Tetris Car

It's very important for an archivist to know exactly how many boxes will fit in his or her car. Because being an archivist is all about boxes.

I have a 1998 Toyota Corolla, and for the record, it can fit up to 15 standard size records center cartons as long as I don't have a passenger. The difference between 14 and 15 depends on how full the box is and whether or not I feel comfortable turning one on its side in my trunk. 5 boxes fit comfortably in the trunk, 6 in the back seat, and 3 in the front seat. But I can squeeze an extra one in there if I need to. Surprisingly, most of the donations to my archive come in batches of 14 boxes or less.

Is it weird that as I start thinking about a new car (I need to wait until mine hits 300,000 miles, which gives me at least another year or two), I think about taking an empty records center carton with me as I search, just to see if the new car will hold as many boxes.

That is my goal. A fuel-efficient, affordable, compact car, that can hold at least 14 boxes. Some people worry about child seats, 4-wheel drive, or a bitchin' stereo system. I care about boxes. How many boxes can YOU fit in YOUR car?