Goobaroo
Growing up during the 1980s in home of the Big 3 American automotive corporations, we didn’t see many of dem ferrin’ cars about. Organised and promoted fistfights were held over the key issue of ‘Which is the better truck, Ford or Chevy?’, so owning a foreign car was tantamount to shooting a loving family of rivetheads between the eyes, then stealing their truck so you can transport some job-stealing Mexicans across the border.

Sometimes, though, we ventured outside the area, all the way into a different state; a state where liberal open-minded people existed and purchased things like hummus, colour televisions and Hondas.

“DAD, DAD!! What is that car?”
“That, my dear child, is a Goobaroo.”

And so I began to believe that all vehicles not badged with Ford, GM, et al were branded ‘Goobaroos’, despite all the rather obvious and wide reaching evidence to the contrary. Volkswagen, Toyota, Yugo – all owned and manufactured by Goobaroo Inc.

And so the family invented a game; every time a Goobaroo was spotted, we’d shout the colour of the car, then “GOOBAROO UP!” then we would scream and wave our arms in the air until a second Goobaroo drove past. All the while, my father enjoyed the fact that he duped my sister and I into believing his Goobaroo branding for the better part of a decade. And so I remained a small, idiotic, unknowingly racist redneck, shouting ‘Goobaroo’ and waving my arms to the sky at every available opportunity.

Time passed, as often happens. Yet still, when I go back to Detroit to visit friends and family, my sister and I (both 30+ professionals) still shout RED GOOBAROO UP! and jump about like maniacs. Funnily enough, my dad is now a bit ashamed of our Goobaroo-loving behaviour.

I got a job with a large Japanese car manufacturer, where I spent the best part of two years constantly screaming GOOOOOOOOBAROOOOOOOOOO!! in my head while trying to pass myself off as a hard-working level-headed employee.
(TheSnark oh, c'mon, like you didn't see me coming, Mon 24 Nov 2008, 13:10, Reply)