Waiting for the Leaf to grow

I think the worst part of the whole process was the wait period.  It was about 4 months from ordering online until the car showed up.  The Nissan website does let you sign in and updates you on the progress of your order.  I was hoping for more specifics:  Hello sir, you car is being painted today. Maybe a picture of it getting its first charging.  No such luck, just a constantly moving date in January that adjusted 3 days each direction when I checked.

The waiting time is long enough to second guess yourself.  And third and fourth guess as well.  Being human and susceptible to influence from my peers,  I cautiously told people what I was doing.

A nurse I work with was the toughest critic.  So how many "AAA duracells will it take?"  "how many extension cords will you need to reach from home to work?"  She finished off by saying:  how's it sound when you rev it up?

I did notice something interesting though.  The only people who laughed in my general direction were non car people.  All of my car buddies seemed to understand it...and were genuinely interested.

I did get the last laugh with my nurse though.  She just traded her 2 seat sports car in on a minivan to have room for her new baby.

Turning over a New Leaf

It all started in September. A crazy week at work.  Celebrated surviving until Friday with a Gentleman Jack and diet coke.  Or two.  Perhaps three.  The order of important things in my life is as follows: 1.  Wife and daughter.  2. My cat Sam.  3.  Cars.  4.  Motorcycles  5. Work.  6.  Saltwater aquarium.

After eating dinner with #1, feeding #2, and forgetting about #5,  I picked up my iPad to see what was new with cars.  I clicked on a blog from an automotive journalist who was celebrating the purchase of his new Nissan Leaf.  He was discussing his reasons for becoming an early adopter.  His posts resonated with me.  Like me, he admitted to having a horsepower and speed addiction.  I wasn't sure how this tied in to having an EV...after all one doesn't think of speed and economy in the same breath.  But his reasoning was this:  why should I keep buying fossil fuels that are mostly sourced from countries that hate us?

My brother-in-law had just gotten back from Afghanistan.  I wondered why we were there.

Three summers ago after a hurricane induced refinery shutdown I suffered through gasoline price gouging here in Knoxville.

A year and a half ago I watched helplessly as oil flooded the Gulf of Mexico, killing all manner of aquatic life.

And perhaps a selfish part of me wanted an EV.  I have a few sports cars that I like to take out on a  quiet Sunday morning.   If I could save gas during the week, I could burn it guilt free on a weekend drive.

So with that, I put my $99 deposit down on the Nissan website.  I answered a long survey making sure I understood that the Leaf does not use gasoline.  That if the battery is empty, I could be stranded.  That I'd need a charger installed in my house to make it practical to charge.  That I could get my $99 back if I wimped out.

I clicked submit.  Took two tylenol, went to bed and got ready to wait 4 months until delivery.