Observations in October - #31Things - Transportation

I've always loved to be behind the wheel of a car.  This is me screeching my wheels out of our driveway, honking the horn saying "Get out of my way!"  The sidewalk was my open road and I had an aunt who lived at the corner of the block so I would "drive" down to her house all the time. 



















When I was a senior in high school, I graduated to motorized vehicles, my first car was a white Plymouth Valiant.  I called him Prince.  It was so cool because it had push button gears.  My dad went with me to pick him out, but I paid for him with my library earnings.  I was so proud! 

After Prince I had a Silver Gremlin.  I went to the dealer and bought it all by myself.  I thought I made a great deal because they gave me as much for the Valiant as I had paid for it!  I called the Gremlin the "Silver Bullet."  I really liked that car but I traded him in for a sexy Triumph TR7.  I was in love with the look of this car and felt so good behind the wheel but I think it was more car than I could handle as I had a lot of trouble with it from the very start.  Don't I look good standing next to it though?  I loved riding with the sunroof open.  I don't remember giving it a name.  Probably should have been called "Troublemaker."   

I got married around that time and we sold my baby because it was costing us a lot in repairs.  We got a nondescript used brown Mustang and that lasted a few years.  When our daughter was born we bought our first brand new car together, a Honda Accord.  That was the best little car and we had that for 10 years.  When we sold it to my nephew, he had it for another long period.  I think it ended up getting maybe 300,000 miles on it!  

Our next car was a Mercury Sable wagon and we had that car for a VERY short time.  It took us on the "Vacation from Hell" which is definitely a blog post of its own.

We then got a Mercury Villager and that was a good mini-van which made it through the kids school years very nicely.  There was plenty of room to take some of the class on field trips and take the golf team that my son was on to their matches.  

After the Villager my husband let me do a really dumb thing and we bought a Dodge Journey.  It was another used vehicle and I saw it online at a local dealership.  It had been on the lot for a while so I figured we could get a good deal on it.  I wanted it because it had some really neat features but mostly because it was a Journey and it made me think of the band.  It was a terrible car.  Again, there were problems with it right from the start and there was even a factory recall on it for something to do with the electrical system.  Periodically it just wouldn't start.  No warning, just no starting.  

Finally I got sick of dealing with it and admitted to my husband that I made a mistake by not getting one of the Hondas that we had test driven at the same time we test drove the Journey.  

We took a trip up to where our daughter was going to school at Sonoma State and went to look at new Honda CRVs because the sales tax rate is cheaper up there than where we live.  After four hours of dealership negotiations (I hate that part) we leased a white Honda CRV.  I love it.  I call it Moonglow.  

It has a sunroof and I can connect my phone for hands free talking and iTunes listening.  This year we had the option to turn it in and lease a new one or buy it but we decided to lease it one more year.  Then we'll see if we keep it or get a newer one.  

While I love driving, I also love flying.  We don't do it much because it is expensive but we live very close to the airport so I see the planes all the time.















We also live close to the train station and take the train to the Giants games.  It really is easier than trying to deal with parking up by the stadium.  At one time the train was at ground level but they raised it to help with traffic control.  When it was on the ground the Holiday Train used to stop at our station and it was an entertaining thing to do with the kids.  Santa and Mrs. Claus are on the train with Rudolph and the elves.  The train stops at certain stations and there is a car full of Christmas carolers.  Santa gets off the train and hands out candy to the kids.  There is a Toys For Tots donation station set up and people can donate toys for underprivileged children.  Since they raised the tracks, the train doesn't stop at our station anymore but I can still see it from our house:

 
What's your favorite mode of transportation?  Have a favorite car story?  Like trains?