Corollaville 300,000 Miles

Posted on October 7, 2012 by Rob Jones

In 2000, Karen and I decided we needed a new car. I went to Consumer Reports and based my decision on the most reliable compact car. On April 25th 2000, we went to Jeff Wyler’s Toyota of Clarksville and purchased a 1999 Toyota Corolla with 19,889 miles. 12.5 years later (October 7th 2012) it reached 300,000 miles.

Corollaville 300,000 Miles photo gallery. Select a photo in the gallery to read the comments.

NOSTALGIA
When we bought this car in 2000, I had a Nextel i1000 flip phone. Gas was $1.50 per gallon. The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Indiana Pacers 4-2 in the NBA finals. The PlayStation 2 was released in Japan and North America. 405 The Movie, the first short film widely distributed on the Internet, was released.

We’ve lived in 6 different places since then. I opened my own company, ran it for 5 years then closed it. Our daughter was 3-years-old when we bought the Corolla and now she’s driving it. The Corolla is like a living Time Capsule.

TRAVEL
This is a big one because we’ve had it for 12.5 years. The majority of the time we’ve owned our Corolla we’ve lived in Southern Indiana north of Louisville, KY. We’ve lost count of the number of trips we’ve made to Indianapolis, Cincinnati, and Chicago. All of the trips listed below were made in our Corolla. It’s been the only car we’ve owned in 12.5 years. In 2003 we had a second car (coupe) for 90 days and a truck totaled it. In 2010 we had a second car (van) and it died after two weeks. Those cars didn’t last long enough to count.

January 2002. We went to Disney World (Orlando, FL) celebrating our 10 year wedding anniversary (our 1991 honeymoon was also in Disney World; we were married December 31st 1990).

August 2010. After the economy killed my business and Karen lost her job we all decided to sell everything, pack the Corolla, and move to California to start over. On the way to Los Angeles we made a few stops. Here they are in order: Austin, TX (stayed with friends for a couple days) – San Antonio, TX (River Walk,  The Alamo and Vera Bradley) – Carlsbad, NM (Carlsbad Caverns) – Roswell, NM (for the aliens of course) – Grand Canyon, AZ – Hoover Dam, NV – Las Vegas, NV – Santa Monica, CA (our final destination). Once we arrived, we had to find work as quickly as we could.

Los Angeles. While living in Los Angeles, CA we drove everywhere. We saw as many landmarks and tourist attractions as we could. It was one of the most exciting times of our lives. Some examples of major spots/events are: Santa Monica Pier, Palisades Park, Pointe Vicente, Hermosa Beach, Beverly Hills, The Grove, La Brea Tar Pits, Grauman’s Chinese Theater, Hollywood Sign, The Americana, Hilary Duff, Griffith Observatory, Stan Lee, Big Bear Lake and the Pacific Wheel.

December 2010. You can’t be this close to Disneyland (Anaheim, CA) and not go, am I right?

July 2011. For our 2011 vacation we headed back to Los Angeles with our Corolla headlining the first video. This time we drove through the Mojave Desert and Palm Springs. We also surprised Allyson with a trip to many of the filming locations for The O.C.

February 2012. Chicago, IL for Allyson’s 15th Birthday. Blick Art Materials, Pandora, and Vera Bradley.

June 2012. Newport Aquarium.

July 2012. We went to Disney World (Orlando, FL) celebrating our 20 year wedding anniversary. We were in Florida for nearly two weeks and also went down to Miami for the 1st time and over to Cocoa Beach, Saint Petersburg and Clearwater.

 

Future Travel. We are currently planning a 2013 vacation where we drive from Indiana to Seattle, WA. Then drive to San Francisco, then down the PCH (hwy 1) to Los Angeles and spend a week there. I keep a countdown timer app on my phone that counts down to July 1st, 2015 (one month after Allyson graduates high school) as the day we permanently move back to L.A. Allyson’s theater career is getting its kickstart at Floyd Center Theatre followed by college in Los Angeles.

