There's this viral video circulating the internet depicting a man being flung out from his SUV after rolling it on the beach. He was out looking to be having fun, tearing it up on the dunes, when all the sudden his Toyota caught a bad angle and tumbled sideways several times. 

He's so lucky to walk away from the accident. I'd be counting my blessings. The way he was ejected is just wild, and it was totally preventable. First off, maybe don't take your top-heavy FJ Cruiser on such unstable terrain at those speeds. My Blazer even has a rollover warning label. He knew the risk, or he certainly does now. 

Secondly, though most importantly, buckle up! It takes two seconds and can be the difference between life or death. It doesn't matter where you are, what car you're in, or who's driving. Just strap in, please.

As a little sidenote, I can't go without noting how bad it is to drive in saltwater. You can't do much worse to a vehicle. Well, maybe rolling it three times....

Okay, so, I'm sure you want to see it. Here ya go! 

It's back! After a long couple of weeks without the old thing, my Blazer has found its way back home. I'm elated. 

With that, here's some songs that remind me of my vehicle for various reasons. 

I'm getting close to a month without my Blazer, and I sure do miss the old thing. It's been in the shop for a broken clutch pedal, and apparently that's some obscure part specific only to the manual Blazers, of which there were far fewer than the automatics. Initially, they attempted to use the parts off an S-10 truck pedal to make the repair, and that didn't last me even a full day. Thankfully, I managed to float gears back to the place, and it's just been in limbo there since.

First, they told me last Wednesday, then it was Monday, and now it's apparently not going to be ready for pickup until the end of this week at the soonest. Ugh! Allegedly, we're waiting on the proper part to ship in from Ebay. I can understand. 

I'm doing my best to practice patience, but this is testing me. There's nothing I can do, however, aside from hoping. Really, I just hope that they're fair with me on the price. I already paid for the job once and I won't mind covering the cost for the right part, but I don't think I should have to pay labor twice. I don't even think I got ten miles out of it before it failed again.... We'll see how that all shakes out.

I'm so very grateful for my mother and her allowing me to use her Silverado. Without the truck I'd be forced to whip the El Camino around, and my Eleanor is not exactly daily driver material, ideally. I still stand behind my purchase of the Blazer and I genuinely think it's a good vehicle; some things just wear out over time and when they do, I'll fix them. The body and frame are in phenomenal shape, the motor runs good, and it's paid for; so it'll all be alright. I'm just ironing out some wrinkles right now! For what I have into it, I really can't lose.

Between my classic, the motorcycle, my mom's truck, and the fiancée's car; I'll always have alternativesfor transportation. With or without a backup, though, I'd stick with the Blazer. I believe in it, and I have zero intentions or desire to get something else. I just want it back!! 

So... I bought a trailer! I picked this bad boy up off my friend for a really good price on Thursday and I'm ecstatic to now have a means to easily transport my powersports with the Blazer. This is especially nice when it comes to transporting my large buggy project or maybe even my quad with the snowplow attached. 

Previously, I was just barely able to fit my four-wheeler in the back of the Blazer. It took two people, I had to completely deflate the tires for clearance, and I snapped some of my brittle late-90's GM interior plastic in the process of getting it in and out. That's not even to mention the mud and dirt brought into my cargo area or the fact that I had to leave the drop gate/hatch open as I went down the road. It made for a loud, windy car ride in that situation, but I made it work! If there's a will, there's a way; but now there's a much better way.

It's going to need weighed and put into my name, and I'll have to slap a plate on the old thing. Otherwise, it's pretty much ready to roll. The lights work and the bones are good, but the floor has rotted out a bit. I'll get it all fixed and looking good in no time. Maybe it will even give me an opportunity to practice welding with my new setup. 

I'm overjoyed! 

Back in 1999, my parents welcomed three big changes into their lives. There was a newborn baby in the crib, a puppy dog in the back yard, and a brand new full-size pickup truck in the driveway. I was the baby, the canine was our beloved all-white German Shepard named Molly, and the truck... well, that's the topic of this blog! 

She's a three-door 1999 Chevrolet Silverado LT 2wd with the 5.3, affectionately dubbed Ol' Betsy. My mom and dad bought it new off the lot, so it remains a one-owner vehicle, which is somewhat impressive for a truck from the 90's. I grew up in the backseat of this old Chevy, and she's taken us everywhere. That would include annual trips deep into Canada and back, vacations everywhere from Maryland to Montana, and even to high school daily as my brother and I's first set of wheels which we were permitted to borrow. 

Through all the years, we put love and effort into maintaining the truck and keeping her nice, but by no means has it been babied. From muddy four-wheelers to firewood, if something needs hauled, that's the rig with which to do so. We used to pull a pop-up camper behind it, and now that we have a boat, we use the Silverado to launch the vessel. In almost twenty-five years, that truck has never broken down and left us stranded, and it has never had any major failures in general through all the use (and occasional abuse). 

I love driving the truck and have dibs on it once my mom is done with the vehicle. I have a feeling that won't be anytime soon though, and I wouldn't be surprised if she runs it until the frame snaps in half like these trucks tend to do in the salt belt. For now it's solid enough underneath, but as you can tell from the picture of Ol' Betsy, she's rusting out. It kind-of breaks my heart to see it fall apart on the exterior, but it is what it is. The interior, on the other hand, is like a time machine to Y2K. 

From the uniquely colorful GM cloth seats to the original CD player head unit with its sticky buttons, stepping up into that truck brings oneself back to a simpler time. There's no sensors beeping at you or settings to shuffel through. There's not a dashboard full of electronics and infotainment to either go bad or turn obsolete. Heck, it's considered a luxery trim with little more than power windows and cruise control! 

I could go on and on with my love for this truck, and I'm far from the only one who thinks these specific ones are great. Especially with the 5.3 motor in it, they're known for reliability, and ours has been no exception. It's a good thing too, because I unfortunately need to count on it for commuting, currently. The Blazer is down with a major bust in the coolant system that I haven't fully tracked down and dug into yet, since it's been too cold. So, I'm very appreciative of my mom for floating me the keys to the Silverado. 

One day, it will be mine. Even if it's snapped in half between the axles, I still want the engine. In that scenario, after a rebuild, I'd love to swap it into my Blazer or maybe even the El Camino, though I'm pretty happy with the built 350 that lives in the latter. I know the truck can't last forever, but I think it would be cool to upgrade my daily's powerplant with that 5.3 while carrying on the heart from my childhood pickup. 

I love the truck, and the radio dial stays locked on FM 94.9 WQMX, religiously. If your preset number one is also Your Country, 94.9 WQMX, I thank you! 

Keep on trucking!