My main mode of transportation is my car. My car is a small sedan. It seats four people, which is enough for me. It is a simple car with standard features. The car alone is not what makes me love it. While I would like a much nicer car some day, the car I have now works for me. From the moment I became a teenager, I dreamed of having the freedom that a car would give me. Having a car meant that I would no longer need to rely on anyone to take me where I needed or wanted to go. I have often heard people say that you can tell a lot by a person by what their car looks like. If that is true then by looking into my car, or taking a ride in it, one would learn that I love to eat, I love drive around with my friends, I love to go on dates in my car, and—despite having a lot of stuff in my car—I try very hard to make it appear clean, just like my room at home.

Food: one of the greatest gifts my car has given me is the ability to go eat wherever I want. I am no longer stuck at school for lunch. I can go eat my favorite fast food for lunch—or even get something healthy if I’m in the mood. Because my friends and I often eat in my car, there are frequently wrappers hidden in compartments or under the seats. Despite the fact that I am okay with eating in my car, I take special care to hide the evidence. I hate having my car smell like food, so I keep an air freshener in my car. Also, all the wrappers that do not make it to the garbage right away are strategically hidden because I don’t like my car to look too messy.

Aside from food, the other thing I love about my car is making memories while driving with my friends. We love to have the music loud and the windows down. I love driving with them with no destination or reason. It is the ultimate feeling of freedom. One of my favorite parts about driving with my friends is they frequently leave belongings in my car—which makes my car a home for their abandoned accessories. It is like a lost and found. I do not keep their things—though I sometimes want to—but they always know where to come to retrieve their belongings. For example, right now I have a sweatshirt and a hat in my backseat that someone left last weekend. In the glove box I have someone’s earrings—and I cannot remember who left them there. Having my friends’ random belongings in my car makes my car feel like a second home to me. It is the home I share with my friends.

Along with my car being my home with my friends, I like to go on dates in my car as well. I don’t believe my car is much of an attention-getter or one that would attract dates. That is not why I love my car for dates. I just love that my car takes us (me and my date) where we want to go. However, this is one of the reasons that I try to keep my car appearing and smelling clean. If it is not going to be that exciting to look at, at least it can smell nice. I am not sure that someone would be able to tell by looking at or being in my car that I love to go on dates. However, I also always keep gum and a small cologne/perfume in my car. Just like I want my car to smell nice, I also want to smell good.

I have never really thought about how much my car says about me. However, after evaluating what my car looks like, I can see the parts of my life that make it look they way it does. It is like a second home for me. I love to be in my car because it gives me the ability to travel and have freedom, and also because I have great memories in it. It has a distinct smell and look that belongs to me—just like home.