Plaid

This doesn't have anything to do with chips, but it is a good story, and it is my blog, so here goes.

I have a 17 year old son, who has saved his money and has been searching for a car.  Last week he found one on Craig's list.  While the book value was $2400, the car was listed at $900.

Why?  Because the previous owner had decided to paint it plaid, and no one would buy it now.

We went to the neighboring town to check the car out.  There were minor problems (the door handles were missing), but nothing that a determined 17 year old couldn't deal with.  And it ran OK, and had good tires.  So he bought it.  Or more accurately, I bought it since he is a minor.  I never thought I would be able to say that I own a plaid car, but now here I am.  I am still embarrassed, as can be seen in the photo below.

The car is at my house now, lowering property values for several blocks around, and I am surprised that I have not heard from the homeowners association.  Yet.

On the other hand, my son is now well known at school.  He goes to an affluent school, and it is quite a sight to see rows and rows of BMWs and Escalades, with a plaid car mixed in.  A plaid car also leads to many humorous situations.  It is definitely an ice breaker, and it might even serve as a chick magnet.  Who knows?  And if it does, we may see many more plaid cars here in Austin.

It is my son's ultimate goal to paint the car and sell it for more that he paid for it when he goes off to college.  So he may yet have the last laugh.