Last night on the way home from work my engine started to overheat and my radiator began spouting steam. I dropped my car off at the repair shop and got a ride home from Rebecca.

The shop called me at 7:30 AM this morning (WTF?) to tell me the radiator and hoses and thermostat needed to be replaced. Grand total? $812. Argh.

I’m considering upgrading my current portable media solution (a dated Sony MiniDisc player, the old 5 hour kind, dated but oh-so-cheap) to a more trendy microdrive-based player. I’ve narrowed the field to the Apple iPod Mini, and the Creative Zen Micro, with the Zen in the lead based on better features, replaceable battery, and not being the iPod.

With either model, I’ll need a way to play audio in the car. My MD player came in a car kit, which included a cassette adapter (yes, my car is that old), a mounting pouch, and a cigarette lighter power adapter, plus a remote that mounts in the center console. I don’t strictly speaking require the remote, but some sort of adapter for my in-car audio system, a mount of some sort, and a charging solution are mandatory.