IRONY
I just learned last year that our Corolla was built in the Fremont, CA factory which is now home of the Tesla Model S. I feel as though our Corolla knew it came from California and desired to return. My understanding is that Toyota and Tesla are collaborating on hybrid technology. I would like to visit the new Tesla Model S factory.

ART IMITATES LIFE
Moving to L.A. had not been as permanent as we hoped. Upon returning to Indiana, Karen started her writing career. Camel Lot: A Misplaced Adventure is Karen’s first children’s book which she began while we were living in L.A. Bermuda’s Triangle: A Misplaced Adventure is her 2nd children’s book. Area 50 Juan: A Misplaced Adventure is her 3rd children’s book and was inspired by our trip through Roswell, NM. Santa Monica: A Misplaced Adventure is her 4th children’s book and was inspired by our time in Santa Monica while living in L.A. Karen’s first novel, My Prior Life, is based on our journeys in our Corolla from Indiana to California, that is until it turns into a psychological thriller. From My Window is a paranormal and her first short story based on a beach house in Santa Monica. Our Corolla has taken us on many journeys that have lead to great memories, pictures, videos and now books by Karen Jones.

REBELLION
I’ve been known to drive my Corolla at times when many people wouldn’t or shouldn’t because a Jeep or some kind of four-wheel-drive is required.

EXPENSE
In 12 years we’ve only spent a few thousand on things that wouldn’t be considered regular maintenance. This has been an excellent car and saved us lots of money.

THE COROLLA ARTICLES
Some of my more interesting articles about us and our Corolla.
Missed me by that much. (July 9th 2001) 
Time for a second car, again. (August 18th 2006)
The Fog. (February 22nd 2007)
The Backup Maneuver (February 22nd 2007)
The Apple Sticker Game (May 6th 2007)

DAMAGE
There have been two instances where someone has backed into our car while it wasn’t moving causing minor body damage. Each time the car was back to normal within a few weeks.

     

WISH LIST
Rims. I really like the way our car looks without hubcaps, just black rims. But one or two of my rims are damaged. I would like to replace them with solid black rims like those on the AE86 from the movie Initial D (AE86 is a Corolla).

Paint. For seven years we had a garage and that kept the elements from getting to the car. For the last 2 years we’ve been without a garage and the corolla has seen the majority of cosmetic decay, such as rubber cracks, trim pieces coming loose, pitted windshield and paint discoloration, etc. I would like to get new trim pieces, a new windshield and get the car repainted.

Radio. Because of it’s age, the radio only had a cassette deck and for many years we used that cassette deck with an adapter to connect to our iPhones so we could listen to our music. The cassette deck died earlier this year and now we’re using an FM transmitter but the quality is poor and it’s starting to act up. I would like to get a new radio with an AUX jack and maybe Bluetooth for pairing with our iPhones.

Key Fob. It’s been a long time since the door locks worked on all the the locks. Right now it only works on two of them. I would like to get them repaired with the inclusion of a key fob since our car never came with one.

Engine Light. The engine light has been on for about 4 years. I was told the cause is the catalytic convertor and that I could ignore it for a while. I would really like to see that light go out and get the catalytic convertor replaced.

Headliner. The headliner has started coming loose in the front and the back. I would like to get that replaced.

NEED LIST
Oil Consumption. Over a year ago the corolla started consuming oil (not dripping), about a quart per 1000 miles. I’m taking it to Jeff Wyler’s Toyota of Clarksville tomorrow to have that looked at.

Tires. It’s that time when new tires are due. If I could the rims I want above then I would get matching size tires but I’ll probably just get new tires.

Rims. I need to replace the damaged rims (even if it’s not with the AE86 rims) because they cause uneven tire wear that creates huge amounts of road noise.

Brakes. They don’t stop smoothly anymore, more of a hesitating stop.

