happy
Posted!

5. Jen... Phun with Photography


6. J.R. ... Eskimo Blue Boys Deviant Art


7. Chrissie... Chrissea's Corner


8. Martha... Menagerie
Posted!

9. Boliyou... Endomental


10. Karen... Outpost Mavarin
Posted!

11. Linda... Mommy's Treasurers
Posted!

12. Molly Mavis... Visual Dialogues
Posted!

13. Sherrie... Sherrie's Stuff
Posted!

14. Gattina... Keyhole Pictures
Posted!

15. Lin... Ups and Downs With Anastasia
Posted!

16. Maria... Everything Can Be Green
Posted!

17. Kara... Hip Chick's Home
Posted! 07/26/09

18. Fhaye... Photodito
Posted! 07/26/09

-Carly

Round Robin Challenge: Something Different

"I think a photography class should be a requirement in all educational programs, because it makes you see the world rather than just look at it."

-Unknown

My car, Lilith, will be 1 yr old on September 29th. In that I am one of those, "girly-girls" I only really know the basics of what makes her tick, but the idea of the challenge this time, was to step out of your comfort zone, so, while I know how to turn on the engine, how to change the radio station, how to make the wipers work, and oh yeah, if things go ever so slightly awry with the engine, tires or brakes, I also know how to push the little green panic button that notifies OnStar, I don't really understand much more then that. LOL. So, in trying to achieve "something different" for this challenge, I decided to learn more about what makes my car go. Here is what I learned...

There, that was easy, and now I feel so smart! Next I might learn how to change a tire. I am woman... hear me roar! ROFL! This challenge came to us by way of Nancy, author of the blog, Nancy Luvs Pix. Be sure to pay a visit to her blog, to see her entry, and then be sure to visit all the Robins. It is our first challenge, since we changed the day we play the challenges to Saturdays. The Robins are a creative bunch of bloggers, artists every one! :) Just click the links below.

Linking List

1. Karen... Outpost Mavarin
POSTED!

2. Carly... Ellipsis
POSTED!

3. Janet... Fond Of Photography
POSTED!

4. Annie... Pictures of Craziness
POSTED!

5. Nancy... Nancy Luvs Pix
POSTED!

6. Suzanne R... New Suzanne R's Life
POSTED!

7. Jessica... QuickSilver Dreams
POSTED!

8. boliyou... Percolation
POSTED!

9. Vicki... Maraca
POSTED!

10. Gina... Gina's Space
POSTED!

11. Gattina... Keyhole Pictures
POSTED!

12. Steven... (sometimes photoblog)
POSTED!

13. Tara... A Long Walk Home
POSTED!

14. Teena... It's all about me!
POSTED!

-OndineMonet
"All About Lilith"
Berkeley, California
September 7th, 2007
Afternoon