Although the Prowler's main mode of transportation when snooping around town is by foot--or rather, by paw--obviously not everyone shares these sentiments, which is quite clear by the abundance of cars and trucks and things that go.
Many people do, however, share the desire to use their cars to advertise their sentiments. This reference is to personalized license plates, of course. The Prowler never did go for calling them "vanity plates," though, as the connotation of that word comes too close for comfort to the image of the Evil Queen from Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.
This cat's eye is always caught by personalized plates, particularly those that are witty or original. Cryptic ones are appealing too, as long as they don't take so long to decipher that the light turns green first.
Spied recently on N. Santa Cruz Avenue was the plate GO4 SNO. Fittingly enough, the car had a ski rack atop its roof. Also fitting was a cute little VW Bug spotted on a N. Santa Cruz sidestreet whose plate humbly proclaimed 1RADVWU.
Speaking of proclamations, a distant relative of the Royal Family, or perhaps just a wannabe, was driving her late-model European sedan with a plate of HRH BEV. Another European sedan, this one bearing the plate LG95030, can be seen occasionally around town. Eat your heart out, Beverly Hills, 90210!
Cruising along the Los Gatos portion of Highway 85 North was a white convertible with a plate of ALISWEL. The Prowler happened to be a stressed-out cat that morning, so being reminded that all is well was a welcome change. Another recently sighted convertible was the dark green WILDSTG on Los Gatos Boulevard. If you can't guess its significance, here's a hint: the car is made by Ford and named for a horse.
If your cool plates didn't make it on the list, don't worry. The Prowler will do this again sometime, and sooner or later, you'll be sighted!
This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, September 25, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved