On my way down to Florida to visit my parents for the holidays, I flew on Delta Airlines.  When I got on the plane it was the usual commotion of people not happy with their seats and other people having a hard time putting their luggage in the overhead bin.

I sat in my seat and pulled out a book. Just as we were taking off, the pilot announced that as a holiday gift, Delta Airlines was giving everyone free internet access on the plane.  Pretty cool huh?

It’s amazing how far we have come with wireless internet.  Powered by GoGo Inflight Internet, the internet access is fast and easy to use.  I used Facebook, Twitter, Ping and looked at my emails all at the same time with no problem.

What a nice holiday gift to the passengers of Delta Airlines.  Thanks Delta for giving us such a great present.  (I only wish that I charged my laptop more since it died halfway to my destination.)

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This morning I was sitting in my office when in walked Jeff Gold, my neighbor from across the hall.  Jeff is an attorney and has his own law practice.  (BTW, he’s great at what he does.)

“This year I hardly got any holiday cards,” he said to me.

I looked up from my computer with a look of shock in my face.

“What?” he said.

“Lori, come here for a moment,” I said.  She came into my office and sat on the couch. “Didn’t we just talk about how we didn’t get many holiday cards?”

She laughed.  “If we got 10 holiday cards this year, it was a lot,” I continued.  “I got inundated with holiday emails instead.”

“It’s funny how people are saving money on real cards and going virtual,” Jeff said.

I started to think. If everyone is sending out email holiday cards, maybe it’s a good idea if you want to stand out to send a “real” card?

HJMT is closed on December 24 and December 31. On December 22 and 23, there were two corporate parties going on in the hallway of the building.

I decided to lease a new car.  My existing lease wasn’t up, but I received a letter in the mail from Manhattan Mercedes.  They said that since I was a loyal customer, I could come in and get a new car and they would take care of my existing lease. The letter also said that the lease would be $50 less money.  That was enticing!  With this economy, any bit of savings helps.

So, I met with Joe Horneman.  He was my salesperson when I leased my E350 a couple of years ago.  I asked him how much I would save if I went to a smaller car.  I really felt that the E class was way too large and the 2011 model is even bigger.  I decided to look at the C class.  Joe said he could save me $150.  I was thrilled.

“Can I get the red one with black interior?” I said, even though I knew I would get a million tickets because apparently red gets the most tickets and I am a speed demon on the road.

Joe looked.  He couldn’t find any.  “What other color do you like?” he asked.

“How about the baby blue?” I asked.

He searched again and found it.  It was the perfect combination and the right price.  I was pleased.  He told me that I had to sign the paperwork before Christmas in order to get the special.  So, I did.

I picked up the car on Monday.  Joe walked me through the process with such ease.  Everyone at the dealership was extremely nice and accommodating to me.  After I signed the lease agreement, Joe told me to wait a moment,  he would be right back.

When he appeared again, he had a brand new iPad in his hand.  “Here, this is for you,” he said.  “It’s a gift from Manhattan Mercedes.”

I couldn’t believe it.  I was so excited to be getting a new car and now I had a new iPad to use in the car! What a nice gift! I couldn’t have been happier with the service at Manhattan Mercedes!

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I was talking with Kristie Galvani the other day. Kristie is my Senior VP and has been with the company for 10 years.  Through those 10 years we have both seen a lot of changes happen in each others lives, including new cars.

“I remember when you had your Jaguar,” she said.  “It really wasn’t fitting.  It was an old man’s car and there you were driving around in it… The BMW fit you better.”

I started to think about her cars and what she had when she first started at HJMT.  Kristie’s first car at HJMT was a white Saturn. It was an amazing little car.  It plowed out of the snow with ease. It cut corners and had a great drive.  After that, she bought a four wheel drive vehicle and now she’s driving an Infinity. “I need to get a bigger car,” she said to me a different time, “I just have so much to put in the car with all the baby’s stuff.”

I laughed. I remember having a Honda as my first car and when my daughter was born had to trade it in for a Jeep so that I could fit everything in the car.  There was the stroller, the car seat, the diaper bag, the playpen and all the toys to keep her occupied in the car.

After my Jeep, I went to an Audi, which I loved.  That’s when I fell in love with German cars.  After that, I bought a used BMW. It was an electric blue color and I just loved driving that car.  When it was time to trade it in because of electrical problems, I decided to lease a Jaguar.  I liked the look of the car but it wasn’t practical.  Interestingly, the service people confirmed that.  They told me that this car was to sit in the driveway for the nice weather to come.  “Use your other car during the cold winter months,” they told me.

I was shocked.  I couldn’t believe they said that.  I had enough of the Jaguar and leased another German car. This time a Mercedes E320, then an E350 (both in white) and now a c300 4matic, and I love it!

It’s amazing how you look at cars and remember when… Tell me a story about your memories and your car.