Good story as usual Tom. I have had fun cars for many years normally as a third fun car. I had two Miata's, they were cheap, underpowered but a blast to drive, so I did not get into trouble with it.
Enjoyed the story Tom, I never realized you had Sara sell that Infinity for you...and don't think I knew you ended up with a Hyundai Elantra - UGH! I do have one quick story about that old Ford LTD. Most of the old cars you drove got handed down to me eventually...I drove the Saab for a while too! But I had that old LTD in college for a couple years. Not sure what year it was, 87/88 perhaps but I drove a few of my Frat brothers from E. Lansing MI to Saginaw MI to see Ted Nugent at the Saginaw Civic Center. As we were driving home after midnight the car broke down somewhere between Saginaw and Flint (Gods Country) and 5 guys spent the night in a 2 bedroom roadside Motel that rented rooms by the hour. I don't even remember what was wrong with it, or how we got home the next day, but somehow we made it back to E. Lansing - that thing was a tank!
Ha ha, I didn’t know you drove the LTD! Was the door working by then? I remember for a time the door didn’t work and you either had to crawl in through the window or through the passenger side. But it would do 110 on the straight. You drove a different Saab I’m pretty sure, as I sold the silver 900S (the one Dad gave me for a wedding present) to some dude who was gaga for Saabs and would take it warts and all. But your rust bucket Saab makes a cameo appearance in an upcoming novel chapter, as proof that the character Keith can ignore anything.
I don't recall having to crawl through the window so door must have been working! Your wright, different Saab. The one I drove was a brown hatch back 5 speed manual. I recall there was a hole in the floorboard and if you hit a puddle just right you get a little face shot of water! I swore I'd never make my kids drive beat up old cars after what our dad put us through in high school and college. Its amazing to think back on how many different cars I drove...Honda Coupe, Chevy Panel Truck, VW Rabbit, Saab, Honda Accord, 73 LTD, Chevy Chevette all within a period of 4-6 years.
Absolutely brilliant job on the audio reading, Tom! I really enjoyed both reading and listening. What software did you end up using for the editing? I'm forwarding this onto my wife since she was more of a car girl 😁 I was never really into cars growing up, although my brothers were. Also, congratulations on the anniversary. We're going on 21 years and it's been an amazing journey.
Hey, thanks a lot, I used Audacity, which I’d used before … pretty easy to edit. I couldn’t think of any background audio that would work … maybe “dirt track date” by Southern Culture on the Skids?
I use Audacity as well. Yeah, with non-fiction it's harder to find the right music. You could always open or close with 5-8 seconds of something faded in and out, but definitely not necessary.
A Kodachrome snap of me posing on the hood of my 1966 Volvo 122S painted primer gray wearing my worn-out red cap is around here somewhere. Sold it for $400, the cost of replacing the radiator. Thanks for bringing up this sad story, Tom.
A little like you I had a car fantasy from a young age. A Mustang. A friend's brother drove a 67 that he was forever fixing. It wasn't shiny or beautiful, but the lines and that engine sound got me. I knew I wanted one. I wanted an old one. But then, like you, reality. I wasn't great with my money early on. I had money in my pocket and I spent it. Finally I saved enough for my first car: 1975 Celica, bright yellow. I named it Saucy. It was a 5speed and it did a great job getting me to and from college. My first dream car I ever bough was my 2017 Ford Mustang Convertible. I had had Mustangs before, and I had a convertible before, but this one had ALL the bells and whistles I wanted. Not the GT or Saleen or Shelby I still think about. But as an adult, those cars can't be driven like they should be on our roads. So I'll stick to my 407 hp, electric blue convertible.
I still have my 2004 350z and would never sell it. I came to the path of driving maturity in a different way. A few years ago I got hooked on car accident videos on YouTube. The more I watched, the more I became aware that most of the accidents were caused by some jerk driving like an idiot. Then I realized that I was that jerk. I was risking not only my own life and health but also my wife’s and the other drivers around me. So YouTube really changed my life by helping to make me aware of the selfishness of the way I was driving.
Isn’t that funny that we’ve had similar cars? God, I loved driving in your Fiero—it was the first time I hit 100 in a car (when I wasn’t worried about parts plying off, as I was in my LTD). I’m a pretty mellow driver now too … when I’m not on the racetrack.
Actually, one of the best cars I ever owned was a 2002 Hyundai Elantra. I've had fancier cars, but that one was so reliable and so fuel efficient. It actually had quite a bit of pick-up for a small engine, and I loved that it blended in.
You know, keeping that car would have been a smart decision on our part: it really was well-built, practical, economical, etc. But that’s not all I need from a car, for better or for worse.
Great story, Tom!
Happy anniversary to you and Sara!
:D
Good story as usual Tom. I have had fun cars for many years normally as a third fun car. I had two Miata's, they were cheap, underpowered but a blast to drive, so I did not get into trouble with it.
I should have gone for the Miata--way less power would have been helpful!
