Jeff Gabbert is a man. Although his age is only a fresh twenty and he resides in a college dormitory at Southwestern University, he is no less a man. Jeff Gabbert has undergone many rites of passage into manhood, although one in particular stands apart. This particular rite has somehow lost its importance in most of America’s suburban cultures; however, in others it is still very important. This rite sets apart men as it illustrates to others that they can take care of themselves in the most difficult and probably most important way possible, monetarily. To the generations before Jeff’s this rite was utterly important, significant, and memorable, specifically for men, and so it was for him. And on a warm, sunny day at age nineteen, Jeff Gabbert walked into an office, bought his own car, and became a man.

* * * * *

Jeff Gabbert realized at an early age that his family was a little different from the families of his friends and classmates. Having grown up in an area of El Paso, Texas, which was fairly affluent, he was inherently surrounded with friends whose parents were doctors and lawyers and such. Jeff’s father worked at a bank and Jeff’s mother stayed home to tend to the house and to raise the children. She has since taken a position as a secretary. While the two made a fair living, it paled in comparison to the incomes of the surrounding families, especially having to support a family of six. It took little time for Jeff to figure out why he couldn’t simply have whatever he wanted, which was seemingly the normal practice for many of Jeff’s friends. In Jeff’s early teenage years, Mr. Gabbert’s position at the bank was terminated. The family had to adjust its habits to compensate and Jeff made an important decision, one which has come to partially define him as a person.

Not wanting to be a burden on his family, yet still wanting to ‘keep up with the Joneses,’ he sought out employment. Jeff was fifteen. "I realized that if I wanted a forty dollar shirt, I would need to earn forty dollars, so I did. If I wanted something, I would have to work for it. Nothing would be given to me." He worked a number of odd jobs, first mowing lawns and later lifeguarding and construction. These experiences lead to an independence that he savored and a wiser and more mature perspective on the world. "But then I realized that I saw that forty dollar shirt as not just forty dollars, but as eight hours of work, eight hard hours of work, and then had to figure out if it was really worth it." Sometimes it was, sometimes it wasn’t. While carefully explaining that he is not frugal, he states that he is definitely not rash with his money. This is one of the many lessons that helped him in his rite of passage.

Jeff relished the fact that he didn’t need to ask his parents for money. He didn’t have to depend on them to get him what he wanted. He was empowered with the tangible demagogue of modern society, as much as any teenager can be anyway. It was not that he felt he had to do this, or that his parents were resentful for having to support him so he did this to avoid scorn, but rather that he could take care of himself in this way. He could do this, so why should his parents have to?

After his father’s position at the bank was terminated, the family fell deep into debt. The majority of this debt was from mountainous credit card bills, which incessantly flowed in, slowly at first but then very quickly. Jeff’s father eventually found work with another company and began to battle the family’s demon, a battle that still continues today. "My dad doesn’t believe me, but he’s my role model. I look up at him to see the things that he did, and try to avoid the mistakes that he made." Jeff was slightly older now, and vastly more knowledgeable with the ways of the dollar. He could see that credit was important but was weary of following the same dark and imprudent path that his father had taken. Jeff decided that he would try his chances with the demon himself, and before long he received a stiff envelope in the mail with ‘VISA’ stamped all over it.

Jeff displayed wisdom beyond his years. "I would use my credit card often, but every time I bought something, I would take an equal amount of cash and put it in an envelope and at the end of the month send it in, keeping no balance. That way I was never in debt." He meticulously mailed payments as soon as he received the statements, careful not to ever be late or miss paying. Simple, smart, mature. He was not tempted to spend as much as he could and convince himself that he could ‘pay it off later,’ which is the rut that many people his age fall into, and the same muddy rut that his older sister had fallen into several years before. Armed with the tamed demon that Jeff managed to command with precision, Jeff made the next progression in his monetary dealings.

