Do you think of your trusted vehicles as objects? We don't.The "fleet" needed realignment, that much was certain. The Tacoma is a beast - capable, flexible and safe. A turning radius much like the cruise ships we've enjoyed and comparable gas mileage made it a less friendly car for work-related hops into downtown. The time had come....
The other car is a faithful Isuzu Rodeo. We've had it for fourteen years, putting 185K on its sure-footed frame. Stout, solid.... It has endured two "Storm of the Century" hail showers, been in two accidents and pulled our popup trailer with ease. It seems hard on batteries, easy on tires and probably has more miles to give. Events have made it sadly expendable.
The Sonata looked good on paper, better in person.... How can such a gorgeous car be so thin-skinned? Too loud in the cabin...but the push-button start was fun. Fail.
Back to old reliable - Heath at Stevenson Toyota. A busy man, he passed us on to an affable young fellow who took our comments seriously, found us the right car the first time.... Okay, three hours seems an awfully long time to mess with papers, but I don't work in the car business - maybe that was lightening quick. Bluetooth, back up camera and 35 miles to the gallon for three grand less than our budget? Where do we sign?
Of course - the keypad for the computer.
The Rodeo sits, faded, dimpled...stoic. I stashed the CD collection in the Tacoma, and reactivated the Satellite radio. This morning I filled out the paperwork to sell one of our best cars, donate it.... 185 thousand safe, dependable miles later, all we can say is thank you. Inanimate? I suppose. For fourteen years it has been the steadfast guardian of "arrive alive" even in the face of terrifying weather and daunting traffic.
The little green Corolla has big treads to fill.
UPDATE: Running errands. On SiriusXM's Radio Margaritaville - UB40's Cherry Oh Baby and I'm transported to horseback riding, jerk chicken and Red Stripe beer. Ev-a-ree-ting gonna be alright.
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