A few days ago, I saw a BMW SUV towing an old-school tent trailer. My brain could not compute. Then I passed a shiny Mercedes sedan hauling a rickety trailer holding a ride-on lawnmower. Again I was confused. Like the time I saw a driver throw a cigarette out of his Prius, my assumptions about who’s-driving-what need to be updated.
In 2000 when I moved to Seattle, I tried to keep my jaw from dropping at the frequent sight of luxury vehicles. In Nova Scotia at that time, it seemed the only people who owned expensive cars were doctors or lawyers. For the rest of us, higher-end cars were out of financial range and seemed impractical year-round. Since moving back to Nova Scotia in 2017, the roads look more and more like Seattle. I quickly realized the change wasn’t an increase in medical professionals (the province now has 52K+ people* waiting for a family doctor) or in savers reaping the rewards of delayed gratification—the main difference was the availability, like all over North America, of much longer-term loans and leases for those expensive vehicles.
I suppose it’s a kind of democratization of luxury car ownership. No one enviously asks “who do they think they are?” anymore. The vehicle you drive is still a sign of your financial status—but it’s more likely a sign of the debt you carry than your wealth. Pickup trucks are still popular here but the massive ones that tower over my little car are luxury vehicles too. With the cost to fill a tank, I figure it must all be a tax write-off for business owners and the self-employed but there I go making assumptions again.
I was surprised to read recently in a list of goals I made in 2012: own a BMW. Huh. Right now my ego is still firmly attached to my 2005 hatchback and never ever having a car payment again.
While working in Seattle for the big corporation, occasionally I’d walk to my car at the end of the day and see a twin parked beside me. This is called how to make somebody’s day. The driver of the twin (a Canadian from Vancouver) and I shared a secret: that in the entire seven-story parking garage, our cars were unique (the model was never sold in the US) but probably the least expensive.
While car-fanciness has changed since I moved away in 2000, the east coast reputation for overly-courteous drivers has not. There was an old joke that traffic roundabouts wouldn’t work here because everyone would stop to let the other driver go. A police department in PEI released a message this week warning how “nice” persons are causing accidents. On four-lane roads in business districts, people in the outer lane regularly stop to let someone into traffic who’s turning left. The accidents occur when the left-turning vehicle gets hit by someone in the inner lane. The message seems relevant for more than just driving: “If you have the right of way, use it.”
*5.6% of the population.
References and related links:
- PEI: Prince Edward Island, a province near to and north of Nova Scotia.
- ‘Nice Person’ Accidents Flagged by Police (Source: CBC News)
- small car, tiny RV (post #77)
- waitlist (post #87)
Neil says
Lots of truth and humour and a nice picture.