Oct. 03, 2003 - 21:22 MDT

THE WONDERING JEW

Wheels

When I was a little boy there was a fascination about things that would move under their own power. Streetcars, trains, automobiles were something run or driven by a person who didn't have to peddle or push. Funny, that fascination is still there at my age now.

Only now I can understand that great, sweaty labors make it so that a person can drive an automobile that runs on its own -- providing it is not out of gas.

The Lady Heather came up with a Friday Five set of questions pertinent to the line of reasoning.

1. - What vehicle do you drive ?

A. - A Saturn VUE, an all wheel drive sort of mini SUV.

2. - How long have you had it ?

A. - We got it in 2002.

3. - What is the coolest feature on your vehicle ?

A. - It has faithfully done what it was advertised to do -- is that a cool feature ? We sit high enough to see over small cars, sometimes an advantage.

4. - What is the most annoying thing about your vehicle ?

A. - The beast is only as nature made it I know -- but damn does it ever eat gas compared to our 1993 Saturn SL or our 1997 Saturn SL.

5. - If money were no object what vehicle would you be driving now ?

A. - Probably something in the Mercedes line, or Audi perhaps or a Cadillac. After test driving and riding many cars it would be the one that suits me the most.

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My first memories of cars are the touring cars I guess they were called, they could be wide open during nice weather but did have canvas sides with celluloid windows inset. Marmon's I think some of them were, veritable behemoths they were.

Dad and Mom's first car was a 1925 Studebaker coupe, weighing slightly less than a battle ship, sturdy and dependable. Only problem was what most every car of that time had, flat tires with the necessity of patching inner tubes at roadside.

Heather and my first car was a 1931 Ford Model A Victoria, "Lil Humpback" by nickname. Someone had put 600 x 16 tires on it which sported it up a bit. Although there were fancier cars with more goodies, my heart and soul belonged to "Lil Humpback" and in many respects it could out do some of the more expensive cars in many things.

Heather and I have had a succession of cars, most of them were used cars -- some good some bad but they all got us where we were going and back again in a bit of comfort.

One fond memory of mine was our Henry J, one of the first postwar compacts. Had a Jeep engine, was dependable and was a looker too. It got killed when broadsided one morning.

After that was a succession of cars, which I really wouldn't write home about. Until we got our first Saturn SL (new) 1993. It adopted me immediately, and I loved every inch and pound of it. After it ran afoul of a piece of oil well rig which dropped off a truck ahead of us, totaling our car and almost us, we got a 1996 Saturn SL which was in the tradition of its forbears.

Nowadays around here, there is only one convenient way to get around, a personal set of Wheels . . . . . . . . . . .

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