I remember the first time I laid my eyes on it. What an embarrassment! I was only 18 years old and a cool car was all that mattered. This was definitely not a cool car. It was a 1991 Pontiac Firefly. Not even a Sprint! They had to get the Pontiac knock-off model. Sure the manual said both names (Sprint and Firefly), but at least the name Sprint would have been cooler than Firefly. How was I supposed to know what longevity this automobile had? Never mind all the great and sometimes life changing experiences I would have in it!
The Firefly didn't really have any kind of impact on my life until I was 19. I didn't get my license until then, so all it was to me was an eyesore whenever I walked up my driveway. Then in March of 1994 I began my quest to get my license. It was a race against time for me. Graduated licensing was beginning that July and I really didn't want to go through that long and more expensive process. I had been practicing in the Firefly before I had actual lessons. My mom was riding shotgun, and I was just hoping to not see any of my friends! 
My in-class lessons went well. I was the only 19 year old student in the class, so I was the only student going to the bar across the street at lunch! My practical lessons were in my instructor's car and my friend Mike offered his car for my test. I hated the Firefly so much that I accepted Mike's offer. He loaned me his large L.T.D. and I effectively failed the test when I cut somebody off while pulling out of the Ministry parking lot! I also had difficulty parallel parking, and turning back into the Ministry parking lot. Suffice to say, I was not used to such a large vehicle!
So I booked my second test for October. I had to go under graduated licencing, and this time I drove the Firefly. It was one of the hottest days of the year on that October day. The Firefly did not have air-conditioning, and the person giving me the test easily weighed 350 lbs! So me, a large sweaty man, and a small (and extremely slow) Firefly went on my second test. This time I passed. I knew the car well, and if there is one thing that the Firefly was good for it was parking. I mean with a car that size I could pull it in to the most unbelievable spots!
My mother was very understanding of my car situation and allowed me to use the Firefly to get to work and back. At the time I was taking a year off of school (that's another story all together!) and was working for a temp service. That means that one day I could be working 10 minutes away, the next I would be working 50 km away. I drove that little car until I finally landed a job at a company called Escalator Handrail. Soon after the Handrail job began I purchased my first car. It was big, fast, and loud. Everything a 20 man could want in a car. It was a 1973 Cutlass Supreme. I bought it February, after many $ in repairs I finally gave up on the "Gutless" and traded it in for a 1986 Lincoln Mark VI. It had every option available, and while going through the hunt for my Lincoln I fell for a girl named Andrea.
I now had a cool car and a woman that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. Anybody who knew Andrea and I back in those days however, know that it took quite some time for us to get together. Andrea and I became good friends. Her little Hyundai was giving her problems, so I would often drive her to work and pick her up after. We really became close during those commutes. It is a practice that I still enjoy doing up to this day. Although we seldom have the schedule that will allow it.
It wasn't until February 9, 1997 that Andrea and I got our acts together and took our relationship to the next level. It was on a cold and snowy March night of that same year that the Lincoln failed me. Andrea and I were leaving a little bar that we used to frequent. As we pulled out of the parking lot Andrea said "It's strange that nothing really happens when I'm around. I mean you all have these neat stories, but I'm never there to experience things when they happen." Not sooner did she get that out did smoke start puring out of my dashboard! So back to the Firefly I go!
It took some months before I could find a replacement for the Lincoln. That meant that for those few months I was relying on the Firefly for transportation. It was in the Firefly that I asked Andrea to "go steady" with me. I remember it clearly. We were in Whitby on Hwy. 2 on our way home from wing night ( every Wednesday night the guys from work would go out for cheap wings and beer) and I built up the courage to ask on of the most hokey questions to confirm our commitment to each other! After Andrea said "yes" we joked about other hokey ways I could have asked. I think she won with "Will you wear my pin?" How 50's! Soon after however I bought a Pontiac Grand AM, and the Firefly and I went on another hiatus.
It was November 16, 1997 when I proposed to Andrea. I matched it with my car payment so I wouldn't forget the various anniversaries that went with being engaged. You know 1 month, 6 month, and so on. With the proposal Andrea and I both knew it was time to buy a house. So in November 1998 we moved into our first house. 159 Delaney Drive, Ajax, Ontario. It was a small 1050 sq. ft. two story in a neighbourhood where all the houses looked exactly the same, but to us it was home. In October 1999 we got married and things were going well.
It was also soon after this when Andrea moved from working at her branch, to working at the tele-banking call center. This meant her schedule had to change, and we could no longer get by with just one car. So my mom gave us the Firefly as a very generous gift of sorts. She wasn't using it anymore and it was just sitting in her garage. So began my ownership of the Firefly.
