an idea on the necessity of representation

 Up until about October of 2020, I owned a 1994 Mercury Grand Marquis. She was long, gray, and had an oil leak that made it necessary to dump about two quarts of oil down the hatch a week. She was also rear-wheel drive and if any of you have driven a boat in the winter when it's icy and snowy and wet outside, you will know how much of a pain in the ass it is. 

Here's the fine lady herself.

So, this is kind of a fun car in the summer time (not that it's mine anymore, this baby got me $800), it's absolute dogshit in the winter. And the thing is, you do not see very  many 1994 Mercury Grand Marquises hanging around at this point. I remember once, I was driving through a town slightly bigger than the one I currently reside in, and I saw like, a 1990 Mercury Grand Marquis and I got fucking pumped, dude. 

 

 

Hey, mom, I joined a gang!

 Anyway, when I say you never see any other cars like that car, that goes double for the winter. This baby was rear-wheel drive, AKA the worst drive for winter, so she already had something going against her. So I would slip and slide my way down the hill to work (at the pizza place; I only really ever had to drive her in vaguely winter-y weather to the school once) and wonder if I really should be driving this or not? Should this be on the road in this weather? Is it okay? I had nothing to gauge it against, except the fact that I kept sliding through stop signs. 

Now I drive a Ford Expedition. Big boy. Big red boy with four wheel drive. If there's one thing you see frolicking around in the winter in North Dakota, it's a fuckton of SUVs (also pickups). Before the Marquis, I drove a Ford Explorer. Also an SUV, not quite as big of a boy. And you know, it might be that I'm no longer sliding off the road (okay, I never slid off the road, but I almost ran into a stoplight once), but I'm no longer almost vomiting every time I drive in winter weather? I don't know. But I do think that there is definitely a big part of, well, I see a lot of other cars like me on the road. 

Here's the thing. Apart from this car anecdote, I really do not give a shit if I see myself represented in the media. It might be a privilege thing. It probably is. I'm white and I'm able-bodied and all that shit's locked down for now. But I dunno. There might be something there. And if I got so fucking pumped for another Grand Marquis, I bet a lot of kids get so fucking pumped from seeing things that are more personal than a car, even if I tend to personify mine to the max that you can without becoming Arnie Cunningham, right?