The Lure Of A Photograph...

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Instagram...it can cause a lot of problems.

Case in point--an innocent-enough-looking Instagram account called @oldvwbug that shows photos of some of the most beautiful cars I've ever seen. Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and I happen to love cars originating from Germany beginning a few years after WWII and continuing today. Yes, I love those old classic Volkswagen cars and vans. To me, they're stunning.

So how can pictures of classic German cars cause problems? 

Good question.

Currently in our home we have two teenagers. These teenagers are not driving teenagers, but they both somewhat aspire to be so. And a couple of new drivers means the possibility of buying another car. So, why not pick up a beautiful old VW? I could let the kids drive my car and I'd get something air-cooled and old.

Oh, those cars on that Instagram account are amazing! Before I got married, all I drove were VWs. I had several bugs--some good, some crap...Okay, all had an amount of crap, but I loved them. And the thought of possibly getting one again made me smile.

That is, until I did some more thinking about the idea. Yes, VW Bugs are cool--especially in the winter. In fact, they're downright freezing. The temperatures around here are cooling in preparation for the cold and snow, and the thought of starting a bug in the middle of winter and having absolutely no heat in the thing was something I definitely do not miss. Nor do I miss windows that cannot be defrosted. There are a lot of things that I do not miss, a lot of things my current car does quite well. 

So why did I want a bug? All I can say is that lure of the beautiful pictures is pretty overwhelming. It was those darn pictures. They somewhat seduced me. They made me want something that I really do't want, or might want in the future when I can drive a VW say, in the summer and have a place to park it in a garage--two things I can't do right now.

Yes, pictures can evoke strong emotional responses and be effective motivators. I guess we need to be careful about what it is we're looking at.

* Photo used without permissiom from the OldVWBug Instagram account