On Friday I received the news that my car, the trusty mutt mover, was on its last legs (wheels?). A trip to the mechanic in Tigard revealed a medley of maladies that unfortunately weren’t worth addressing on a 26 year old car with over 300,000 miles on it.
Old Blue was my first car, a gift from my parents when I was almost 17. At the time it was 12 years old and had over 140,000 miles on it.
It survived a road trip to Texas when two friends and I set out after graduating from high school. It sat fairly idle during the years I was in college in Boston; it was too expensive to have a car in the city, so Old Blue stayed in Oregon.
After returning to Oregon, it again became our primary transportation. Eventually Old Blue was relegated to the role as our secondary vehicle (pronounced vuh-hickle, says Candice). Still Old Blue managed to outlive two of our other “new” car who succumbed to accidents over the years.
When I began working at Heartland Humane Society, I discovered that I could fit four large dog crates in the back, a skill that has been used many, many times since then. It has transported cats, dogs, and rabbits from shelters everywhere from Portland and Roseburg to Eugene and Newport to Albany and Salem.
After getting Romeo, our Great Dane, in 2006 I’m not sure the back seat has ever been up again. I even found a huge foam mat to make the back comfy for him when he sprawls out.
Currently Old Blue helps transport cats for a local rescue group when I take their kitties to work with me so they can get fixed at our spay/neuter clinic.
It is great having a beat up old car that I don’t worry about getting dirty or scuffed up when I haul all these critters around. I think my biggest stress to choosing a “new” car will be trying to figure how much of a “dog car” it will be and worrying about the first dents or scratches that happen.
Old Blue is still drivable (until it isn’t), so I have a little time to figure out what the car plan will be.
While at the mechanics on Friday I did get to visit with the dogs of M&W Automotive. These three get to hang out in the office and are very nice greeters.
The dogs enjoying the sun in the office
The black and white boy is a rat terrier, Jack Russell mix. They call him their Jack Rat :) The boy on the chair is the stockiest rat terrier I’ve met but has the cutest tan eyebrows. Rudy’s face and expression reminded me of Julio.
If I don’t get another Volvo, I’ll miss going to M&W. They have taken care of our family’s Volvos for many years and are great folks. And of course the furry office companions are adorable.