tales of car ownership

the baron drives a 13 year-old saturn, a gold one, a two-door coupe that has seen better days. she inherited this car from her mother four years ago, and - visions of NO CAR PAYMENT dancing before her eyes - was glad to accept it.

this car, a lady car, the baron named shep.

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the baron's friend lalee has driven a mid-sized red chevrolet pickup truck for a few years now. this truck, bought new, was named pretty morgan freeman, or pmf.

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the husband, who drives a full-sized, extended cab chevrolet silverado, has not named his truck. though this ford was, for the time they had him, referred to as aragorn.

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mr. c recently bought a volkswagon rabbit, name as yet to be determined. (the short list, so far, is rupert.)

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the other day, the baron retrieved a voice mail from her mobile phone, a message from lalee indicating that she was changing the name of her truck from pretty morgan freeman to hope.

the baron balked, and called the next day.

-dude, you're renaming pmf hope? that's a terrible name.
-H-O-P-E?
-right, hope?
-no, H-O-K-E. i'm renaming him hoke.
-hoke? that's a GREAT name. for a minute i thought i'd have to have some kind of intervention, like maybe you were giving up on life. or that you were imagining some kind of young woman with down syndrome who was overcoming some adversity. why are you changing the name?
-well, i'm not that big a fan of morgan freeman, and also, he's been secretly dating his adopted granddaughter.
-sorry, what's that?
-i read all about it at the huffington post, which - i think - sourced their material from the national enquirer.
-ah.

that time they went to new orleans, or, that time they thought they were moving to new orleans

once upon a time, the baron and the husband thought they'd be moving to new orleans. the husband went out first, for work. he wasn't able to find a house or an apartment right away, so he and the dogs moved into the westin new orleans....


where they adapted to the lifestyle quite nicely.



then they moved into a house...




and the husband was assaulted on the street just outside the french quarter. strangely enough, after that, they decided new orleans was not the right place for them. they packed up their stuff and drove back to arizona.

that time they went to costa rica

in 2006, the baron and lalee went to costa rica. on a lark. it was a pretty good week, and from these photos, it appears to be JUST TWO OF THEM, DOESN'T IT?


in playa tamarindo at witch's rock cafe. the baron and lalee showed those nachos who's boss.


lalee's birthday, another beach. april 7, 2006.


lalee's birthday dinner, playa langosta. awww-kward.


the entrance (from the beach) to the hotel. the baron really liked those monkey sentries.


coffee and cream and sugar. a good way to pass the afternoon.


their last night in tamarindo.


trying, unsuccessfully, to set the camera's auto timer before leaving the hotel.


their last breakfast.

that time they went to tahoe for that fire grant thing

the february before the baron and the husband moved from san francisco to phoenix, they traveled to the nevada side of lake tahoe for the husband's work (something, something, fire grant). the details of this trip - the fire grant part, anyway - are murky. the following details, however, remain clear in the baron's memory.

it turns out, dexter has some kind of fascination with snow (and also sand). as in, she can't be in either one of them without going whack-a-doodle happy crazy... her joy is evident, below:




here are the baron, immediately after having FACED into the snow, and dexter, enjoying the day. did the baron mention, she's actually not that fond of snow?

that time the husband got hit by a hippie in a vanagon

(he was shaken, but ok. and bought a dark grey silverado shortly afterward.)

that time they knew they were a family

they climbed in there themselves. the husband just shut the door for the photo op.

that time the husband was mustachioed