Daily Lemonade Journal + Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Photo credit: crews1972.com

Turning lemons into sweet, delicious lemonade

Who doesn't enjoy a nice glass of lemonade? I'm a firm believer in finding the good in every situation, every story, every movie, every struggle and every observance. Life is full to the brim with negativity if we choose to allow it, and it's also fuller with positivity and happiness and gratitude and opportunities for appreciating the goodness when we choose to see it.When life hands you a lemon, say thank you for the gift and enjoy that shit! Lemons are super delicious and chock full of beneficial nutrients and vitamins that are wonderfully beneficial to us and have thousands of uses! 

Below is my first entry in what I'll call the daily lemonade journal:

A couple of weekends back, my SUV got wrecked by the porter at Car Spa. He lost control as he exited the wash bay, ran on the curb and smothered a sturdy metal and concrete sign, ripping off the Ford emblem, license plate holder and doing $5000 worth of damage. The sign got uprooted from its secure home in the grass, ripping wiring and structure as it wedged itself under my front passenger floorboard. The manager came inside to get me immediately and showed me the damage, My initial reaction was calm and collected, but shifted from relaxed to politely controlling. I vowed to stay with him (Duke, my Expedition) while the interior process began and supervise every move. The manager was apologetic and efficient in his process of getting the necessary paperwork sorted, explaining the next steps and giving the information to a great auto repair shop nearby. He ensured everything would be completely taken care of by Car Spa with no out of pocket expense to me and offered to pay for a rental car. I graciously declined since I have Oxford (Mini Cooper) that is just a joy to bop around in.

I've had Duke since 2008, when I bought him brand new, in the heights of $4/gallon gas prices and very near the financial market collapse. There were amazing rebates on SUVs during that time, so I lept at the savings. He and I have been through everything together: moves, road trips, break ups, new dates, friends, driving at all hours of the day and night to and fro. Aside from Zephyr, he is my longest relationship and a very stable fixture in my life. To say I love a material item is an easy statement here. I love him. I've kept up the maintenance like a responsible driver, washed him, appreciated him, treated him very well, and he has treated me and my loved ones well through the years. People ask why I keep it since I have the Mini. I keep it because I have the Mini. I paid Duke off with a bonus in early 2014 and I can't imagine life without him. I want to keep him forever, as my Papa kept his Model A. To do that, I will keep him in good working order for as long as possible. The day he was damaged, I was just grateful someone else was financially responsible instead of me filing on my insurance. It'd have probably been totaled and to be quite frank, that would completely suck.

The following business day, I took him for an estimate at the shop owned by a very kind and professional gentleman. Solutions Automotive is a small outfit, and a welcoming shop. Joe is an honest, standup type of guy. I was a bit more at ease after meeting with him about the whole thing, though I wasn't very rattled with it to begin with. Joe mentioned my calm and collected nature as I showed him the damage, and I told him of how my Papa bought salvaged cars, repaired them to look like new again and sold them off to new owners. He taught himself the business and craft while in the Army in Europe, and set up shop when he returned and married my Nana. I grew up knowing the smell of grease, sweat and paint, seeing cars that were wrecked into the most horrendous conditions and with some resourcefulness and manpower, made pretty and drivable again. A few months before my 16th birthday, my mom and Greg started dating. Greg is a mechanic and wrecker driver, Throughout my entire life, I've seen hundreds of wrecked vehicles, from ones with minor dings to ones involved in fatal wrecks resulting in severed bodies, knee meat on the corner of a tool box and brain matter on the windshield. (PSA: wear your seatbelt and drive the speed limit. Every wreck my bonus dad works and tells about happens because of drivers driving at unsafe speeds. Most injuries are due to wearing a seatbelt improperly. Some have been injured from flying objects during the impact. Buckle up, and be safe out there!) Duke's damage is minor in comparison to what I've seen, with a few blemishes on the hood, bumper, fender and a damaged catalytic converter. It can all be easily repaired and no one was hurt.

Both gentlemen I've interacted with during this process have been surprised at my composure and understanding nature. The car wash manager has been very helpful and responsive in getting the funds issued to me and I highly recommend Car Spa in Allen, especially after this experience. 

Chase Sapphire Reserve

When I picked up the check yesterday or the damage repair, Aaron also gave me cards for two free washes. The real kicker here is ... hehehehe I'm giggling so hard right now as I think about it! I applied for the Chase Sapphire Reserve card a few weeks back and didn't get approved, for whatever reason. Once I got the estimate for the repair, I applied again and got approved. Once you spend $4000 in the first 3 months, you're awarded with 100,000 bonus points. Bada bing bada fucking boom ... I'll pay for the repair on my card and get the bonus points in one transaction! That amount of points is worth upwards of $1500 in travel. BOOM shaka-laka! 

Secret Shopper 

Last week, I had some free time and read a blog posted by The Penny Hoarder & signed up for a secret shopper program. Upon login, there was an entry that immediately caught my eye and met my needs. The Mini of Plano dealership had an opportunity open, with one of the services to have performed being an oil change. Ta fucking da! Oxford was due for an oil change. I signed up, made the appointment with the dealership and made myself a reminder on my phone app. Another credit card points opportunity: pay for it with my new CSR card and get the 80 points, and also get the oil change and tolls paid for by the secret shopper company. BOOM! Oil change at a net out of pocket to me of $0. 

Discount Tire

A few months ago, Oxford had a flat tire. No biggy. I went to Discount Tire, left him there to be patched while I Uber'd home and back a few hours later. When I picked him up, we headed to Target and the tire was flat again when I came out, half an hour later! Well shit. It was late in the day by that time, so I drove him home to get on with the weekend and would take care of on Monday morning. 

Monday morning came & I headed straight to Discount Tire where I was greeted by the gentleman that helped me just two days before. The lines were growing increasingly longer by the second, and since I was back for something that should've been already fixed, they bumped me up in the line. I walked out to the far corner of the parking lot to find a quiet space to take a work conference call while I waited, and upon returning inside, was met with a pleasant surprise during the checkout process ... they'd fully replaced the tire at their expense. While I wasn't expecting that, I was extremely grateful for it. I've been to Discount Tire many times, and only once have I actually paid for anything. I put a new tire on Duke last summer out of necessity because a nail had punctured the previous one and was unrepairable. They cover many things complementary and always with a professional and courteous manner. They'll get my business in the next couple of months when I need to replace tires on little Oxford. 

Sell before donate
On Sunday morning, I gathered some clothes I no longer enjoy or wear and took them to Plato's Closet to sell. $36.40 back for 12 items. Not bad! (Side note: not buying clothes you don't love in the first place is the best method of money saving/earning, not buying them and thinking "meh, skip" each time you scroll past them hanging in your closet, only to deal with later on.) While I waited, I popped over to Jo-Ann's Fabrics and used the 60% off one full priced item and got a new cutting mat for my leather working hobby/business. 

Today's entry made short, if there's a deal to be had, I will find a way, whether by asking directly or simply being open to abundance.