A SECOND COROLLA
I’m self-employed (computer support) and I do lots of driving to my clients at all different times. Allyson’s theater, dance and singing appointments are weekly. We can no longer time manage all our driving with one car. What would be awesome for us is a new Corolla S or a 3rd Gen Prius. We definitely need it. OK, I’m including a Scion FR-S because they’re awesome.

When we lived in Los Angeles it was obvious to me that Prius was becoming the most popular car.

ORNAMENTS
Our Corolla has had many different stickers, hubcaps and floor mats. But in all that time there’s only been one Lilo. I put Lilo on the dashboard in 2002 and she’s been there ever since.

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MY PRIOR LIFE

Posted on July 22, 2012 by Rob Jones

Synopsis for my wife & author Karen Jones’ 1st novel.

After Tom Brown loses his business to an economic downturn and his home to foreclosure, he convinces his wife, Kate, and daughter, Stacie, to move to Los Angeles for a new beginning. When money runs out and Tom still hasn’t found work, he makes a decision that will change his life forever. As Tom’s life grows more surreal, he questions his physical existence and his sanity. Tom thinks he’s lost everything, including reality.

My Prior Life on Pinterest

Available for Kindle, iPad, Nook and Reader

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Scouting a scene location for My Prior Life

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Rob Jones

Earlier today, Karen took a few things to Allyson who was planning a surprise birthday party for one of her friends. When Karen returned she pronounced she was bored. I said, “Let’s go scout that location you need so you can finish that scene.” Many of the locations in My Prior Life we are already familiar with and Karen has scouted a previous scene in English, IN. So we took off without Google mapping anything and I said, “I think I know a great place for that scene because I’ve had a client in that neighborhood.”

After about 20 minutes of driving we were finally there. Since it was an upscale neighborhood Karen wasn’t comfortable with walking through people’s yards. But I didn’t have a problem with it because I would just talk to anyone who wanted to know what I was doing. I started walking between yards and Karen followed my lead, reluctantly.

The first location in the neighborhood didn’t work so we drove down a bit and found what I think is a fantastic location. Karen and I talked about the scene and how this location could inspire it. We were there for around 30 minutes. The neighborhood was secluded and in all that time we only saw one car, a red Porsche 911.

We got everything we needed for the scene and as we were leaving we passed one of those little utility trucks (like a golf cart) with what appeared to be a mother and daughter on it. I smiled and she smiled back. Then Karen says, “We’re attracting attention.” And she was right. After passing the truck, I noticed a couple had walked out of their home onto the street. I assumed they wanted to know why we were there and I was right. I stopped the car and said hello to the gentleman, his wife standing behind him taking a picture of our license plate. He asked if there was something he could help me with. I didn’t want to make him nervous but I got out of the car to talk to him because about that time Dixie (our Chihuahua) started barking at them.

Karen remained silent in the car because the whole situation made her uncomfortable. I explained that Karen is an author with 4 published children’s books and that we were simply scouting a location for a scene in her first novel (My Prior Life). I thought it would be comforting to them if I gave them one of my contact cards so I reached in my wallet and pulled one out and handed it to him. He handed it to his wife who remained at a distance and then walked back into her yard. He asked me what area code that was on my card and I said Los Angeles. I tried to give a brief explanation why it was Los Angeles and not local but I immediately knew how that looked. He said that I could be arrested just for being in their neighborhood and that he was friends with the local sheriff. I said none of that was necessary because I could easily explain why I was there. I wasn’t really worried because I had no nefarious intentions.

I was guarded with some of the details of the scene because they could be story spoilers but I explained the scene to him in a little more detail when his wife said I was contradicting myself. He told her I was just asking questions. When I realized he was a little bit comfortable with me I asked him some questions about other similar locations just in case he knew of one better. He gave me a few pointers which I explored but were lacking in certain details we needed for the story.

On the way home I received a local phone call from someone asking for the company that I closed a couple years ago because of the economy, I told them that company had been closed and thank you for calling. My previous company is also the first result in Google when you look up my phone number that’s on my contact card.

