Buying Car Parts

Recently, I bought some car parts off of some guy on a message board. I was buying a set of used wheels, and the guy was in Indiana (which is a few hours drive from here). I decided to drive it, because the cost of shipping them to me would have been almost the amount that the wheels cost in the first place.

I think that it goes without saying that any aftermarket wheels I would be buying would be gaudy chrome-plated spinners. For my '92 Tercel.

Ok, anyway, the thing that I always worry about with these exchanges is being held up. You know, like, at gunpoint. I mean, call me paranoid, but it probably wouldn't be that difficult to spoof an IP address, post a few items that are for sale, and then use a prepaid cell phone to make contact with any potential buyers. Boom, instant cash. Wheels aren't cheap, which is why I was buying them from some potentially-shady guy on a message board.

Luckily, as usual, my fears were wildly out of proportion with the actual threat, and the exchange went off without incident. Being paranoid has given me a bunch of ideas for novels I could write, though...