The Toyota Highlander, once consider the ultimate soccer mom car, has truly come a long way when it comes to coolness.
Yes, it is still practical. It can still do everything, just like Wilma Flintstone and June Cleaver can, only in a modern 21stCentury way that is easy on your budget and doesn’t eat too much into your day, even when your dependents seem to have no regard for your precious time or limited supply of ….. relaxants.
I’ve always liked the Toyota Highlander. It’s roomy on the inside, easier to access and doesn’t take a forklift or a crew to park or maneuver. When I was taking care of my mother and brother, I needed all the help and interior room I could get, and while my little putt-putt small car did the trick, I loved when Melissa or Josh would loan me a Toyota Highlander so I could do my caregiver duties with a little less stress.
Back seats fold flat. Plenty of room for groceries. Or walkers. Or wheelchairs. Or other items that are often part of everyday life for so many people in the middle ages these days.
Let’s be completely honest for a moment, shall we?
As LGBTQ+ kindness givers, caregiving has always fallen disproportionately to us. And the truth is that we have always willingly and graciously taken on the challenge because this is who we are. We often do it without pay and we often do it on top of our professional duties. And we usually do at grave risk to our professional careers, our sanity and our lives. But we do it anyway. Why? Because we care. After all the crap we have been through, we still care.
When you care, the 2020 Toyota Highlander is a great partner to have. And in December, snoop around online and you should be able to find one new and for cheaper than the base price of $34,600 that was the starting point earlier this year at the start of the pandemic.
Across the internet, the 2020 (what’s left of the year) Highlander gets high praise all around. Edmunds.com describes it as “a solid pick in the class” and I could not agree more. It’s fully redesigned for 2020 and there is more cargo room for all your big box purchases than in previous years. Yes, cargo room is always a concern if you are seriously considering buying a mom-van like this.
You can make this as luxurious or as simple as you like. There is a vacuum inside and all you need to clean up and go because, let’s be honest, you are the one who will be doing the cleanup. It will be harder to find Clorox wipes nowadays than to find what you need to keep your Highlander tidy and ready to roll. There is a certain efficiency to the Highlander and therein lies its beauty: when you have worked a long day and it’s only 9:30 a.m., it’s easy to miss.
As the end of 2020 approaches, it is sometimes often hard to think of anything for which we should be thankful (hint: the 78-year-old man from Scranton, Pennsylvania, and the marvelous woman from Oakland, California, who are moving into the White House next month) but perhaps the greatest things are that we, as a community, still care and will continue to care in so many ways. No matter what.
Happy Holidays however you may celebrate them. From all of us here at Gay Wheels.
