HAPPENINGS
She Says
Friday, Jan. 9
Believe it or not, women get attached to their cars.
But for different reasons than men.
ALLISON KAPLAN
Special to The Jewish News
I
n the ephemeral life span of
every automobile, there eventu-
ally comes a point when a dri-
ver's focus shifts from trans-
portation to the inevitable breakdown.
Not inflicting a breakdown, mind
you, but prepping for the trauma.
I recall with great fondness the first
days following the purchase of my
Acura Integra. Okay, fine, the car had
already weathered six years and 80,000
miles when I
bought it. But
I was in col-
lege, for gosh-
sakes, and I
really needed
a car with a
sunroof
I kept
reminding
myself how -
cool it was to
have a car with a sunroof—
even if that car was stranded
on an auto shop lift, its
transmission a total loss —
three weeks after I bought
it.
Other than that minor,
minor setback early on, the
Integra was a great ride.
Fast. Sporty. Ever cool.
Those factors — some
might call them superficial,
I chose to categorize them as intrinsi-
cally pleasing — can blind you to the
aging process. Take the trunk, for
example. Mine had a fingerprint of
rust just beside the keyhole that ever
so surely spread both east and west
right before my very eyes.
I ignored it at first, since the car
still looked great from either side.
But then a spot of rust popped up
on the passenger door. And from
there, all the aesthetics that dazzled
me in the first place began to fail,
one by one. A speaker blew. The tape
player ate cassettes. The temperature
Allison Kaplan is a frequent Scene
contributor.
1/9
1998
72
cost the better part of a starting salary
— or more. But I worked, I saved,
and just as the Integra driver's seat
came unbolted and I practically
lurched through the windshield, I
bought a new car. With a sunroof, to
boot.
Every time I use my
fancy remote to unlock
the doors from 10 feet
away, I marvel that this
object too big to stick
in a back pocket really
belongs to me. Sure,
the Integra was mine,
but only with my
et
•""`ota y
mt.,
s40
mom's name on the
Mkt
title since I was a lowly
r
college student with-
out any assets.
To my amazement,
the woman at the bank and
the man at the dealership say
I now have assets. When did
that happen? Must have been
around the same time I real-
ized Jeeps are impractical in
the city — with their bumpy
ride, terrible mileage and
easy-to-rip soft tops. My, I'm
aging quickly.
So it's not the convertible I
dreamt about, but it is the
brand new car I never imag-
ined I could buy. My name is
on that title — and I did all
the leg work to get it there.
(Checking with my dad,
from
time to time, to make
an infuriating "I told
sure
I was doing every-
you so," and for that I
thing right.)
am forever grateful. But
My dad says
no words were needed for
my new car
me to know my next car was not
gives me
going to be the Jeep I always
something
promised myself I would someday
called equity, which will be important
buy.
some day when I buy a house.
Yes, I talked a lot about driving a
Gulp.
sporty Jeep Wrangler — mainly
I think a car is enough of an
because I figured I'd never have
investment for this decade. And by
enough money to buy a new car any-
the time I pay it off, I figure I'll
way. I wondered how I would ever
need to move back in with Mom and
pull together enough resources to buy
Dad for a year to recover — both
a new car.
from the financial strain, and the
Even now, as I cruise around in my
shock.
hip-yet-practical new Civic, I'm
amazed that I really did it. New cars
lever jammed, leaving me to choose
between always having heat, or
always having air.
Then one day the glove compart-
ment fell off. Just like that. And the
sunroof — my beloved sunroof —
started leaking ... quite steadily,
depending
on the
direction of
the rain.
My par-
**mow% . . .
ents never
did utter
•
• • " • ... m
The future of American Judaism,
young adult Humanists luncheon
with Rabbi Sherwin Wine. 12-1
p.m. At the Birmingham Temple.
Cost: $5. (248) 477-1410.
Sunday, Jan. U
Brunch, Second Sunday
Schrnoozers and Jewish Professional
Singles. 11:30 a.m. Meet at
Zanzibar Restaurant, Ann Arbor.
Call Phyllis Perry, (313) 973-8699.
'Tuesday, Jan. 13
Recruitment meeting for the
National Young Leadership Cabinet
in Washington. 7 p.m. At the Max
M. Fisher Building, 6735 Telegraph
Road. Call Tanya Mawr-Posner,
(248) 203-1456.
2
.
Wednesday, Jan. 14
ta•
Coffee at Little Daddy's, with
Jewish Professional Singles. 7 p.m.
Call David, (248) 398-9370.
Friday, Jan. 16
Singles Shabbat service. 8 p.m. At
the Birmingham Temple.
Sponsored by Federation and the
Michigan Board of Rabbis, in
cooperation with The Jewish News.
(248) 642-4260, Ext. 241.
Saturday, Jan. 17
Mark Ridley's Comedy Castle and
dinner, Jewish Professional Singles.
5:30 p.m., meet at the Royal Oak
Brewery. Cost: $12, plus dinner.
RSVP to David, (248) 398-9370.
Tuesday, Jan. 20
Hate on the Internet, with Don [.
Cohen, ADL. 7 p.m. Sponsored by
YAD, Federation's Young Adult
Division. At the Big Surf Cyber
Cafe in Birmingham. (248) 203-
1458.
W'ednesday, Jan. 21
Shabbat unplugged: the philosophy
of Shabbat. 7:30 p.m. Ariana
Gallery, 119 S. Main St., Royal
Oak. Rabbis Arnie Sleutelberg,
Steven Weil and Aaron Bergman
will speak. For reservations, call
Jodi Berger, (248) 203-1486.