Welcome, @mregosd and @GettingCut70!

@Gettingcut70, congratulations on your weight loss accomplishments: So wonderful!

@mregosd, don't sweat about the weigh-in: It's just a snapshot of your body's momentary relationship with gravity, not any kind of measure of your worth as a human being. :flowerforyou: Furthermore, it's like a numerical "before picture": If you have a high number now, you'll have more to brag about later. Your goals look great, and very achievable with the right plan.

I'll look forward to reading updates/comments from both of you here. I'll be cheering for you!

These are terrible photos, but there were two really unusual things I saw on my bike ride today (22+ miles, longest so far this Spring0:

1. Camels. Two! They're hard to see, I admit.


2. A giant snow pile/pond on a 70F+ (21C+) day. There were two, each likely literal tons of snow; this is just one. They're manufactured snow, from a local park with a sledding run. I wish I'd caught the placidly swimming ducks alongside. You can barely see one, just to right of center next to the snow pile.

I think I mentioned on the outdoor exercise photos thread that I crashed my car, thankfully no one hurt, it got totaled (2009 model, parts expensive, blah blah blah). Today was "visit dealerships" day. Ugh.

With a little luck, tomorrow may be "make a deal" day, and with super big luck, maybe even "acquire new car" day. If I'm not in a new car tomorrow, I'm hoping for no later than Monday. Tomorrow would be good, though. Or Friday. Everything is as lined up as it can be without a written-up deal, including how to pay for it.

I hate the rental Nissan Sentra: Squinchy-tiny rear window I can't see out of well, uncomfortable seat (why do they think I'm a hunchback?), I keep whacking my head on the roof when I get in (so low, and I'm used to a RAV4). I guess it's cute and sporty - which is not my jam: It feels more like a midlife crisis car than a li'l ol' boat lady car.

Am I supposed to say something related to health, weight management or fitness? I found this "visit dealers" thing quite stressful, but I didn't eat or drink anything stupid in misplaced compensation. I came home, ate normal sensible tasty things, and did 63 minutes on the BikeErg to burn off some fight or flight hormones.

How's everybody else?

Mission accomplished. Here it is, looking more shiny and pristine than it ever will again in its lifetime:



It's a 2024 Honda CRV Sport Hybrid (AWD).

My car "philosophy", if that's a thing, is to buy new and keep for a long time. I'm no mechanic, so I'm reassured by knowing that what I'm driving hasn't been abused or under-maintained. I'd had the previous car (2009 Toyota RAV4) for about 15 years, and I'd still be driving it - probably for several more years - if I hadn't crunched it, or the insurance company hadn't totaled it. I'm not careful with my cars cosmetically, but am careful about functional maintenance. There's a non-zero chance that this could be my last car ever, if I don't repeat the RAV's early demise.

@mtaratoot, if anything, I think I wore the dealer/sales guy down, or out. Once I decided on a make and approximate model, I was pushing for speedy resolution. This morning, I called for a "can we make a deal" appointment, which was at 1PM. By their 6PM close (OK, 6:03), I was driving out in it, though I'll have to go back for a couple of things, like roof rack rails they didn't have in stock. There were a lot of steps in there, given the financing, insurance, rental car, etc.

Also, I'm a very curious woman (probably in multiple senses). I ask very, very many questions, some of them unfair, and apparently some of them . . . statistically unusual? They (sales guy & manager) did try hard to answer, I'll give them that. They were good to work with, not pushy. I went in with the best idea I could get online of how much I might be able to negotiate on this thing that's a very popular vehicle, was assertive, and I feel like I got a decent result. I got little extra, don't know whether I could've gotten more by being a jerk, but I won't do that.

I couldn't be happier to be out of the rental Nissan Sentra, for reasons I mentioned in my PP. Not the car for me! Buh-bye to that, with enthusiasm.

I (well, husband and I) had a Honda a few cars back, and I liked it. I hope I'm going to like this one, too. For sure, given the radical changes in cars since 2009, the owner's manual will be bedtime reading for a while.

