Convertibles are so cool

It was a beautiful day today. Granted I was up late the night before and slept until 10 am, but the day I did see was wonderful. The night before I had dinner with my friend Christopher. It dawned on me that I have known him longer than anyone else, aside from my family. How long would that be? 22 years. We met in 9th grade. Our lockers were only a few apart and his door opened so that I could see the inside of his locker door. He had this picture of an old man with a cigar stuck up his nose. It was gross and I told him so. He laughed. So when we met in the graphic arts room later that year, we already had this antagonistic relationship. We’ve been friends ever since. I’ll note here that he still does things to get a rise out of me. Last night it was sticking his food-covered tongue at me. This time I laughed and told him it was gross and to grow up. But really I hope we never do.

But I digress, let me get back to today. I have been teaching Christopher the ways of the mobile phone and had planned on going to pick one up for him this afternoon. I had coasted across the bridge with my gas gauge on E last night, so getting gas was priority number 1. My gas gauge doesn’t have the nifty little light that tells you when you are really empty and the last gallon is being consumed. So I try to keep things well above E most of the time. I kept expecting her to sputter on conk out on me, but she didn’t. Another catastrophe averted. I thought things would be okay since my cell phone had a fresh battery and I only seem to need to call AAA for assistance when I have a low battery and no spare.

So fresh from the gas station I head off to the city where they must have been giving something away. Why else could the traffic at noon on a Saturday be worse than any time I have crossed on my way to work in the morning? I arrived to hear the new Robert Plant CD blasting on the stereo. Christopher decided to hold off on the phone until later but wondered if we could go to Target instead? Of course we have to drive some where, the top is down on the Miata and it’s too nice of a day to be inside. We brought CDs to play. It would have worked out great if my tape player hadn’t kept ejecting the speaker/tape doodad that you use to hook up a portable CD player. I guess I better buy one of those head cleaners when we get to Target.

I’m getting better at getting around in the city. I managed to find the way to the Target in Daly City without getting too lost. We shopped, bought mundane things like paper towels and soap, had lunch, bought a cool plant and headed back. It was a fun day with a great friend in a cool little car.

I am so glad that I bought it just over 5 years ago. It’s been fun and economical. We used it to carpool to work saving bridge fare and getting from home to my office in 20 minutes during rush hour. The numerous trips out to see the area or just running errands is so much more fun with the wind in your hair and the sun on your face. Sure I’ve bought my share of hats and sunscreen but it was all worth it. I got my title in the mail the other day. So now the car is all mine. Some days I wish that she had a more spacious trunk or a back seat, but most of the time she’s perfect the way that she is. I love driving people around who have never driven in a convertible before. I love the sheepish smile they get when I ask them if they’d like it if I took the top down. Playing with the wind is way cooler in a convertible. Even if it’s a little cold out, I can always turn on the heater. Some days I think about what I would get if I had to buy another car. I go through all the options but today I know I’d get another car just like the one I have now. I know that when I’m old and looking back I’ll remember how cool it was to have had a convertible. Who knows maybe I’ll still have one then.