My '69 Camaro

50 years ago my husband Dick and I and our three children were living in a small town in Dutchess County, NY.  We had a "Mom & Pop" real estate business which basically meant that we did our own listings and when we made a sale the entire commission came directly to us. 

I will never forget the day that he drove home in a brand new Camaro SS coupe that looked just like the one in the picture except that it was a gorgeous shade of burnt-orange.  He'd sold a large farm and the commission was large too.  Evidently he'd had his eye on the car for some time and the car salesman, a friend, offered him a price he couldn't refuse if the farm sale went through.

Dick presented the Camaro to me.  He would use the Blazer for hauling children and clients, he said and I could do the light stuff.  It didn't take long for me to become very enamored of the car.  I got a lot of admiring looks when I drove it.  I was no longer a dowdy old housewife and I reveled in that. I like to think that I was still a good wife and mother then but I have to admit that I loved the attention too.

About 3 months later my husband started to expand the building area of his Real Estate business.  It meant that he was doing a lot of hauling and he was using his Blazer to the max. I'll never forget the night that he sat me down and told me that we had a serious thing to talk about.  He explained that we were in desperate need of a truck and that the only way we could afford this would be to sell my car.

So there you have it.  We sold my gorgeous car and bought a dark green flat-bed truck.  I took over the Blazer and went back to hauling groceries and dogs.  It was a wake up call for me too.  I soon came to realize that it was the Camaro getting all the attention … and not me!