pixhellated

I think everyone has a fantasy vehicle. I also think that a person's fantasy vehicle changes over time. When I was eight or nine I wanted a Lambo. I had a picture of a Countach on my bedroom wall. As a teen it was all about Pontiac in general and Trans-Ams in particular. Then Corvettes. Then Fieros.

I was always car crazy as a kid. I remember being fifteen, one year away from being sixteen, and saving every penny for a car. Once I had that car I'd never have to walk places again. Freedom. The first car was not a Trans-Am or a Fiero. It was a 1977 Chrysler Gran Fury. It was a tank. It was, embarrassingly, a former Red Top taxi with most of its livery intact. And, yes, it was freedom. There were adventures. Costly ones.

That freedom is far from free when the expenses pile up and the bills roll in. That's part of what took the bloom off the vehicular rose. That and... I got older. I still like looking at cars. Once I thought I'd like to own a sportier unit so I got a 1988 Fiero GT. It was pretty, but it sat in the barn and sat, and sat. And sat. Once I had it there was no real urge to use it. Now someone who wanted it more than me owns it.

The truth is that in my fifties, my main need for a vehicle is one that can take me somewhere I want to walk with camera in hand. Enough with the driving, let's just get to where I can roam. That's freedom. That's what vehicles are to me now. Getting me and my camera gear to a good day hike or camping trip. My teen desires have found their feet, as it were.

All of which is to say that a vintage VW bus would be a good fit for me and my camera bag(s) now. Say hello to the current fantasy vehicle.