It was 12 days ago on Friday, July 25th, 2025 that I picked up my new car at Reid Bros Motor Sales on Madawaska Blvd in Arnprior. I recall the initial thrill of driving the new car. Its “boulevard ride” was the salient expression. It is not a sensation that would attract those who prefer to “feel the road” or who are in a hurry. Though the vehicle looks spirited enough with its black roof and matching black wheel gunnels, it is a distinctly comfortable ride which I have no doubt is by design fashioned with its target market of elderly people in mind. From my perspective – as an iconic monitor – the windows go up and down, the “engine” (whatever an electric car has) is quiet, the autonomous driver works well on the highways, the turn signals, the wipers, the climate controls and the radio all perform to and beyond expectation. And – paramountly – we’ve adapted to 240v charging.  The odometer now reads 1,937 Km (having begun with 38 Km “Distanced Travelled” on the Bill of Sale).

Last evening when completing my subterranean parking I lightly brushed the left rear black wheel gunnel (which is made of heavy-duty plastic) against the corner of the protective yellow steel barrier on an adjacent cement post. I heard a squeak but didn’t fully appreciate the conflict until stationed. Later that evening we both returned to the basement to have a look at the damage.  It appears to have been mostly a slight brushing of the plastic and the steel. Using a moderate cleaner and paper towel we succeeded to remove the yellow paint from the black plastic. Seemingly there is no physical damage. This morning – prior to my restorative tricycle ride and following my overnight mental gymnastics – I applied what we jokingly call “Robitussin” (the catch-all analgesic) to the affected area of the car.  Should you care to know, the specific remedy in this instance was Lip Medex (a Blistex salve having the smell and consistency of a honeycomb Vaseline). After the subsequent car wash this morning I had a closer look at the gunnel.  It appears that both I and the car have escaped unwanted modification.

I don’t need to tell you  – l am certain – the nonsense surrounding the first damage infraction to one’s new car. The late Hughie Whitten (who worked for the former Burns GM dealership in town owned by Kathy Norton’s father) routinely and mockingly observed, “The first thing you do with a new car is drive it through a barbed wire fence then beat it with a baseball bat!” And while I seek philosophically to embrace the possibility of doing so, frankly I dislike both the eventuality and the actuality – whether intended, accidental or vicarious. Nonetheless for the moment at least it appears luck is on my side and the delightful appearance of the vehicle has been completely sustained. It took a restful hour on the balcony overlooking the river in the balmy, breezy summer mid-afternoon air to accede to my former unfettered indolence. As you can see so vividly from these faint recollections I hardly have a second throughout the day to remove myself from these exigencies in order to devote myself to my personal ambitions. Yet here at last I have landed, fully restored.

Like so many others I have succumbed to the vanishing amusement of automobiles. I suspect it would require a longer trip than one to the car wash in order fully to embrace the utility of the machine. Whatever the strategy, the materialistic quality of the product does little to advance world peace. For now I have returned to my desk from which I observe a natural material world. And My Cadillac App tells me “Charging 74% / 404Km Reach 80% by today at 5:30 PM”. Is there no rest!