A little update on my squeaky situation. First of all I now have a 'go to' LBS. I made an appointment with another branch but went to my closest branch in error. The mech still made time for me and fixed me all up. That kind of customer service for an unknown customer tells me they're happy to have customers.
First of all I guess my pedals were recalled so I got new ones. Wow...what an advantage....okay not really but hey, NEW PEDALS! After a ride and a little twisting and shaking of stuff in the back end the mech pulls out a tool, tightens something and declares "there, you're all set!". He did take it for a ride to confirm but yeah he fixed it. I had a loose rear derailleur. Since I wouldn't know what to look for it could have taken me two years to find that...anyway, now I have a freshly lubed seat post (thanks again Goldie), new pedals AND a tight derailleur.
Man I'm sittin on top of the world.........