I was sitting at a traffic light on my way to the market this morning and happened to observe the vehicles around me. I'm sorry to say that I think there are a whole lot of ugly cars out there these days. I don't like the square, boxy look, and remember fondly the curves of the 50's.
My dad drove a car with a manual transmission until 1956, when he bought a car with automatic as I was turning 16 in November and would be learning to drive. Our dads or someone else taught us to drive in those days as the schools didn't have driver's ed. My dad was a supreme teacher. He could often get excited and yell, but when in the car with me at the wheel he was perfectly composed - at least outwardly. There were times we got in traffic in a place I wasn't familiar with and begged him to take over, but he calmly made me go on, and never raising his voice, talked me through it. I miss him so much!
But I got off track. The cars back then had beautiful curves and looked so sleek and aerodynamic, not like all the boxy angles that were around me in traffic this morning. My dad, in his wisdom, wouldn't take me to the DMV on my birthday, which was the dream of every 16 year old. He told me I wasn't ready and needed more practice, so I practiced every chance I got until March of the following year.
The vehicles around me this morning may have been ugly as sin, but they provided me with a beautiful trip down memory lane!
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They don't make um like they used to. . . Dang, I wish I had my 1957 Chevy Convertible back.
ReplyDeleteAfter getting my license, I of course wanted to drive home. My dad handed me a separate lone key, and said "here is your key to the family car, so you'll never have to ask for the keys. But you still have to ask to use the car. If you take the car without asking, you lose the key." Knowing he trusted me with the key to the car, made me feel great. I was careful to never do anything that would cause him to lose that trust in me.
ReplyDeleteThose were the days when at a distance one could tell a Ford from Chev, a Plymouth from a Desoto or a Rambler. And is that Studebaker coming or going. The days when cars had style with flowing lines & sweeping curves. Each model had it's own distinctive look & colors were imaginative in their eye catching two tone paint jobs. And we could tell the cars by their engine sounds as well. A flat head V8 going by certainly sounded different than in inline 6 cylinder job going by. And hey what about those car interiors with their big overstuffed spring bouncy seats. And those big steering wheels & dimly lit old radios pumping out those magical tunes of the day. Ahhhh yes, I remember that era very well.........................
ReplyDeleteI love the comment from Phil. I remember the days when I could tell the difference in the different make, model and year of the cars. Now I pretty much can only tell the color. I like the way our cars look now, but they all look the same to me. I took Driver's Ed, but since I was a year early entering school, it was kind of dumb. I think I was 14 and nowhere near learning to drive (emotionally). I ended up not getting my driver's license until I was 21 - and I was married and needed a way to get to work!
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