Miatatude

Made a bagel run this morning, because of the rain we did it with the top up. I spent the rest of the morning futzing around with the car in the garage. I cleaned the convertible top with vinyl cleaner and then sprayed it with some 303 protectant. I dismantled the center console to fix the AWD A/C Panel that had taken to sliding down on one end. Two small screws that will be out of sight once the console is reassembled should take care of that. After having driven the new car for a half a week, I decided to unclutter my car by removing some of the stickers I had plastered all over it. I puled a couple of the vent window, relocated one to the windshield. I even took the Warning! sticker off the dash. I think I might go for some coco mats as my next mod. Hard to go wrong at that price.

Purchased Today: $0
Money spent since 03/03/03: $2451.97
Started down, went up, still up.
Top Transitions since 02/02/03: 250

The old car is back in the garage this evening after sleeping around for the last 8 nights. God, it is good to be back in a real Miata again. I always just clucked when confronted with the Father of the Miata, Bob Hall’s, quote, “The NB is a better car, but the NA is a better Miata.” but now I know how right he is having spent 4 days in a second generation Miata. A good part of the “better car” is admittedly that it had 120,000 fewer miles on the clock, but it is structurally stiffer, the interior & dash construction are better thought out and the trunk, while just marginally bigger, is a lot more usable due to the relocation of the spare. Driving a new car is seductive and had this one been a laguna-like blue, I might have been tempted.

The first two or three shifts back in the old Miata I almost hurt my wrist. The new Miata had a pistol style shift lever and the normal short Miata throw, but my car has a smaller round knob and a short shift kit, so I was trying to push too far.

I also missed the audible feedback, the new Miata has a much quieter muffler. The 1st generation has a sweeter sports car rumble, not rice-boy annoying, but just enough to let you know what you are driving.

Purchased Today: $0 on new timing belt
Money spent since 03/03/03: $2451.97
Started up, went down, still down.
Top Transitions since 02/02/03: 249

Kelly called at 5:00 PM to tell me the Miata is ready. Unfortunately it was too late for me to get it and get back for when I wanted, so I told her I’ll get it tomorrow. I went out to run a lunchtime errand and stopped at an old warehouse building and took a couple pictures for posterity.

Purchased Today: $0
Money spent since 03/03/03: $2451.97
Started up, still up.
Top Transitions since 02/02/03: 248

That is the ratio of people at work who didn’t like to liked the Splash Green Miata, so I guess it does take all kinds. Truth be told, I think it looks better in the daylight than in the incandescent light of my garage, but I still wouldn’t own a car that color, got to be bright blue.

We just got our insurance bill in the mail today and I have uncovered a huge accounting mistake – on my part. I haven’t been including that money in the count at the bottom of the page. We pay on a monthly basis, but I never see it as my wife does that stuff. Seeing as I will never remember to put it in monthly I am just going to tack approximately a year’s worth of insurance on today’s post and be done with it.

Purchased Today: $642.60 in insurance
Money spent since 03/03/03: $2451.97
Started up, still up.
Top Transitions since 02/02/03: 248

Typical Sunday for the Miata as it didn’t move all day.

We went for our Sunday morning 25 mile bike ride and man, what a beautiful fall morning for it, sunny, 60’s with low humidity. After we got back it was such a nice day that I sat on the back deck and finished reading a Dick Francis novel I’d started the other day. Lunch out with friends and Mom, so we went in the Honda. The afternoon I watched some playoff baseball on TV, some good – the Red Sox won and some bad – the Yankees won.

What made it slightly unusual, was that the Miata wasn’t in my garage it was in the Rader dealership’s garage.

Purchased Today: $0
Money spent since 03/03/03: $1809.37
Started up, still up.
Top Transitions since 02/02/03: 248

When we left to take Donna’s aunt to the airport I wanted a coozie to put around my daily Diet Dr. Pepper, I got all the way to the garage before I realized that I couldn’t use the one I normally use, the one stored behind the passenger seat of the Miata, because the garage was empty.

Later in the day when Donna pulled her Master’s Miata Club name tag out of her purse and Said. “Oh, here it is.” I said, “When we get home you can put it back in with mine where we normally keep it, in the center console of the Mia…” Nope can’t do that, the garage was empty.

Of course, now would be the perfect time to paint the garage floor with one of those fancy paint finishes especially designed for garages.

Purchased Today: $0
Money spent since 03/03/03: $1809.37
Started up, still up.
Top Transitions since 02/02/03: 248