Enjoyed the story Tom, I never realized you had Sara sell that Infinity for you...and don't think I knew you ended up with a Hyundai Elantra - UGH! I do have one quick story about that old Ford LTD. Most of the old cars you drove got handed down to me eventually...I drove the Saab for a while too! But I had that old LTD in college for a couple years. Not sure what year it was, 87/88 perhaps but I drove a few of my Frat brothers from E. Lansing MI to Saginaw MI to see Ted Nugent at the Saginaw Civic Center. As we were driving home after midnight the car broke down somewhere between Saginaw and Flint (Gods Country) and 5 guys spent the night in a 2 bedroom roadside Motel that rented rooms by the hour. I don't even remember what was wrong with it, or how we got home the next day, but somehow we made it back to E. Lansing - that thing was a tank!
Ha ha, I didn’t know you drove the LTD! Was the door working by then? I remember for a time the door didn’t work and you either had to crawl in through the window or through the passenger side. But it would do 110 on the straight. You drove a different Saab I’m pretty sure, as I sold the silver 900S (the one Dad gave me for a wedding present) to some dude who was gaga for Saabs and would take it warts and all. But your rust bucket Saab makes a cameo appearance in an upcoming novel chapter, as proof that the character Keith can ignore anything.
I don't recall having to crawl through the window so door must have been working! Your wright, different Saab. The one I drove was a brown hatch back 5 speed manual. I recall there was a hole in the floorboard and if you hit a puddle just right you get a little face shot of water! I swore I'd never make my kids drive beat up old cars after what our dad put us through in high school and college. Its amazing to think back on how many different cars I drove...Honda Coupe, Chevy Panel Truck, VW Rabbit, Saab, Honda Accord, 73 LTD, Chevy Chevette all within a period of 4-6 years.
Absolutely brilliant job on the audio reading, Tom! I really enjoyed both reading and listening. What software did you end up using for the editing? I'm forwarding this onto my wife since she was more of a car girl 😁 I was never really into cars growing up, although my brothers were. Also, congratulations on the anniversary. We're going on 21 years and it's been an amazing journey.
Hey, thanks a lot, I used Audacity, which I’d used before … pretty easy to edit. I couldn’t think of any background audio that would work … maybe “dirt track date” by Southern Culture on the Skids?
I use Audacity as well. Yeah, with non-fiction it's harder to find the right music. You could always open or close with 5-8 seconds of something faded in and out, but definitely not necessary.
A Kodachrome snap of me posing on the hood of my 1966 Volvo 122S painted primer gray wearing my worn-out red cap is around here somewhere. Sold it for $400, the cost of replacing the radiator. Thanks for bringing up this sad story, Tom.
Ooh, if you find the pic let me know, sounds like my kind of car. I can’t believe I didn’t mention the Volvo 240 wagon I drove for a while …
A little like you I had a car fantasy from a young age. A Mustang. A friend's brother drove a 67 that he was forever fixing. It wasn't shiny or beautiful, but the lines and that engine sound got me. I knew I wanted one. I wanted an old one. But then, like you, reality. I wasn't great with my money early on. I had money in my pocket and I spent it. Finally I saved enough for my first car: 1975 Celica, bright yellow. I named it Saucy. It was a 5speed and it did a great job getting me to and from college. My first dream car I ever bough was my 2017 Ford Mustang Convertible. I had had Mustangs before, and I had a convertible before, but this one had ALL the bells and whistles I wanted. Not the GT or Saleen or Shelby I still think about. But as an adult, those cars can't be driven like they should be on our roads. So I'll stick to my 407 hp, electric blue convertible.
Yellow Celica! Nice.
Yes, absolutely to the audio, Tom. Your voice and delivery are wonderful.
-Jen Phillips, from Group Health, who spotted the poodle
Oh my gosh, Jen, good to hear from you! Thanks for reading.
Hey, would love to hear what you’ve been up to for the last, uh, 18 years or so … would you drop me a line at tompendergast@gmail.com?
I still have my 2004 350z and would never sell it. I came to the path of driving maturity in a different way. A few years ago I got hooked on car accident videos on YouTube. The more I watched, the more I became aware that most of the accidents were caused by some jerk driving like an idiot. Then I realized that I was that jerk. I was risking not only my own life and health but also my wife’s and the other drivers around me. So YouTube really changed my life by helping to make me aware of the selfishness of the way I was driving.
Isn’t that funny that we’ve had similar cars? God, I loved driving in your Fiero—it was the first time I hit 100 in a car (when I wasn’t worried about parts plying off, as I was in my LTD). I’m a pretty mellow driver now too … when I’m not on the racetrack.
Actually, one of the best cars I ever owned was a 2002 Hyundai Elantra. I've had fancier cars, but that one was so reliable and so fuel efficient. It actually had quite a bit of pick-up for a small engine, and I loved that it blended in.
You know, keeping that car would have been a smart decision on our part: it really was well-built, practical, economical, etc. But that’s not all I need from a car, for better or for worse.