Retard in a bunny outfitAs I sit here all alone at work, bored out of my mind (see drawing to the left for evidence of said boredom), I’ve started to do what I usually do when I’m bored; think about my car. I’m told that’s what people often do when they’re obsessed with something. It’s hard to believe that it’s been over four months since I purchased my FJ Cruiser. In that timeframe I’ve put almost 5,000 miles on her, which is quite a bit for me considering the NOC I work at is only a mile or two from my house. The drive back home to Florida for Christmas, as well as the little road trip to Ft. Lauderdale that my brother Christian and I took, actually account for over 3,000 of those miles. Anyways, four months later and I am still in love with this vehicle — I find myself looking for excuses to drive her. The compliments still roll in at a steady pace too. It’s rare to stop at a gas station and not have someone ask me about my vehicle. Co-workers compliment my FJ frequently as well. I even get comments of approval at restaurant drive-thrus (“Here’s your order… oh snap! You gots a tight whip, dog!”). Yes, in the short time I’ve owned her, The Penguin has brought me a great deal of joy. Unfortunately I’ve only had occasion to take her off roading once so far. Tearing through the loose Florida sand on that beautiful sunny day was pure ectasy!

So, most everyone that isn’t a complete stranger is aware of how much I love my FJ, but few actually know how I came to acquire her. Back in mid-December, I was having a conversation with a co-worker about off road vehicles. He mentioned the FJ Cruiser, and I had to try to think what that was. I had never heard of the model, let alone seen one in the wild. Later that day I was bored so I decided to do a little surfing on the “computar intarnet tubes”, and my browsing eventually led me to Youtube. After watching several teamkilling videos (one of my favorite pastimes), I plugged in “FJ Cruiser” into the search bar. Two videos in particular caught my attention:

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Here’s the URL for the second one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmvneJE7w2E

I watched both of these videos many times, and within three days I was signing the paperwork and trading in my year old Scion tC at the closest Toyota stealership — by far the most impulsive purchase ($35K) of my entire life. So, in a way, I guess I should thank my old co-worker Kris, as well as Youtube for both playing an important role in me finding true love.

Anyone up for some off roading next weekend?

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Some more great videos showing off the FJ’s good looks and off road prowess: