And just like that, it’s the end of the year. Read More »
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Flying (Spur) in a Bentley
Since my dad lives in Florida and flies up most holidays, he has to get a rental car to drive around. It’s always a base model economy car, like a Toyota or Hyundai. This Thanksgiving, a Bentley Flying Spur just happened to have a lack of weekend plans, so we told him this holiday he would be very thankful for his rental car. Because what better way to impress your family than driving a Bentley all around Minneapolis on Thanksgiving weekend?
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Please Slow Down, 2016
Every month seems like it’s crazier than the last. 5 minutes ago, I was bundling up in sweaters and now I’m relaxing in air conditioning in our new apartment!
So speaking of “our new apartment”, Tony and I moved into our new place.
A huge event I planned for Morrie’s, a European car show called Eurowerks, finally wrapped up.
We went to Ikea and managed to come out with both our dignity and money still left in our pockets.
As usual, we explored coffee shops and found fun new places to take hipster pictures. 
I helped with lots of different events and drove fun cars, as per usual!
My sweet little sister turned 21 and had her very first sip of alcohol!
Tony and I became real adults and opened a joint checking account. Crazy, I know!
I ate way too much Mac n cheese and drank lots of beer, like a good Wisconsinite.
Okay, I’m ready for the next 5 minutes that they call August!
What I’ve Learned From Moving
There are very obvious tips that everyone gives you when you’re looking to move, like “check out the neighborhood” or “make sure it fits into your budget”. But there are certain things that you just don’t think about until after you’ve moved in. So I’m here to share things I’ve learned from moving, so you can learn from my mistakes.
Does your tiny bathroom have halogen lights that emit the heat of the sun?
This is very important, because if so, you will melt if you try to blow dry your hair in your bathroom. Or your makeup will start melting before you even get to work.
Are you a very tall human?
In the rental business, a “very tall human” is defined as any person of a height greater than five foot three inches. Tony and I are “very tall humans”. This means the shower comes up to our chest. So at least the bottom half of me is clean?
How big is the elevator?
This is important if you’re living any higher than the second floor. You won’t want to carry your furniture up the stairs, so it will need to go in the elevator. Things such as “will this sectional couch fit in the elevator” are very important things to consider before you try to shove said sectional couch into said elevator.
What kind of noises will you hear at night?
So hard to figure out. This is why I think that rental companies should allow people to stay at the apartment for a night. They would make money off it and potential renters would feel more comfortable knowing they have somewhat of an idea of what they’ll be hearing at night. Because kitties meowing is okay (and adorable). Because babies crying is not okay (and annoying AF).
If you’re moving in with someone, do they have the exact same items you have?
You do not need 100 sets of plates. Ask me how I know.
First Month of Cars
As a car enthusiast, I’ve always dreamed of driving high end luxury and sports cars. Little did I know that I would accomplish this goal by the end of the first week of my internship.
During your first week at a new job, you would expect to get acquainted to the office and get settled into your new role. I would have never thought that during my first week I would drive cars that combined cost almost half a million dollars and had over 2,000 horsepower.
My first day on the job I was tasked with picking up new cars for Morrie’s Heritage Car Connection. These cars just happened to be a Maserati GranTurismo and an Aston Martin DB9, both convertibles. And then naturally, we needed to get pictures of these beautiful pieces of machinery. And who better to drive it than the new intern?
On Thursday, I was told I had to take a Heritage car home because…work. I was fine with driving anything, but had my favorites already picked out. At the top of the list was the Porsche Speedster. So guess what I got to take home on a beautiful, sunny afternoon? Read about my evening here!
Being the marketing events intern, helping out with events sometimes means driving cars around. On Saturday, I was told that I would be giving rides to guests at a Kentucky Derby party. It wasn’t until I arrived at the dealership that I realized I would be giving drives to guests in a gorgeous $176,000 Bentley convertible. Thankfully the seats massage you while you’re driving, because you better believe I was stressed out while trying to maneuver that beast down the highway. That Bentley and I are now best friends. As everyone was getting ready to head home from the party, the cars also needed to head back to their home at luxury. I figured I would drive my new best friend back, until I was offered a small black key. I didn’t even realize what I was being offered until I saw the car the key opened.
For those of you who aren’t as obsessed with cars that “wear lipstick”, this is an Aston Martin Vantage GT. It’s not slow. It’s not quiet. And it’s sure not boring. Driving back, I felt more like a rockstar than ever before.
The following week was just as exciting. Now that I knew what to expect, I figured I wouldn’t be so nervous driving these nice cars. Think again!
All cars need to be serviced, so after they’re done being taken care of at the luxury dealer, someone has to go pick them up and bring them back home. On Wednesday that car was a Ferrari F430. Thankfully I only had to drive it a few blocks, because I’m not sure my heart would have been able to handle much more of that.
Fast forward a few weeks to a day on the track. Morrie’s sponsored a track day at Brainerd International Raceway and of course I had to come. To…chaperone the cars. Or something. As a Road America fan, I love watching cars race around the track, so I was absolutely thrilled just to be in the environment. But that wasn’t the end of my day. Baby Blue and I were allowed to drive on the track as fast as our hearts desired. As soon as I got home that night, I proudly ordered up a Brainerd track sticker to add to the collection.
The following days and weeks have been a blur of driving, attending events and all the shenanigans that goes along with that. I can’t even imagine an internship that is more perfect for me than this.
In Like a Lion…
Okay, so I’m a few days late on the end of March update. But here it is! Because who doesn’t want to read about someone else’s month??
March definitely came in like a lion, with the first few days being 65 degrees, and then quickly taking a downturn for the worse.
My mom was in Florida for the first 10 days of March, so that meant I had a lot of pasta. Then, to honor my mom’s return to dairy land, we went to a new wine bar in La Crosse, and had the fanciest “cheese journey” I’ve ever seen. So much cheese. So very Wisconsin.
Tony and I had a long weekend together, so we traveled across Wisconsin to Milwaukee to explore what it had to offer. We toured numerous breweries, explored hipster coffee shops, saw mansions, walked on Lambeau Field, lost credit cards (okay, so maybe that part was just me…).
And then, in the biggest and best news of all…I was reunited with my R32!! I had been counting down to this day for 4 months, and being able to drive a manual transmission was easily the highlight of my month.
Just look at how comfortable the Subaru looks being on that trailer. (It was then sold before it made it off the trailer again.)
The last few days of March were very nerve-wracking but so exciting. More news on that to come… 😉
Lauren Kortbein 