A short post: I just bought a new Chromebook - there is much to learn for a low entry price.

 

I've been looking for a cheap Chromebook to play with.  My intentions are to use this device when I travel, so that I can see what is happening in the world - as long as I have a WiFi connection.  I was able to get this device for $100, but one gets what one pays for. (And I have no complaints about it.)

Getting used to this device will take some time.  For example, there is the issue of downloading Android apps - I can't seem to get this to work yet.  I also haven't figured out how to create shortcuts to certain features, and leave the links on the dashboard.  And, I have yet to create documents and save them locally. There is much that I have to learn, but it is not as intuitive to me as Windows is.  But I have been using Windows for years, and changes to the interface come slow enough to be easy to learn.  So if anyone has a good site I can use for an introduction to this device, I'd appreciate it if someone would post it in the comment area....

I'm so tired, I haven't slept a wink....

 

 

Today's entry is going to be short.  It was the first day back to work after a long weekend, and it was the first day back to work after an almost sleepless night.  AARGH!

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It took me a while, but I decided NOT to buy the used car.  It was a great buy, but I wasn't in love with the car.  More importantly, as much as I loved the features the car had, it had 25k more miles on its odometer than I would have liked to see on it.  So my plan for this coming weekend now is to spend time at Mavis getting new tires and a brake job on the car. 

RQS and I will be going to a party being held by one of her friends.  I can only imagine what it will be like when I introduce her to more of my friends.  I find it hard to believe that we've been seeing each other for 6 months - especially with my gender presentation.  Luckily, this will not be an issue when we see her friends, as I will dress as Mario to play it safe.

Since I'm tired, I'm going to cut this post short and go to sleep.

See you tomorrow....

The end of a weekend with RQS

As many of my readers are aware, I've had problems with girlfriends dealing with my female gender presentation.  This was a major irritant in my most recent long term relationship, as well as something that got in the way of relationships with two of the women I've dated since then.  However, things have been very different with RQS, as she feels that she is Sapiosexual.  She sees my masculine and feminine sides as two parts of the same person, and seems comfortable with both (for now).

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This weekend, we had an interesting talk about how she'd present me to her family.  I noted that I don't mind seeing them as Mario, as she wasn't sure that they'd either understand me or accept me as Marian.  Luckily, these people live hundreds of miles away, so this wouldn't be much of a problem for us.  I think it will be interesting if she gets comfortable spending days at a time with my Marian persona, as it would be nice to go cruising as Marian with RQS as a partner.

All too soon, I had to drop RQS off at the local train station.  As I got there, there was a 4 wheeled meter maid patrolling the town parking lot.  Who'd have thought that they'd have someone writing tickets on the holiday?  So we killed a few minutes in air conditioned comfort before dropping RQS off at the train station.  At least, she made it home before sundown.

Car Shopping - A Used Car is Suggested.

This weekend, RQS and I went car shopping.  And I'm still not sure if I want to drop the hammer on this car, a 2020 Hyundai Sonata.  The car is nicer than the Elantra I wanted to buy, but it has 2 years of mileage on it.  As I started to write this, it's a flip of the coin that I will buy this car of not.  And if I don't, I'll likely spend the money to put new tires and brakes on my old car, and keep it on the road for at least another year.

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Both of us felt a positive vibe when we entered the salesroom.  Our salesman was eager to see us, and noted that the car we wanted wasn't in stock.  However, this conflicts with the ad I saw online, but I digress...  He asked if I was willing to look at a gently used car, and I said yes.  Within 5 minutes, RQS and I were out on local roads taking a test drive.

Of course, the salesman knew he had a good product and a potential customer.  In some ways, the car could sell itself.  But, given that I am going to reduce my income for the short term when I leave my job, I am a little leery on taking on debt for a used car I am not fully sold on. So I think I will pass on the deal and see if other dealerships for other brands have something I'd like.

Drag Queen Bingo - Much less than I thought it would be.

 

The other day, I went with a meetup group to see "Drag Queen Bingo".  Although it was a pleasant diversion, something was lacking for me.  No, it is not because I am a biological male wearing a dress.  But it's likely to be caused by the humor not entertaining me.

