And I'm not just any car girl. I'm a JEEP girl! That's a category all by itself. We have the "wave". And tire covers that say "Don't follow me. You won't make it." Bumper stickers that say "You can go fast, but I can go ANYWHERE." T-shirts that say "Jeep hair. Don't care." We have clubs and rendezvous and jamborees and rallies. We get new bumpers for Christmas and light bars for birthdays and are THRILLED!
I currently drive a 2020 Jeep Gladiator Mojave. The first desert-rated midsize truck. And I love it. Yes, it gets about 17 MPG in town where I actually do most of my driving. It's my daily driver. And it's probably not the most comfortable vehicle on long road trips. But it says all there is to say about me. Which is why I drive it. That's why most people choose the cars they drive, if they have the option.
Now before you misunderstand, let me explain. I don't drive my Jeep so I can show off my pricey vehicle. The truth is there are a lot of cars in this area that cost way more than mine! This is Walmart country. The Walton's can buy a fleet of my Jeeps if they want. This is Tyson country. J.B Hunt. Dillards. George's. This little corner of Arkansas is home to some very well-off folks!
No, when I say I drive my Jeep because of what it symbolizes, I'm talking about what it means to me. I grew up poor. I didn't even own a car of my own until I was 24 years old! And then it was a Mercury Lynx station wagon so I would have something reliable to haul the kids around in. It was a practical decision. Decent gas mileage. Room for kids and pets and groceries. And most of all...affordable.
The Lynx was followed by a string of equally reliable, practical, AFFORDABLE vehicles. None of them were exciting. All of them served their purpose. But the car girl who also loved being outdoors always wished...just a little...for her dream car. You guessed it. A fully-loaded Jeep Rubicon.
If you have followed me for a while then you know that dream came true finally, a few years ago. I did own a 4-door Rubicon for a couple of years. But when I heard the Jeep truck was finally going to be a reality, I knew this was the vehicle I had been waiting for. And so on Black Friday 2020, I got the ultimate Black Friday deal. A brand new Jeep Gladiator. It's not the Rubicon. Because it's not the status symbol that's important to me. Driving the 4-door Rubicon helped me see I didn't actually need all that came with it. My life at the moment does not include a great deal of rock-climbing, extreme trail-driving travel. The desert-rated Mojave is much more suited to my actual needs.
No, it's not the status of driving a $60K vehicle. It's the fact that I worked hard enough and learned enough and persisted long enough to be able to buy the vehicle I wanted. It's a daily reminder to ME of what is possible if you just keep pushing. If you don't give up.
I love my Jeep. I love going off-roading with my family. (Check out video from most recent trip to Palo Duro Canyon). I LOVE when someone tells my husband they like his vehicle and he tells them it's not his, it's mine. I love being able to throw it into 4-wheel drive on the rare occasions we get that much snow in Arkansas. I love knowing it will carry me and my family just about anywhere we need to go. I love knowing that whatever life on the dirt road brings, we can get through it.
Most of all, I love knowing that my own hard work and determination got me where I am today...riding around in "Mo" (named after my granddaughter Morgan), with the top off and the music playing, feeling the sun on my face. Jeep hair! Don't care! Oh, and don't try to follow me. You might not make it!
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