UncleMac wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

Mission accomplished. Here it is, looking more shiny and pristine than it ever will again in its lifetime:



It's a 2024 Honda CRV Sport Hybrid (AWD).

My car "philosophy", if that's a thing, is to buy new and keep for a long time. I'm no mechanic, so I'm reassured by knowing that what I'm driving hasn't been abused or under-maintained. I'd had the previous car (2009 Toyota RAV4) for about 15 years, and I'd still be driving it - probably for several more years - if I hadn't crunched it, or the insurance company hadn't totaled it. I'm not careful with my cars cosmetically, but am careful about functional maintenance. There's a non-zero chance that this could be my last car ever, if I don't repeat the RAV's early demise.

@mtaratoot, if anything, I think I wore the dealer/sales guy down, or out. Once I decided on a make and approximate model, I was pushing for speedy resolution. This morning, I called for a "can we make a deal" appointment, which was at 1PM. By their 6PM close (OK, 6:03), I was driving out in it, though I'll have to go back for a couple of things, like roof rack rails they didn't have in stock. There were a lot of steps in there, given the financing, insurance, rental car, etc.

Also, I'm a very curious woman (probably in multiple senses). I ask very, very many questions, some of them unfair, and apparently some of them . . . statistically unusual? They (sales guy & manager) did try hard to answer, I'll give them that. They were good to work with, not pushy. I went in with the best idea I could get online of how much I might be able to negotiate on this thing that's a very popular vehicle, was assertive, and I feel like I got a decent result. I got little extra, don't know whether I could've gotten more by being a jerk, but I won't do that.

I couldn't be happier to be out of the rental Nissan Sentra, for reasons I mentioned in my PP. Not the car for me! Buh-bye to that, with enthusiasm.

I (well, husband and I) had a Honda a few cars back, and I liked it. I hope I'm going to like this one, too. For sure, given the radical changes in cars since 2009, the owner's manual will be bedtime reading for a while.

Looks very good. Pre=divorce I bought a 2011 Toyota Tundra and I loved it... 8 years later, I crashed the Tundra. I went back to the dealership where I got the 2011, explained what had happened... and got basically the exact same truck 2019 model... Year 5 of ownership and I'm loving it too. Toyota added a few more bells and whistles... I prefer basic, actually... but it's solid, quiet and reliable.

Another RAV4 was also on my shortest short list. Honestly, one of the biggest factors was that the local Honda dealer had several CRVs (various trim levels) on the lot and available, but local Toyota needed to swap with a sister shop a ways down the road to even get one I could see in person. I would've been happy to own either make, but because I valued speed (of the deal, not the vehicle) in this case, Honda won out.

Insurance company was covering the rental Sentra through Monday, and I could've kept it for around $31/day afterward, but I really wanted to be out of that scull-bruising, limited-vision, back-paining, cute sporty blue thing that I couldn't even put my bike in if I needed to.

mtaratoot wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

Mission accomplished. Here it is, looking more shiny and pristine than it ever will again in its lifetime:

Honda makes very good automobiles. I know people who won't drive anything else. I've been a Toyota person since 1987 when I bought a ten year old Celica. I would be happy to drive a Honda automobile, but maybe not a truck, although they seem to even be making good trucks these days.

I'm happy for you that you can close the book on this chapter, although I wish you didn't have to let the older car go. I'm with you on the buy once cry once. I never EVER thought I'd buy a new vehicle. I looked for years to find my truck. I found a couple that were close. I found one REALLY close, but there was a brand new one next to it for "only" a thousand dollars more. I took that one and took very good care of it mechanically. I always tell my mechanic, "There's nothing wrong with my truck; that's why I'm bringing it in."

My ex was considering a CRV. There were a few things she liked better about the RAV. I'm sure you'll love the new car. Enjoy it. If you ever buy another car, it won't be liquid fueled. I may buy one more liquid fueled vehicle if I have to replace the truck. After that, it will be motors at the wheels and no engine.

