The car that caught fire and how I blame a Christian Rock band.

Everyone has that one car from their teenage years. Either you were in love with it, embarrassed of it, crashed it, or really owned it (we're talking fringe, hydraulics, paint job you name it). I had several cars in high school. And while my family likes to taunt me that I was a horrible driver, I wasn't. I did ask how to "point this thing" when driving with my dad for the first time but I was trying to be funny.

I mean, yes, there was the day I went into the ditch...twice (different ditch, same car). There was the white Taurus that I experimented with airbags on (they hurt when they come out. I wouldn't advise experimenting). And yes, I did go "off-roading" into a cornfield with the white Taurus (it wasn't a ditch and in my defense, I TOTALLY would have gotten away with it had it not been for the cornstalks sticking out of my tailpipe.). But the one car which gave me a bad rap that was totally not my fault was the cranberry colored GrandAm. I got this after the Taurus was put to pasture (they just don't stick airbags back in I guess). I loved it. It looked fast. It was reddish. The seats were all cool and buckety. And the stereo seriously rocked. The thing that made me not love the GrandAm was the fire. THAT I had nothing to do with.

I was reminded of the GrandAm and my love for it this weekend. My husband and I got tickets to a Jars of Clay Concert. As they opened, they said they were celebrating their 15th year of making music together since their first album. That album, is what made my GrandAm rock. They played through their whole first album. Each song reminded me of something in that flying cranberry. When they started to play "Flood" though, it all came back. It was 1995 and although I was on my second car, I hadn't had my license for too long. This album came out and was on solid replay. I turned the base all of the way up and "Flood" made the windows shake. I was rockin' out. I remember coming home and my parents coming out just laughing because they could hear me coming up the drive. They live in the woods and they have a really long driveway so I must of been jamming. As Jars was playing the song this weekend, I sent my parents a text,

"@ jars of clay concert. Reminds me of rockin out in the GrandAm. :)" I got this response, 

"ha!!! Dad wants to know what caught on fire?" 

It took me a second and then I got it. Not funny. All of a sudden, I was not loving the GrandAm.

What happened, was this car was maybe a lemon. It's hard to tell. My mom and I were minding our own business driving when smoke started pouring from the vents. We're not talking a little smoke. We're talking major can't-breathe-gray-smoke. We pulled over on Jefferson, hopped out and called my dad. The car was towed and turns out the defroster had caught on fire. What I don't get is why did the defroster catch fire IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SUMMER!? Yeah. I don't buy it but that's what we were told.

So, I get a bad rap for cars and then this happens. This was not my fault. Clearly though someone has to be blamed and it all clicked for me. Jars of Clay. This may sound like a stretch but stick with me. I was rocking out. Bass turned all the way up. Thumping to "Flood" rattling it all around in there. It's a cheap GrandAm (sorry if you own one. It was a 93 so it's old.). Things are going to move. They got the wires all jumbled and shaken up. That's the only thing I can think of. It all makes sense now...okay. It doesn't. That's weak I guess. But still. How could that be my fault? In my defense, I've not had a wreck or fender bender since 2002 in my new VW Beetle. I think I've matured...and gotten to be a better driver just maybe.

Just to back up my theory, here's the totally 90's tastic video clip of the song. Imagine the base. Oh that 90's hair and clothes.