Stone's Throw Farm

Plenty of people have told me that every farm needs a pickup truck. Some of the best veggie farmers I know don’t have one, so I don’t believe it. Trucks sure are nice to have, though. You can carry around a little horse manure in the back like Dave does (you never know when you might need some) and just hose it out when the manure’s gone. You can let boards dangle off the tailgate without worrying about closing the back door like with a van. You can tow things with it. Yup, trucks are handy to have.

I’m super excited to have a truck now, but not just any truck. This 1989 (I think — Alan said it’s old enough to drink) GMC Sierra was a gift from Elden’s mom, Diane, and her husband, Alan. They’ve been taking good care of it, not only because they’re good vehicle owners, but also for sentimental reasons.

The truck originally was Elden’s great-uncle Dale’s truck. Dale was a life-long farmer in Tuttle, N.D., and toward the end of his life, he wanted to buy a new vehicle, Diane told me. She said he really didn’t drive it much, but did spend a lot of time as a passenger in the truck. Diane laughed when explaining that Dale asked her if she thought the bright orange stripes on the sides of the pickup (barely visible in the photos, above the red paint) were “too sporty.”

I’ll try not to let driving such a flashy vehicle go to my head.