I was hoping I could hold onto the RAV long enough that full electric would be a more viable choice for someone with my vehicle needs, as well as when the support infrastructure is more built-out in the US. I really don't want to own two vehicles, one for local without boats and such, another for long trips and hauling inconveniently-shaped things. (I'm not saying I think it's wrong for others to have 2, just that it's not my jam. After my husband died, I had a full-sized (old school full sized ) pickup truck plus a car for a while, and it was more trouble than help for me, so I sold the truck. It was a relief.)

I think I will like the hybrid. I think I've put around 30-something miles on it, maybe 40, mostly non-liquid-fueled. So far, so good.

Today, I figured out the basics of Android Auto. Amusing (to me) moment when I went to Best Buy to quickly pick up what my phone said was needed: A USB-A to USB-C cable that was 3' or less long, and that had been USB-IF certified within the last two years. I was standing in the aisle at BB with my phone in one hand and a cable box in the other, and asked a young man in a blue shirt to help me. I was puzzling over the "last 2 years" part, and couldn't find their cable on the USB-IF online certification list at usb.org.

I won't belabor the whole kind of lengthy conversation in which he politely asked me multiple questions I already knew the answers to, and kindly told me less than I'd already figured out.

Finally, I decided to buy the $6 cable, and see if it worked. (He did tell me I could return it within 5 days if it didn't work, which was helpful. Other than that, he'd genuinely tried. ) Thanking him as I walked away, I said "You probably didn't expect me to ask that question". With a certain amount of sincere emphasis, he said that he did not.

The cable worked.

I do have one small bump: I asked the dealer for a 2" hitch to accommodate my Thule multi-bike rack, and they mixed a hitch into the deal. That seemed easier than going to aftermarked, as I'd done with the RAV. When I got the car home, I realized they'd given me a 1.25" hitch. Oops. I emailed, they were good, but they don't have a 2" hitch assembly, though they have a 2" adaptor for the 1.25" hitch. We'll see if that works. Hope so, otherwise we'll need to talk.

mtaratoot wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

mtaratoot wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

Mission accomplished. Here it is, looking more shiny and pristine than it ever will again in its lifetime:

Honda makes very good automobiles. I know people who won't drive anything else. I've been a Toyota person since 1987 when I bought a ten year old Celica. I would be happy to drive a Honda automobile, but maybe not a truck, although they seem to even be making good trucks these days.

I'm happy for you that you can close the book on this chapter, although I wish you didn't have to let the older car go. I'm with you on the buy once cry once. I never EVER thought I'd buy a new vehicle. I looked for years to find my truck. I found a couple that were close. I found one REALLY close, but there was a brand new one next to it for "only" a thousand dollars more. I took that one and took very good care of it mechanically. I always tell my mechanic, "There's nothing wrong with my truck; that's why I'm bringing it in."

My ex was considering a CRV. There were a few things she liked better about the RAV. I'm sure you'll love the new car. Enjoy it. If you ever buy another car, it won't be liquid fueled. I may buy one more liquid fueled vehicle if I have to replace the truck. After that, it will be motors at the wheels and no engine.

I was hoping I could hold onto the RAV long enough that full electric would be a more viable choice for someone with my vehicle needs, as well as when the support infrastructure is more built-out in the US. I really don't want to own two vehicles, one for local without boats and such, another for long trips and hauling inconveniently-shaped things. (I'm not saying I think it's wrong for others to have 2, just that it's not my jam. After my husband died, I had a full-sized (old school full sized ) pickup truck plus a car for a while, and it was more trouble than help for me, so I sold the truck. It was a relief.)

I think I will like the hybrid. I think I've put around 30-something miles on it, maybe 40, mostly non-liquid-fueled. So far, so good.

Today, I figured out the basics of Android Auto. Amusing (to me) moment when I went to Best Buy to quickly pick up what my phone said was needed: A USB-A to USB-C cable that was 3' or less long, and that had been USB-IF certified within the last two years. I was standing in the aisle at BB with my phone in one hand and a cable box in the other, and asked a young man in a blue shirt to help me. I was puzzling over the "last 2 years" part, and couldn't find their cable on the USB-IF online certification list at usb.org.

I won't belabor the whole kind of lengthy conversation in which he politely asked me multiple questions I already knew the answers to, and kindly told me less than I'd already figured out.

