Goodbye Big Red

June 8, 2026

Hello Friend!

We had to say good-bye to our old girl a couple of weeks ago and I'm still feeling a little sad. Nope, not a pet, but a very old and faithful pickup truck. Weird, I know, but she had served us well for so many years that I considered her part of the family.

We bought Big Red in the summer of 2004 in the used car lot. At the time I was building big gardens and needed a full sized bed for hauling compost and mulch. I wanted something I didn't have to baby, a truck with a little wear and tear on it already, and the two-year-old cherry red F-150 was perfect. We never had a dime back then, so we worked the price down to something small enough for us to handle. The dealer was happy to negotiate because frankly no one else wanted a truck with an 8' bed and only two seats.

As soon as we had the keys I started making trips to the local compost center to load up. I'd back up to those huge piles of black dirt and step back as the guy in the big front loader would scoop up big buckets full of soil and pour them into the truck bed until the tires were straining just a bit. Then I'd put on my work gloves and wrestle a big tarp over the back, hooking bungee cords into the proper crannies to keep the dirt from flying on the way home. I did this so often over the years that I got to know a few of the front loader guys. We talked roses and gardens and they'd wave when I drove off.

And then of course, after snagging a full load I'd spend the next few days shoveling compost into my wheelbarrow, rolling from one bit of garden to another to amend my awful clay soil. It was a LOT of hard work but I loved it. And I knew I was saving lots of dollars by avoiding bagged soil and delivery fees. Yay!

At some point we began parking Big Red at the church parking lot, and we quietly let folks know they were welcome to borrow it as long as they put gas in it. That old girl spent many hours hauling garage sale finds, and moving furniture and folks from one place to another. She helped us unload my childhood home when mom decided to move down to Florida, and she carried loads of furniture when we moved out of our Ann Arbor house with the big gardens and twenty-three years of memories. Everyone loved her, and she worked hard and faithfully. Until about a year ago.

Unexpectedly she just refused to start. No matter what we did, she just couldn't do it. And of course, by now she had so much rust that we had to use a big piece of wood to cover the many holes in her bed. It was time.

I took photos when they hauled her away. I think I cried a little. But I'll be forever grateful for her help in growing my gardens, and for making our lives easier. With her help we made flowers and friendships bloom. Sounds schmaltzy but it's true.

Thank you old girl, we'll miss you! I can only hope that folks feel the same way about me when it's my time to go.