To the nice couple who came out and wanted to know why we were there I want to thank you for being nice and I will let you know when the book is released. The details of your neighborhood will be completely vague so no one but you and us will actually know where the scene got it’s inspiration.

Update: A couple weeks after I wrote this Karen decided to use a different location.

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The Man Behind Author Karen Jones

Posted on August 1, 2011 by Rob Jones

In 2010, Karen, Allyson & I sold, gave-away or donated about 90% of our belongings. We stored the rest with friends. Then we loaded our car and moved from Indiana to California, specifically Los Angeles. I had two very good prospects for work before we left. The day before we left, one of those prospects fell through and the day we got to L.A., the other one fell through. We submitted Allyson’s resume to a couple reputable agencies because of her aspirations of performing. For the next 4 months, I did everything I could to find a job that would support us. I turned down the only job I was offered because it wouldn’t. Karen found a great job, the most enjoyable job she’s ever had. But, it was part-time and couldn’t support us even with my added freelance income. We were struggling to get by. Karen and Allyson wanted to return to Indiana while I did not.

For over 4 months, I had posted a video to YouTube every day. I started posting a couple weeks before we left Indiana and didn’t miss a day until the day we left L.A. I felt as though I wanted to document the huge changes we were going through as a family but the day we were leaving L.A. the feeling collapsed. I was going to abandon the YouTube channel. I waited a long time before the feeling started to return. Now, I no longer consider daily videos, only events.

Upon returning to Indiana, I returned to my role as Mac tech support guru for existing clients and Karen began her search for a job. From January through April, Karen looked for work and even submitted her resume to places she hoped she would never hear from. My freelance business was supporting us and we had our own apartment. I told Karen to stop looking for work and focus on her writing. I would be the Roy Disney to her Walt Disney or the Scott Braun to her Justin Bieber. Karen has always written stories, poems, jokes and reviews, something she picked up from her mother. I told her that I would support us with my freelance work and support her fully in her book writing.

May came and went and on June 1st I told her the first children’s book, Camel Lot: A Misplaced Adventure, would be published that day. We scrambled all day long with corrections, food, images, food, scanning and story until we finally finished it and submitted it. On July 1st with her second book, Bermuda’s Triangle: A Misplaced Adventure, I told her the same thing. Only, she thought I was kidding. I wasn’t and we all worked as hard as before to finish this book and get it  submitted. The honest truth is, I’ve never been so excited and happy about someone else’s success in my whole life.

Now, Karen has two books published and today begins her third children’s book, Area 50 Juan: A Misplaced Adventure. She already has a head start on the book. That’s good, because this book will require more time for the artwork which Karen does herself. I’m very involved with all aspects of the book from marketing to research and publishing. Karen focuses on the story and artwork while Allyson and I focus on editing. Having a 14-year-old read the stories out loud to us is more important than you could imagine. In the end, the story is Karen’s regardless of how much help we provide and I couldn’t be more proud of her.

Today, came as a bit of a let down to Karen. Her books are available on four ebook stores. She found out that one of them paid her first commission for Camel Lot’s first 10 days. It was little more than a couple high-priced lattes. After I told Karen to stop looking for work and focus on her writing, I said, “We don’t know which one of your books will be the catalyst to your success. It could be the first book, the tenth book or the twentieth book. The best way to find out is to get to the twentieth book as fast as you can and then just keep going. At some point your talent will be noticed and the rest will be history.”

The Man Behind Author Karen Jones, that’s me, Rob Jones. My goal, and to quote myself, “Be great and be small.” This constant reminder helps keep me focused on the things that make the biggest differences. As the man behind the author, you can imagine I provide ideas, titles, edits, and in some cases, entire stories but I will never take credit for them. I told Karen, “As The Man Behind Author Karen Jones, there is one person and one person only that will ever give me credit for everything I do and that’s you.” I’m hoping her appreciation shows up in the form of a Nissan GT-R.

