A Tale of Two Woodies No Coincidence, Part 1
Nonfiction. These events took place in early 2000s
Copyright by Jon Kramer 2-19-24 / 760 words
Sometimes you cannot explain the mysteries of the Universe, but if you’re paying attention, you damn-sure know when it’s not coincidence.
When Julie and I were courting in the early 2000s, we traveled together in high-mileage Dodge minivans, striving to reach 300,000 miles before we gave the vehicles away. There were a series of these poor beasts of burden which we creatively named – Red Dragon, Blue Wave, Green Hornet, Silver Arrow. I must admit we willingly abused these honest, unsuspecting vessels in the most disturbing ways, primarily by overloading them with rocks and driving far off into the trackless desert as if they were 4WD and high clearance Humvees (they were neither). It was plainly stupid and at times calamity hounded close on our heels, but I have to say we were never left stranded anywhere in all our off-road adventures. Call it sheer luck or divine guidance, I’ll gladly take it either way.
On one occasion in hot midsummer, we were heading through northern California traveling the coast roads, passing cliffside vista del mars and winding through old-growth redwood forests. At one point along the way we stopped at a local market to get some supplies. When Julie got back into the van she said –“Close your eyes and hold out your hands.”
When I opened them, I found in my grasp a little Matchbox “Woodie”, complete with a small red plastic surfboard on top. She found it in the dirt on the edge of the parking lot, under a redwood tree. It looked brand new. I placed it on the dash and away we went.
“Matchbox” has been a household name since the mid Twentieth Century. Matchbox toys were introduced by Lesney Products – a British company – in 1953 and referred specifically to 1/50th scale die-cast replica vehicles. The brand got its name because the toys were sold in boxes similar to those in which matches were sold. Over the decades, the Matchbox grew to encompass a broad range of toys, including larger scale die-cast models, plastic kits, slot cars, and action figures. While it has undergone several ups and downs (the brand was acquired by Mattel in 1997), Matchbox is still being produced and is very popular with collectors. Some rare versions have been known to bring over $15,000 at auction. But for more down-to-Earth folks, even today you can pick up a collection of 50 Matchbox cars for as little as $1.10 each. Nearly every kid from my generation – as well as the one preceding it – had a collection of Matchbox cars.
The day was hot and humid. Our A/C didn’t work so as the day wore on, we began roasting in the Red Dragon. At some point we noticed on the map that we were paralleling a stream that originated in the mountains. We were close enough at times to catch a glimpse of it and saw that it looked big enough to swim in. Finally, in the hottest part of the day, we decided to take a dip and pulled over at a wide spot on the shoulder. We struck off through the woods to the creek. As luck would have it, we ended up at a wide spot in the stream with a nice crystalline pool and a big rock to lay on. We stripped and dove in. The cold water was luxurious, and we spent some time there enjoying our peaceful hideaway.
We ate lunch and enjoyed a couple swims, alternating with basking in the sun on the rocks. Ultimately, however, we had to pack up and return to our journey. Just before we left, I saw a tiny bit of unnatural color glancing up from the stream bottom. Neither Julie nor I abide litter, so I decided to dive down and retrieve the trash off the bottom. I did so and put it in my pocket to pack it out. When we got back to the van I said to Julie: “Close your eyes and hold out your hands”
What I delivered to her was a precise duplicate of the Matchbox Woodie she had given me some 6 hours earlier: It too looked brand new, and was the exact same style and color, complete with red plastic surfboard on the roof. She has one and I have one. Now they are together. As they should be.
Just as we should be.
