As Richard said, we just bought  a truck.  A certified pre-dented truck.  It is also canary yellow.  Or perhaps 35mph-turn-ahead-sign yellow.  Or perhaps daffodil yellow.  And let’s hope it’s not lemon yellow.

Here’s the thing about buying a used cheap truck that needs to make through a year of hauling and abuse, or making 99% of the decisions we need to make, there is a calculation of risk.  In non-love-nest life, I’m a professional risk assessor of the emergency room nurse variety.   I spent my work time constantly prioritizing needs, wants, and life threatening emergencies.  We’re all going to die, but I’m going to do everything I can to prevent that from being on my watch.

A truck that costs less than $5000 (our budget) is gonna break down, but when, how, and will somebody get hurt is the question.  Despite growing up half hippy and half cowgirl, I don’t know a ton about trucks other than how to check the oil and get in and out of 4WD.  But here are the thoughts on deciding that this yellow beast was worth the risk– it’s sold for half our budget, meaning we have some money to fix a safety concern.  It’s also has a hefty dent in the passenger side, clearly a reason it has to be sold for less.   There are the things we know (runs and shifts great today, no air conditioning, big dent), things we know we don’t know (how new are the breaks, what might fail first, lifetime of the 4WD), and then all the things we’ve never thought to worry about.

So, I’ll take it to a shop and get it checked out so we know more, and we’ll manage our risks from there.