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I Get Around
There is a tap at my window and I’m down the side of the house and into the car were Vinny steps out to let me slide into the middle. Once again we are rolling through the back streets, radio at max and singing along … “I Get Around” as I recall.
This is a short little story about an adolescent incident that changed Harvey’s life in ways he did not see coming. There is a moral to the story just as all my stories have a moral. I will freely admit that your morals and mine may possibly differ from time-to-time but this one belongs to everyone. The moral – a few hours spent without thought of consequences can have very long-term affects. See, I knew you could accept this one.
The Borrowers
One late evening at around two AM Harvey stole his fathers car. “What?” … You are all shocked at this transgression, I know. I would be too, but you see we all took turns stealing our father’s cars in the middle of the night. How else could sixteen and seventeen year-olds get to drive the streets?
There is a tap at my window and I’m down the side of the house and into the car were Vinny steps out to let me slide into the middle. Harvey pulls away quietly and we are off once again rolling through the back streets, radio at max and singing along … “I Get Around” as I recall. I can’t tell you how many times we had done this each taking turns stealing the old man’s car. But tonight would be extra special.
Harvey’s father’s car was brand new, an Olds 88 as I recall with too much horsepower for the suspension i.e., it was soft and mushy. To add to the equation, Harvey was one of the worst drivers I ever saw right up to this day, he just never had a feel for it. So now he’s flying down a back road and for some unexplained reason decides to cut into a little residential area where his girl friend lives. To this day I can’t imagine what he was thinking. Did he expect her to be out on the front steps a two AM? Well, we never made it to her house. Down the hill pulling into a left turn at the bottom going much too fast even for a Porsche – Up a curb and into a brick wall! No one is hurt and I don’t know why, but the car …”Oh s_ _t!” The car. It looks like an accordion with steam and smoke rising from the folded up hood.
Be Cool, We Can Dodge This Bullet
One look at that and we did what any sensible teenager would do! We ran like hell. The plan – we would deny any knowledge of the car. Be cool and let everyone assume it was stolen and crashed. Sounded reasonable. We were a bunch of hard cases and knew no one would fold so the plan sounded solid enough. Everyone’s home, back in the windows, the keys safely back in the tray and we are sleeping like the little angels our mother’s new we were.
Next day I meet up with Vinny and were are off to Harvey’s house to see if he can come out and play. We figured we would just ooh and ah when the topic of the car comes up and be off to some place or other. Now what I haven’t told you up until now is that Harvey was not in the good graces of his father around this time. Seems only a few months before he had burned down part of the garage with some Roman Candles, been recently detained by the police for drunk and disorderly and was currently on suspension from school…..
We get to the side door and ring the bell. It’s Harvey’s mom that answers and she looks like she’s on her way to a witch burning. “You two! I know you were with him and if you know what’s good for you don’t let Harvey’s father see you.” She steps aside and gestures to the wall behind her to reveal a huge whole. “See that?” That’s where Harvey’s head went through the wall.” We were dumb but we weren’t stupid! Back down the driveway moving fast without a word. Harvey father was a pretty big guy!
The Aftermath
Harvey being the rocket scientist that he was had forgotten his glasses in the car when they flew off in the crash. The cops weren’t fooled because the ignition hadn’t been pulled so they were pretty sure there was a key involved. Harvey’s glasses under the peddles synched the identity of the culprit for his dad and hence the hole in the wall. We didn’t see Harvey again for almost six months. When we did see him he was a new man. All clean and shinny in his new Naval Uniform, haircut and little black neckerchief.
As related by Harvey’s sister, his dad had taken him the very next day and signed him into the Navy. No ifs, and, or buts. It was the Navy for Harvey or a shallow grave in the back yard. His father told him either choice would suit him just fine …….
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13 Comments
Nice story. I wouldnt dare take my dads car os anyone else’s lol
Nice story, poor Harvey!
I never stole a car but I did set the school bleacher’s on fire. But that was ahhh a long, long, long time ago!
too bad Harvey suffered so greatly for his activity. Nice story
Like the story Grant, and as a matter of fact me and my friend when we were 13 or 14 borrowed her mothers car…..woooo what a mistake lol.. and boy did we go a crusing!! of coarse funny now ..but then …well we all what that means.
For those feeling bad that Harvey was shipped off to the Navy. Don’t feel too bad about it. It straightened out his life and probably kept him out of jail or worse. His father had the courage to do what was best for Harvey.
Grant
cool story. well written.
Well written. My son took my car once, it was not a good feeling. I found you on the bandwagon and thought I would check you out. See the bandwagon works.
Good Story!!
“Friends steal your books and your kids your car!”
I liked his father, if he was not sent to the Navy, he might burn all the cars around–(hehehe)
Well, who knows? The Navy kinda of thing strengthened his life!
There’s a moral in the story though, don’t mess up with your father! Hahaha—
Yes, I took dad’s car without permission once. I left a note…
When I got home, at 10:30 that evening – he met me with the words “I was about to phone the cops and report the car stolen!” Needless to say, I never borrowed it without permission again. I did total it the next year, but I had permission to drive it to church. I ran into a friend along the way – actually he ran into me as I was sliding on the ice through an intersection.
Isn’t it amazing that we all survived adolescence!
There is no way I would ever have dared do anything like take my dad’s car or anyone else’s either. We did, however, steal gas so that we could drive the car and bring it back with just as much as we left with.
Of course we (my brother, our friend, and I) got shot at with a shotgun one night while taking some gas. That broke us for a while. We knew it was a shotgun because of the sound it made, and the next day we found out who was shooting at us. It was some boys we went to school with that didn’t recognize us in the dark.
Damon/johnny yuma
Ok I admit it! only once I took my parents car, Land rover, my dad was less than impressed and before I got to the end of the street my dad pulled up in his van with my mum in the pasenger seat and said one three words Out! your grounded. It was the summer holidays and I never saw the light of day for the whole 6 weeks. Needless to say I really did think twice before taking the car again. Great read…