Car Culture Shock

At last I could relax. And I did. Ever since, I’ve been flooded with the simple satisfaction of having my own transportation once again. Being the captain of my own ship has brought back nostalgic memories of my first car, my first license, and my first driving experiences. Not unlike the feeling you have when you get your first bicycle as a young child. Or the first time you ride that bike on the road. The world fills with possibilities. I am free to wander and explore on my own terms, to get lost, to discover, to pull off a country road next to a stream for a half hour of fly-fishing in the late afternoon. I find myself relishing so many of the pleasures I’ve so easily (and so often) scoffed at over the past several years.

For better or for worse, I had been lulled into a somewhat European perspective on automobiles. Perhaps cars are a largely unnecessary luxury, better used sparingly or at least with restraint. But my return to the US and re-submersion in our American car culture has reminded me of the satisfaction of owning a vehicle, the freedom that possessing and driving my very own car gives me. Sounds shallow? Arguably. But unabashedly true.

Let’s face it. Most Americans love cars. And we depend on them. So much more than we can easily explain to our European neighbors so perplexed at, and quick to mock, our car culture. Yet it’s been reassuring to discover that it is possible to have a safe, four wheel drive (actually all wheel drive, to be perfectly accurate) car that gets great gas mileage and that’s compact enough to fit into any parking place I can find. And it’s immensely pleasing to tell people that I purchased the car on eBay, for this company has certainly revolutionized the way we relate to previously owned automobiles by developing and supporting one of the single best recycling operations in existence. And at last, I can offer to drive my friends rather than the other way around. That’s definitely going to make some folks happy.

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