My new toy

Though I fail regularly, I do try to keep this blog about parenting, especially about foster parenting.

This is another post in which I fail.

I drive a 1993 station wagon with more than 100,000 miles on it. It has character. The button on the driver's side to lock all the doors does not lock, although it will unlock the doors. The back passenger door can't be used at the moment because the inside panel is loose and it is almost impossible to shut once it is open. When you put down the seats for extra room it can be very, very difficult to get them back up. The rear window defroster has not defrosted for years.

And the antenna broke ages ago. When the car was new and shiny the antenna stayed hidden away under the hood until called to duty. As it aged however, it stopped performing as it should. For years it was bent and stuck at half-mast. A few months ago the whole thing started to wobble and when it started flopping around wildly every time I took a turn, Hubby cut the thing off at the base.

So I have been listening to the iP*d or the various rumblings of the engine as I drive around.

Yesterday Hubby took away my car to get me a new antenna at the Mega Electronics Store. I met him later for our belated anniversary dinner and then he took me to the car.

Not only did I have a new antenna, but Hubby had also found time that afternoon to get the car serviced and washed. It was very pretty. I was quite excited, but there was more. He told me to look inside the car.

I have a new radio! It also plays CD's (radios that were put in cars in 1993 don't). The face plate with all the buttons pops off so that it looks pretty much like just a piece of the dash when it is off. It can apparently types of radio signals we don't have around here and could, if I was so inclined, be attached to a CD changer. But the really cool thing is Hubby got an iP*d attachment.

A month ago, you may remember, I rented a car to visit my mother. I was very impressed by this little hole marked AUX which allowed me, after buying a $5 cord at The Evil Empire, play my iP*d through the speakers. I still controlled the iP*d directly.

My new radio however has iP*d controls. There is a circle on the radio which does not work exactly like the wheel on the iP*d, but it is basically the same. I can scroll through the menus, and all the information that is usually on the little iP*d screen is on the radio display.

There is even a little remote control which one could theoretically use to control everything. I'm not certain that it is really safer than reaching -- but I suppose I could hand it to a teenager in the back seat to allow them to control the radio. (Hah! Like that's going to happen!)

Oh...one more thing, perfect for me given the age of my car. If I ever manage to get a new car, Mega Electronic Store will re-install it at no additional charge.