Allison, JConcepts Blog-writer
I hurt my thumb on Saturday.
Not life threatening of course. Tim came to visit in his hot rod on Saturday. Shiny red with soft leather interior. The car really is a piece of work, a piece of art, and a piece of history. It’s all American. Like apple pie or hot dogs at a baseball game, football game…. Or any major league game…. I did not have a hot dog at the Super Bowl party Sunday night though….
How about that piece of history they call Super Bowl XLII ? The undefeated team goes down! A hot QB isn’t the end all be all.
So Saturday, Tim brings his piece of history out to get a bit of sun and shine (sorry Northerners! We had a glorious weekend here in sunny central FL) and Jason and I got to go for a drive around town. The hot rod has no top, it was a perfect day to ride in a convertible. It would have been more perfect if I had a hat. Long hair does not do well whipping in the wind. With a single, narrow bench seat, I’m surprised the boys weren’t whipped with my hair too.
After a bit, Tim let me drive his ‘32 Ford. He freely offered me the keys. It was exhilarating. It was great to be in control of such a machine! Maybe I just like to be in control 
It was also great not to ride with the gear shift between my legs, sorry, I told you it was a small bench seat. Three across has to fit somehow!
I hurt my thumb putting the ’32 Ford in to gear. At first I thought it was a trick. The car is an automatic, but the button on top of the gear shift had jammed when Tim put it in park. Nothing major, just took all of my body weight to get it out of park. And all of my body weight on one little thumb, well, that hurts LOL
So naturally driving a convertible makes you want to have a convertible of your own. Jason said he too wouldn’t mind a classic old car, his own piece of history. But of course we don’t want one we have to work on or that could have the potential to leave us stranded on the side of the road.
Not that Tim’s car does, don’t get me wrong (and Tim would just slide under it and make a tweak on the side of the road if he had to!) Like how he peaked at his rear sway bar on the ’32 Ford in my driveway! Just slid right under there! His car is actually a “new” piece of machinery, immacculate. So I am not saying his car would be unreliable, but a few of my friends had old VW’s in high school, and we never wanted to drive very far – just in case…..
Not to mention the gas mileage! and the gas was way cheaper back then! LOL
So Jason got his chance to drive and he really took to it, naturally. And I don’t think he hurt his thumb putting it in to gear. He cruised along in the car enjoying the ride. Did I mention the car has no seatbelts? I believe Tim said he wanted to keep it authentic by not having seatbelts. Since the car was sold without seatbelts, its not required. What a loophole LOL
By this time the sun had started to drop and our spectacular weather had a chill in the air. That’s when convertibles are not quite as fun. But they are still somehow an exuberant reminder of youth and vitality. I grew up on the beach – I’ve always loved convertibles, open air.
Maybe some day I’ll have a convertible of my own, (did you see the Audi Commercial during the Super Bowl on Sunday! Wow!) only mine will have seatbelts and the option to raise the top when it’s necessary. In the meantime I’ll keep my sun-roof, fuel efficient, almost 40 miles to the gallon, seatbelts-a- plenty (well except when leaving the bar the night before the Clash, you know who you are if you were there! I could have used a bigger car that night!), funny thing is my car still had the “new car” smell, too, up until that night we all went out in Tampa too!
That’s my favorite part of buying a new car – the smell. The scent of a restored, mint condition’32 Ford is a great, distinctive aroma, but,to me, the smell has nothing on a 2007 model.
