I apologize for being so caught up in this election.  It's on my mind pretty much *all the time*.  I'm constantly poring over the news and I just want it to be over.  I already warned my boss that I'm not coming to work on November 3.  Now they're saying in the news that the results of this election may drag along even worse than the last one... both camps have hired a cadre of lawyers and there are new stories of voting irregularities in the news every day.

So in an attempt to try and get my mind off of that, here's something I alluded to writing about once, an illustrated history of vehicles I have owned...

#1: 1981 Volkswagen Rabbit (Diesel, MT)
My very first car, a gift from my parents.  The bunny was a gift from my Dad, and I really loved it.  It was black with a red interior and a red racing stripe.  The racing stripe was an almost laughable touch, given that the car's top speed was 65 MPH.  Because it was a diesel it was very loud, and just about shook me to bits in the wintertime... but it got 50 MPG and that's pretty awesome.  I've never owned a car since that came anywhere close.  Sadly, I wrecked the rabbit about a year after I got it, but while I had it it was great.  Nothing fosters a sense of independence like one's first car.  I would drive and drive and drive.  And when I stopped for gas, very often I would buy it with pocket change, once I bought $1.63 worth of gas. The mileage was so good I could afford to buy 2 to 3 bucks worth of fuel and get by. 
#2: 1974 Chevy Nova (AT)
This car was complete ass, but it got me from place to place and I purchased it very inexpensively the day after I totaled the rabbit.  It didn't have personality like the rabbit did, even with the "BORN HORNY" bumper sticker on the back.  As you can see it was FUGLY brown, and there was no love lost between me and this vehicle.  This car's nickname was "Shitty Shitty Putt Putt".  Eventually, SSPP was vandalized by my future wife's ex-boyfriend and became a rotting heap outside my apartment.  Unlike my bunny, I never reminisced about this beast after I had it hauled away.
#3: 197? Toyota Celica (MT)
This sporty little car was Patty's main mode of transportation when I started dating her.  After the Nova became undrivable, we began using this car all the time.  As it was not really my car, I don't remember too much about it except that it was fun to ride around in and I liked the way it looked.  And it came with a beautiful girl... which is always a plus.
#4: 1981 Dodge Aries Wagon (AT)
This was the first car Pat and I bought by pooling our money together.  (I say "our" money, though as I recall, Pat's and my parents contributed heavily to this little venture.)  The cobalt-blue K-series wagon was pretty solid.  I don't remember having a lot of major problems with it.  This was the only picture I could find of the Aries, taken on a hiking trip in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. The Garfield stuck in the window was the very first stuffed animal I ever gave Patty.  We used this car throughout our last years of college.  Once I graduated, I bought my own car as soon as I landed a job, and Pat continued to drive the Aries.
#5: 1986 Honda Civic Wagon (MT)
My first car out of college.  I tend to think of the white wagon as the "first car of my adult life".  I loved this car.  It was quirky and odd, and had personality.  It never had any serious mechanical problems until the day I cooked its engine.  The car developed an oil leak where coolant could seep into the oil pan, thus though the lubrication levels went down, the fluid level in the oil pan did not, and so no warning light was displayed on the dash until the night the engine went KERCHUNK.  I liked the car so much I paid the $1700 to replace the engine, funded in part by selling off my comic book collection.  Unfortunately, about a year later, I totalled the little wagon, and that was the end of it.  For the next year or so, Pat and I relied solely on car #5.
#5: 1990 Honda Civic DX Sedan (MT)

Once the Aries conked out for the last time in 1994, Pat got a 1990 Civic Sedan.  We both really loved our Civics.  They were solid cars, decent looking, and fairly reliable.  The only thing that really sucked about them is when it was time to repair them, the repairs were always expensive, especially if you went to a dealer.  Foreign parts I guess.

#6: 1991 Toyota Corolla Sedan (AT)

 Shortly after switching jobs in 1998, I purchased this jalopy from a coworker at my new company.  This was a relief to Pat because trying to get by on one car was pretty difficult... especially since our daughter was born in 1997.  I really shouldn't call it a jalopy because it never complained and it ran just fine for a long time.  Nonetheless, I had no special affection for this car.  I never liked the fact that it was an automatic transmission.  Toward the end of its life it developed a nasty gas leak which was smelly, annoying, and probably dangerous.  When Pat bought car #8, I gave the Corolla to a mechanically inclined friend who was carless, and inherited car #7.
#7: 1991 Honda Civic DX Sedan (MT)

In 2001, with the old civic sedan on its last legs, Pat and I purchased (with some trepidation) another Honda Civic Sedan (exact same color).  I say with trepidation because the "new" sedan was a 1991 and cost more than the 1990 had back when we got it.  I realize inflation is real, but it just seemed wrong that a 10 year old car bought in 2001 should be more expensive than a 4 year old car bought in 1994.  This trepidation proved prophetic as the 10 year old sedan had electrical problems.  Every 8 months or so the rotor in the distributor would burn up and the car would conk out... leaving Pat stranded on the highway.  Oddly, Pat seemed to develop an attachment to this car.  She often called it her "baby".

I inherited this car when Pat went on to purchase vehicle #8.

#8: 2002 Subaru Outback (AT)

Pat's first new car!  We hadn't intended to buy new this time around, but we let the dealer talk us into it.

I'm glad we did.

New cars are much more reliable and it is nice to go a year or two without any serious mechanical problems.  The Subaru is very safe and solid and I don't have to worry so much about it breaking down and stranding Pat and Neya somewhere.

When we first got it, I drove it whenever Pat would let me.  Sure it was an automatic, but that's okay.  It was nice to drive a new car.

#9: 2003 PT Cruiser GT (MT)

Chuck's first new car!

My attachment to the Outback evaporated the day I drove the purple rocket home from the dealer.  Whee!

You all know about Vanessa by now, so there's not much to say except that I love this car and as the new year is coming I'm beginning to plan out the next group of modifications for her.