* * * * *

Romance has often characterized the relationship between man and the automobile. Almost anyone can tell you with a glimmer in their eye and a smile on their face what their first car was, as it is a symbol of their youth and of growing up. As superficial teenagers, most everyone in someway feels as though their car is an extension of their person, which is an obvious fallacy. Typically, men feel more strongly about this, specifically about the first car that they purchase themselves, without the help of others. Whether the car is lustrously new with paint that reflects the sky and stars with mirror-like-quality and tires that beg to leave long trails out of the driveway, or a rusted old classic that is content to just sit in the driveway, having flat tires and an exhausted engine that couldn’t turn them anyway, is of little consequence. For most men, this car is their baby, their first love, to be shared with no one. An automobile is the second largest investment that most people will ever make, second only to a home. However this investment has changed over the past decade or so. With the rise of the leasing option, and the fact that hardly anyone actually works on their own vehicle anymore, there is a sort of detachment between people and their vehicles. This romance between a young man and his first car has become estranged with the most recent generations. But not necessarily to one Jeff Gabbert.

* * * * *

The man stared at Jeff with bewilderment in his eyes. Jeff thought to himself, ‘what could it be, what was the problem?’ Perhaps he should have brought the co-signer with him, who by the way was not either of his parents due to their level of debt and bad credit history. "How old did you say you were?" shot the salesman. Nineteen. Jeff Gabbert was sitting in front of this man, nineteen. Not even old enough to buy beer, barely old enough to vote or buy tobacco, he wanted to buy a brand new truck. "Well, this is an unusual situation…" The salesman’s words rang sharply and quickly, like a boxer’s jab. ‘What now?’ Jeff thought to himself. Then the salesman unloaded, "You have perfect credit, a sizeable down payment, and need no co-signer. You’ll just need to sign here…" As the words trailed off Jeff was justifiably surprised. Jeff recalls, "I was nineteen, had walked in and walked out with a brand new truck, a truck I had no business driving." While he might disagree, he earned every black shining inch of the Ford.

At Southwestern, Jeff has assumed the role of Head Resident Assistant of one of the upper-class dorms. "It’s hard because these people are my friends, and it’s difficult to enforce the rules with people you know, especially people my own age that I know well." Yet according to records, few violations have occurred in Jeff’s building and according to him, he has successfully not alienated himself from the other students. "I like doing it, but more than anything, I have to have a way to pay for my truck." While he could conceivably ask his parents for help, he doesn’t want to do that. Rather, he has gotten another job over the summer to pay the extra bills and make ends meet. "I have to work to get things I want. Everything I have, I have worked for."

Aside from only a small stipend from his mother every month or so, the amount which would be considered pocket change for most SU students, he relies only on himself for money. This fact alone is a credit to his independence, especially at Southwestern. "I think that people that have to work for what they have appreciate it more. It’s not that I hold anything against those who don’t, but it’s different when you earn something." Jeff Gabbert, at age nineteen, all by himself, bought a brand new car. To me, Jeff Gabbert, at age nineteen, became a man.

* * * * *

While I knew Jeff before taking the class, I was pleasantly surprised to learn more about him. Specifically, I learned that he and I shared some very similar experiences in our youth and came from similar backgrounds. Our interview was a simple process and seemed more like casual conversation and reminiscing rather than an actual interview. I feel as though I learned a great deal about Jeff and chose to write this piece as it had personal meaning to me as well as Jeff. I could associate with Jeff on a number of different levels and thought that this would be a good way to actually write a personal narrative under the guise of a profile narrative. I stayed as far away from using the first-person as I could, only using it once throughout the piece. While I do think that I adequately conveyed Jeff’s experience and feelings, I also think that I was successful in ‘writing’ myself into the work extensively.

While it could be said that this work excludes certain audiences (possibly wealthy readers, females, etc.), I chose a certain audience and wrote towards them, not being afraid to offend or alienate certain readers. I found it particularly amusing when a classmate thoughtfully noted that this piece was "dripping with masculinity." I took that as a complement.