The convertible has to go

It's time to face reality. Two grandchildren in the back seat of a convertible just isn't working for me any more. No matter how much I love the wind in my hair when the temperature is above 75, I can't turn the CD player up high enough to drown out the older one screaming "Too much wind!" Ok, so I don't really do that, and she will occasionally embrace leaving the top "open," but when I see them cowering in the back seat trying to keep the wind out of their eyes, I just can't do it.

And despite the fact that I've had a convertible pretty much continuously for a dozen years or so, and that it's like asking my honey to sell his Harley, I've admitted that it's time to do it. I've practically cried as I've listed its many attributes on CraigsList, AutoTrader, and a ton of Facebook pages. I've lovingly cleaned it and photographed it and tried to convince myself that I'll be happy in something else. But I know the truth is that I'll miss it as much as I miss the career I loved for 25 years. It will be like losing a tooth, it won't always hurt, but there will be a gap there. Of course, like losing a job, letting go of one thing opens the way for another. I've spent the morning browsing the internet for, now brace yourself, station wagons. Wow, the luxury of four doors and no need to practice a balanced yoga pose to maneuver a 20+ pound child into a car seat while teetering on the back of a tilted bucket seat. The magnificence of a large cargo area in which to stow a stroller, chicken and dog food, or even shopping bags. The idea of a hard top that I won't have to wonder if I've closed as well as possible when rain is pelting on the roof at 2 a.m. Yes, like letting go of chasing ambulances and covering long governmental meetings made way for days cleaning up the literal crap of dogs and little people, wearing casual clothes, and enjoying the total absence of deadlines, selling my convertible will open new doors (at least two of them to the back seat) and may in fact give me things I enjoy just as much. All the same, while I've looked at options ranging from captains' seats in the back and third row seating that folds down to all wheel drive, a CD changer, and heated leather, the option that has most caught my eye isn't really surprising. It's a moonroof.