Hope on wheels

Let me put in a plug for one of my favorite vehicles:  a Radio Flyer.  I've been loving my little red wagon for two decades now, and unlike the more expensive four-wheel vehicles I've owned, it requires minimal maintenance.  Pumping up the tires every once in a while, an occasional shot of WD-40 on the metal joints, and a bit of deferred slat-maintenance is all I've ever had to do to keep this workhorse operating smoothly.

Rumors has it, this was Amish-made.  It needs a few slat repairs,
but aside from that it's still in excellent condition.

I love this wagon so much that about a decade ago I bought four sturdy metal garden carts (like the one below) for the college where I work; these green garden carts are invaluable help during orientation and during our annual college yard sale.  I store the carts in my garage between yard sales, and I maintain them as best I can, so I get to use them for heavy-duty hauling on occasion.

The sides come off for carting around really big loads,
but they go back on again easily if I carry smaller boxes & bags.

The main reason I love carts and wagons is that they're great for hauling stuff.  Here's a recent example: I decided I wanted to move a piece of large furniture from my home to my daughter's home, a half-mile away.  It's a cedar Hope Chest my dad made me when I was in my teens.  It's so large, it barely fits through doors, and it definitely won't fit in our car.  But it fits on top of a garden cart, and with the help of my sons, moving was . . . it was a stroll in the park.

J-son didn't want me to take his photo,
so here's a photo of my shadow pulling and his shadow pushing.

On this lovely fall day, I had my sons walk beside the chest to balance the load and to help push if we were going up hill.

N-son is happy to get his photo taken as he pushes while I pull.

And this heavy piece of furniture, once it's on wheels, is so easy to move that one person could do it by himself, as N-son demonstrates below.  GoooOOO, N-son!