Rich Man's Burden

Don't let that title fool you. I'm not rich by any stretch of the imagination. I do OK within my social/economic context though, which is that of a starving graduate student. So I'm not uncle moneybags (though I have been called that once) but I indulge in some luxuries. In fact, I take back my sentence before last: I'm doing horribly as a starving graduate student. For one thing, I'm not really starving.

When I started as a graduate student, I had a standard 4 door saloon. Oops, too much British television lately. Make that a 4 door sedan. It got me around fine, had room for friends, and didn't break down much. Over the years, though in reality just one, I've abandoned that car for a convertible and all of a sudden, every thing is more expensive. This is to be expected, of course, since the better engine, wheels, brakes, suspension, transmission, and car in general costs more to maintain. But that's not really it.

The main reason why I feel my fancy schmancy please-don't-think-I-have-a-small-Richard car is so much more maintenance-heavy, expensive, and "unreliable" than my old car is that I unconsciously hold it to a higher standard. Something like a Toyota Everyone-Else's-Car LX is a means of transportation but a BMW I'///M-Compensating Roadster, let's say, is more fun and personal expression. Can anyone blame me for wanting to keep my automotive phallus in tip top shape? Speaking of which, I think I need to take it in for a wash. It's getting dirty >)