Almost two years ago, we saw a commercial in a movie theatre for a new car. As soon as it was over, B leaned over and said “we should get one of those.” Just 712 short days later, I agreed and went out to buy one.

The object of her affection was the Mazda5. With three rows of seating, it appeals to families with young kids who don’t want to drive a minivan (we’re the third family at the daycare to get one this year.) It won’t win any street races, but B’s put those reckless days behind her anyway.

This was the first time I’ve bought a new car, and I was a little nervous going in. I imagined these hungry sales guys viewing me like a fat chicken that’s ready to be plucked. Then I remembered that a pretty big part of my job has involved negotiating, whether it be hotel rates on tour, musician contracts, or collective agreements. So, I did my homework, considered the options, and remembered that I could always walk away if I wasn’t happy with how things were going.

It’s actually a great time of year to buy a car. The dealers are a little desperate because it’s a short month and year-end is approaching. They were offering the 2007 model for $5,000 less than the 2008′s, plus a $500 Futureshop gift card and 1% GST rebate. The 2008′s have some nice improvements, but this deal was too good to pass up.

I wasn’t so happy about the whole trade-in thing. I had checked out trade-in values online, and the site that a lot of dealers used pegged the value of our car between $6,500 and $8,000. So, when the sales guy came in and said they were probably going to offer me $2,500 to $3,500, I was ready to walk out and go to another dealership. Instead, I gave him the estimate I had, and he took it to the boys in the back. A short while later he offered me $8,000 including taxes. I find it amazing that my car almost tripled in value in the space of ten minutes. And people wonder why car salesmen have bad reputations…

We’re hoping to pick up the car tomorrow, and it will be nice to have it for our 1,400 km road trip over Christmas. Before we leave, I just have to go get snow tires for the second time in two weeks. I hope the line is a little shorter this time.

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When I got home from buying the car on Saturday, I said, “Aidan, Daddy bought a new car.”

Aidan said, “Wow. Did you get a Mercedes?”

“No,” I replied, “we got a Mazda. It’s blue.”

Aidan sighed and said, “That’s O.K., we don’t need a Mercedes”.

I love that kid.

After nine Ottawa winters, I finally broke down and bought snow tires today. The threat of another nasty winter storm, plus my Mom’s dire warnings that I was putting my life at risk driving on bald tires, led me to conclude that new tires might be a good idea. Besides, what else was I going to do with $500 at this time of year?

With the knowledge that half of Ottawa was likely planning on getting snow tires installed this weekend, I decided it was probably a good idea to start early. Here’s how it went…

7:15 am
I throw on some clothes and head out in search of tires. It’s cold, windy, and there are flakes in the air already. My all-seasons spin on the packed snow – hopefully for the last time.

7:35 am
I arrive at Walmart, which I chose because they were the first shop to open (yes, I’m aware that Walmart is the embodiment of corporate evil, but they have great hours). Unfortunately, the tire centre opens at 8:00 instead of 7:00 as posted on their website. At least I’m the first one in line. I’ll be home by 9:00.

7:45 am
A guy shows up and sighs when I tell him I’m looking for tires. He tells me they’re booked until Wednesday, and he doesn’t think they can help me today. It will be up to his boss to decide. I picture his boss as a kindly older man who will happily make room for such an eager customer.

8:00 am
His boss shows up – a 19-year old sour-faced kid. Without making eye contact, he mumbles that I’ll have to come back in five days. I vow to never step foot in a Walmart again.

8:15 am
I pull into the Canadian Tire parking lot. There are a handful of cars idling by the entrance, but nobody has lined up yet. I resist the urge to get out and stand by the door – I don’t want to be the guy that starts the line and forces everyone else to line up for 45 minutes in the cold (it’s -16 and windy).

8:25 am
A few more cars arrive, and I start getting antsy. Another guy gets out and heads towards the door. I follow after him quickly, and within 30 seconds there are five of us in line. We quickly swap stories – one guy stopped at Costco and there were 15 people in line at 7:30. Conversation dries up, and we all shuffle our feet in a feeble attempt to stay warm.

8:40 am
The parking lot is getting full, and the line is getting longer. Some people drive up, see the line, and squeal off in anger. They lack commitment (and foresight).

8:43 am
A grumpy mechanic shows up and tells us they still have 11 cars to finish from yesterday, so we might not get tires today. We scoff at his pathetic warning – with a big storm coming, there’s no way any of us are going home to tell our significant others that we didn’t get tires (the line is all men).

8:46 am
We all check our watches. Time is standing still. The funny guy says “It was 8:40 an hour ago” and everyone laughs. Back to shuffling…

8:50 am
There are at least 16 people in line. Grumpy mechanic no. 2 arrives and barks that he has 22 cars to do before he gets to any of us. A couple of guys actually believe him and leave, dejected. They are weak and don’t deserve tires.

8:59 am
The doors finally open and I head for the service counter. The clerk tells me they only have one model left in stock. By this point, I could care less – if all they had were gold tires with diamond studs, I would gladly pull out my credit card without asking the price. I’m told to come back in six hours.

3:15 pm
Two buses and a 20 minute walk later, I’m back to pick up my car. The new tires look fierce, with lovely big sticky treads. I immediately peel out of the parking lot and race down the snow-packed roads. After years of cautious driving during the winter, I’m looking forward to driving aggressively for the next three months, confident in the knowledge that my magic tires will protect me from harm.

It turns out I had more visitors to my blog in November than any month to date, narrowly edging out February 2007 for the top spot. This was mostly as a result of a significant increase in Google searches – more than twice as many referrals as last month.

The usual searches for Dearlove (8 hits) and Murray Perahia (7) were supplemented by a number of searches for information on Thanksgiving (4), Cosmopolitan cover stories (8), and the JC Penney blog (6). In addition to the slightly creepy “Bob the Builder in stockings and high heels” search, there were a few other odd referrals:

- Beethoven’s favorite skool
- im 12 can i have peaple following me a raund talking pichas at me
- Ottawa pole dance fanatics

I thought I was writing about music and family life, but it turns out what people are really interested in is Murray Perahia and Cosmo. Fortunately, Murray’s on the cover of this month’s magazine, and there’s a feature article on his upcoming Bach and Beethoven recordings. He also reveals the shocking thing 68% of women do in bed. I’m off to the store to pick up my copy and I’ll post some thoughts a little later.