Taking the Dog for a Drive

That’s the point of a car, right?

Right now, it’s the only reason I can think of to buy a car.

My partner and I are making just enough to support a simple lifestyle. Granted, we could perhaps find a different house or apartment with a much lower rent, since I believe that is our greatest monthly expense. But aside from that, our paychecks pretty much go to the necessities: bills, food, our dog’s needs, savings accounts, one or two simple investments, and the occasional splurges like eating out and shopping for clothes, shoes, books and toys. Our biggest source of pride right now is the fact that we do not have any debts. Not one. We’ve been quite firm about spending only the money we have.

Of course, not having credit cards or not taking out loans means that we also don’t buy plane tickets to travel, or have big-ticket appliances, or a car, or a house with a mortgage. If you think about it, we don’t really have a pressing need for any of them.

I mean, I do enjoy traveling, but my partner has a condition brought about by a previous gallstone surgery that has left him with sensitivities that prevent him from eating big meals before traveling, and from going long periods without quick access to a restroom, so we’ve agreed that any trips should be kept close to home or at least be very meticulously planned. So we haven’t been checking out any promotional discounts on plane tickets.

As for big-ticket appliances, we’ve done without a TV for close to four years now. We both work online from home, so we simply read up on current events online and subscribe to streaming services for our TV program and movie fix. A flat screen TV can be put off for later.

The house is definitely on hold until we can find additional income streams from which we can source the money for the monthly payments.

The car, however, may be doable. We never really thought about buying brand new — high-quality used cars have always been the only option for us. We want a car with character and personality. So that could mean savings for us.

Currently, our problem with going out of the house is that we can’t stay away long — we have to come home after about three or four hours to keep our dog company. I know, some people leave their dogs home all day, but we work from home so four hours is just about the limit our dog can take.

So the only other alternative would be to buy a car so we can take the dog with us. He’s definitely not a teacup pom or chihuahua that you can stash in a handbag — he’s a year-old, 60lb American Bully that is all muscle and power. If we take him outside, it’s always by walking — he needs that, anyway. However, we can’t bring him to the parks and commercial areas that allow dogs because those are already too far to walk. A car is in order.

Personally, I want the car so I can bring the dog to the beach. I’ve always dreamt about running around the shore with a dog at my heels, and we’d toss balls and Frisbees and jump into the water. But the nearest beach is several hours away from here, so until then, a day at the beach with this hunk of a dog is still out of the question.

We better get going on those additional income streams so that we can fit a car into our purchases and finally take the dog out for a drive. He’s going to love sticking his head out the window, I’m sure of it.