PRIVATE SALE, HUH?

We tried something we’d never before. Selling a car privately rather than a dealer who is handling your new vehicle.

Friends told us the best way was checking out AUTO TRADER, a huge organization that handles the sale of used cars. Mind, that’s not what those who sell call them. They are referred to as ‘Pre-used’ cars or other softer terms that make you feel better.

Rosanne took the bull by the horns by punching up AUTO TRADER on her laptop.

Up came the following information you’re given to get you started:

-- Take photos

-- Determine the Make/Model/ trim of your vehicle

-- Determine market price of your vehicle in your local area. (Try our pricing tool).

-- Check what options are installed on your vehicle.

-- Start placing the ad on Autotrader.

Phew. Done. Almost. Deciding what options we figured would include the radio. The (roof) sky light? Heated seated? Navigation system? Keyless entry…? I’m out of breath.

‘What about leather seats? A variety of tinted windows? Gone are the ash tray and cigarette lighter on the new version of the car.

Determining the price was somewhat off-putting, but between the two of us, we came up with a figure slightly higher than what we hoped for, giving us a little wriggle room.

A roll of the drums…we hit the ad sending it out there.

Neither of us had the slightest clue how many would be interested in Roe’s Toyota Camry. One? Three? Maybe.

Author’s comment: By the next morning there were 20 names listed one after the other. Twenty-four hours later we had 40 or more. Now to chose. What about the guy who wants to buy a nice used car for his mother? Or was it for his wife? What about…skip it. You get the idea.

MUSHROOMS ON THE LOOSE

I love mushrooms, eating mostly store-bought ones to be on the safe side. Only because picking and eating certain wild ones can be hazardous to your health. Eating some can kill you.

I had a friend who knew a heck of a lot about the wild ones. I trusted him. Only because I couldn’t trust myself to know which are good for you, and which are not. He moved away and took all that knowledge about wild mushrooms with him.

It’s this time of year – and even a little earlier – that you find them growing wild. What amazes me is where you find them. Often as not they pop up in our driveway, pushing up through the gravel and looking up at you as if it had been the obvious place to grow.

I was curious enough some years ago to buy a hardcover edition of ‘The Ultimate MUSHROOM BOOK’ authored by Peter Jordan & Steven Wheeler. They told us in small print under the title: The complete guide to mushrooms – a photographic A-Z of types and 100 original recipes.’

I picked one at random. Stuffed Garlic Mushrooms with Prosciutto and Herbs.

They weren’t fooling around telling the reader in the FOREWARD, ‘So long as you can identify absolutely accurately what you are picking, you will be safe’.

AUTHOR’S COMMENT: There’s a wild side to all this which stops you cold. It did me on hearing how some celebrities want to be buried in mushroom soup because it destroys the flesh much faster than letting Nature take its course.