Week 13: Ferrari 308 GTS

I am ready to drive fast. 

Lake effect snow hitting Ohio, I'm thinking convertible.

Two child safety seats and a booster seat, I'm thinking two-seater.

Freelancing without a steady income, I'm thinking Ferrari.

Accustomed to the practicality of a minivan, I'm thinking sports car.

Mid-life crisis? Maybe a little, but such is the joy of Daddy's Matchbox. For 99 cents, I have a brand new Ferrari, the same 308 GTS that Tom Seleck drove in Magnum P.I. I'm not wasting my time opening doors, either. Stiff lower back, thinking jumping up and over the door right into the driver's seat.

I am ready to drive fast, if only metaphorically.

Because there is so much to do, to read, to think about, to try, and to experience, and time is zipping by so fast that the roadsigns of life are beginning to look like a picket fence.* I'm hitting the brakes, spinning the wheel, and skidding into a parking space, but then I'm off again, because who wants to park?

I want to drive.

I'm feeling wild. You can tell. I went for the Ferrari Hot Wheels this week.

Yup, I'm ready to drive fast, but playing in the snow today with my kids, racing my ten-year-old down the snowy driveway, him towing four-year-old racer A in an orange saucer sled, me pulling baby Bubba G in a red baby sled, cutting in front of  Racer Z as Bubba G's baby slid skids sideways eliciting a squeal of delight, I'm thinking these more subtle adventures of speed, luxury and drama are just what I want right now.

Adventure, I realize, is a state-of-mind.

And if I need anymore, I can always grow a Magnum P.I. style mustache.

*For those of you who remember, this is a reference to Charlie Ryan's hot rod anthem "Hot Rod Lincoln," although as a kid I was familiar with the Commander Cody and his Lost Planet Airmen version. Above is a live recording by Bill Kirchen (of Commander Cody)  from 2008.

Photo of my Hot Wheels Ferrari 308 GTS zipping into the sunset courtesy of Phil Pekarcik.