Why I’m a pick-up girl

I drive a pick-up truck. Well, my husband and I share a truck right now, but even if we didn’t… I’d still be a pick-up girl.

It all started when I was little. I wanted a red and white truck. On the way to school, we’d pass a house with a red and white truck outside, and I’d staaaare at it as we passed. I wanted that truck. Sooo bad.

When I got my driver’s license, I drove a Ford Taurus. I liked it… it had a charm that I made my own. But at heart, I still wanted a truck. My parents surprised me one day by finding a red and white truck for sale on a Wal-Mart parking lot… I was GIDDY when they bought it for me to drive.

I got my red and white truck.

Me and my dad, first day of Senior Year beside my red and white truck

I drove it through the rest of my high school years. Sometime senior year, it needed exhaust work. My brother took it in and had dual exhaust put on it, giving it a deep growl.

I remember one of the guys in my class asking me why I made my truck so loud. I simply said, “Because I wanted it.” Barely holding back a snide, “Jealous?”

I put speakers behind the seat. Replaced the original radio with one that had a tape deck (so I could listen to my CDs using the tape deck adapter… remember those?) That was MY truck.

My parents still have that truck, and even my brother wants to own it some day. I figure its the one item that, some day, my brother and I will tussle in the front yard over…

My freshman year of college, my brother was in an auto accident. Safety items in the truck he was driving saved his life.

I went the very next day and bought my very first truck in MY name. (The salesman tried like hell to put me in a Focus. I pretty much told him he would get in me a truck or he’d not have a sale that day.) The white 2000 F-150 was stripped down. I can’t even remember if it had power door locks now, but I remember driving off that lot beside myself giddy.

2007 & 2010 F-150
Old truck & new truck

It was the first of a long line of trucks, due to my only being able to get into the truck by leasing it. I followed that 2000 F-150 with a black 2002 (which I wrecked), maroon 2003 (the only truck I’ve ever regretted trading in…), black 2005 (which I also wrecked at one time, but that was also the truck that took me to Nashville), grey 2007, and today’s 2010 maroon F-150.

The last truck is the first one that’s not on a lease, and its not just in my name. My husband and I are proud of that truck. It’s one of our only “prized possession,” I guess.

I should perhaps also admit I got into ALL of these trucks thanks to my brother working for the dealership. Without the family discount I’d have probably been on foot years ago…

Why trucks? Why NEW trucks? I can explain…

  • Again, I’m a pick-up girl. I’ve driven trucks since the beginning, and driving a car just freaks me out a bit. I’m nowhere near as secure behind the wheel as I am in a truck. It’s a comfort thing.
  • With all of my family over 800 miles away and my husband on the road, I refuse to not drive a reliable vehicle. REFUSE. Not only is my truck reliable, it comes with roadside assistance. An 800-number call, and I have Ford on the way to help me. This alone is priceless to me.
  • We haul gear. All the time. We could NOT drive a car and hope to move my husband’s keyboard gear. A truck is absolutely a necessity for us. And we got a four door so it’ll be a family vehicle just as much as being a utility vehicle.

Gas prices are rising to an insane level once again, and, yes, driving a truck can put a serious pinch on the pocketbook at the gas station. Especially when you have about a 25 gallon tank. However, the gas mileage on our new truck is wayyyyyyyyyy better than any of my previous trucks. Plus, we have moved so close to everything that we actually can go about two weeks between fuel stops. So… yay that!

Not only do I just LIKE driving a truck (call it part of my personality), it’s something I’ve really sat down and thought about… its what makes sense for me and my husband.

One thought on “Why I’m a pick-up girl”

  1. When I graduated college, I wanted to buy my first new car. I wanted a truck… my husband (who was my fiance at the time) thought it would be better for us (since we were getting married in a few months) to get something else. I did, but once we did get married, what was the first car he got? Yeah… a truck. I still give him grief over that.
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