Hello. Goodbye.

There comes a time in life when we need to say goodbye. We are currently at that juncture. A faithful companion has stuck by us through thick and thin for nearly 6 years now. He has been a difficult companion at times- we’ve had to coax and baby him along at times. But overall, he was so faithful to us. We relied on him a great deal during Kendall’s years in school. At times we didn’t see how he could possibly endure another season, though we needed him so. But somehow he limped through those lean years with us. We begged him (and the powers that be) to stay with us a bit longer. Then he surprised everyone by not only making it through school with us, but by also following us to the great cold North (though he had to be carried those 1000 miles). He has worked hard for 20 years and we were understanding when he demanded to hibernate through the harsh Canadian winter.

So we bid a fond farewell to the Blue Weasel. (Or, if you ask Kendall, the Blue Ox.) The $700 we paid for him just under 6 years ago has been well worth it. He proved to be much more valuable to us than that small amount would suggest. (We owe you, Tim.)

Kendall is ready to retire the Blue Weasel/Ox. It would never pass the safety inspection of Ontario. (We’ve been flying under the radar for a year now.) Kendall’s hoping that someone will give him some pocket change in exchange for the truck.

I, for one, will be sad to say goodbye.

On a brighter note, we also get to say hello. Meet our new companion, the “Abominable Snowman.”

Fortunately/Unfortunately, this photo is just a little joke.

Our new companion is actually a ’94 Ford Ranger. We bought it in Duluth, Minnesota. It has an extended cab and 4-wheel drive. That will make it easier for the whole family to go explore the bush as much as we want. (Sadly, I am not able to include a photo at this time. If a vehicle is more than 15 years old, it is exempt from the Canadian import fees. The manufacture date on the new truck was August of 1994. That makes us one month short of 15 years. So we found a place in International Falls for the truck to hang out for a few weeks until we can get it across the border fee-free.)

The first time I watched Kendall pull his new truck out onto the highway in Duluth, I felt a surge of happiness for him. I was happy to see my bushman in a truck that better fit his bushman ways. (And I felt bad for him as he had started to notice more and more people laughing at his precious Blue…..thing.)

So, Hello. And may this new truck serve us as well as (or much better than) the Blue Weasel.