delayed quarter-life crisis

I love my Corolla.  She has so many stories to tell, from the empty streets of College Station to the crazy freeways of Los Angeles.

Me and my 2001 Toyota Corolla

And it makes me incredibly sad, but after 11 years, our relationship has come to an end.

The last time I test drove a car, I was 17.  I circled around the parking lot once and then picked out the color.  Done.

But I realized it's actually a bit more complicated.  And so began CarQuest 2011...

Originally, I was leaning towards an SUV type of car.  I figured X would be getting some flashy mode of transportation, so I should be the one to get something more practical, more family-ish.  You know, in case we needed to haul stuff around, fit more than two people, all the things you can't do with a sports car.  Honda CR-V, Toyota Rav4, something along those lines seemed to fit the bill.

 

Suddenly, X was no longer in the picture.  Why do I need an SUV?  I decided to be practical.  I don't particularly care about cars, so really, I should just get something dependable, with good gas mileage, and a super low monthly payment.  My Corolla was great, but it was time for a change and the Mazda3 seemed promising.

I talked to my dad after I went to go test drive.

Me:  "I tried out the Mazda3 today.  I really liked it!"

Dad:  "The Mazda3? 
Me:  "Yeah...?"
Dad:  "You know, whatever you pick now, you'll probably have for another 8-10 years, right?" 
Me:  "Okay...?"
Dad:  "So, do you really want that car to be the Mazda3?"

What?!  How unexpected!  How uncharacteristic!  How Un-Asian!
His logic was that if I have any desire for a ridiculous car, it needs to be now, pre-kids, pre-car seat,  etc.

And so that's how I ended up with this awesomeness in my parking garage:

Inifinit G37.  Pretty, right?