Wheeeelz!

I am now the proud owner of a dark blue 2006 Scion Xb!
From the research I did, I don't think any other car would have fit my needs nearly as effectively.

• 30 city / 34 highway MPG
• It's a foot and a half shorter than my mom's Corolla for easy parking.
• I can sit up straight without being in danger of hitting my head on the ceiling, which is rare in cars this size.
• There is enough room to comfortably take three people backpacking, and you could probably uncomfortably take four.
• The visibility in the car is fantastic. The view from the driver's seat is virtually unobstructed in every direction, and you can see all four corners of the car which comes in handy for parking. The front windshield is panoramic.
• The back seats are the most comfortable I've ever sat in, and are actually usable when I'm driving which is also rare in cars this size.
• An auxiliary audio input comes standard in the form of an 8th inch audio jack under the parking brake, so no matter what you use to play music you can pipe it directly through the car speakers with nothing more than a cord.

The only real flaw I've found in the design so far is that the central cabin light puts the trunk area in shadow and there isn't a separate trunk light. I also wish car companies would start accomodating Nalgene's in their cupholders, but that's probably too much to ask until people stop drinking Coke. The car also isn't exactly aerodynamic, which doesn't produce as much noise as you might expect (it's actually pretty quiet,) but is probably the reason why it gets 34 MPG on the highway rather than something in the low 40s.

Fantastic Weekend in Pittsburgh

I spent my last weekend living on this side of the country in Pittsburgh visiting Lauren. We saw Water (which I highly recommend,) explored Frick Park, painted pottery for eachother, hung out with Ashleigh, visited Lauren's Uncle for a 4th of July party, and met up with Jules (former Soundbytes director) who happened to be in town for the weekend. Good times all around. Awwwwww. :) Soundbytes director lovin' Ashleigh's makes-me-oh-so-jealous apartment. Lauren, pretty in Oriental Express.