Finally, I decided to buy the $6 cable, and see if it worked. (He did tell me I could return it within 5 days if it didn't work, which was helpful. Other than that, he'd genuinely tried. ) Thanking him as I walked away, I said "You probably didn't expect me to ask that question". With a certain amount of sincere emphasis, he said that he did not.

The cable worked.

I do have one small bump: I asked the dealer for a 2" hitch to accommodate my Thule multi-bike rack, and they mixed a hitch into the deal. That seemed easier than going to aftermarked, as I'd done with the RAV. When I got the car home, I realized they'd given me a 1.25" hitch. Oops. I emailed, they were good, but they don't have a 2" hitch assembly, though they have a 2" adaptor for the 1.25" hitch. We'll see if that works. Hope so, otherwise we'll need to talk.

Get the 2" hitch, not an adapter. Even if you don't need a Class 3 hitch, why not get one if that's what it was supposed to be? They are beefier and will tow 5000 pounds with more tongue weight than a Class 2 hitch. My RAV4 is only rated to tow 3500 pounds, but it's got a Class 3 hitch on it. Fits my trailer. Fits my bike rack.

I have some guilt about having two vehicles. If I had to pare down to one, I think I'd keep the 27 year old truck rather than the 12 year old RAV. That said, it was very nice to drive the RAV today to go hiking. And it was good hiking. Lots of wildflowers and lots of waterfalls. Well, ten waterfalls. I can list some of the wildflowers. Sadly, one that was very widespread may be an exotic invasive.

I don't tow at this time. I just need to mount my bike rack. The vehicle itself will only tow 1000 pounds.

At this point, I just want to get through this very much unplanned phase and back to my regularly-scheduled life. On-water season is imminent. I'll be the open rowing coordinator this season. I have many yard, garden, home and other rowing club chores. I'm still feeling fatigued as a generality, possibly related to the mystery health condition.

This is sub-optimal decision making on my part, and I know it. I don't really care, TBH. 🤷 If I'd known up front they couldn't do 2", I would've skipped it and gone aftermarket. Probably not right away, either. There are other irons in the fire, trying to finalize lawn and some other services from the same company for this season, a forced change in internet provider (probably twice within a couple of months), the health weirdness follow-up, starting to find contractors for $$$$ home repairs/improvements, and more. I feel overwhelmed.

I don't think this is the dealer wearing me down, either . . . because details. I think it was a sincere error on the sales guy's part, fumble in the handoff to the service department, because I was pressing super hard for them to get that car ready to go very fast. All of this was happening on Thursday between between 1PM and 6PM, after my first walk-in visit to that dealer on Wednesday afternoon.

If the bike rack works, I'll be fine. If not, I'll make them take it off and give me back $$.

BTW, you posted a nice pink wildflower on the workout thread elsewhere. What is that? It looks vaguely pea family, but I'm a bad botanist. ETA: NVM, on your other post in this group, I see that it's a less obvious view of a nice bleeding heart, poppy family.

I'm glad I asked then, since I'd identified incorrectly. (Not surprising .)

You're still ahead of where we are here Spring-wise, though we only have partial overlap in common wildflowers. No fawn lily (which I'd usually call trout lily by common name) here yet, though it's been a few days since I've been anywhere they're plentiful.

One of the joys in my current semi-chaos is the view from my living room. I live in a weird house, all main living areas on the 2nd floor. (Previous owner brought in a house mover, raised the house off a crawl space to make a full-height basement. Not an ideal plan!) The photos below are taken outside on my front 2nd-floor deck, outside the living room. (I tried a photo from inside, but the houseplants - especially a multi-feet ranging Hoya - obscure the camera's view/exposure. )

There's a dogwood (obviously), and behind it some kind of pink fluffy ornamental Prunus sp. (can't recall whether they called it a cherry or plum, same genus either way, was here when we bought). Looking straight down from the deck, there's an amazing fragrant Viburnum. Realizing when I went out that it's quite warm, I've opened a living room window so the scent can waft in. The scent reaches many tens of feet outdoors, and will come indoors freely as well.





These are among the things that make my Spring happy.