Like any other normal person given to snooping and with too much time on their hands, I enjoy perusing the classifieds without looking for anything specific.
Have you noticed how many sellers - maybe as much as 20% in the automotive section - succumb to the pointless tradition of listing a seemingly superfluous reason/ excuse for wanting to rid themselves of an item? The only classifieds mostly free from this strange phenomenon are those under the section headings Obituaries and Animals. Presumably, having a litter of 12 nondescript kittens is reason enough for wanting to flog them.
So, what are these reasons? I’m sure you know the gist: Firstly, no one simply needs the money. No, the item is either unused, takes up too much space, or the seller wants a bigger one, or its an unwanted gift, or their spouse doesn’t like it. The fact that its been revved to the brink of burnout at the last biker party has little to do with it.
And what’s more, on the few occasions that I’ve posted an add myself, sure as Bob wears a cool summer cotton dress, a good number of those enquiring about my ad asked my reason for selling. I fail to see the relevance. I was half tempted to reply: “Oh this old thing? Its such a piece of crap, you see. It’s prone to blowing up at awkward moments. Must have been damaged when it fell off the lorry.”
My mom’s a 72 year nice old lady and she drives that little chevy spark (one of the old ones) like a demon out of hell. Seeing her coming down a suburban road makes you wonder about the true abilities of an 800cc engine and simultaneously makes you pull into the first available driveway to get out of the way.
Well if you’re devout to your car…
Modern cars can do over 100,000 miles without pausing for breath. If you really pile on the miles, you might have 200,000 or even 300,000 miles on the clock. If the car Gods are really shining on you, you might have managed more than half a million.
Prepare to feel insignificant. Irv Gordon from East Patchogue, New York, and his 1966 Volvo P1800, have completed over 2.9 million miles together. If you’re after an arbitrary comparison to offer some perspective, that’s around six round-trips to the moon, or over 116 circumnavigations of Earth.
It also equates to an average of a staggering 64,444 miles per year since Irv took delivery of the car, five years after its launch in 1961. The beautiful P1800 is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Read more
I looked this up a couple of weeks ago after seeing it on Enews and CNN, it’s said he’s breaking the guineas with each mile, but that he’s aiming for the 3 million mark some time next year, don’t know exactly how Guneas Records verifies it as accurate, but it’s a pretty amazing feat if it’s for real.
And then you get the estate agents… I recently saw an advertisement for a house for sale with a big banner shouting: Seller relocating! Is that not the least one would usually expect when buying a house? Another ad tells you “children would love to play hide and seek in this garden.” This evokes images of “Dr. Livingstone… are you there?” The agents also love publishing photos of the beds, which are seldom for sale. Don’t expect pics of the built-in wardrobes - the beds are more enticing. “If you snooze, you lose” has become rare lately. With house prices going nowhere, perhaps some snoozing may be in order.
