Crews looks back on his life owning cars nostalgically, but he explains that his perception of cars as extensions of himself was unhealthy and it allowed his cars to define and “own” him. I found Crews’ connection between his car and his sexuality to be interesting. When Shirley broke the wing vent while participating in “the first few lovely frantic moments”, Crews didn’t replace it as a trophy to his sexuality. Further, in his memory, he equates the smell of burned hamburgers and hot dogs as one of the most erotic smells, remembering the carhops that left him feeling sexually charged while he leaned against his car and talked about the speed and strength of the car as if “it was my speed and my strength that got rubber in three gears.” (403)
I can relate to the idea that a possession can shape your attitudes towards yourself. After my 18th birthday I got a tattoo. Besides purely liking the tattoo as a form of body art, I attach meaning behind my tattoo, and hope that it will shape my ideas in the future. The tattoo is of a tic-tac-toe board, and is meant to remind me several things. First, my life is not eternal, so the permanence of a tattoo isn’t really that permanent or significant at all. Second, my body is mine, and I have the freedom to play with it and mark it up as I please. And third, since life is ephemeral, I may as well have fun while I can. I could think these ideas without needing to physically ink them onto myself, but I recognize that putting the ideas into a possession help solidify my ideology for myself.
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