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Tuesday, December 20, 2016

"Finding Janice" by Cody S



                  It was a brisk Sunday morning, around the same time of the month as it is now. After waiting weeks, it was finally the day. We were on our way to the Pomona Swap-meet, one of the biggest car selling and buying events in California, specifically classic cars and vintage Volkswagens. We were on our way to look for my dream first car: an old Volkswagen beetle. We arrived and once we walked through the gates I was in awe, it was the most Volkswagens I’d ever seen in one place, there were rows and rows, at least 300 cars in total. Once we were in, it was time for the fun part, finding the right car for the right price. We walked through the rows and kept a sharp eye, and about three hours later we had narrowed it down to about 3 cars. A blue 1959, a teal 1968, and a black 1969. We began looking at the ’59, because it was my favorite out of the 3.  At first look, the car was a steal, it was lowered and on rims, and had the original paint job, which really added to the vintage look of the car, and the motor looked to be in good condition. As we began to look closer, we noticed it had the wrong tail lights for that model year, and a few other things led us to believe it most likely wasn’t a 1959, but that didn’t diminish our interest too much.  We looked under the car, and there was the reason this guy was getting rid of the car for so cheap. All throughout the bottom of the car there was holes due to rust, to where you could see into the car. Sadly, this wasn’t the one, it would’ve been too much work to get it safely drivable. So, we moved on to the black ’69, and it was a short look, because the seller was firm on his price, which was out of our price range. Another one was gone, and we were down to one final option, the teal 1968. We looked and everything seemed right. It was newly painted and the interior was recently restored. It was in our price range and the motor ran great. The guy bought the car as a gift for his wife, but she ended up not liking it because of the manual transmission (stick shift). We took the guys number, and decided to take another look around to see if there were any other options, because as the day goes on people get more desperate and prices lower, so we were hoping to get lucky. As we walked down one row, a white beetle had just sold, for half the price that was listed earlier in the day! We had just missed a really good deal, and I started to get discouraged that we wouldn’t find the car of my dreams.  Out of the 3 cars we looked at, only one met all our requirements, the teal car. Now I liked the teal car, but I didn’t love it. The body style of beetles changed in 1967, they got wider and all the lights got bigger and bulkier. I personally didn’t like this, but I really wanted to drive home in a new car, so I told my dad I could settle for this one. Based on my body language, my dad could tell I didn’t really like this one, and so he asked me if I was sure this was the one I wanted. It took everything I had to muster up the two-letter word I responded with, “No.” Sadly we got in our car and drove home with still only one set of keys, not two. Although I didn’t get my car yet, there was still time left in the day, so I hopped on craigslist. I looked for about 30 seconds until I got to an ad for a 1962 beetle, right in my price range, located in chino. I asked my dad if we could go look at it, and he agreed. On our way there, I had a good feeling, like this was the one. We got to the In-N-Out that we had agreed to meet the guy at and he wasn’t there yet. About 20 minutes passed and he still hadn’t shown up, and I started to get really nervous this guy was going to be a no show. Just as I was about to give up, I saw him come around the corner, and I instantly fell in love with the car. It was everything I wanted, new interior, older model, sleeker body, and a good running motor. We went on a test drive and it didn’t take much to sell us on the car, we knew it was the one. It was one of the best moments of my life, literally a dream come true. As soon as I arrived home with my car the first thing I did was name her. I got my inspiration right from the 60s and named her after the famous Janice Joplin, one of my favorite artists from that time.  I guess if I had to take a lesson out of all this, it would definitely be to never settle, because if I would’ve settled I would’ve missed out on the deal of a lifetime.

23 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. It's pretty cool to know that you were able to find a car you liked, at the same time I can agree that persistence and patience in any situation can help us get into better places. Personally speaking, I'm not really a fan of Beetles, my dream car would be a '63/'64 Impala, that's a car that perfectly describes California and the west coast 🌅 🌊 . Great story!

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  3. This was a pretty cool story. Your piece made it easy to relate to the feelings of looking for that perfect car. Plus, it felt pretty natural to wanna share your emotions throughout the story with you, especially when your disappointment changes to excitement. The ending was satisfying to know that not settling got you what you really wanted. Nice job dude

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  4. Finding the right car can be difficult especially when it is your first one. I am glad that you did not settle for something that you did not truly enjoy. Your piece was well written and fun to read, great job!

