My 2007 V8 Toyota Sequoia. She’s a war/work horse

Hey! Welcome to 52 weeks until I’m 50 years old! Actually it’s now 50 weeks! If you are a newbie…scroll down to my original post and you will understand why I began this blog…If you are back for more…Yay! And thank you for coming along for the ride!

Above is an image of my second Toyota Sequoia Limited truck. She’s been my ride since September 2007. Her predecessor was a silver Sequoia SR5 and I had her for 4 years before her lease was up. I own this one and she’s totally decked out. Everything you can possibly need, she has. I call her “Swamp Thing.” Why am I sharing this with you? Last week friends had to put their animal down. My heart hurt for them. I’ve been there. You may have had that experience as well. So how does that connect to my Swamp Thing? She’s my war-horse. My work horse. She’s big, strong, fast and wears her mileage really freaking well! I love her chassis. I think she’s a rare beauty. She’s immaculate inside but has a few minor bumps and bruises on the outside that tell her story. She turned 100,000 miles in Atlanta traffic last August on my way up to hike Rainbow Falls in Sapphire Valley, NC. Yup. First time I’ve ever had any car or truck that long. She’s really something. We have a relationship. I know her curb weight, she knows mine. I know her torque, tow capacity, what makes her purr and how much she can take. She knows me as intimately.

My Swamp Thing has driven me in the heat to Gainesville to meet my Gator girlfriends with treats packed carefully, never breaking a precious bottle. She has safely carried me to Myrtle Beach in the middle of the night to meet the same friends and witnessed what I swear was a flying wild boar! OK…I was 11 hours into a drive and it was 5 am but we both believe that to be true! She has made countless trips up I-95 to Savannah, GA to carry special honey that I purchase every year from the Savannah Bee Company. She has carefully maneuvered the western part of the North Carolina mountain range and enjoyed eyeing the Chattooga’s whitewater rapids while I paddled ferociously past the Deliverance portion…(play your banjo here!). I’ve packed her full and pulled a lot of things behind me. She never waivers. And, I drive her like she’s a race horse. She is well-known by many as she passes by with her sports flags and magnets. She has entertained me so and has tolerated my years of playing loud rock music and singing like I’m in concert. Like an animal, she greets me everyday the same way, is always ready to roll with the changes and never asks for much.

I am praying that she will carry me all the way from 52 to 50 and be part of my life going forward. I don’t know what I will do if I have to put her down. And, I know I will not get another to replace her. It’s not possible. We have history. She is one of a kind. She’s at 108,000 miles to date. Each time someone asks me, “What truck is next for you?” I have no answer. I can’t even imagine. She completes me. You get me?  There’s only one other truck that has ever caught my eye as candy. It’s a cousin of hers. The Tundra. “This truck means business.” Yeh, same chassis. Same crazy performance. Same ferocious ability. I just may put my Stetson on and go for a ride in a jacked-up red one with a long bed. Not a replacement…but a new kind of animal.

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