As I get older, it's much harder to get me to laugh.  For the most part, it's a case of none of these jokes seeming fresh.  I get a bigger kick out of old Borscht Belt humor in "Old Jews Telling Jokes." Several years ago, a former girlfriend (not XGFJ) and I saw an Off-Broadway presentation of this humor, and had a great time.  Most of these jokes are timeless, and they still can make people laugh with their whole bodies. (And I'll bet that some people peed themselves laughing....)

Sometime soon, I plan to take RQS to see a regional presentation of these jokes, and expect these jokes will make us laugh as much as they did for our parents' generation.  Much better than seeing a Drag Queen make forgettable jokes - even if the Drag Queen is very friendly.

Headaches in buying a new car - dealership issues....

 

There are precious few people who enjoy buying a new car.  I'm not one of them.  I hate the tactics used to extract money from my picket and out it in their till.  But then, we are a capitalist society, and the automobile market is not a transparent one.  Without having access to as much information as the car dealer, the consumer is bound to make a less than optimal deal.

In my case, I did some research, and was willing to settle on one of the two cars I wanted, but not in the color I wanted.  I can learn to live with a sub optimal color, but not a sub optimal deal.  And I had to send the following message to the dealer to get its attention:


I went to your dealership last Saturday, and asked for internet sales as you directed. However, the man who came to assist us had no idea that I was coming, nor did he initially want to sell the car at the price you and I talked about before some spirited haggling. (This should not have happened - they should have been aware I would be there at mid afternoon, and ready to sell the car at the price you and I discussed. This almost made me walk away to make a deal elsewhere - at another dealership I found who could/would sell the Elantra at MSRP.)

After the haggling and discussion over dinner, I thought we had the basics of a deal laid out. However, after a short email exchange with John J on Monday, I haven't heard anything back from him, and it is information I need to proceed any further with any deal.

1. When do they expect the car to be delivered to the dealership?
2. What interest rate is to be used for your financing? Is there a 36 month option available?
3. What paperwork will I need to pick up the car? (e.g: insurance cards, certified/bank check, etc.)
4. For my trade, I have the original title and the release of lien. Is that enough for you to work with?
5. Specifically what are the doc fees and non tax fees? (I'm pretty sure of what the doc fees should be, but what are the non tax fees?)

Most important, the line item called "<dealer-name> Complete" seems to be padding to add to your firm's bottom line, as there are no details on what this is. I need more information, as I wanted a car at MSRP, and not $977 more than the price should be. (Asking for almost $1000 extra without a good and acceptable explanation of what this covers would be a deal breaker for me.)

Can you help get me the information I need?

Now, I am not in love with this car, and it's a good thing  I don't have to have this car, and can easily do without it.  Additionally, there is another dealer closer to me that says it's willing to do a deal at MSRP.  Part of me wants for my current deal to fall through.  But I am willing to go through with it if my concerns are adequately addressed.

Keep your fingers crossed.

Meetups

 

The above picture is from last year's FTF Prom Meetup.  It's a good group to hang out with, but one from which I am drifting away.  Lately, my weekends are filled with time spent with RQS.  And that's a good thing.  Unlike my previous relationship, RQS is comfortable with me as Marian, though she prefers to see Mario.  This is not a problem for me, as we are learning where each other's limits are in this and other areas of life.

Although I will still go to Yonkers game nights, my heart isn't in the games anymore.  Instead, my heart is into being with people who accept me for who and what I am.  Other meetup groups have mostly fallen by the wayside, as I don't have the interest in spending that much time in these groups, nor do I have the need to use meetups as a way of being with people.

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Tonight, I attended a small meetup at a local craft brewery which held a few games of bingo hosted by a drag queen.  It was interesting to hear the Queen mention an old, now closed, gay bar - "It's been a long while since I've seen you at the B Lounge."  That's one person who had me pegged.  But I had a good time, even though I still have to deal with issues related to buying a new car, getting all parts of Medicare insurance set up (A, B, D, & G), and getting my laundry done before RQS comes here for the weekend.  Will I go to tomorrow's food truck meetup?  Maybe.  But I need to have everything ready to go for laundry to make that happen....