collection collective: vintage cars

i have
never had
much luck
with cars.
part of
the problem
is
that
i have never
driven a car
that wasn't
at least
10 years old.
also
i have
always been
a poor
student or
biologist
with
little money
to invest
in autocare.

i had a
reputation
of having
the car
that always
broke down.

but
i
dearly loved
each one
of
my
vintage
blue cars.

the photo
above
is
my first car.
a 1978
toyota celica.
a girl
couldn't
love
her first
car more.
i bought it
from
my older brother
for $200
when i was 15
in LA.
he stenciled
roaches
on the doors
for me
and
it was dubbed
the roach coach.
it went through
a whole
series
of paint jobs
and many
trips
from seattle
to LA
and back
throughout its
6 or 7 years
with me.
that's
steve severin
leaning against it-
one of my
teenage idols
from
siouxsie and the banshees.
when my brother
[same one]
worked for
lollapalooza
in 1991
we drove them
around in
my car
with
my brother's
art school pal,
manly hanley
[in the
background].
but alas
the roach coach
met its
tragic end
in
ellensburg.
the engine
finally blew
on rainy
holiday
trek
across
the cascades.

then
i bought
my dream car,
a vintage vw bug.

that's me
in front
during
a seattle
snowstorm.
this
cute
baby blue
1969 bug
was purchased
from a guy
in seattle.
after handing
him the money
for the car,
he kindly
invited me in
for a bong hit.
my mother
gave him
a proper
german name,
otto.
sometimes
i called otto
kaiser wilhelm ,
when
he pissed
me off.
oh how
i loved
otto-
even though
he sputtered
and
couldn't go over
55mph,
and none
of his
gauges worked,
i was smitten.
but alas
he too
met a tragic
[but amusing]
end
in tacoma
on the way
to visit my parents
with
all my brothers
and grub
in the car
after 6-7 years
of
faithful
service.
otto sat lifeless
in the meadow
in front of
my parent's house
by the barn.
otto was put
out to pasture...
until some
high school kid
bought him
for $200
and rebuilt
him
to his
previous
glory.

then there
was
betty blue
my 1987
powder blue
volvo 240dl

she was
bought in
chapel hill,
nc
in 2001.
i wanted a wagon
to carry
a surfboard
but
i fell in love
with betty blue.
betty's owner
was a cool
artist gal
who lived
in a coop
and loved
her car
like i do.
betty has
taken
many
an adventure
with me-
through NC
and
to DC...
but alas
betty blue
stopped
running
yesterday-
the engine
just died
in DC
after safely
taking grub
home.

this may be
it
for
betty blue.
and
i may
be back
to
knitting
on the metro
for good.


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