Jake has a knack and desire to fix up old things and get them in working and running order. His latest project, the 1989 Ford pick-up with a flat bed.Back in March Jake had it on his mind and wouldn't stop until his Dad helped him. Mark hooked up the truck and pulled it out of the old barn. The brakes were completely locked up. Then it sat for a couple months waiting on Nate the mechanic. Later they got it hauled up to his shop. It sat at his place for weeks before Nate had time to work on it. Once he got started, we let Jake spend time working alongide Nate helping and learning. Jake loved every minute of it. He would come home telling me all about his afternoon with the guys. He liked hanging out with the guys as much as he did working on the truck. He took so much pride in that truck. The seats were trashed, torn and in bad shape. The dash, ceiling, and radio were in perfect condition. Lots of work was done on all the lines. I don't know my engine and truck parts and what all was wrong, I just know it took a lot of time and repair. We allowed Jake to drive on his own the gravel route 15 miles away to Nate's. Legally age 14, he is supposed to only drive with an adult.He went to Nate's some days for a full day and some days in the afternoons. He came home each night dirty and full of stories.
Finally in September when the truck was ready to drive home, even when the tires were completely shot. Po took Jake to get a new set of tires. The tires on the truck were so bad, it was scary even for them to drive to Stratford to Bauer Tires. Jake went right to working on the details, he added mud flaps, duck taped the seat holes and put on a nice cover, and filled the cab with air fresheners. Somewhere along the way, he named her Becky.
9/24/18 In the evenings if you can't find Jake, he is usually out in the shop with his Ford, just looking at it, tinkering with things, and making her better, he loves that truck. Tonight, I needed a ride to the field and he jumped at the chance to take the truck. He drives with a smile on his face. He found a stack of my old cassette tapes and had Steve Earle playing, Copperhead road, Guitar town, and Hillbilly Highway. I was singing along and Jake loves those songs. He also found a bunch of my Chris LeDoux cassettes. He has an appreciation for him now. He has listened to his songs, but something about hearing them on a cassette brings it back in time to him and he likes LeDoux even more. I get such a kick out of him. he loves that ol truck and the old tunes I used to listen too. He also started to like the songs he calls grunge rock.. Many bands I used to listen to in college, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Stone Temple Pilots, etc. I don't even know if they are good or bad or what the lyrics meant. I just liked the style of music.
Recently he came to me and said mom listen to this song. He discovered Aerosmith and the song "Livin on the Edge." I told him I love that song and had not heard it in years. Jake was grinning form ear to ear and he loves that song too. We definitely have the same taste in music. That is as long as he doesn't turn on any of those crazy rap songs. I hate all forms of rap! Jake' music taste changes every few months. He is quite a guy. I am so proud of that kid and his dedication to the things he enjoys. I wish he had that same drive for school and math. I know he will do great things someday with the gifts God has given him. He is unique in his interests, that's how God made him and we love it.
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