Sentinel, 16 in 61 210114

      When I was 16 in 61 I got my driver’s license and soon after wanted my own car. I had some specifics that had to be met. It had to be a standard transmission, no automatic transmission for this guy. It had to have a V-8 engine and most important it had to be a 2 door car. In those days a 2 door was a personal car while a 4 door meant you were just borrowing daddy’s car. My selection was a 1955 Studebaker Commander.

      I must admit that while I loved that car; I tore that car up. I peeled off a set of tires in a year. I cut the muffler off and then put an aftermarket glass packed muffler that I could slide under the car and remove whenever I wanted to and that was frequently. I cut a hole in the floor so I could put in a floor shifter. My dad looked at that and said, “it took manufacturers 50 years to eliminate floor shifters and you put one in.” He was not thrilled. I also switched the transmission linkage so it shifted like a 4 speed rather than a 3 speed.

      Having a personal car did impress the young ladies; it made up for my lack of being the suave young man that I liked to think I was. My girlfriend at the time did not like the car as well as I did, but she went along with it until her friend Jack got himself a new Chevy. She then told me to get rid of the Studebaker and get a Chevy. I thought about that for a minute and then got rid of her instead. She then went to Jack.

      I did not know that at first and did not really care. I was in a local pizza place where we youngsters liked to go. That was at the time when Ray Charles came out with one of my still favorite songs, ‘Hit the Road Jack’ and I was in a popular pizza parlor with friends. I went over to the jukebox and selected that song, not knowing that she was also there. As soon as the song came on she came rushing over and asked, “did you put that on so I would come back to you?” I looked at her incredulously and said, “I didn’t even know you were here and I do not care about what you do at this point.” I never saw her again, but I hope her and Jack did well together.