Car History

When I finished my undergrad degree, my parents gave me the option for my graduation gift of either keeping the car they were letting me use, or they said they could buy me a laptop.  I already had a (crappy) computer and access to computer labs on campus, and couldn't imagine going back to not having a car, so the choice was an easy one.  So it was that in 2003, I became the proud owner of a 1991 Honda Civic (and a bachelor's degree in English!).  It basically looked like this (but with a tiny blue stripe all around it and a sun roof):



And I loved my car.  It was my baby.

When Craig and I got married, he had a car, too, so we towed the Honda and drove his car (and a tiny U-Haul van) across the country.  That drive pretty much finished off his Oldsmobile, and we quickly replaced it with our mini-van, and suddenly the Honda was Craig's car to drive, and I drove the mini-van.  And that worked just great for me, but it was a little rough for Craig.  Because, even though my Honda was a great car, it most certainly did NOT have air conditioning.  Because you don't really NEED A/C in Seattle, where we'd originally bought the car so many years ago!  Not like in Virginia.  Craig never complained about that, but it couldn't have been fun.

But we he managed.

Then, the day after I brought Kendra home from the hospital, Craig's parents called us with an idea.  They were purchasing a new car and would be trading in their old Saturn.  They asked if we would like to switch cars with them, we could keep the Saturn and they would trade in my Honda.

The advantage to this was pretty obvious: the Saturn was a few years newer (a '95 to my '91) and IT HAD AIR CONDITIONING.  There wasn't really any comparison.

Still, it killed me.  I'd just had a new baby and did NOT want to be making hard decisions just yet.  And besides, the Honda was MINE.  IT was my baby!  But now I had two babies to be taking care of and Craig needed something to get him to and from work that preferably wouldn't leave him drenched in sweat.  We said Yes to the trade.

We took the Honda for one last spin.  I no longer drove it very often, and when I slid behind the wheel, I didn't notice that Craig had left it parked in 1st gear (rather than reverse, like I would have done) and I promptly rammed it straight into the parking curb.  Craig looked at me and asked, "Are you sure you're okay with this?"  I nodded, admitted that was just a dumb mistake, not me trying to sabotage things.  And that was the last of my Honda!

The Saturn, I should explain, was a teensy bit of a pain.  It was the most stripped down model that Saturn made: no power locks, no power windows, no power steering.  Nothing.  Only that lovely, cool air conditioning.  But since I hardly ever drove it, that really wasn't my problem.

We worried it wouldn't last long.  Hondas have a reputation for longevity, but I don't know if the same can be said of Saturns.  We told ourselves that if it made it 6 months without any major repairs we would assume that we'd made the best choices.

But it turned out to have been an excellent choice, because that car lasted.  It lasted and lasted.  Occasionally it needed some repairs.  I seem to recall some expensive transmission work while we were in Manassas.  But for the most part, it was extremely forgiving.  The kids, literally, tore it to shreds.  Pieces of the ceiling would hang down.  When we gave rides to the neighborhood children, they were amazed to learn how to "roll down" a window with a crank.  It got so old that Craig's co-workers would tease him about it.  But it still it ran for us.

But finally this year, it was time.  The poor car was leaking oil AND coolant.  We took it to our (much loved) mechanic and he said it needed a new radiator.  And since the company Saturn ceased to exist, it was getting harder to find parts.  We'd had that car for nearly 11 years (easy to keep track of, since it's the same as Kendra's age!)  And we just decided that it. was. time.

Craig had been searching on all the car apps for what he felt would be a good, reliable replacement car and when he found a good one at a price he liked AND had a day off, he jumped on it.

So we no longer have a 1995 Saturn.

We've come full circle and are the proud owners of a 2015 Honda Civic.

Goodbye Saturn, hello Honda!

Craig loves his new car.  He loves having power windows and power steering and power locks.  He loves that it's a bit zippier than his old car.  And it makes me happy to see him so happy.  (And I love driving it when I'm running errands without the kids!)  Life is good

And just because it made me smile, the other day I found an Oldsmobile, just like the one Craig took me out on our first date in, parked next to my huge van.  So I had to snap a picture of it.

It's like they're old, curmudgeonly friends together!