My aunt, my mother's half-sister, had a green Datsun 240Z. We'd listen to disco or Parliament and she'd tell me stories of notable family car accidents. She had a round suede purse with dangling suede fringe.

Here's a car-related memory about the other side of the family. My cousin, who was also for a while my step-brother, came to live with us for a year or two when he was in high school. He had a nice car but I forgot what it was, except that it was red and had a black bench seat and he always drove with his right arm stretched out on the back of it (no headrests), as if there was a girl sitting between us, which there never was. I remember distinctly Stevie Wonder, "Boogie On Reggae Woman" and the Isley Brothers, "Fight the Power," the long version, and the way he'd turn the wheel with his left hand, spinning it with his open palm. He was maybe three or four years older than me, I thought he was cool even though he was kind of a loser.