Is the grammar in this sentence OK?

It was another boring winter night in Utah, when I decided to surf the internet.

Is the grammar okay in this sentence? Should I use italics for things like surf the internet? Or not use things like surf the internet at all?

Thanks

Also, which one of these should I use?

a I noticed a Jaguar for sale on autotrader.com, and to my surprise, it was only 3000 dollars.
b I noticed a Jaguar for sale on autotrader.com, and to my surprise, was only 3000 dollars.
c I noticed a Jaguar for sale on autotrader.com; to my surprise, it was only 3000 dollars.
d I noticed a Jaguar for sale on autotrader.com, and to my surprise, it was only 3000 dollars.

Greetings!

I don't see anything wrong with the grammar in your first sentence. And certainly, "surf the internet" has become an accepted part of the vernacular. It does depend somewhat on what you are writing it for, but I think if you tried to think of other phrases that mean the same thing, it could end up sounding a bit tortured: "I made a decision to perform internet searches on the world wide web"? That sounds stuffy and pretentious.

Unless my eyes deceive me, a and d above are identical. Therefore, a, c, and d are all correct. Choice b leaves out a word.

Best of luck in your studies!

Thanks,

Sarah, EssayForum.com