It is long past time for a vacation and my boyfriend suggested we take a long road trip. Plane fares may be rising, but we get really good gas mileage, so sometimes it is much cheaper to drive than fly – as long as we avoid staying at the pricy hotels on the way!

Trying to agree on a destination is always a problem with us.  This time we were both in the mood to get out of the city and off to semi-deserted beaches.  This being summer, that could be a problem.  I suggested we just spin the decorative globe we have in den, but he pointed out that we really can’t drive to Europe or Australia or most of the world. Luckily we have tons of US maps stockpiled in our filing cabinet, so I pulled them out.

After a speed round of “yes/no” to each destination, we ended up with four “maybes” to peruse further.  I was thrilled to find that some Mexico maps had been misfiled, as they seem more exotic than US locales.  After an hour of discussion, things got a bit heated.  We were each fighting for our favorite route. At one point I thought Jimmy was going to smack me with the Florida map he was waving in my face.  Just as I sensed he was about to cave in and agree that Texas would be more fun, he got a text message from work that there was an emergency meeting on one of their clients.  When he got home, he told me he can’t get away from work for at least another two months.  So much for the vacation!

For me, someone who puts practicality and efficiency above all else when it comes to cars, the “dream machine” would undoubtedly be green and ideally have water vapor exhaust. Unfortunately, you can’t go into a body shop and ask for that kind of car modification – yet. The current trend in car design is leaning toward fuel efficiency, but does that mean aesthetics will be lost?

Even if companies decided to focus their efforts on making me happy with their improved efficient designs, people will always want something visually appealing. It’s hard not to marvel in awe at the ways people can mod their cars today and transform them into works of art. Everything from chrome custom wheels to aluminum floor mats look bold and futuristic. In the past, those features and things like vertical doors and fiber glass fenders were seen only in the movies. Not all of the popular mods today are designed to have a space-age look. Retro styles, including whitewall tires and the historically-inspired grant steering wheels, show off old-school cool in the new millennium. It’ll be interesting to see how, and if, the designs we use today will be part of the transportation of tomorrow.