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  5. Overall, this was a great story. I enjoyed the turns that this story made, initially thinking you would buy a car at the swap meet to thinking that you weren't going to get one at all to finally getting the car of your dreams in the end. The story-line and plot was well structured and I liked the moral of the story as well, never give up! Good job!

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  6. This is a great piece. There is a lot of attention to detail. Also, the message behind it is very true and ties in greatly with the story.

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  7. Great writing man, I hope one day I can find my perfect car just like you did with your Volkswagen Beetle. Now since I've ridden with you many times in it I'm definitely one to say it was a great choice and she speaks like a beauty. I can understand how it became to write your story after your dream car and the structure and details as well as imagery were great!

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  8. I found this to be a very interesting and informative piece about this personal moment for you. I honestly do not know much nor have an interest in cars but reading this was more about your perspective on the teenage experience of gaining freedom on the road and it was enjoyable to read. It sounds like a beautiful care though btw.

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  9. It's cool how you personified the car's name in the title I thought I was going to read about a person, but cool story. Good thing you found your car of your dreams, it's like we was searching for it too.

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  10. What a fun story! Your story is very unique and holds a valuable lesson about how we should never settle in something we feel unsure about. Great flow throughout the story and the diction was so simple yet it was continuous. Great job!

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  11. I think you were born in the wrong era. You obviously know enough about the original 1960s Volkswagen and it shows. I liked how you specified those tiny details and actually kept a light-hearted feel on the whole story.

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  12. Good job on describing everything as the story went on. The message received from the story is very true and I myself had a couple instances where I missed a great deal due to my impatience.

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  13. Nice job with the use of description and details in your story. Its awesome that you ended up getting your dream car in the end through those moments of almost settling. Overall a good story on getting your dream car.

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  14. I can see by the extensive detail about cars you gave in your story means that you take a high liking to them and finding your first car meant a lot to you. You lesson at that end about not settling was a great conclusion to such a well written story. Good work!

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  15. I love the detail you used in this piece. The description made me understand how much it meant to you and the effort you put in finding your dream car. The details made us understand how much you appreciate your car. Great job!

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  16. I really enjoyed reading this story because you can immediately tell how genuine it is. You did a great job at showing the readers your true feelings about the cars you were looking at and how disappointed you were when you didn't drive home in a new car on that Sunday. Your description of your emotions when you finally found the one really stand out and enhance the realism of the story. Furthermore, you were able to connect your story and experience with a life lesson which is to never settle on something that's "alright" if it doesn't make you happy. Great story Cody!

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  17. I love the passion you have for cars. It is very obvious to see this in your story since you go into such detail about each car and your feelings for them. Even though you did not get the car you originally wanted, I'm glad that it all worked out and you still got a car that you enjoyed. The way you integrated your feelings into the story was great. Your passion is amazing and I hope to see the car you got around the school one day! Wow, great moves Cody. Keep it up. Proud of you.

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  18. The blog as a whole was really neat and inspiring this can help me work towards being patient and show other people that if you stay persistent and patient then you can end up at the goal that you worked so hard for. Thank you for writing this and great job.

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  19. I really enjoyed reading this piece as I adore cars as well. Although I am more of a Japanese classics-type of guy, I deeply respect your passion for the Volkswagen Beetle. The way you described each and every Beetle you saw shows me how much you really wanted to buy the car. I am glad that in the end, you were able to buy your dream car, and I hope to see "Janice" driving around the school one day. Thanks for sharing!

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  20. A very interesting story about waiting and receiving your dreams and this maybe a cliche but "All things will come for those who wait" and you truly wait for that special car. I really enjoyed reading your story and you approach in receiving your car. Good to hear that you got what you wanted in story. Great job!

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  21. This story got me excited.Its always fun to see someone have their dreams come true and inspire others to do the same. Even if the reader did not have the same passion for cars as you, they would still have to admire your dedication and determination.

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  22. I like how you stated never to settle for something you don't really want because at the end you would've missed out on something you really wanted.I also like how you shared the detail such as the dates and colors of the cars that you had saw.

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  23. Great detail in your story and it was a great thing to read that you were able to accomplish your dream of owning that car.

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