Don't take your freedoms for granted.
I'm 23. I'm old enough to drink, smoke, vote, get married, raise children, open bank accounts, buy stocks, start the next Microsoft, get credit cards, be called up by selective service, file for bankruptcy, buy a house (I hope, if I ever find one... (why are so many Perl developers buying houses right now?)), buy plane tickets, make hotel reservations, travel internationally, run for some political offices, be sued, sue someone else, or be convicted of criminal charges as an adult.
However, I cannot rent a car.
That's right. Unless I'm 25, most major nationwide car rental chains will not rent to me. I've got insurance, and a major credit card, and a driver's license. I've got the best credit rating of anyone I know. I don't take drugs, or even play loud music in my car. (Well, maybe Manheim Steamroller last xmas was a little loud...)
Now, some companies do make exceptions. Why, the Avis rent-a-car lady I spoke to said they could rent me a car in New York at my age (for an $80-a-day surcharge). Also, most rental companies will rent to me if I'm travelling on business for a company with a business credit card. (I'm sure that will be a relief if my employer ever sends me to training or something.) I wonder if they realize I could probably start a business and get a business credit card.
At any rate, if I had it to do over again, I'd probably tell the lady they were losing a valuable customer, ask to speak to her manager, ask the manager to check out my credit rating or something, etc. I also considered calling my insurance company and credit card company to see if they could do something. But as it is, I found a nice company called Fox Rent-a-car that will help me. They have good prices, and only a $15-a-day surcharge for my disability (the underage disability, that is). If you need to rent a car in California, please look them up; they seem like nice people, and they're really helping me out.
Yes, I checked other companies besides Avis, but only on the Internet.
No, I wasn't going to New York.
