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January 13, 2012 @ 12:00 am

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79-Ford F-150 Image supplied by Paul Stokes

It was 1979 and my mom and dad were picking my sister and me up from gymnastics. I was 7 years old and I remember the situation vividly. We walked out to the parking lot and my dad said “where did I park that car?” We walked around for awhile and finally my dad said “let’s just take this home”. He was standing beside a brand new Ford F-150. My sister and I were blown away. We had no idea and it was a memorable surprise.

A truck for all things

Over the years the ’79 pickup was a big part of our lives. It took my dad and I hunting, it towed the boat to the lake numerous times, and it was what I drove to school when I turned 16. My dad loved this truck. Sometime around the turn of the century, my dad put a fresh paint job on it and committed to keeping the truck forever. Unfortunately the truck got stolen shortly after the new paint job in Houston, Texas and was never to be seen again.

Moving up and out

As a young adult, as soon as I was ready to buy a car, it was easy to figure out what to buy. It was 1992 and I went down to the Ford dealership to check out all of the Ford trucks. I remember when I saw first laid eyes on the blue ranger extended cab. The salesman probably saw it in my face and knew he had me. I loved the color, I could carry up to 4 passengers, and it was strong enough with the 4.0 Liter 6 Cylinder to tow a boat. This would be the vehicle I drove for the next 12 years.

1992 Ford Ranger – image supplied by Paul Stokes

At the time I lived with a window tinter who hooked me up with the darkest blue tint on the market. The blue tint matched well and really made the truck look sharp. If I was interested in shocking you with my past, I could tell you some pretty interesting stories. Let’s just say that good times were had and the truck was well traveled. I ended up selling the truck to my brother-n-law after I had racked up 230,000 miles on it. He sold it two years later still running strong.

Best of times worst of times

In 2001 my boss at the time gave me a $500 per month vehicle allowance and told me to go out and pick up a nice vehicle. WOW! I went down the the Ford dealership and bought an F-150 4X4 Super Crew complete with a matching fiberglass toper. It was the ultimate truck. I was in heaven until I realized I couldn’t afford it after I no longer worked for him. I owned that truck for two years and miss it to this day. (I couldn’t find a picture of that beauty)

Family man

Today I drive a 2005 Ford Escape. It gets great fuel mileage, tows my boat, and the front wheel drive is solid in the snow. I’m not sure if I’ll always own a Ford, but there’s a good chance!

Paul Stokes is one of the SMB Madison Managers. He is in charge of sales, marketing, and business development for Graphite – Apple Specialists. They are a complete Mac dealer including hardware, software, and most importantly support. They also sell and support Bose, Xerox, and other premier technology brands. Their big news is the new Apple Product retail location they are building out on University Ave. Like the Graphite – Apple Specialist FaceBook Page to follow the progress and hear about the grand opening!