What?! No new VW?

Last night I got a call from Greenbrier VW asking if I wanted to take part in a survey for any new VW of my choice. This was wierd since I already had a 10K mile maintenance appt scheduled for this morning, but I was excited nonetheless. When I was told that I could take a spin in any new VW I assumed that I could have this new VW all day as I waited for my Jetta maintenance to be completed. To my dismay I found out that the new VW was only for a test drive survey and I had to be stuck with some economy domestic model, the Chevy Aveo. As you can imagine, I was a little ticked...but oh well.

This morning wasn't entirely a waste since I did get to see the new VW Tiguan inside and out in person. This mini SUV is a great upgrade, but the gas mileage is 18/24 and I simply smiled at all the BS the salesman fed to me when speaking of the Tiguan's fuel efficiencies! Still taken aback that I wouldn't have this VW all day, I declined the test drive and opted to take the survey, get the rental and move on. I knew all along that I would never be able to afford a new car, so I didn't see any point in teasing myself with a test drive. Since I would have to eventually pass up my Jetta for an economy car anyway, test driving the Aveo made more sense. This thing has power NOTHING and I am still adjusting to that rickety go-cart feeling. It has been YEARS since I had to operate manual locks and windows...holy shite I am so spoiled by my previous cars! All in all, driving this Aveo around town temporarily may be just the medicine I need to prepare for the necessary financial changes I will have to make.
Update: I now have my Jetta Wolfsburg back from the 10K maintenance appt and I couldn't be any happier!! I can recall driving the Aveo and cringing at all of the plastic interior elements and the lack of power controls. Gripping the anorexic steering wheel and tolerating the weak acceleration left a bad impression on me as I made my way down the Interstate highway. Nothing about sitting inside that Chevy reminded me of my beloved German automobile...not even the chrome of the door handles, the gas and trunk switches or even the side airbags.

As much as I disliked driving the red Aveo rental, it really was a wake-up call for what may have to come in the near future. An economy car is a far cry from the luxury that I am accustomed to in my Wolfsburg VW, but overall it could be a necessary stepping stone. After being moved recently by a book entitled "The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch, I am trying to refocus my life and change things for the better. A big part of that involves shedding my materialistic ways and letting go of the overbearing ties to all of my material things. It gets to the point where my life is seemingly ruled by whether or not I can have certain luxuries, and this needs to stop. I need to be at a point where I see material things for the basic purpose they intend to serve instead of the social status it can grant to my image. I need to be a lot more thankful for what I already have and not be so resistive when I have to let something go. From my recent actions in trying to sell my Nokia E90, I am certainly not off to a good start...but I will hopefully get there. These are all just things that will remain on earth once I am gone to be used by someone else or disposed of, and I should keep this in mind. There are more important elements in this life to be mindful of, and whether or not I have the next best thing should never be one of them.

TRENT
Sent from my Nokia E71-2