It's official — the Evo is sold, and I'm holding the check in my hands. As much as I loved that car, it's an incredible relief to be rid of the financial burden. I ended up letting it go for $23,000 — a ridiculously low price for that car, especially considering the inflated price of all cars in Puerto Rico. But I'm OK with that. The economy in PR is just not very good right now, and it was pretty clear that most people just couldn't afford to spend that kind of money on a sports car. And I did still get money back above what I owed on the car, so it's hard to feel too upset about the price.

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I made it to Clemson without too much trouble. They took their time carefully checking all of my computer and camera equipment at the airport, but after that they let me through without a fuss. The computer fit fine in the overhead bin, and the box I sent as luggage arrived without damage. That went surprisingly well.

Scotty picked me up in his gold automatic '82 MK2 Supra L-Type, which is good, because my stuff probably wouldn't have fit in the Civic. I had forgotten how much I like MK2 Supras. His gold '82 is a very pretty car, despite a few spots of rust here and there, and mechanically it's in great shape — it only has 82k miles, which is damn impressive for a 24-year-old car.

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I haven't posted in a while, I know. I've been busy making the preparations to move to Covington, LA — a town about an hour away from New Orleans. I'm excited as hell about the move — it's something I've been really wanting for years. I've already got an apartment in the same apartment complex as my friends Bryan and Cat. My move-in date is September 8. My car is up for sale — I'll be back in the good ol' cow-spotted Civic once I get back up there. I'm also giving thought to the idea of beginning to consider packing. Fortunately, I never really unpacked when I moved down here two and a half years ago. Most of my belongings are still in boxes, so it should be a much easier move this time around. Hooray for practically living out of a suitcase for two years.

In other news, today is System Administrator Appreciation Day. I don't need to be showered with expensive sports cars (that would hurt), but perhaps a peck on the cheek would be appropriate. You do like receiving your email, right? I'm just sayin'.

I picked up the Evo from the body shop a week after dropping it off. They did a good job. It's so nice to have the car whole again.

Amy graduated last week, so on Monday night she and Andrés planned to fly down to PR for a two-week visit before going up to Boston to find a place to live. However, their flight out of Chicago was cancelled due to bad weather, and the next flight didn't leave until the next morning, so they had to spend the night there. And apparently, the airline won't give you a hotel room for the night if the flight was cancelled due to weather, so they had to find and pay for one themselves. Fair or unfair? (All) Unfair!

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Since my grandparents are out of the island for a month and I have the use of their cars, I finally have an opportunity to get the damage on the passenger door of my own car fixed. Yesterday I dropped the car off at the body shop. It's kind of exciting to be finally getting it done. The guy said to call on Friday to see if it was ready. I was originally planning on claiming this repair work against my insurance, but it turns out that the cost is just barely above my deductable, so I'm not sure if it's worth it.

The guy was friendly and knowledgeable, which is very reassuring. I've always found it really difficult to find good car repairmen (whatever the specialty) that really know what they're doing. Back in Clemson, I had found a great exhaust shop — Glenn's Muffler Shop, in Seneca. I knew that if I needed anything done related to welding or tubing, they could do it well, cheaply, and with a great helpful attitude. I was sad to give that up when I left the area. This shop seemed to give me that same impression. We'll see how good the results are.

As I got out of my car at the photo lab, a guy walked over, checked out my car, and asked, "Which one is this?"

"It's a 2004 Lancer Evolution," I replied.
"Oh. It looks like the fast one."
"It, uh... It is."
"What?"
"It is the fast one."

I felt really awkward pointing that out. It reminded me of an interview I saw on TV years ago with the guy from The Prodigy. He talked about how he once went to a club with his dual mohawk thing, and people started making fun of him, saying, "Ha ha, he thinks he's the Firestarter!" He said, "I let them have their fun. What can you do? I couldn't say, 'I am the Firestarter.'"

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It's time to change my oil, so yesterday I stopped by Pep Boys to pick up the needed supplies. While browsing the aisles, I discovered that they sell used, "professionally cleaned" coveralls. They are stained with grease and oil and most had a hole or two in them, but they were cheap as hell; about $3-4. I was tempted to get some, but it scared me. The idea that some sweaty auto mechanic has spent days toiling under a hot undercarriage in them is difficult to get over, no matter how well certified the cleaners were. Still, now that it's time to go out and change my oil, I realize that I didn't bother to ship down my grease-stained coveralls when I moved to PR, so I guess I have to find my least-favorite jeans and t-shirt to sully. I kind of wish I'd spent the $3 on the hairy-man-sweat-laden coveralls at the auto parts store.

I have yet to have an easy, straightforward oil changing experience with my dealer. A previous entry discusses my last attempt to get my oil changed, requiring a total of three visits before they finally accepted my car. It seems each time you go, they give you one more small bit of information, and little by little you try to piece together all the clues that theoretically should eventually enable you to achieve a straightforward transaction. There is always such a rift between theory and practice, though.

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Andrés and I made a midnight run to Walgreens to pick up a prescription my parents had dropped off earlier for my mom. On the way out of the parking lot, some guy in an SUV waves his hands and flags me down. Suspicious, I stop and roll down my window (inconspicuously shifting into first). He tells me he's got a magnetic oil plug for my car and asks if I want to buy it. I say no thanks. He explains that he's go an Evo as well, but it's in the shop getting painted. I nod my approval and drive off.

A minute later, I pull up to a stoplight where a cop has pulled someone over. I joke to Andrés that it'd be funny if I got pulled over, since my renewed license is supposed to be available tomorrow. A knock at the window. The cop asks me to pull in front of his car.

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Isn't having your oil changed supposed to be easier than doing it yourself? Ugh. My car was 800 miles overdue for an oil change. Normally I'd do it myself, but the Evo comes with a free "PitPass™" maintenance contract which includes oil change (with Mobil1 Synthetic, which is better but significantly more expensive than dino oil), tire rotation, 27-point inspection, car wash, and vacuum; so I figure I'll make use of that as long as I have it. Also, there was a service bulletin pending on my car so I needed to bring it in anyway.

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