“Wanna take it for a spin?”
I reprocessed the question. Then again. Then for a 3rd time. Finally, I opened my mouth.
“Like… me driving?”
“Yes, you.”
Shaking with disbelief and excitement, I walk to the driver’s side of the car, open the door, and sit in front of the wheel.
I’m about to drive a Porsche 911. I’m about to drive a Porsche 911, my dream car. I’m about to drive a Porsche 911, my dream car, at a college interview.
I know, I know. What a great fictional story! In fact, even as I write this blog, I find it quite hard to believe such a bizarre story myself. Me, driving my alumni interviewer’s Porsche at a college interview—that’s so crazy of a scenario that even the greatest screenwriters wouldn’t dare put into a movie.
Except it’s true.
This isn’t the exact car I drove, but it’s the same exact model and color. My rich neighbors happen to have a similar taste in cars to my alumni interviewer.
On November 16th, I was your typical highschooler preparing for an interview—khakis, button-down shirt, combed hair, bright smile, and a little bit of nervousness. All was going according to plan. When I showed up to Dunkin Donuts, the actual conversation went pretty smooth as well. My interviewer and I talked about my future plans, my passions—you know the drill. One hour later, and I left that store with a great feeling in my chest.
As I approached my car, however, I noticed a beautiful gray Porsche 911 parked next to me… and my interviewer with the keys in his hand. Excited, I remark,
“Hey! Nice car there! Porsche 911—that’s my dream vehicle right there.”
My interviewer looks up.
“Thank you. Do you like cars?”
The rest of the tells itself. 10 minutes later, and I was driving down Westmont’s jagged roads with my alumni interviewer in the passenger, living every 17-year old’s dream.
Here’s a picture of my car, for those of you wondering. My WRX enjoying a nice sunset
At the time, I couldn’t help but think I’ve redefined the phrase “crazy turn of events.” But in hindsight, I realize that I’ve been in this kind of situation my entire life.
Like the time I was eating at Taco Bell, and found a McDonald’s fountain cup with a free Xbox promotion code on it.
Or the time I accidentally stepped off Eric Chen’s shoe, and created an ongoing war of footsies that happens right after AP Lit every day.
Driving a Porsche 911 at a college interview? That’s the most recent addition to the unexpected events hall of fame.
While most people would be freaking out in these kinds of scenarios, I’ve learned to cherish them. I’m a firm believer that the best moments in our lives occur at the most unexpected times.
People on the internet seem to agree with my sentiment. After reading a couple of blogs written by total strangers on the internet, I find myself chuckling at these obscure, yet deeply memorable anecdotes.
Barry Darvert from medium.com puts it best.
“By contrast, I’ll never forget the cheap meal at a burger joint last year. Why? I had to sign the credit card bill with a crayon. The restaurant had lost all of their pens. It was unusual and unexpected. My kids laughed uncontrollably — emotion. That makes it an experience that will remain etched in my memory forever. There’s a randomness to unforgettable moments that you’ll never be able to control or predict.”
Let’s face it. We get bored—fast. TikTok is great for an hour or two, but after that, we’d almost rather do homework. The new Call of Duty game is out, but it’s only fun for a month or two before we begin looking forward to the next one. And we all love a hot slice of pizza, but I can hardly imagine anybody eating that for 3 meals a day, 7 days a week.
That’s exactly why unexpected moments are the best. They come out of nowhere, slapping us in the face with a refreshingly new experience that sets it apart from any daily routine. They send adrenaline coursing through our veins, blood pumping through our hearts, and leave unforgettable memories ingrained in our minds.
This is how life is sometimes—enjoy it
If you pause for a moment and think back to some of the best moments in your life, I wouldn’t be surprised if most of them were the results of an unexpected moment.
With that said, I encourage all of you to cherish the heart-dropping, stomach churning thrill of an unexpected moment. But if you’re more of a methodical person who enjoys watching everything go according to plan, I can’t say for sure that unexpected moments can be enjoyed by anyone.
But I definitely can say this with certainty: unexpected moments take you for one hell of a ride.
This video is unrelated narratively to this blog post; however, I think it proves a great point. Some of the most unexpected moments in the NBA are the most memorable, and definitely leave a giant smile on your face.
If you think you have a memory of an unexpected moment that tops mine, please share below. 🙂
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Works Cited
https://youtube.com/nba-most-unexpected-moments/
https://medium.com/@Barry.Davret/the-best-moments-are-always-unexpected-88d12b0a567c
Hi Minhao – interesting post!
This essay sounds awfully familiar for some reason, but it still has the amazing impact as if I were reading it for the first time!!! Personally, I can attest to your crazy, “YOLO” lifestyle, and your stories sure make it sound unexpected and fun. While many crack or shy away from adversity or perturbations from the otherwise laminar flow of their routine lives, it’s important to embrace these random hiccups or opportunities like you do to improve yourself: your gaming abilities, your calf size, or your chance at admissions into a college. Like you said, these moments are truly defining moments in your life, and I’m glad you’re down for the ride.
Hey Minhao, your post was truly relatable! I feel like, especially in Naperville, our lives are so defined and routine driven that we often are bored with our lives and we don’t really expect anything out of the ordinary to happen. I agree with you that unexpected moments really are the best. I don’t have an unexpected moment that tops yours, but when I think of an unexpected moment, the first thing that pops in my mind is when I was at the library. I went downstairs to the vending machine because I was craving sweet tea. When I arrived to the vending machine, I noticed a folded piece of paper on top of the area where you put in cash. Curious, I opened up the piece of paper to find a one dollar bill along with a note in children’d handwriting saying, “Whoever finds this please use if you wish.” I couldn’t help smiling for the rest of the day. As a person who lowkey hates kids, I found that this moment truly touched my heart.