The car syndrome

In Muscat, there are many commodities for everyone, everywhere. The quality and prices are custom-made to suit various customers. One of those commodities that everyone aspires to have is a car. But individuals have different mentality towards them.

There are those who do not spend easily on cars. Any expenditure must be accounted for to the last coin. They follow a strict budget. They do not look at the quality of cars they drive. Rather, their biggest concern is the cost implications. They are the kinds that drive the same car for over ten years. These people prefer cars that have 1.6 written on them. They are happy as long as they reach their destinations.

Then there are those who drive certain type of cars in order to be seen. For these types, attention is a matter of life and death.

These types of people are the kind of fellows who brag about cars. They want to tell everyone how far they have gone in the living standards.

Whether they earn peanuts or not, these fellows seem to have money to spend throughout the year. These fellows can afford changing cars every year and would do anything to ensure that everybody gets to know about it. You would wonder how such characters maintain their lifestyle. These people practically live on credit. They prefer to live on credit rather than lower their standards. They foot huge bills at end of the month and start all over again the next month.

Then we have those who decide to commute together in one vehicle. These are the people who live their cars at home and take advantage of the neighbor’s car. Some of them share the cost and claim that by doing that they enjoy the economies of scale. Whatever their motives, their act reduces the traffic on the roads and of course by commuting together they do good to the environment.

Then we have those who on a daily basis commute with buses and taxis. They have taken a declaration to do anything but spend their money on cars. Whether these have personal cars or not is a mystery to everyone around just as it is on how they spend their money. They seem to be happy with the normal average day. They are always conscious of what they are doing and are happy to deny themselves in life and are always keen never to spend money unnecessarily. The minute you mention anything that concerns using their cars to come to office, you will part company with them. They look at people who use their private cars as if they are doing something wrong and consider them as wasters of money and enemies to the environment.

Here in this city we also have those who have refused to own cars or hardly spend their money on cars. They are the kind of people who waits for anyone to give them a lift or commute in a taxi.

Their phones are always busy calling people to offer them a ride to and from office. They are like gold miners and they have passion for giveaways. They will befriend you as long as you don’t charge them for a lift. These are the kind of fellows who ensures that they take full advantage of your generosity. They love the company of good Samaritans.

Despite the woes of the traffic jams and spent hours of trying to find a place to park, a car in Muscat is still a necessity. With the harsh weather, one cannot just walk. With its sprawling suburbs, the car is a must have. As the way of life evolved, it has become necessary for every family to own at least one car. Taking buses would make sense but with a somehow inconvenient public transport system, people will always tend to use their cars. Some also travel more than 200 kilometers per day to and from work. Drive safely!

Nizar al Musalmy

nizar.nmh.musalmy@gmail.com