6.06.2011

My New Ride


Happy Monday everyone!

Today I have some big, exciting news to share with y'all!  Before I spill the beans, though, I thought I would provide you with some background information.

When I was young I was HORRIBLE with change.  I didn't like any change, and it wasn't until I was older and forced to deal with some really big changes, that I began to realize how inevitable change is and that it can really be something to embrace and learn from.

My senior year, I wrote my main college application essay about this journey to accept change.  I prefaced the essay with a frame story that I will now share with you.  It was Christmastime of 1995, I was in kindergarten, and we were getting a new car.  A brand new Jeep Grand Cherokee, to be exact.  I can vividly remember crying in the backseat of our old car:  I couldn't bear the thought of getting rid of our beloved car and having a new one.

I probably looked a little like this!

That new red Jeep Grand Cherokee turned out to be quite the car.  My mom drove it for years, and then my dad for a while, and finally when I got my driver's license, I too drove the Jeep.

After sharing the beginnings of this story and three pivotal examples of moments in my life when I had to accept change and was the better for it, I closed the essay and frame story by explaining that after college I would be getting a new car and certainly would not be crying in the backseat of the red Jeep--I was ready to embrace that change!

Well now that college is over, the time had come for that new car.  I wasn't really sure, however, if I would still be getting a new car; my parents generously decided to pay for the Masters, but because of that, I didn't expect a car.  About a month ago, though, my parents called me describing a much newer Jeep Grand Cherokee they had found in excellent condition.  When they called I was in Staple's frantically printing out a final project.  I asked my mom to send me a picture, and she explained:  "Okay, but you need to decide fast--we're trying to make a deal!"  Little did I know how soon my new car would be arriving!  During summer school I drove the old Jeep, but now that, I'm home, the new Jeep is mine!  I am a little sad to say goodbye to the car I learned to drive on, but, I am definitely NOT sobbing in the backseat over the goodbyes!

So now--after that long story:  Voila!

Isn't she a beaut?

Ready to go with UVA and Vineyard Vines stickers!

So happy behind the wheel!
Please ignore the lack of make-up/shower/etc!

This new car keeps reminding me of one of my favorite Alan Jackson songs:  "Drive."  I too grew up driving an old wood boat and then a Jeep!


What new car memories do you have?  

Did you have a good weekend?