Farfegnugen

You'll understand the title of the post in a minute. To sum up, the subtitle is, "Happy!"

It's actually a dual theme: First, the primary message: Dare to be Happy. ---the current ad slogan, and one that's serving well. And the dual meaning of it? Well, gosh---Happy Birthday to Me!

Blame my father.

Or thank my father.

Either way, we do birthdays right. Okay, sure, the word is birthday. But we claim our birthday week. :-) (sometimes we'll claim a month, but you have to reserve claiming that for the folks who really love ya.)

And thus, Thursday officially began my birthday week---it was one full week before my birthday. Me? I finally have done what I've wanted to do for years:

WooHooooooo!

(and yep, that's my house the car is parked in front of! (The top photo was taken at Overton Park very near the veterans memorial. The big field in the background is an area lots of folks take their dogs. And the second photo is in front of the museum in Overton park.))

That's right---I have a new convertible! And yep---it's a New Beetle convertible. Harvest Moon Beige with a cream top. Fabulous! And yes---I love it!!!

I spent hours and hours in dealerships, I drove a lot of cars, looked in a lot of trunks, and crunched a lot of numbers.

(Note to GM: bravo to you for being the first American company to have a retractable hardtop, but the trunk---seriously? The trunk, with the top down, has a mere 2.2 cubic feet of space. Okay, I could have perhaps handled that. But here's the kicker: you cannot access the trunk at all with the top down! Not only that, but you cannot lock the glove box. What?! Thus, that car was out---well, and IMHO (in my humble opinion), the drive wasn't that smooth. (It's the G6 I'm talking about.) Granted, the G6 has a much better look that the Eos (the Volkswagen with a retractible hard top), but not to be able to access the trunk at all without having to put the top back up, well, that's just silly. Get with it, GM. Yes, the Eos, on the other hand, allows you to access a space in the trunk with the top down. Sure, it's not a lot of space, but it'd be enough for a small bag or two for a weekend get-away. (I first considered the hardtops after a friend showed me his Mercedes---similar trunk access as the Eos. Guess it's the German engineering applying to more than just the engines.))

Anyway, once I started considering a New Beetle, each time I saw the car, I knew: that's my car. I mean, come on---it's a car that smiles at you! Just look at the big grin on my car:

See?

And yes, I drove a lot of cars, and this one just felt like my car! I have another friend who, for the last two years, has been listening to me talk about wanting a convertible. He kept trying to convince me to go Nissan or something. Well, first, I wanted a back seat. A two-seater was not an option. Then my friend made a comment that I'd look sexy in a Nissan.

Okay, sure, the Nissan is a sexy car. And no, the Beetle is not exactly thought of as a sexy car. But the Beetle is FUN! It's HAPPY! I told my friend that I was buying my fun and happy car---I'd just have to bring sexy to it on my own. :-)

And yes, Beetle owners seem to be a lot like Miata owners----some sort of culture or club all their own. I have a friend who drives a Miata, and I noticed him always waving at other Miatas. He told me it's just something they do; Miata owners wave at each other. And in just two days, I've noticed a similar phenomenon with my Beetle. We smile at each other. After all, it's a happy car, and I guess, that makes us happy to see each other happy.

Ah---and the convertible? Love it! I had the top down before I pulled away from the dealership and as much as possible since then.

Howard? He had his first ride this morning. And he seemed quite pleased. He'd been in a convertible before, but it was the Miata and we were both passengers---sharing one seat. That was not exactly comfortable for either of us. But he was a perfect traveling companion this morning, happily feeling the wind on his face and through his hair.

Yep, it's true: farfegnugen.

(Ah---translation: it's German for "driving pleasure.")

Oh! And get this--I bought my Volkswagen in, of all places, Germantown. No, really---seriously. :-)

Farfegnugen!