SHE'S A BEAUTY!

Flashback: 1985

The good ole' days.

Back when: Reagan was President,

a dollar was worth twice as much as it is today,

American Motors Corporation produced Jeep,

and it actually rained.

This 1985 Jeep Grand Wagoneer has found her second home. (It's a "she" - you can tell in person.) Big John and I have been on the look-out for one of these beauties. We've looked far and wide. We've taken a road trip and almost made a HUGE mistake, but that's a long and funny story for another post. But last Saturday, we ended up in the right place at the right time.

 Big John and I were headed to Houston to shop estate sales. It's a hard job, but somebody's got to do it! At 5 am, Big John had a change of heart and suggested we head south to San Antonio. I was agreeable, so he started looking at listings and saw this Wagoneer (coincidence #1.) The "Wagon" as we call her, was bought for a very petite red-headed lady by her adoring husband in 1985. The lady passed away and her Grand Wagoneer was for sale. Our fate was sealed and we set the GPS for that location. Luckily, the Wagon was still for sale when we arrived. The estate sale girls were taking bids. As Big John started her up to check everything out, a mechanic walked up who used to work on AMC vehicles (coincidence #2.) He and Big John crawled around underneath her and took note of all the important facts -a lesson learned from the Fort Worth Wagoneer. We took her for a spin and fell in love, so we put in our best bid and headed off to other sales in the city. At 2:30 pm, Big John's phone rang - we'd won the bidding! She was ours! And we were only 5 minutes away (coincidence #3.) It seems it was all meant to be in the first place!

I wrote a check and we pulled out of the drive, with promises to love and care for her just as Mrs. Carline did. Big John agreed to drive until we got out of San Antonio, and it's a good thing. We almost made it to Seguin when one of the tires began to give out. We had a little side adventure trying to find a replacement good enough to get us home - at 5 pm on a Saturday evening. But we managed. Our first purchase has been a full set - spare included - of new tires. I picked her up yesterday and toodled around town, looking for paint job estimates. I will admit I was showing her off a bit! There were lots of looks coming my way. Just wait 'till she gets painted!

There are a couple of other odds and ends that need repair. The radio doesn't work and the windows need tinting. And she's getting some cool license plates. But other than that, the Wagon is perfect! She's just what I was looking for - a blast from the past!