| Every great inventor has a muse. In this story, my | | | | two black lines across the asphalt, and raced home |
| muse is Canadian-born 80's pop star, Corey Hart. | | | | to begin designing my "car sunglasses." Now before I |
| Hart's song, "Sunglasses at night" triggered the | | | | proceed with the story, keep in mind that the year is |
| creation of the windshield sun shade. | | | | 1984; we were not the most tech-savvy decade. |
| Side pony tails, parachute pants and acid wash jeans. | | | | Step One: Bringing the concept to life. I had this great |
| Rubik's cubes, hair bands, and Pretty in Pink. The 80's | | | | idea, but how would I actually build it? Well, I was |
| were my golden years and the inspiration for my | | | | seventeen, living in my parents basement, working at |
| greatest invention. It was a warm June evening in | | | | the local watering hole; my resources were limited. |
| this wonderful decade when an idea struck me. | | | | With the $4.75 an hour I was making, minus money |
| Barreling down the highway in my 83' | | | | for gas, beer, and Def Leppard tickets, I could only |
| Firebird-windows down, music up, cigarette hanging | | | | spare money for a bunch of cardboard, markers, and |
| from my pursed lips-revving my engine; the | | | | some tape. My first design was modeled after a pair |
| odometer's needle fluctuating recorded my pounding | | | | of Bob Dylanesque shades. The car wore the glasses |
| pulse. As I rocked out to Corey Hart's "Sunglasses at | | | | with the lenses on the outside of the windshield and |
| Night," I started to ponder, "What if they made | | | | the sides wrapped around the side view mirrors. The |
| sunglasses for cars?" Maybe then the next time I get | | | | prototype didn't come out amazing, but it had a cool |
| into my car on a hot summer day I won't wince in | | | | style. I even started planning on making different |
| pain when I shift my scorching metallic skull shift knob | | | | styles-circular hippie frames for VW buses, nerdy |
| into first. That is when I came to the realization that | | | | square shapes, even some frames covered with |
| my car's interior does not need to be hotter than | | | | bands' logos. |
| Hades. I slammed on my brakes, my tires painting | | | | |