New Office :-)

Thats right!
It gives me great pleasure to announce to the world that I have moved to my new office on the 3rd floor. This is the first time I have ever had a ‘real’ office..

Whats more, I even have a HUGE window with a beautiful view of the outside… Huge maple trees, scenic landscape and a little brook.. Now thats what I call progress!

I feel special and LIFE IS GOOD
Later..

The Extended Warranty Scam

Be extremely wary of automobile dealers. They are intensively trained to screw customers. The dealer makes a profit of at least 1000$ on your car purchase (and 1000-1500$ on your trade in if applicable).
After you agree upon a price and you are totally exhausted with the whole process of negotiation, the process of ‘maximizing’ dealer profit begins. Extended warranties, theft protection, rust prevention, etching etc.
I read that the dealer makes a profit of 100% with the sale of an extended warranty. There are plenty of reports online about these extended warranty companies not honoring payments due to some stupid clause in the contract.

Think about these before buying an extended service for your car:

1. Most extended warranties have a couple of years of ‘waste’ built into them as they run parallel with the manufacturer warranty. They have their asses well covered!
2. If you are buying a new car, most probably you don’t need an extended warranty. Most cars include decent factory warranties and are built to last.
3. If you don’t plan on keeping your car for very long, just ignore this option right away. You don’t want it.
4. Think about this: what if your car has the dreaded breakdown 1 day after your extended warranty expires? My point is, if you are unlucky with your car, you are screwed anyways! It is just not worth spending 2000$ ‘anticipating’ a problem within a timeframe.

How do I know this stuff? Well I fell into this trap myself. The dealer sold me an extended warranty from “wynn” for about 1800$. He used all the ‘catch’ arguments:

“This is a very expensive investment and you have to protect it”
“Everyone purchases this warranty plan..It is the best one out there.. You have this price and coverage only for today”
“The electronics in the car is mind boggling and one repair will cover the price”
“We can just add it to the loan amount”
“If you feel this is expensive, we can just increase the loan repayment period by 6 months and you will have the exact same rate”

etc.

After about 2 weeks, I started reading the fine print on my contract – I was shocked when I read the exclusions:

“Other normal maintenance services and parts, including, without limitation, engine tune up, spark plugs, ignition wires, distributor and rotor, carburetor, batteries, filters, lubricants, air conditioning refrigerant, all hoses and belts, brake rotors, drums, tires, wheel balancing, shock absorbers, exhaust, clutch disc and pressure plate, clutch throw out bearing, glass, headlamps, light bulbs, structural framework, welds, GPS, entertainment systems, catalytic converter”

So, what the hell is covered? I’m curious what can happen to the car that is not in the ‘exclusion list’.. I guess just if the engine conks out! and I’m pretty sure that is not going to stall in the first 4 years. It is a chance I am willing to take.

None of these were explained when I purchased it. All the dealer kept saying was “bumper to bumper”!! DAMN! Add to that, it had a 100$ deductible for each incident! JUST NOT WORTH IT!

Then, I stumbled upon http://www.carbuyingtips.com/ giving you the ‘real scoop’ about dealer profits in a car sale and several websites listing complaints by folks that had these extended warranties.

I immediately called the company and requested them to cancel the policy. Remember that you can cancel your extended warranty ANY time and get a prorated refund (If you cancel within the first 60 days, you get a full refund)

I hope this helps some callow car buyer somewhere!

Later…

Poems from Gitanjali..

Gitanjali is one of Rabindranath Tagore’s most famous works.
It was Gitanjali which lead to Tagore being the first Asian to be awarded the Nobel Prize for literature.
I was browsing through his gems… Some people are just born gifted!

——————
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high;
Where knowledge is free;
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls;
Where words come out from the depth of truth;
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection;
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit;
Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action—
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.
———————
I have got my leave. Bid me farewell, my brothers! I bow to you all and take my departure. Here I give back the keys of my door—and I give up all claims to my house. I only ask for last kind words from you.
We were neighbours for long, but I received more than I could give. Now the day has dawned and the lamp that lit my dark corner is out. A summons has come and I am ready for my journey.
———————
On the day when death will knock at thy door what wilt thou offer to him?
Oh, I will set before my guest the full vessel of my life—I will never let him go with empty hands.
All the sweet vintage of all my autumn days and summer nights, all the earnings and gleanings of my busy life will I place before him at the close of my days when death will knock at my door.

The Gitanjali by Rabindranath Tagore (1861—1941)

New Car- Finally

I have been wanting to buy a new car for quite sometime now.
I felt I would’nt be doing justice to my stay here in the US if I did not own a good car. Some of the best things about the US of A are its amazing cars, near perfect roadways and well moderated traffic (Well, if you were from India, you would know what I am talking about!).

The top contenders were

1. BMW 3 series
The BMW has tremendous brand value.. When I started car shopping, this was my first choice. I test drove one. Somehow, it did not appeal to me enough to buy it without looking at other cars.

2. Audi 4
Great ride… very sporty.. I would have bought this but the salesman alerted me that there were no service outlets in gainesville and should a problem arise, it would need to be taken to jacksonville. That was the end of that.

3. Acura
I tested the RL and the TSX.. I swear the TSX offered me a much better ride (even though it has a smaller engine and is less expensive!). Acura also offers a much better warranty program than most other auto makers. The japanese have indeed mastered the art of car making.

4. Mercedes Benz
My budget only allowed the lowest end Merc.. felt the Acura offered me more bang for the buck

Guess what I finally went in for….. Drumroll…….. The ACURA TSX . Superb handling, Excellent service, Japanese automotive excellence, sleek looks, great warranty. What more can I say?

Later ..

Interpreter of Maladies

I just finished reading ‘Interpreter of Maladies’ by Jhumpa Lahiri… I am impressed. It was excellent prose, style and content.. Each story makes you think and feel with the characters involved. At about 190 pages, it makes for very easy reading.. something you can do in one sitting.

I love the ending of “The third and final continent”:

I know that my achievement is quite ordinary. I am not the only man to seek fortune far from home, and certainly I am not the first. Still, there are times I am bewildered by each mile I have traveled, each meal I have eaten, each person I have known, each room in which I have slept. As ordinary as it all
appears, there are times when it is beyond my imagination.

WOW.. that could not have been worded better..

Other books that I plan to read in the next couple of weeks include
1. Fear and loathing in Las Vegas
2. Tropic of Cancer
3. The God of small things
4. Love in the time of cholera

Later…