A tale of temptation named Traverse

My blog is titled “Musings from my Minivan” and for a very good reason, because that is my primary residence. Though many of my little fans believe that I live in the television…no, in fact I live in my minivan. I just stop by my home occasionally to lay my head down and grab a change of clothes. With three children with demanding schedules, and a whirlwind calendar of my own, I?m driving waiting, eating, working, primping and yes, sometimes sleep in my minivan…every day. That?s just where our society has gotten too. Parenting is logistics. Because we have essentially built ourselves out of communities, and spread our lives out across the land, we spend so much time in our cars just trying to get from one obligation to another. It?s crazy, yes, but it’s reality, so we have to deal with it. For me that meant getting a vehicle with space. I have, since the birth of my third child, been a Minivan Mommy. A used Chrysler Town and Country Minivan Mommy to be exact. Used because I could never rustle up the capitol to buy new, and the ?TC? because it is very big, and had leather seats and a moonroof standard. The leather seats were non-negotiable with my children. My car is generally a trough. (If we got stranded off the highway somewhere we could survive for a week on the leftovers in my car alone!) If my car didn’t have leather I think it would be labeled a biohazard by now. The moonroof is my one decadence because it makes me feel connected to the outside. When I am idling or working in my car I love to be able to look up at the trees. It?s very Zen.

But, truth be told my minivan isn’t very Zen these days. My long relationship with my minivan has been about loyalty. I have been committed to my relationship for better or for worse. However, for the last year things haven?t been the same between me and “TC”. It doesn’t sound right, it doesn’t act right, and though it is gold my kids and I have taken to referring to it as the lemon. “TC” is the needy stepchild in our family always behaving badly, and constantly searching for a mechanics love. In these tight economic times this has become quite a burden, but the reality is I can?t live in my World without a car, so I marshal on and do my best with ?TC?.

Yesterday the unthinkable happened. I innocently came upon the Chevy Booth at the Blogher Expo

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They were displaying information about their present line. I asked if they had any minivans and they said “No”. Just as I was about to walk away the rep told me, ?But we do have a 7 seater. It?s called the Chevy Traverse.? The name range chimes in my ears and something stirred deep inside of me. ?You can see it if you like. It?s just outside?. Now, I am a thinking woman. I know about the dangers of conferences. The being away from home. The sense of freedom. The lure of the unknown. And still I walked out that door. (Oh, the shame!) There it was live and in person, the Traverse. So sleek. So beautiful, and, dare I say, grown up looking. The GM rep opened up the door and the interior beckoned to me. The seats were clean and firm! They gently and effortlessly glided in and out of place. The rear compartment was spacious. (I would actually be able to put Costco groceries in there!) Then the rep asked me to join him in the front seat. (Danger!) I slid into the supple leather bucket seat and melted. We closed the doors and the World got quiet. Even though there wasn’t a moonroof it still felt very Zen. I surveyed the beautiful lines of the dash as they cascaded downward bringing my gaze to the compartment between the seats. There I saw them, deep pocketed cup holders! My heart began to pound. “You mean I could actually drive in a car with my tea and not have it spill all over me when I reach to adjust the radio?” My resolve completely shattered. Now instead of a “deal with reality gal” I was becoming a heat seeking missile of desire for the out of reach. Those cup holders turned me into a cougar hungry for a young SUV stud. I am dreaming of cheating on ?TC? because I am in love with ?Traverse?.

But it?s not just my fault. My own government is leading me astray. With the new “Cash for Clunkers” program that started officially July 24, I am being lured with the promise of $3500-$4500 dollars to abandon my commitment to my used minivan, and run off with an energy efficient, new hunk of an SUV. Oh the moral dilemma. I believe it is my duty to participate in government programs that are trying to get our economy upright again. And it?s true that I wouldn’t fetch more than scrap dollars for “TC” as a trade in anyway. But how can I throw away the years I have spent with “TC”? How can I be so fickle? And most importantly, how could I afford to keep Traverse? Young conquests aren’t cheap you know.

So, as I prepare for the second day of Blogher I carry a heavy guilt, because I can’t wait to get back to the Expo to see “Traverse” again. How can I face “TC” this morning when I drive to my Concert? How?! Even though I haven?t really been unfaithful…yet…I still feel ashamed. I’ve been put under the spell of the forbidden and financially unattainable fruit of “Traverse”. Driving will never be the same again.

SMILE On!

ML

Miss Lori can be found Musing from her Minivan at MissLori.TV , Wearetherealdeal.com , YoungChicagonista , and ChicagoMomsBlog. She is also the new Chicago Family Entertainment Blogger for Examiner.com and a Discussion Leader for MomsLikeMeChicago. You can also see her Activating to Be Great at Miss Lori’s CAMPUS on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.