The Little Red Car That Couldn't

This past week I ended up with Friday off. I have a Friday scheduled off about every third week but somehow usually manage to torpedo the day by adding on clinic or surgery, usually owing to the need to get work done. But this last Friday was different. I had canceled out on a conference and so ended up with nothing to do.

A Friday with nothing to do. Gee. What better time to go buy myself a year end gift. Something not too big, but red, and goes fast. So I headed over to GR Auto Gallery to check out an old Porsche I'd been watching online. It was one of the classic 911's from the late 80's-- convertible, whale-tail, the whole enchilada. I figure, getting a 20+ year old red sports car is an investment, not a man-toy of the testosterone infused second childhood variety. So off I went. The place is fun to walk through if you like old cars. They've got everything from Rolls Royce to race cars. And there it was, "my" little red Porsche.

It was the weirdest experience. The moment I opened its little red door, it didn't feel right. Peering into the "backseat" that I had thought Ev might enjoy, at least while he's still in the single digits, I realized he would feel like he's riding around in the depths of a paper grocery bag-- a dark hole. And you can just leave that safety seat in the driveway. Then, sitting behind the wheel I remembered the problem I have with the 911-- I just don't fit the pedal set-up. I feel like I'm sitting sideways. After exiting the car, I closed the door and it closed like a toy, with a light-weight rattly catch rather than a solid clunk. Not a lot of protection that.

I stood around for a few minutes trying to de-convince myself of the obvious but, fortunately, to no avail. Tam and I rode home in our big fat Denali and, I have too say, I was way more comfortable sitting behind the wheel. The tilting, telescoping, heated, airbag equipped wheel.

My sports car days are definitely not over, but my risk taking days are in serious decline. My old cars days are probably gone for good. Along with a decrease in drinking and driving, there's a well engineered reason we see so many fewer deaths and serious injuries from car crashes: There's just not enough one can say about anti-lock brakes and airbags, even in small cars that go way too fast. That, and there's really not enough that can be said about the protection offered by a properly fitted car seat-- especially one with a view.