With this past weekend, and the purchase of a new minivan, my little family has put nearly all of our recent car accident behind us. Everyone’s (mostly) healed up, and after some searching around, we were able to get a loan for a nifty new dark red Dodge Grand Caravan. Well, new to us, anyway; it’s a 2002 with 89,000 miles, but oddly enough that’s exactly what our last car was when we bought it.
We don’t know what this car’s name will be yet. Usually they just seem to name themselves. Our late, lamented night-blue Kia Sportage was named “Shadow,” and the old Saturn we’ve been tooling around in picked up the nickname “Shifty” since it’s a stick-shift and Kat is only just now learning how to run one. (I never claimed the names were clever.) We’ll see what develops with our new steed.
Funny how vehicles reflect what you’re doing. When Kat and I were jet-setting newlyweds, the Kia was an ideal sporty little car to get us around. But once you add a car seat and baby bags, it sure gets crowded in a hurry. The minivan is what one of my old friends would have derisively turned up his nose as a “suburban grocery-getter,” but hey, even though I’m very much an urban child, you’ve gotta get the groceries somehow. (Now I would tell my old friend “YOU try fitting two weeks of food for three into a sedan trunk right next to the stroller.”)
Now that we’re squared away, it’s off to the List again — my mechanic to do an overall checkup, a report on the car sales place we bought it from, and now that life has calmed down enough to think more than five minutes ahead, making plans for next spring, fixes to the house and the long-term future.
Paul is senior staff writer at
Angie's List magazine.
His favorite album is Blondie's "Parallel Lines," he's more obsessed with
Doctor Who than any American has a right to be, and his desk at Angie's List is guarded by (toy) robots.
So I saw my first snow before February yesterday. Every relative I had below the Mason-Dixon line called me and asked if I was in line “at the Wal-Mark’s stockin’ up for the blizzard.” And honestly, yes, the thought crossed my mind. Maybe even more than once.
It’s exciting for me to get familiar with a new climate, albeit the cold end of the climate at this point. The Blue House is endearingly chilly, yet delightfully cozy, with everyone bundled up while working away. I like it in a way. More excuses to drink hot chocolate.
My car on the other hand does not like the weather. Every morning Nadine, my little car, whines and moans. You can tell she thinks that it isn’t time to be this cold. It’s not time to scrape the windshields. She huffs and puffs as I turn the key, trying to get her engine going. I don’t know much about weatherizing an older vehicle, but I bet the List can give me a few ideas to ease Nadine’s creaky sprockets on future — even colder — Indy mornings.
Twinkle VanWinkle is a Southern punk-rock belle transplanted to Indianapolis, and is
List-en up! producer for
Angie's List. She enjoys thrift store treasure hunting, dusty old records and is a connoisseur of hot sauces.
I’ve always thought the List should expand its number of rated service categories. But apparently, our IT Department has been doing that for years now (I guess I need to pay more attention.) Still, though, I fear some service companies will never have a chance to receive an “A” rating.
That’s why I want to take a moment to express my gratitude for one of the most underappreciated services: movie theaters. Continue reading ‘Movie theaters are service companies, too’
As editorial intern, Mike writes the monthly employee page, edits content and talks to service providers for the Comparative Shopper column in
Angie's List magazine. His favorite place is the Appalachian Trail (except for the areas that have bears, snakes or birds). His favorite album is "London Calling" by the Clash.
I may not be the best driver out there — there was that unlucky streak of speeding tickets a few years ago, and I’ve driven over curbs and had my share flat tires — but at least I can say I’m a friendly driver. I let people in front of me when they’re switching lanes, I wave a thank-you when someone lets me over into their lane, and I often stop in parking lots to let a car back out of their space. (OK, sometimes it’s because I want to park in their space, but still, it’s a nice thing to do, right?)
But from my experiences in the year and a half I’ve lived in Indy, I can’t say I feel the same about many of the other drivers here. Continue reading ‘Road rage rant’
Liz is an associate editor at
Angie's List magazine. She enjoys eating chocolate chip ice cream on the beach after swimming. She also likes colder, drearier places like London.
…my new home:
According to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill the number one reason you should bother to write a good introduction is because you never get a second chance to make a first impression. I hope I succeeded in writing a good introduction of my new home.
It lies in the Indianapolis neighborhood known as Williams Creek. I have famous neighbors in the area — Peyton Manning lives around the corner in Meridian Hills. Continue reading ‘I would like to introduce…’
Conor is an associate editor for
Angie's List magazine. He has a cat named Kanye and a puppy named Sherman, his favorite movie is
Back to the Future, he loves playing basketball and his favorite place is his couch.
I’m one month into riding my bike to work and already the reviews are pouring in:
“We laughed. We cried. Two thumbs up,” say Ebert & Roeper, mistaking my commute for the Italian neorealist drama, “The Bicycle Thief.”
“Keep it short and you’ll limit the helmet hair,” says my barber.
“Um, could you bring an extra change of clothes on humid days?” say my co-workers. Continue reading ‘This is how I roll’
Matthew is the senior editor for local affairs at
Angie’s List magazine. When he’s not at the Blue House, he enjoys reading and writing fiction, playing guitar and riding his bicycle.
You’d think after living in central Indiana my entire life I’d be used to our weather. But it never fails to surprise me with tornadoes, thunderstorms, destroyed power lines and overflowing basements.
As Kristy indicated, Indianapolis has recently experienced some bad weather. Last weekend, I came home to knee-high sewage that had backed up into my basement. Continue reading ‘Bad weather bothering you? Not me…’
Conor is an associate editor for
Angie's List magazine. He has a cat named Kanye and a puppy named Sherman, his favorite movie is
Back to the Future, he loves playing basketball and his favorite place is his couch.
I’m counting down the days until June 21. That’s the day I’m competing in a triathlon here in Indianapolis. And, because I’ve got quite a bit of work to do to get ready for it, the time is just flying by.
I’m not a runner. I don’t even own a bike. I have no pool to train in. How did I get myself into this? Continue reading ‘Five weeks and counting…’
Liz is an associate editor at
Angie's List magazine. She enjoys eating chocolate chip ice cream on the beach after swimming. She also likes colder, drearier places like London.
