a car story???

 After I spent yesterday blogging about the wonders of chocolate I discovered, thanks to my west coast brother, that today is "International Chocolate Day" which just goes to show how important chocolate is world-wide. 

But enough about chocolate, at least for today. 

As it happens, today is also "Drive Your Studebaker Day."  During my high school and college years I dated a 1956 Chevy, a 1957 baby blue and white Chevy (so beautiful), a big old station wagon of undetermined origin and, believe it or not, a 1950 something Studebaker.  It was dark green and style-wise looked the same coming and going.  

The year was 1965.  Since the Studebaker belonged to the man who would become my first spouse and since I was trying to learn to drive well enough to get a driver's license (this was during my last year in college, and I knew I would finally need to know how to drive) he decided I should try driving his Studebaker.  

There was no power steering and it drove like a truck, a really big old heavy truck.  At the time of this event I was home from college on break at my family's country home on a good quiet road on which to try driving.  Off we went with me in the driver's seat.  I drove slowly and carefully out of our driveway, onto the road in front of our house, and away we went.  So far so good.  Then my boyfriend suggested I make a left turn onto a quieter country road.  I tried, I really tried.  I made the turn but not all the way.  The Studebaker ended up nose down in a ditch (happily not too deep).  We switched seats and my future husband managed to get the car out of the ditch.  I never drove the Studebaker again.  

In case you're wondering, I did get my driver's license later that summer.  I was finishing my last quarter of college at Ball State (a summer session) and rooming at the home of a girlfriend whose family lived in Muncie.  Her father took me car shopping.  I was able to buy a 1955 Corvair, then I learned to drive it (much easier than a Studebaker) and then I got my driver's license, just in time to start my first year of teaching.

To be continued....