I hope the injection helps, Burrell, and doesn't need to be repeated.

I can't find my official appraisal from last year with my goals and whatnot, just my draft. And the one from two years ago. What the hell, past self? Where did you put it?

ETA Ha, posting makes it happen! Found it.

Thanks -t, I am still hoping I might not need it, but my hope grows dimmer every week.

Oh, I didn't realize that - I hope you can successfully avoid, then!

Timelies all!

Mr. S is on the waiting list for child care at my work.(There are two on-campus facilities and one off-campus. A third on-campus facility is being built.) I just got an e-mail saying that a spot in the smaller on-campus facility(It's literally a trailer.) is open now. We're trying to figure out what to decide. On the one hand, if we decline he goes to the bottom of the waiting list. On the other hand, Mr. S has been at his current daycare since he was 6 weeks old(he's 20 months now) and has made lots of friends.

We have to decide by Thursday. Sigh...

Ugh, that sounds bad Burrell. :( I just made a massage appointment with a friend's massage therapist she recommended. Hoping that might help.

Ok, here is what I do when I buy a car. First step is deciding on a price range and getting pre-approval for a loan through my credit union. Since I have done my banking there for over ten years, that's a breeze. I don't really know which is more predatory for lending - big banks or car dealerships; but it can't hurt to chat with your bank to see what their car loan deals are like so you can compare what's in offer at the dealership.

I prefer buying cars from individuals rather than dealerships, so my next step is scouring online listings (Daniel and his cousin the mechanic often help with this step). When I find a likely listing, I call and make arrangements to see the car. Cousin Steve likes going car shopping and often accompanies us to give the car an expert once-over; but when I was on my own, I would take any used car to a mechanic shop for an inspection. If they charge a fee, it's usually in the $40 neighborhood (although that was a decade ago); for an established customer, they might do the inspection as a courtesy and not charge you. At a dealership, I generally told them at the start of the test drive that I driving the thing to my mechanic to be looked at. The only time the dealership ever gave me an attitude about that, the guy said, "You can take it anywhere but [my chosen mechanic]." I walked out then and there. One advantage of buying from an individual rather than a dealership, is that they can usually give you a fairly accurate idea of how careful the maintenance has been, and what bits have been replaced recently. (God bless growing families who get tired of hauling car seats in and out of compact cars, especially when Daddy takes special care of the car his lady has been driving the babies to day care in.)

Ok, so when I find a car I like, and an all-clear from an expert, it's time to settle on a price. At a dealership, I have no shame in low-balling them; at somebody's driveway, I ask, "Will you accept [amount that is maybe 10% lower than asking price)?" Often they agree; sometimes they counter with a different amount. If they counter with a long list of recent repairs, and I am willing to meet their asking price, I don't quibble. Now, this is the part that goes faster at a dealership - if you have pre-approval from your bank, basically they fax the loan paperwork to the dealership, and all you have to do is sign where they tell you. The bank gets the money to the dealership, you get the keys, no muss, no fuss, no bother. If you are going to get financed through the dealership, they will have an office set up where you fill out the loan application electronically or otherwise. They will tell you what to do. If you are buying from an individual, then you ask if they will accept a cashier's check or how they would prefer the funds. You go to your bank where they will give you instructions about the title, and you sign the bits they tell you to sign, get the check or cash and take it to the person you are buying the car from to trade the money for the keys and have them fill out the bit on the title that says they are selling it to you. Get a bill of sale from them, handwritten does work, in case you get pulled over before you get a chance to transfer the title at the DMV. Different states do different things with regard to license plates - some places the plates stay with the car, some places the plates stay with the person they are registed under.

Oh! If you don't have a car now, you don't have car insurance. You might do well to start shopping around and get yourself an insurance agent that you can get set up so when you do buy the car, all you have to do is let them know you've done the deed so you can start a policy.

There may also be tag and title fees which may not show up in the car purchase numbers. I'd check with your DMV to see what to expect.

In bizarro car news, the dealership I bought my car from has been pestering me to buy my car back. It's not an automated bot, recall or anything, just the gm I've exchanged email with before, it's just weird. I'm guessing the resale value is going up. So I finally bothered to reply with "unless you can give me current model at what I have left in 0% loan -about 1.2K, minus increased insurance-with trade in or full sale in a new model- ya gotta leave me alone. You can laugh now."

Can't wait for the response. (Or lack thereof.)

My worklife is on fire. Even my Pollyanna boss is starting to sound like eyeore me. This is concerning.

Thank you Windsparrow! That is perfect! It still seems sort of overwhelming to do without a car-- maybe I have to rent a car to buy a car?

On my phone now, but I'll comment on the car stuff in the morning. (I'm in automotive fleet management and I worked for one of the Big 3 previously, so I have access to lots of info that may be helpful.)

Andi's advice is good. I'll try to fill in the holes if you would rather use a dealership.