Date for the Service of Recogntion

I now have a date for the Service of Recognition which will mark the beginning of my Intern Placement. It will be on Sunday the 15th of April, at 3 pm, at Romsey Uniting Church, Pohlman Street, Romsey. Afternoon tea will follow the service. Everyone is welcome!

I need help – buying a car

Okay, for the first time in my life I am going to buy a car. Bleuch! Cars are expensive, dangerous and environmentally unsound. However, I am going to be ministering to four congregations in a semi-rural environment, and a car is the only thing that will get me between services on a Sunday and to the various communities during the week. So …

… what should I buy?

I think  (although this hasn’t been completely confirmed) that the Uniting Church will lend me up to $21,000 to buy a new car. So I’m looking for what Drive magazine calls a “small car under $20,000″. Incidentally, their winner for 2006 was the Toyota Yaris, which does not make Choice magazine’s environmental top ten, but then Choice’s top ten small cars are all out of my price range.

Basically I want something small that will get me around the Macedon Ranges. I’ll still try to use public transport when heading into the city. I can’t drive at night, so I won’t be any use giving other people lifts in the evening, so usually the only person in the car will be me. I want something small, safe and as green as possible. Oh, and an automatic. (Yes, I only got a licence to steer.)

There is a government website called the Green Vehicle Guide, but that will be most helpful when I have a few vehicles in mind and I can compare them. So can anyone give me some suggestions that I can plug in there?