We've all been walking down the street when you see the tricked-out Honda Civic racing down Southwest Boulevard. You don't really pay as much attention to the car as the person who spent all that money on the completely useless double-winged spoiler would have liked. But you give it a quick look, probably chuckle, and continue on with your life. I personally would give the chuckle and say to myself, "A Honda is still a Honda". As I sit here today I realize, thanks to a friend, that this same thought can be given to a certain position on the Chiefs roster right now. A pretty important one.
Let's take a closer look at all the things that people do to these particular cars that makes me laugh. First you start with the 22-inch chrome rims that set you back about $7k, but hey, they look great in your apartment parking lot. Mix in a custom stereo system and butterfly doors and you've got a good start. Don't forget to throw in the reflective mirrored tint and you're right on your way to chillin' in the Amoco parking lot.
You can spend as much money as you want pimping out that car but at the end of the day it's still a Honda. You can surround it with the best of this and the best of that and when it's stitting next to other Honda's that don't have the same added features, it's looking pretty good. But as soon as you pull up next to a Mercedes or get into a race with a Corvette you're going to realize you have a Honda. It sucks at that point because you had spent so long comparing your car to others that you had been around that you started to feel pretty good your particular Honda. You spend so much time and money with the best of everything that you lose sight of the fact that you're just trying to hide the fact that you're driving a Honda. Eventually the truth will come out that you're driving a Honda and it's always when you need it to not be a Honda.
With all that money you spent trickin' out your Honda you could have just bought a Mercedes. Sure, the upfront cost may be a little higher and you may have to get one that is a couple of years old and had a few surgeries repairs. But when you're in the heat of the moment sitting at that redlight and you dare look at the car next to you and the moment of truth comes, would you rather be on this journey with a Mercedes or a tricked-out Honda?
Let's go ahead and say just for fun that you've got $50k just sitting in your bank account and you know you have to spend it within the next couple of years. Then comes along the deal of all deals, that f**kin guy that was always giving you sh*t in the playoffs intersections with his Mercedes won the lottery and is moving to Fiji. He tells you that he's always liked and respected you even though he might not have publicly said so and he tells you that he'll sell you the Mercedes for $20k and he'll even structure the payment plans that if the car breaks down, you don't have to pay for it. You couldn't ask for a better deal.
You may have a personal connection with this Honda because you spent your time and hard-earned money supporting it and developing it into a nice facade of a high-end car. But you knew in the back of your mind that it was a Honda and if something better ever came along it'd be tough to say goodbye, that is until you watched the Mercedes in action.
As you drive around town in your Mercedes you realize that people start to take you a little more seriously. You get complimented more and the popular people that just seem to gossip all day about who's car is going where and whether the new foreign car in New York is the real deal or not. Even they start to give out a little love to the once-known Honda boy. You didn't make this move to get positive feedback, but it is a nice result.
You even have people that you haven't spoken with in a long time start asking you if you want to hang out again. They even start buying tickets lunches and dinners and all sorts of other things that just go along with improving the most important thing in your journey, the vehicle that takes you there. While you'll always remember that Honda for being there for you in the beginning and helping you be in a position to catch the eye of Mr. Fiji and that Mercedes, there's always a time to move on to better things.
Because you're a little nervous, you decide to hang on to that Honda for a year to make sure the Mercedes doesn't crap out. The insurance is pretty cheap and he'll get you from point A to point B, but nobody's buying your lunch at that point and your limited on how far you can go with him. Because after all, a Honda is still a Honda.