Junk Then, Junk Now?

I was just driving somewhere and spotted a '59 Chevy in someone's yard. 50 years!

Ah, that takes me back ... to high school and my family had a '59 Chevrolet that it was my "pleasure" to drive. It actually was a piece of junk and was an embarrassment. But this was a time when being a little freakish was kind of a badge of honor and a distinction. So while I was embarrassed somewhat about the old clunker, I still knew I had the distinction of having something a bit freakish and tried to make the most of it.

I'm also the veteran owner of a few other old cars, including a '56 Ford, a '61 Ford Fairlane, and a '66 Impala. These cars were also junk at the time. The Impala was the biggest gas guzzler I've ever had. It got just slightly better mileage than the space shuttle, which I'm thinking burns off about 5000 gallons of fuel per foot on takeoff. The '61 was losing its wheels (a dealer said) in '71 or '72. The '56 Ford I actually gave away for a couple hamburgers. I could've gotten fries out of the deal too but I had too much pity on the buyer. They should put me on the Supreme Court. I have true empathy.

Seeing the old '59 brought back memories. Memories of cars that were junk then, and something tells me they can't be too much better with another 40 some years on them.