We bought a car
We bought a car. We signed up for zipcar in March because we had a few small trips planned. We wanted to go furniture shopping in New Jersey. We did an overnight in Philly. We wanted to eat all of the pizza slices in New Haven.
Our zipcar luck was mixed. More than half of the cars smelled like stale cigarette smoke. One car was just straight up dirty. Another time, our reservation got canceled just two hours before we needed it.
In June, we took a zipcar to Montauk. It was clean and smoke free! When we arrived, I decided it was time to get back behind the wheel. I drove us to the lighthouse. I drove us to town. And then I drove around all night as we restaurant hopped. I was the sole driver for the entire weekend Dad! Instead of reaching my 9 year anniversary since my last time driving, I decided to let driving back into my life.
I always knew we would get a car one day. Friends move out of the city. Big furniture stores in the suburbs call your name. BBQs at Mom’s are easier by car. But our trip to Montauk and my time behind the wheel expedited our timeline.
Sung did a ton of research and made a shortlist. Our first stop was Volvo, to see the SUV XC40. The car on the lot was a bright blue. I immediately fell in love. I was pretty set on getting a blue car to honor you and your love of blue thunder.
We shopped at other dealers for the rest of the day. By the next morning, we were sold on the Volvo. We went to pick it up on June 29th, exactly 9 years to the day from the last time I drove Blue Thunder. Of course, I made them reprint the paperwork after I saw that the date on the contract was wrong. There’s that law degree paying off.
Dad, we named our car Blue Lightning. Seeing our new car will always make me think of you. I’ll always try to find ways to feel like we are connecting, even though you are gone. And getting a bright blue car felt like a way to see you more often. But I was still crushed when I couldn’t call to tell you. I played out our convo, me reading you our license plate and you trying to come up with the significance behind each letter and number.
People buy cars all of the time. For me though, this car purchase felt like one of those milestones that you should have been around for. I’ll always wish you were here, but some days, I really just can’t believe what you are missing.
