A CD player with a car attached

We got a call from a zealous, young, car salesman.

Seems our electric Leaf was in its fifth year with us and due for a battery change-out any time now. The little car had served us well and I had no real reason to trade it in but nothing lasts forever and more range was appealing. (Also the 2019 cars were being cleared out and we were likely to be persuaded to buy one.)

The deal sounded good. A pretty good discount and a free technology package with the car.

We drove in to see what was up.

They had only three left and they were 2020s so the price was higher than advertised.

With more range I could run around for longer between charges. Less stress. More fun.

Problems: They didn't have any in Sky Blue and — a deal breaker for me — No CD player or aux port for my phone.

I couldn't imagine living life without my music.

I have a whole raft of CDs that travel with me wherever I go. Sirius radio is too scratchy for me and the disc jockeys are annoying.

I almost called the whole deal off. I started to pick up my purse.

The salesman rushed to save his sale.

"I can get you a portable CD player that'll work for you," he said. "I promise."

He said he would bring one in the morning.

As we wound through the maze of papers and signings, I reminded him once or twice of his promise.

By the time we came to clean out my old car, I was pretty sure he hadn't meant what he said.

That's when he handed over a slim, silver CD player with a cord. I have one like it to record music to my computer library.

My faith in car salemen was renewed...for a little while.

Turns out the player wouldn't sync up with the car. It required a specific one that could be purchased for about $250 only from Nissan.

I realized then I would have to rely on my phone to play back my CDs in my library.

I hurried down and bought an auxiliary cord with the proper ends. (Now I know I can use the Blue Tooth to access my songs without a cord but I have a really pretty bright pink cord just in case!)

I am learning to work this new way but it's hard for a stubborn grandma to adapt.

When and why did I decide to go modern?