There's a Reason They Call it "Classic"

We're considering getting a minivan and it was kinda freaking me out. I was getting all stressed about what sort of impact this would have on my self image, my style, my general psyche and outlook on life. I was even asking friends who drive minivans what sort of effect it'd had on them. I was worrying way too much about it. I told one person I was afraid it was going to be my first major step into midlife and that I feared there would be no turning back. I was a bit surprised when this person pointed out that perhaps I already had my toes in the water of midlife. I had to sit down and think about it, but in the end, I'm afraid they're right. Let me lay out the evidence for you:

• I have a baby and a mortgage
• I don't remember the last time I ate ramen
• When I go to the movies, I'll choose a Saturday matinée over opening night every time
• I watch more VH1 than MTV
• All the country songs I know the words to are on the "Classic Country" station

I had all this in mind when we went to test drive a minivan. Then the more we drove around, I started to realize that for every reservation I had about the situation, the minivan had an answer. I thought about "classic" county, it had magic stowaway seats. I tried to remember what ramen tastes like, the van had dual power sliding doors. In the end, the van had answers to questions I hadn't even thought of yet. So now we're on the lookout for a good used van. I'm completely over the anxiety of buying a minivan because the thing they don't tell you about getting older is that the only people who think you look "uncool" are the people half your age trying to look cool. So I'm done worrying about how I'll look when the windows are rolled down. It only took one test drive to realize that part of getting older is caring less about whether I look cool and more about what makes my life easier.