The first cool car I drove to school was a Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu. Mom and Dad bought this car from the M-W Chevy Agency located on Main Street in Nixa. My Grandpa Nevatt was friends with Junior Sprague, the sales manager. The price was $2,450. That car today would be worth at least $32,000. Mom, Mike, and I shared our blue two-door Chevelle.  This car was the first automatic transmission vehicle Dad owned. He always preferred a manual transmission. The three of us loved driving this car. That was until Mike let it go to the bottom of the hill on 76 Highway, Branson. He stopped to help a man having a heart attack and forgot to put his car in park. The state patrol said,” Son, I think your car is rolling down that mountain. 

The first car I really call my own was a two-door red Chevy Impala. I noticed the 1963 beauty sitting on a car lot on Saint Louis Street. I knew right away I should try to make her mine. It had a white top and custom wheels.  You never forget your first love, and my Chevy was my one and only.

Wouldn’t you rather have a Buick? While working at Taco Grande, I noticed this sharp-looking 1970 Buick Rivera on the car lot next to our restaurant. It was green with a hardtop. It had the feel of a Cadillac—with bucket seats, console in the middle, cruise control, and a great radio. This car was the one that I drove to my first job in West Plains, Missouri.

The car you drive tells a lot about you. You didn’t go to college, but you have a new truck with a flag attached. You’re socially conscious, driving a Prius or another hybrid or electric car. You’re obnoxious, taking up two parking spaces with your Tesla truck. You’re the boss, driving a Mercedes, BMW, or Lexus, even if an oil change takes your breath away. Your kids are school age, in a Toyota van or a Chrysler van. You’re a senior citizen now. You are ready for an easy-to-get-into modern-day Lincoln or Cadillac. Anything with the Pontiac logo on it suits you, too.

One of my favorite fun cars to own was the 1980 red Celica GT. Red with white interior and hatchback. This car took Susan and me to Oregon forty-four years ago. I bought it from my aunt and uncle’s car dealership in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. Starwalt Auto Sales sold several cars to me and my parents.

Three Mustang convertibles have been parked in my garage. The first one was black with a tan top. It was featured in several homecoming parades. The next ride was baby blue. That was the color I wanted when the Mustang was first introduced in 1964. One time, it became bogged down in sand near the river where we had floated. After much work on a one-hundred-degree day, we finally got it unstuck—so much fun in a fun car. My current fast beauty is a red GT. Fast but hard for an old girl to get in and out of. It’s funny that by the time you can afford a fast car, you are too old. It’s difficult getting in and out with your walker.

Cars have undergone significant changes during the 59 years since I first backed out of the driveway. Dual front seat airbags, sunroofs, tire pressure sensors, backup cameras, and lane help have made cars much safer. I miss dashboard knobs labeled with words.  Every new model resembles the last year’s model of the same edition.  My current Palisade often tells me I should consider taking a break. Who knows, in the next 20 years, we never see a gas-powered car.

Things to Consider if You’re Over the Hill. Accessibility. visibility, comfort, head-up screen, parking sensors. The days of folding myself into my sporty 2-door Mustang like a pretzel are long gone. But the memories will last forever.