As a child I was fascinated with furs. I remember sitting in church looking at the women with furs. They were mostly "snooty" women, and most of their furs still had the animal heads attached. I wasn't impressed with that. But I still admired their furs.
I used to love going into the department stores looking at fur coats. When I was about 11 or 12, by some miracle, my mother gave me the money to go to Kansas City to pick out a coat. I selected one that was green tweed with a little fur on the collar. It was $30. When I wore that coat, I felt like royalty. I was completely enchanted with it until it got wet. The water made it smell like a dead cat. Needless to say, my coat was ruined.
That experience didn't affect my love of furs. When I was in high school, I bought a gray winter coat with fake fur designs on it. When I was working on my master's at the University of Missouri, I had a rich friend who gave me a gray caracul coat that had a gray squirrel collar. Not only did I love it, but it also kept me warm. After that, when I got my first job as an assistant dean of women, I took my first check and went to the August fur sales in Kansas City. I bought a leopard jacket that I still own today. The jacket wasn't very warm in the cold months, so I wore a dark green coat underneath it. I even took a picture in it because it made me feel so glamorous. Years later, I bought a black pony coat with a suede belt. I still have it also, but I cut it up to make doll clothes.
When I was working at the University of Oklahoma, I bought my first mink stole. I was so proud of it. I wore it to a tea at the president's house. It was obvious his wife was a bit envious of my fur. She looked at me and said, "I like your stole; it's so practical."
I have an enormous admiration for fur coats. Over the years, I have added a mink and leather car coat to my collection. I also have a pastel mink stroller and a full-length ranch mink. Even today, whenever I put one on, it makes me feel like I'm the center of attention. I feel glamorous— just like I felt when I bought my first mink coat.
When my family and I lived in Palmyra, our house was in the middle of the block and we watched the cars go by. The most interesting one was an electrical car Mrs. Mackey, my first grade teacher, drove. The car was a black shiny coupe. It had a stick instead of a steering wheel. There was a little jump seat where she would let me sit, and it faced backwards so I could see all the natives that were gawking at us as we slowly made our way to town.
As I got older, my parents bought a black Model T Ford. My father never did get the hang of it. He first had to crank the car up, jump into the front seat of the car, and then shift gears. He did this in a jerky fashion and never got much speed. The car had side curtains that had to be buttoned on in case of rain. Our next car was a Model A Ford that was enclosed. Unfortunately, we had to sell it in order for me to go to college.
As for myself, I didn't get a car until my second job. Before then, the local taxi and my friends got me wherever I needed to go. I eventually got tired of waiting to be picked up and decided to buy my own car. It was a red and white Rambler made by American Motors. I wasn't a very good driver.
When I became the Dean of Women at the University of Oklahoma, the students painted "Hot Dot" on the back fender of my car. This was the style back in those days.
When Mustangs came out, I bought me one that was navy blue. I thought I was so sporty. I loved that car so much and eventually bought three others: a green one, a baby blue one, and a red and white one.
After I came to the University of Little Rock (UALR), I was surprised to see that the Chancellor and Vice Chancellors drove identical Chevrolets. It dawned on me that the University furnished these cars, but they didn't offer me one. I believed had I been a man, they would have given me a car. After confronting the Chancellor, he admitted that he should have offered me a car, but they didn't give me a very nice car. It was a white Dodge with a red state license tag. I used to loan it to students for trips. The students were always being reported for driving a state car. The car was even wrecked at one time. This upset the Vice Chancellor.
After I left UALR, I bought several different cars. One was a Mercury Topaz, a Chevrolet, a Ford, and now a Cadillac Catera. I later bought a solid gold Cadillac, but it was too big for me and I truly didn't need such a big car. The Cadillac reminded me of a play by the same name.
I now dread the day when I will have to give up driving because I enjoy it so much. All these cars have meant so much to me because of the memories. So, I decided to lease my Catera for two years because I'm assuming when I turn 86, I might not be driving. We will have to wait and see.