By the end of a long summer, I finally saved up enough money. Taking as many double shifts as I could at “The Tale”, and putting everything I earned straight into the bank. I had a goal, and I wasn’t about to blow it on useless junk. What good is a license without a car anyways? As I drove up to meet the guy who was selling it, nerves started to take over my body. What if it isn’t as advertised? What happens if the guy lied and it secretly isn’t “fine”? These questions and more filled my head as I drove up to the house: 62 Willow Lane, Guilford Connecticut, the current residence of my future car, an address I will not soon forget. As I pulled into the driveway I saw the white box of metal, and it was beautiful.

It was a 1986 Cadillac Deville, classic, by nature. The off white paint due to years of ageing, that at one time I am positive was pearl white. Leather interior, dice hanging from the mirror, and one of the most comfortable seats I had ever been in. The smell of the 80’s still lingers in the air as I breathe it in. When the ignition turns you can feel the V8 come to life and take control. It was also stacked with all the best commodities. An am/fm radio with an optional tape player, and an air conditioner than only seemed to work when it felt ready. Oh, and of course, the mysterious light that read “car leveling” if there was too much weight to one side. Sure, it wasn’t the best car, but it was mine.

Rolling in this magnificent beast of a car was not only luxurious, but also quite frightening. A constant fear of the possibility of the car shutting off while driving 70 on the highway lingers in the back of my mind as the car shook from the “high” speeds. “Crystal mall, only 25 miles away,” my friend Al reassuringly reminds me as he sinks into the passenger seat. Just as my anxiety starts to fade into the distance, a single rain drop rips me back into reality. It wasn’t long until we were driving through a down pour. My crippled windshield wipers did their best to keep my view clear, but it’s still a fight. All I could do was try to follow the brake lights ahead of me. As we came nearer to the mall, the rain started to die out, but the excitement still wasn’t over. As a reminder from god of the risk I took driving up here, I saw a car go straight off the road into a ditch. This is a memory I will never forget. Although this trip to the mall was very frightening, it was a very fun experience that I shared with my friend, and more importantly, my car. I will never forget the time I took the caddy up to the crystal mall.