I was talking with Kenny.  I was thinking about buying a car to do some travelling, and he was bragging about his truck:  It was a white Comanche, blue interior.  He’d done some customization on it – that little shade thing over the front window, covers on the taillights and I believe he’d modified the suspension.  He was very proud of that truck.

To me, it seemed impractical.  I said, Kenny, man – why a truck? He explained it was, in fact, a matter of practicality: They’re cheap – they cost a lot less than a car.

I bought my first truck in 1992, a Ford Ranger that pumped exhaust into the cab with vinyl seats, rubber flooring, metal roof and no power steering – a five-year old, five-speed special for a thousand dollars: Transportation on the cheap.

When I was young…

It was recently reported that eight GM trucks worth about $640,000 total were stolen in Flint — one was used to smash into an ATM, Michigan State Police said.

Things were different, I say to the kids…