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Dexter: Half Way There. Chapter 1

Posted on July 26, 2011 by Rob Jones

I started writing an episode of Dexter last year and it won’t leave me alone. I figured the best way to get it out of my head is to write it down.

Helping Karen (@TheKarenJones & KarenJones.us) with her books has inspired me to put a little time in it.

Chapter 1 is what you would expect to see before the Intro plays.

 

Dexter: Half Way There. Chapter 1

Dexter is living with Deborah and Harrison in his apartment. Aster and Cody have gone to live with their Grandparents [ Paul’s parents ]. Playing the part of a single parent Dexter has hired a full-time nanny to help. Deborah also helps out on occasion still refusing to change a diaper.

Dexter and Deborah get home at the same time.

[ Dexter: 7 PM, unlocks the door and walks in his apartment ]

Dexter: Thanks Louisa, you can go on home now.

Louisa: [ small hispanic woman ] Thank You Mr. Morgan, [ hands Harrison to Dexter ] you’re out of eggs and diapers, I’ll stop tonight and pick some up for you to have in the morning, there should be a few diapers left in the bag, I’ll see you in the morning.

Dexter: Thanks Louisa.

Deborah: Bye Louisa.

Dexter: Somebody needs their diaper changed [ looking at Deborah ].

Deborah: Stop fucking looking at me every time you say that, it’s not funny.

Dexter: Hey Deb, I just changed Harrison and that was the last diaper in his bag. Since I have to go to the store anyway, do you want anything?

Deborah: Oh! get me some of those cheese things I like.

Dexter: Cheese things, got it.

Deborah: How does the most organized person I know run out of diapers?

Dexter: The reminders on my phone stopped working.

Deborah: Where’s your backup stash?

Dexter: That was my back up stash, I’ll be back.

[ 7:30, pulls into store and parks just in time to see Louisa coming out of the store carrying eggs and diapers ]

Dexter: There goes my breakfast [ still in his car Dexter watches Louisa, as she unlocks her car, the door from the car next to her opens, the person inside the car grabs Louisa still clutching her grocery bag and covers her face with a cloth and pulls her in the car. Dexter jumps from his car only to realize he not close enough to catch the abductor on foot as they pulled out and are leaving the store. ]

Dexter: What the hell just happened? [ jumps back in his car and follows ] Is that what it looks like when I abduct people? [ following the abductor gets close enough to write down the license plate ] Am I suppose to protect Harrison’s nanny? I don’t know anything about the abductor. [ Drives for approximately 20 minutes before trying to take a shortcut and cut them off only to lose them ].

Dexter: [ slams hands on steering wheel looking back and forth ] FUCK!!!

[ goes back to the store and very careful to not leave any evidence inspects Louisa’s car for anything that might explain what happened, finds nothing ]

Dexter: Is this some kind of Karma? I abduct people from their lives and families so the same thing happens to me. But I only abduct bad people, Louisa is not a bad person, I know because I checked. I’ll run the license plate of the abductor when I get to work in the morning, shit, that means I have to wait until Louisa doesn’t show up before I can call someone else to watch Harrison.

[ heads into store to pickup diapers ]

Dexter: Diapers, check, cheese things, check and I might as well pickup some eggs.

[ 9:30 PM arrives home ]

Dexter: Sorry It took me so long, the line was crazy long.

Deborah: I already laid Harrison down. Where are my cheese things? [ Dexter tosses them to her ] You wanna watch a show with me?

Dexter: No, I’m going on to bed.

Deborah: OK, goodnight Dex.

Dexter: Goodnight.

[ 7 AM the next morning]

Deborah: Morning bro, coffee?

Dexter: Yeah, where’s Louisa?

Deborah: She’s not here yet.

Dexter: That’s strange, she always gets here at seven.

Deborah: Damn Dex what the fuck, remind me to never work for you, she’s only a few minutes late.

Dexter: Right, sorry. You want some eggs?

Deborah: I thought you were out of eggs?

