Covid Journal, Day 160: My New Ride

70 and humid, with a forecast of a hot day ahead. Good rain night before last has everything green again, although leaves are falling, and there are other signs that autumn might be arriving early.

So here's our new-to-us van. 

Not my favorite color, as it will show dirt badly--not a good thing when you live on a gravel road. But other than that, it suits us very well. It's very like our old van, which is nice because finding all the controls, buttons, bells and whistles can take a long time. I had my old one five years before I discovered a hand bin for maps ans such right under the passenger seat. This van doesn't have that nifty feature, unfortunately.

It is funny how manufacturers change such little things, for unfathomable reasons. There was a small compartment for glasses right over the driver's door in the old van, but gone in this one, and so is the handy hook for a trash bag. Little things, but we'd got used to them. However, it does have a backup camera and dual temperature controls so the conflict over who's hot and who's cold is over. That's very good news.

Larry spent Sunday morning installing seat covers, rubber floor mats, taking out the second row seats folding down the third row, and spreading a tarp over the carpet. I know you're thinking that we should have just bought a cargo van, but those do not come with all-wheel-drive except for some 2020 models we can't afford. And these Toyotas are so convertible, it fits all the uses we have for it.

This will be our main vehicle for the next seven years or more, I hope. I wonder how it will adapt to country living?

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