THIS N THAT: Missing youthful Detroit Days

Growing up in Detroit back in the day was fun. Everything was all about cars and music.

(OK, so there were those awful cold winters and unforgiveable blizzards. We’ll talk about that another time; I’m dealing with pleasant memories now.) I’ve always loved cars. Almost any car, with the notable exception of the ill-fated Edsel, was delightful to me.  

Detroit: big cars; big music. Motown headquarters, situated on West Grand Boulevard, was not far from our house; General Motor’s headquarters was about a mile from there.

Things have changed.

It’s true that both headquarters still exist in their original locations — the GM building towering over many downtown structures; the Motown house sitting quietly in a residential neighborhood it made famous. Blink and you might drive past it.

But no more can you walk down any street and run into the likes of Richard Overstreet or David Ruffin of the Temptations.

Or spend time at Smokey Robinson’s house just because that’s the way he was.

Or, go test drive a magnificent vehicle and be assured that if you purchased it, the sleek moving steel would still be coming off the assembly line a month later.

Oldsmobiles are no longer in production. Pontiac will cease production in 2010. GM is unloading its SAAB unit. I used to like the look of the Swedish born SAAB. Saturn, too, is on vehicular death row.

Ford Motor Company is in talks to unload Volvo. I once owned a Volvo. I’m still convinced it’s the reason I’m alive after a 10 car pileup on the 110 South on an overcast, rainy southern California day.

Auto moguls and their company’s are trading off/getting rid of product like they’re playing Monopoly — with ruthless, childlike glee and abandon.

Consumers are purchasing vehicles today with uncertainty they will continue to live tomorrow. That kind of thing creates anxiety about replacement parts and service.

I don’t expect things to remain the same. Some things need to change — bad government, greedy capitalism, poverty, homelessness, hunger, Appalachia  — for the short list.

Clearly, today’s vehicular purchases, for the most part, won’t create immediate service challenges with all the shedding of brands and units.

And, the likelihood of a resurgence of a Motown-like music independent that gives youngsters immediate access to music stardom is remote.

Every now and again, I think about how simple and uncomplicated life used to be in a now declining city. It was a city defined by automobiles and music.

On the surface, it was a good thing.

Truth be told, nothing is that simplistic. I recall those days through the eyes of youth, and they do bring the kind of comfort only nostalgia can.

The eyes of adulthood are not so clouded with the beauty of the rose that it’s difficult to see the thorns.

Occasionally I miss those days growing up in Detroit, some of which were as warm and comforting as my mother’s bread pudding.

But I look forward to the happy, permanent changes coming in the future of our world, especially for those who need them most.