It’s actually a really good thing that so much crap happened over the holidays, because ever since we got back we’ve both been so slammed at work that we haven’t had much to write about happen and I haven’t had much time to write about it.  So that’s a good thing, I guess.

But anyhow, the fact that I’m here in Seattle writing about our time in California means that we did in fact successfully get home somehow.  As of Sunday, Jan 3rd, at 3:30 pm, I had no idea how or when that was going to happen.  12 hours later, we were on the road.

How does that happen when the car we drove down is still minus one wheel and hasn’t even begun to be worked on?

Easy.  You get another car.

My beloved old Mini had been starting to show it’s age and we’d been talking about retiring it eventually, and thanks to the craptastic economy and a promotional APR, we got a pretty sweet deal (even my dad was impressed, which is hard to do, as he’s a master car negotiator- as a child I watched as he made a car salesman cry over the deal he secured on our first minivan).

I know that it sounds a bit weird to buy a car while you’re on vacation.  In fact, I only know of one other person who’s ever done it (again, that would be my dad, who bought the afore-mentioned minivan while we were on a camping trip).  But, as my dear friend Scott said, “Only you and Mike would buy a new car for a drive up the West coast.  And rationalize it as sane.  I think that’s why I love you guys.”  (This coming from the guy who flew to Munich for 3 hours so he could retain Executive Platinum status with American Airlines.  We really are soulmates.)

So anyways, we picked up the car Monday at noon and packed it up.  Few things are more entertaining in life than an overstuffed Mini:

And we were off to San Francisco!

With one last stop at In n Out on the way.

(Don’t be alarmed- that’s an iced tea in my cup.  Not that I ever closed my eyes and WISHED it was a Diet Coke.  ::le sigh::)