Face and Cars

Sorry for the latest radio silence.

I've been fully indulging in the "free time" I've been granted the past week. Somehow in between the chaos of exams, homework, and studying, everything has somewhat slowed down. 

I don't feel quite as stressed to get everything done. 

I haven't been staring in the mirror wondering where those dark circles under my eyes came from (…cause they're just not there!). 

I've been enjoying exercising (RUNNING! I'M STILL AT IT! YES!), going to bed on time, sleeping in a leeeeeetle later than usual (those extra 15 minutes sure make a difference, let me tell ya), actually sitting down to eat meals, and taking the time to put together outfits that aren't just jeans and whatever fleece is closest within reach. 

I feel like this accurately expresses my feelings about this "free time": 

Miss that face. 

…like, all the time. 

On another (unfortunately not quite so carefree and happy) note, we're thinking about selling our little car and trading it in for one that handles better in the winter. The last time I tried driving it with snow on the road, I got stuck and Husband had to leave work to come bail me out. We need AWD/4WD… Okay, it's ME that needs AWD/4WD…because I am completely inept at snow driving…

Well, that's not totally true, but I will admit that I'm not the greatest or most confident of drivers, especially when it comes to crazy winters with bad lake effect weather. My town is a snow globe. It seriously can be blizzarding here and then just a town away it's completely sunny. I'm not even joking - that happened at least twice last year when I was driving from one town to the next in the middle of January. Since Husband starting riding his electric bike everywhere last year, we decided to only insure one car and put the other in storage. Naturally, since his has AWD, we insure it during snow season and my in-laws graciously allow us to store mine in their garage. 

Poor Husband has suffered at least one winter riding his bike in the snowy weather but he (...barely...) survived. This year, with him living in a bigger city with meaner drivers who try to run him off the road on a regular basis, we're seriously contemplating insuring both cars so he doesn't die just trying to get to class. At this point, that would mean one of us would be stuck with the tiny car that just plain sucks in the winter. Again, poor Husband… 

So, we're looking into other options. I'd prefer a hybrid SUV for better city gas mileage, but with our price range and their popularity, it's going to be tough to find. I wouldn't mind the Ford Escape circa 2006-2007, but from what I've gathered in my research, they're extremely difficult to find, especially ones with satisfactory mileage and condition. I'd also consider the Honda Element between 2004-2006 but they're so dang weird looking…and they're not hybrid. All the reviews rave about the storage capacity and good gas mileage despite it's non-hybrid status but still…that cube look is strange. 

source

Yeah, it's weird...but I kind of like it?

I don't know?

I DON'T KNOW.

Woof.

I don't like car shopping. 

Plus this means I have to figure out how we're actually going to sell our car in order to have funds to buy one of these fancy-schmancy AWD/4WD buggers. 

Double woof. 

Anyone out there have any suggestions?