END OF AN ERA

In 1991 we had a vehicle that I hated.  It had quit on me/us four times, the last time being on my way to work in a frog strangler of a rain storm.  When I finally arrived to work I called my husband in tears and told him he could come and get the unnamed, European make of vehicle and I didn't care what he did with said car, he could drive it over a cliff, I didn't care and I wasn't going to drive it because it was unreliable and cost an arm and a leg to repair anything on said vehicle.  So the quest for another vehicle began.  I decided I wanted a mini van, which was at the opposite end of the spectrum from what I had been driving.

We had a friend that was a broker for high line vehicles, so he helped us dump hated car and find the right mini van.  We had a specific color and interior we wanted and a list of options we were looking for on the new ride.  Bingo.  Scott called, he had found the perfect mini van.  A 1991 Dodge Caravan LE, gold with gold interior and all the options we had requested.  He purchased the vehicle for us and put it on a flat bed truck and drove it from Lawrenceville to East Point, where my office was located.  I was so excited.

When Scott arrived with the new mini van my entire office followed me to the parking lot to see this new ride.  It was really pretty, all sporty, two toned, the top part was gold and the bottom was a dark taupe with a tiny horizontal red strip down the side with lots of bells and whistles that we had never had on a vehicle.  As soon as I opened the door I was sick.  It had red and taupe stripes on the seats!  I didn't want seats with stripes, I wanted the light gold interior.  Scott was sick, because he has purchased the vehicle.  Wouldn't you know it, my husband was out of town and here I am trying to make a life decision without him.  We only buy vehicles about every 15 years or so and this was a major decision.  One of my dear friends, Robin, said the stripes would hide all the dirt on the seats.  She had two little boys and was thinking practical.  I was thinking, "I don't want those stripes."  I finally made a management decision for our household and decided we would keep the minivan in spite of the stripes on the seats.  Robin also suggested we couldn't see the strips with our back side on the seats.  She was right.  When we took possession of the van it has 18 miles on the odometer.

End of an era.

Last week, after 22 years and 255,614 miles, we parted with our Lowe's mobile, lovingly called "Ole Faithful".  We had a log book that we had recorded all the gasoline, maintenance and lots of repairs the entire time we owner it.   I had made a list of "known" deficiencies with the number one item being the gas gauge was broken, so you had to fill her up every 200 miles.  The reason I called it our Lowe's mobile?  I didn't want to drive it any further that Lowe's, which is only 1.3 miles from our home and I certainly didn't want to drive it further than town, which only four miles.

It was a bitter/sweet sight as the truck hauled our van away ending an era.  Actually my husband was greatly relieved, as soon as we fixed one problem another one would pop up, so he wasn't as sad as I was to see it leave.  Now I have to figure out how to deal with another deficiency...oil on the driveway.  A lot of oil.  Any suggestions? 

THE PURPLE HEART

The Purple Heart is awarded to soldiers that are wounded in combat.  My dad was in World War II and was wounded twice.  I have all of his metals, except for the Purple Heart with an Oakleaf Cluster.  I found a copy of the orders that awarded him the second Purple Heart.  I sent a copy off to the Veterans Administration months ago and recently the metal arrived in the mail.  It is beautiful.  My husband is going to build a shadow box for all his metals and a flag awarded by the VA in his honor.

This will be displayed with the first Purple Heart he received, along with his Combat Infantry Badge, his unit insignia and the other metals.  I have to find out the order in which they would have been placed on his uniform and I need to have some one fold the flag properly in to a triangle for the box.