I know that I’m an adult. I know I have a real job, insurance, bills. I know I make my own decisions about where I go on vacation, and what I do with my time.
But most days, I don’t feel like an adult. This is strange though, because I don’t feel like a kid, but I sure don’t feel like a grown-up.
However, every now and then something happens where I feel like the age I know that I am. Recently, I had one of those days.
My sweet Rav has needed new tires for a while. I, being cheep, have been hesitant to buy any because they are so dang expensive. And, because I have NO idea how to buy tires. In June I drove up to Fort Worth for a conference. While driving, I realized it was time to bite the bullet. My car was getting loud to drive from road noise, and the tires seemed to be slipping a bit. I thought since I would be driving to visit my parents in a couple of weeks, I need to get new tires.
So, I decided to plow forward with new tires. I did some research online to discover what tires are recommended for my car. After reading some reviews I decided on a specific make and model of tire. I found a website that sold them for $93 a tire, PLUS a rebate if you bought a set of four– score!
The downside of this was that they were then going to ship the tires to me? Lame.
Then I would have to find a place to put them on (or do it myself?). Double lame.
I decided to shop local places and price compare.
I found the same brand listed with a rebate on Discount Tire’s website, but they were $126 a tire. However, Discount Tire claims to match competitor prices, so I gave that a shot. I sent them an email and the next morning got a call from the local store saying they would be glad to match the price to “earn my business”. Thursday afternoon I took my Rav in and in less than 40 minutes had four new tires on my car.
Now, let me tell you that I have had the same tires on my car since we bought it in 2005. The person who owned it before bought the tires, sometime before I bought it. I’ve added at least 70,000 miles to them. When I drove out of the parking lot from the tire store, it was like a brand new car. It felt so smooth and quiet.
I should have bought tires a long time ago!
