Redneck Well on Wheels

One day while Penelope and I were visiting my mom and dad, mom went into town to work and left the carseat in the 'ol green truck so I could take it if I wanted to go anywhere. I was told the truck had been on empty for quite a while, but should make it to the other side of the ranch where dad might have some gasoline.

Well, mom's 'ol truck is not just any 'ol truck. It is green. Not forest green or racing green, but that awful green color that the Forest Service thought was a great color for all of their vehicles in the 90s. This 'ol truck is mom's well. Sort of. It is more of a well on wheels. You see, there is no well or rural water line to the house, so every so often, mom takes the green truck to Edgemont, fills the tank with water, and returns home to dump the water in the cistern next to the house. In Edgemont this is considered normal. Wells are deep and sometimes have foul tasting water. 

Mom's Redneck Well on Wheels
*notice the white parking lines-front page news in Edgemont has been
these newly painted parking spaces, and Edgemontonians are learning how to park.

So on this particular day, I decided to venture out with Penelope in the green truck. Without a backseat, I put the carseat in the passenger seat. Penelope thought it was pretty cool to be able to see in three directions. I started the truck, and it roared to life. I shouted to Penelope that everything was fine, but then realized she probably couldn't hear me anyway. The truck had one of those manual gear shifters that had you doing acrobats in the cab just to put it into reverse. The truck actually runs great, it's just hard to shake the feeling that you are in a helicopter and should have an emergency parachute strapped to your back.

One of the great things about ranches are the gates that you constantly need to open and shut. As we pulled up the the first one, I tried to set the brake but realized it didn't work. I suppose there was some 'trick' no one had told me about, like, "press the brake, turn on the radio, and touch your left ear all at the same time," or something. Anyway, it did take some time and finesse to get the truck to stay in one place while I opened and shut gates.

We didn't run out of gas, so dad looked around at several red gas tanks and found one that was partially full. Unfortunately the spout part of the gas tank was missing. So dad again looked around for what he called an "Indian credit card," and siphoned the gas out with a long tube.

The green truck did all right that day, but I was certainly glad we didn't have to drive the 14 hours back home in it.

Afterthought: I am just now remembering another old rickety truck from my childhood. This truck was yellow, and we called it 'Old Yeller.' Anyway, we had this truck forever, when it was time to say goodbye to it, mom wanted a picture. She put the three of us kids into the bed and got set to take the picture, when suddenly, the bed of the truck burst into flames!