Ya girl got a new ride!

The Sentra was turning into a hoopty. The car had some body damage, the transmission was on its way to heaven, and the damn shit acted like it didn't want to accelerate no matter how much I baby-talked it with the pedal to the floor. I had the car for three years. It was an '03 but it looked and drove like I had it for five or ten. It was time for that piece of junk metal to exit stage left. Think about it - how many Nissan Sentras do you see on the road that are more than five years old? If you do its in the slow lane on the freeway or on the side of the road getting a jump.

My own Mama, who pitches a fit every time I even breathe a word about either moving out or buying a new car, even told me after riding in the Sentra on the way to the mall on Tuesday, "Girl, you need to get another car. I don't think this one is going to make it to Saturday." I wasn't actively thinking about getting another car...it was something I would have liked but it wasn't on my to-do list for the immediate future. I said, damn if she's telling me I need a new car, I should consider it.

The first issue I was confronted with was money. My savings are paltry because I insist on having a life. I didn't have a down payment. All I had was that raggedy ass Sentra. I literally went down to Schaier's Nissan in Signal Hill on a wing and a prayer.

I went down, perused the lot, and test drove the 2007 Nissan Altima. I don't know any other way to describe that car other than sexy and fabulous. Perfect for me. It complements me. ;-)

I fell in love during the test drive. I'm not even an Altima fan, I originally wanted a Murano. But this car has power everything, MP3 and blue tooth hookups, it's spacious, sleek...I was smitten. I chose precision grey, between silver and charcoal grey.

Then came the talk of numbers. Somehow I negotiated with the dealer to postdate the down payment over my next two pay periods. And apparently I was in good standing with the finance company because I paid the car note on the Sentra in full and on-time every month, so I got approved for another loan with ease. And, I found out that my credit score was up 30 points from the last time I checked it six months ago. I walked in that piece with no money and walked out in two hours with a brand new car! If I don't have a testimony, then I don't know what it is. God is good!

You know I thought I was the shiznit walking out of there. Couldn't tell me nothin! The car draws so much attention. And I look fabulous driving it. When I was driving down the street I got a lot of looks, and this morning on my way to work this cute guy was driving next to me looking all up in my car! I mean like this negro's body was turned and his head was out the window. Lol. Was he checking for me? The car? Both?

If I don't leave my readership with anything else from this post, I want to express the importance of paying bills on time. Your credit rating matters so much. If your shit is bad you can't get a car, you can't get a place to live, you can't even get a damn phone. Well, you can but it's going to cost you. Prioritize, pay your shit, and save dough!

I sound like a ghetto Suze Orman. I like my quote. I'm copyrighting that shit right now.

Damn did I curse and praise God in one post? I told ya'll I was a heathen. Peace ya'll.