In June 2000 I got a part-time job with Canada Post. I was working straight midnights and was looking for a way out of the handrail racket. It was okay because I was told that after 4 months I would be working 40 hour weeks and wouldn't need my night job anymore. It was great, I could finish my route in 6 hours (if I was well rested) and still got paid for 8 hours. After my route was finished I could either go home, or take on another route for extra money. However, when starting at Canada Post you are a supply letter carrier. Whenever somebody is sick or on holidays, you come in to complete their route. Basically you are on call. At a moment's notice you are delivering in Oshawa, or Ajax, or Aurora. The Firefly was more than up for the task. With ample room in the back for my mail, and reliability that most cars strive for; the Firefly allowed me to successfully work both jobs for 6 months. After the 6th month it was becoming more clear to me that I wasn't going to be getting steady work from Canada Post for a long time to come, and working 16 hour days was really starting to burn me out. So in December 2000 I terminated Canada Post as my employer.
Things stayed pretty much the same over the next many years. We moved away from Ajax in 2001, and moved into our house in Brooklin. In 2001 we also traded in the Grand AM for a 2000 Neon. I started working towards my accounting education in 2002 and used the Firefly to get to classes and exams. In 2005 we sold the house in Brooklin, and in May 2006 we moved into our current address here in Whitby. The Firefly, looking worse for wear every year, maintained it's solid performance. It would start on the hottest or coldest of days with minimal hesitation. The only time that it wouldn't start was when the battery died. You really can't hold the car responsible for it's battery. I began learning to fix it myself. There is a surprising amount of room under that hood. At work it became a joke when something stopped working on the car. The door handles started sticking, the window washer wouldn't work, the key broke off in the ignition, the buttons to turn on the lights and wipers kept popping out, the glass holders broke, the rear hatch wouldn't support it's own weight, and so many more. But it kept starting every day. I could always rely on that car to get me to my destination, whether it was 10 minutes or 50 km away the Firefly always made it.
Some funny things about owning a crappy little white car:
Goodbye old friend. I will miss you.
In June 2000 I got a part-time job with Canada Post. I was working straight midnights and was looking for a way out of the handrail racket. It was okay because I was told that after 4 months I would be working 40 hour weeks and wouldn't need my night job anymore. It was great, I could finish my route in 6 hours (if I was well rested) and still got paid for 8 hours. After my route was finished I could either go home, or take on another route for extra money. However, when starting at Canada Post you are a supply letter carrier. Whenever somebody is sick or on holidays, you come in to complete their route. Basically you are on call. At a moment's notice you are delivering in Oshawa, or Ajax, or Aurora. The Firefly was more than up for the task. With ample room in the back for my mail, and reliability that most cars strive for; the Firefly allowed me to successfully work both jobs for 6 months. After the 6th month it was becoming more clear to me that I wasn't going to be getting steady work from Canada Post for a long time to come, and working 16 hour days was really starting to burn me out. So in December 2000 I terminated Canada Post as my employer.
Things stayed pretty much the same over the next many years. We moved away from Ajax in 2001, and moved into our house in Brooklin. In 2001 we also traded in the Grand AM for a 2000 Neon. I started working towards my accounting education in 2002 and used the Firefly to get to classes and exams. In 2005 we sold the house in Brooklin, and in May 2006 we moved into our current address here in Whitby. The Firefly, looking worse for wear every year, maintained it's solid performance. It would start on the hottest or coldest of days with minimal hesitation. The only time that it wouldn't start was when the battery died. You really can't hold the car responsible for it's battery. I began learning to fix it myself. There is a surprising amount of room under that hood. At work it became a joke when something stopped working on the car. The door handles started sticking, the window washer wouldn't work, the key broke off in the ignition, the buttons to turn on the lights and wipers kept popping out, the glass holders broke, the rear hatch wouldn't support it's own weight, and so many more. But it kept starting every day. I could always rely on that car to get me to my destination, whether it was 10 minutes or 50 km away the Firefly always made it.
So it is my sad duty to let you all know that on Wednesday, July 4, 2007 I said goodbye to my little white car. All that remain are a few pictures and millions of memories. Thank you Firefly. You were always there for me. I guess it's kind of like my Giving Tree! Only I didn't chop my car.
The Firefly in now in the possession of Jason and Wendy Stevens. Jason is going to fix it up and maybe give it to somebody in his family. It it is too expense to certify he said he want to transform it into a small el-camino. He'll call it a Sprint-eno, but only because it was hard to work Firefly into the el-camino name.
Some funny things about owning a crappy little white car:
- when people are asking you for money on your way out of a parking lot and you say you have none, they believe you!
- it was funny when I tried fixing the wiper button with crazy glue and ended up gluing the switch into the "on" position. I had to drive around on a sunny 30 C day with my wipers on!
- driving people home from work and seeing their frightened faces as I pull on to the highway
- when somebody broke into it and stole nothing! That one kind of hurt my ego. At least steal something so that I can feel like I have something worth stealing.
- I didn't change the tires until about 3 months before getting rid of the car.
- I fish-tailed the car while turning into a mall parking lot with 6 full-size men crammed in the car. The road wasn't even wet.
- I was somehow able to make the tires squeak sometimes if I hit the gas hard enough
- it used to shake when it wen over 100 km/hr
- it took 20 seconds to reach 80 km/hr
- it lasted longer than 4 of my (and Andrea's) cars, a few of my parent's, 2 houses, and many marriages.
Goodbye old friend. I will miss you.
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