stuck at 144, 145

Last summer, for the first time in my college career, my parents allowed me to have my car in Philly. Maybe they were just in denial that I wasn’t coming home for the summer, or maybe they realized that they didn’t need a third car here in Boston, but either way…my trusty 1993 White Toyota Camry made its maiden voyage to Philadelphia.

This car and I have been though so much. It was/is the first thing that I really felt a sense of ownership over and the first thing that made me truly feel independent. Equally important were the lessons that I learned while driving it.

#1-the impact of an accident on car insurance (lets just say, lesson learned….1988 Volvo’s don’t dent….hoods of Camry’s become accordions)

#2- the less than happy reaction of P &S Sessler when I “got caught” riding with friends in the car

#3- the fear I held inside for 4 years about having gotten pulled over for speeding less than 5 months after getting my license (I finally admitted this to my parents the other night)

#4- gas is not cheap. When I first got my the car, I complained because it cost me all of $18 to fill my tank (gas was at an all time low of $0.98/gallon)….little did I know that 6 years later, I would be filling up for $3.44/gallon

#5- no matter how hard you try, its impossible to take off an sweater and drive at the same time

#6- you can’t trust the city, your car WILL get broken into. Use the CLUB, seriously.

#7- cars aren’t good hiding spots for Christmas gifts (for a few reasons…) a) food will perish and/or freeze with New England winters, b) fragile things break, c) little sisters always seems to look around while you leave them alone when you run into the store

#8- leather burns your things in the summer, and freezes your bum in the winter! But it’s oh so chic! ☺

#9- sticks and stone can break bones AND car windows!

and #10- it’s not worth driving over pot holes, just so you can go see the HOT guy that works at Sullivan tire….a front end alignment, doesn’t equal the cost of a date (Even at the VERY expensive restaurant)


Although I am thrilled to be moving to the big apple where I don’t have to drive (I must admit, the city and walking/public transportation has really won me over), I’m really sad to be leaving the Cam-cam behind. This just seems sort of symbolic, but when I drove the car back to Philly this January and filled up at the gas station, the odometer stopped working, as if time was to stand still. I thought that it would just start working again (maybe a loose wire) but it didn’t. I know I should have gotten it checked out, but I really didn’t know a good mechanic. Needless to say, I’ve been driving around since January with the same 144, 145 reading on my odometer. But then the oddest thing happened, as I was filling up at the gas station to begin my drive home to Boston, (I hit the reset button, out of habit) and the odometer began working. A symbolic act, if you will. Time was not longer standing still. I had been able to “freeze” my last semester as a college student, and now I am able to begin the journey into life as an grown-up.