Wednesday, August 08, 2007

Trucks And Luck

I drive a truck. It is really quite old and is pretty nasty. It only cost me $1000 about nine years ago, so it has served me pretty well. However, it is now getting to an age where it cannot really be trusted, especially on the highway. For this reason, with a certain sadness, I have decided that it is time to look for new transportation.

This morning, I stopped in at a car place that has a pretty good reputation. Quite a few faculty members have bought cars and trucks there, with good outcomes. I also know the owner. He is the boyfriend of the mother of a student of mine. One of my odd quirks is that I hate automatic transmissions. He knows this. This also makes finding a second hand truck a little more tricky. The owner was pleased to see me. He had a truck that he wanted to show me.

The truck was a Toyota, a make I like a lot. It was a pleasing color. It was a standard. It even had cruise control and a good sound system. I was pretty impressed. The price was not bad either. However, there were a couple of down sides. First, someone else is interested in it, so I will have to move quickly. Second, it is four wheel drive, which is bad for gas mileage. Third, it was ten years old and had quite a high mileage. So, although I was pleased, I was not entirely happy. I told the guy that I would call him tomorrow. In the meantime, a student of mine is doing a carfax search on the VIN number.

This evening though, I had a monthly meeting of a non-profit, that I sit on the Board of. As is our tradition, after the meeting was over we all went and had a meal together. Over supper, I got talking to a fellow who owns a truck of the same make. I asked him about his and what he thought of it. He told me that he loved his truck, but was having to sell it, as it no longer quite fitted with his family needs. As this is a truck (and a guy) I have known well for years. I asked for more information.

So, as a result of an innocuous question, I have found a new truck. The one I will now buy from my friend is two years younger than the one I looked at this morning. It does not have four wheel drive, it also has half as many miles on it. It is two thousand dollars cheaper and, best of all, it is a truck I know. I an ecstatic!

There is a saying that it is better to be lucky than rich. I am not certain that this is entirely true. However, when it comes to trucks, I am very happy to be lucky. When I checked my e-mail this morning, I learned that I have had a paper accepted at a good conference in October. This should have tipped me off that this would be a good day. Now, I know for certain that it is. Tomorrow, I will have to organise new insurance and the like. However, I should have a new truck very soon and I am very excited. Isn't it amazing how such little things can thrill even the philosophical mind?

The CP

1 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I can't believe you are retiring the "oldie but goodie"! Congratulations on your brand new old truck! It is true that your old truck has seen better days.

2:41 PM  

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