Dexter: I picked some up last night when I was at the store, you can never have too many eggs.

Deborah: [ 7:30 ] I have to go in, what are you going to do?

Dexter: I need to call someone I can trust to watch Harrison that I haven’t run a full background check on.

Deborah: What about Sharon, Camilla’s daughter?

Dexter: Right, we haven’t seen her since Camilla’s funeral.

Deborah: I’m outta here.

Dexter: I’ll catch you later.

Dexter: Hi Sharon, this is Dexter, my nanny hasn’t shown up and I was wondering if you could come over and watch Harrison?

Sharon: I’d be happy to watch him but you’ll need to bring him to my house, I have a son harrison’s age so it won’t be a problem.

Dexter: I’ll be there in twenty minutes. Thanks Sharon.

 

More to come, I hope you enjoyed Chapter 1.

P.S. I’ve never written anything like this before so if I’m not formatting the dialog or scene properly please provide some tips.

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Review: Camel Lot: A Misplaced Adventure

Posted on June 18, 2011 by Rob Jones

Camel Lot: A Misplaced AdventureCamel Lot: A Misplaced Adventure by Karen Jones

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Full Discloser. I am the author’s husband, her better half, her Muse if men were allowed to bemused.

The story is fun, Karen has put together something that parents will enjoy reading to their children. You’ll recognize many historical references which are always fun to read. Children ages 8-12 will be able to read it themselves. Camel Lot does a great job of speaking to children in an adult way without talking down to them.

The artwork, also created by Karen, is beautifully displayed throughout the book.

Description: Three siblings, Arty, Lance and Gwen, set off for their Mother’s forbidden flower garden to play. They dream up the grand kingdom of Camel Lot with a courageous king, a daring knight and a princess with a pink magical unicorn. But somewhere else in the garden, trouble is brewing. It’s not their orange tabby, Marlin; it’s the neighbor-boy, Dwayne.

Camel Lot is a fantasy adventure for bedtime or anytime. Written to be read aloud to children of any age or read alone by children ages 8-12. Approximately 3,400 words.

P.S. The next book, Bermuda’s Triangle, Bermuda longed to be part of the school band. She tried countless instruments, but couldn’t make any of them produce pleasing sounds. Her parents were ready to give up. Her music teacher was at her wits’ end. But, her friends had an idea.

View all my reviews

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The Value of Facebook

Posted on May 20, 2011 by Rob Jones

You can find the value of Facebook all over the internet. It’s worth billions and has 500 million users. But I’m talking about a different kind of value, personal value. What’s Facebook mean to you and how valuable is it to you? I’ve been using Facebook for a few years and would consider myself a Facebook aficionado, except they keep changing it to the point that as soon as you get used to something they completely change it.

Just from everyday use I was getting the feeling that I was wasting my time on Facebook. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have a problem with wasting time if I’m enjoying myself. With Facebook I wasn’t enjoying myself. So I decided to do a very simple test, deactivate Facebook.

Not a single time did I miss Facebook. I’m connected with people I actually know and want to follow such as friends, family and celebrities (some of whom I’m acquainted). In the 4 weeks I had Facebook deactivated not a single person ever asked me where I had gone. And I’m a heavy check-in person – you know checkins from Foursquare and Gowalla which I always posted to Facebook and Twitter.

I have a theory – either all of my 44 connections had already hidden my posts or they have so many friends they never saw my posts anyway. Either way, of all my friends and family and celebrities no one ever noticed. Let me correct that by saying no one ever asked me where I went. I am, however, aware that one person noticed.

I hear that Facebook is good at all kinds of things but the only useful thing I ever used it for was leaving smart-ass comments on someone else’s post. The majority of my Facebook posts came from other services like Gowalla and Twitter. I played Farmville once. Had I played it a second time I might have shot myself, so I never played it or any other game on Facebook again. I like to read posts from the likes of Sung Kang and Vin Diesel, but mostly I find the whole thing an unenjoyable waste of my time.

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