Hybrid car

I rented a hybrid car recently. A Prius, I believe. (As a side note, I would love to have the job of naming cars. "The new Ford Pimento!") The car was pretty cool, and I'm all for either helping the environment or infuriating the president. Either way is fine.

But there were really only a couple of things about this thing that I found new and interesting.

1. There is this incredible readout right on the dash, and it tells you if you are using fuel, electricity, are you charging, are you draining, etc. And that's what you want -- a dashboard that is chock full of stuff to read for when you get bored with looking at the road. That's one of my biggest pet peeves about conventional cars, is the almost total lack of interesting reading material for me to peruse while operating a several thousand pound machine.
   
   I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do about any of that information anyway. "I just went from gas to electric...uh...Hurray?"
   
   
2. This thing didn't have a key. No, sir. This blew my mind. See, in a normal, old-fashioned car, you take a KEY, you put it in a slot, and you can then drive the car. Not with a hybrid car, Methuselah. This baby has this little cartridge. Like a microcassette tape. And you put IT in a slot, and you can then drive the car.
   
   Take THAT, 20th century!