<p>I had to rent a car for a week last year – said please just give me the cheapest car you can. It came with roll-down windows. My youngest D thought it was the coolest thing she’d ever seen and still talks about wishing we could get back that “good ole’ Kia.”</p>
<p>LOL…</p>
<p>When our kids were little we still had cars with roll-up windows. That was the worst, trying to drive and deal with windows and kids who weren’t big enough to make them work. When the back window is doing that buffety thing from the wind and driving you crazy…</p>
<p>I was so happy when we finally got one with power!</p>
<p>Hey, here’s something better than a drink for taking you to your happy place…we finally saw “Enchanted.” My vote for best movie so far this year. 
:)</p>
<p>It had a chipmunk that was almost as talented as our marmots!</p>
<p>mommusic: How is it that you have marmots? I love marmots.</p>
<p>You must be new here. “our marmots” means the marmots of Sinner’s Alley. These talented critters can do everything from a quick cleanup of the peanut shells from the floor, to getting your S or D in the higher institution they desire, if not deserve. ;)</p>
<p>Edit: Other alley denizens can add personal anecdotes.</p>
<p>I AM new. I am going to find my marmots and ask if they can replace cracked window panes. I’d love to hear what anyone else’s critters have done.</p>
<p>P.S. We have a 94 Ford Taurus that has roll-up-down windows. It is my Hs drive-to-work car, a heavy, icky old tank with truly horrible doors and windows. We’ve had to replace the rolling-down thing on two of them so far. The doors open and close with great difficulty. I can’t wait for it to die.</p>
<p>I am so old that I remember when AC was an option! My 1st car that I bought brand new did not have AC, nor pw…a 1986 Ford EXP</p>
<p>Oh my, our first car, an 83 Tercel hatchback, was great but did not have AC cause we were trying to save a few bucks. We drove 1200 miles on vacation without AC in the summer that I was pregnant…wow.</p>
<p>When DH got a small bonus the first thing we did was have AC installed in that thing.</p>
<p>
The Alley marmots are community property. They can do everything. There are no specialists, or - in the alternative - there is a marmot with every specialty conceivable. If you need a job done, someone here has had the marmots handle it, or knows what to feed them so they can and will.</p>
<p>Marmots, head over to gladmom’s and find out just what size window panes she needs. (Do marmots take off Sundays and holidays? If so, they might be there on Tuesday, gladmom). It’s a slow time for marmots in the Admissions and Financial Aid departments, gladmom, so your timing is good.</p>
<p>I drove across the desert from California to the Grand Canyon with a cool but relatively penniless boyfriend in his un-air-conditioned Chevy wagon. I got heat stroke/exhaustion/whatever the mildest form of that malady is. We pulled into some type of 7-11ish store (which had AC), sat me down on the floor near a freezer case and applied frozen foods to my pulse points for about a half-hour.</p>
<p>I don’t think the proprietors batted an eyelash. Perhaps this is a service they were used to providing?</p>
<p>Isn’t it funny how now our kids have DVD players, can hook up video games, Ipods, and handheld games, but when we have to take a drive for a couple of hours all we hear is I’m bored! Maybe if we all take our kids on a car ride like when we were growing up they would truly die of boredom!</p>
<p>I remember growing up and my folks had a 2nd home in VT, every week we would drive 5 hrs ea way all squished in the back seat and listenening to Mom and Dad’s music…trust me I can sing every Frank Sinatra song that is out there on 8 tracks! I hated it then, but yrs later Bullet and I went and saw Old Blue Eyes in London and absolutely loved it!</p>
<p>mommusic: The first new car I bought was an 83 Toyota Tercel hatchback! I remember that Toyotas were in great demand back then and you had to put in your request and then see what came off the boat. I ended up with a silver car, with AC and a sunroof. Loved the AC but hated the sunroof and had to pay a bunch extra for it, but I really wanted the car. Think it cost around $8K. The sunroof was useless, since if you have it open and are driving more than 15 mpg, you get that buffety thing going that you mentioned. Plus I don’t like the sun beating down on me.</p>
<p>I drove that car for 20 years, roll-down windows, babies and all.</p>
<p>I recently unloaded my 1995 minivan with crank windows! I’m driving a sweet little Audi now: so much fun! (But it was its own kind of fun being invisible while hauling around a van full of kids)</p>
<p>To nostalgia and sports cars! Two umbrellas each!</p>
<p>Oh, and while we’re sipping on that drink, can anyone help me understand why watching cars turn left for 500 mile is so interesting? Do we have any racing marmots?</p>
<p>I recently was informed that the key to my new future inlaws’ heart is NASCAR racing. I don’t even know where to begin. Can I research it here at the computer or do I have to attend? Bzzzzzzzrrrrrr… it’s hard for me to even watch movies with screechy car chases.</p>
<p>This comes in the category of: I’d do anything for my children.</p>
<p>We live in NASCAR country and I truly don’t get it…why would anyone want to drive in circles for hours on end? If they really want to do that all they need to do is go to No VA any day of the week and miss your exit to get on the mixing bowl, it’s much more interesting to try and find your way back when you have navigate the inner loop, outer loop, 295 and 95 I still don’t get the whole thought of an inner loop and outer loop, especially since it gets you to the same place, can’t we just 495 E and W? Definetly driving that deserves 2 drinks when you get home…plus it so much more dangerous going 70 miles an hour and navigating over 4 lanes in a 1/2 mile while trying to dodge the dump truck, school bus and the guy texting on the phone…now that is what I call driving!</p>
<p>Dh’s Toyota Corolla still has crank windows, manual locks and a gear shift. No one who rides with us remembers to lock the doors.</p>
<p>Goodie, I’ve got a great question to start a conversation: Does your NASCAR favorite driver prefer power or crank-open windows? Howzat?</p>
<p>Happy Post #11,000. </p>
<p>Mathmom bunted me in, but this is a team game, so POP! Champagne for all. (Share the tab; we’re a team and I’m really, really a cheap date.)</p>