Journey with Big Blue

Life with Big Blue was a lot of fun. My first upgrade for the truck was a locking gas cap. With Big Blue boasting a fuel capacity of 30 gallons, I wasn’t keen on risking any gas theft.

 

Big Blue became my daily driver, shuttling me first to NASA Goddard in Greenbelt. Later, a transfer to NASA Headquarters meant navigating the perilous daily commute to 400 Maryland Ave, near L’Enfant Plaza, and eventually to 300 E Street SW, where a spacious underground garage awaited.

 

Our travels often took us on at least two road trips to Rhode Island to visit family. Come August, we’d hook up a small pop-up trailer for Suzie-Q’s annual family camping trip, typically in upstate New York or Western Massachusetts. During the holidays, Big Blue dutifully transported presents and luggage under its fiberglass cap. The roomy cab easily accommodated our daughter Tori’s car seat.

 

Like any vehicle, Big Blue had its share of minor troubles during these early years. At around 16,000 miles, the truck refused to start one morning due to a faulty ignition module. Its replacement lasted over 225,000 miles, finally giving out after the John Loughlin Show in the WPRO parking lot in 2019.

 

Then there was the infamous Perrier incident. On a return trip from Rhode Island to Maryland, I noticed a worrying spike in temperature. Unbeknownst to me at the time, a hose leading to the heater core in the engine compartment had sprung a leak. We pulled over and resorted to adding bottled water we had on hand. About a mile shy of the Ft. McHenry tunnel, Big Blue began overheating again. With nothing but two bottles of Perrier left, we poured them into the radiator and managed to limp home, with repairs promptly carried out the following day.

 

Another memorable tale from those early years involved a meeting at 500 North Capitol St. The building housed CNN News Source, a syndication outlet for CNN that needed some shuttle footage we possessed. Interestingly, it also housed the IRS enforcement division – a detail that becomes significant shortly. With rain pouring down, I opted to drive Big Blue to the meeting, banking on the convenience of moving between underground garages.

 

The underground garage at IRS/CNN proved to be a challenge, with its tight parking spaces. The only spot I found was so snug that I had to exit through the passenger door.

 

Upon returning to Big Blue after the meeting, I found a lengthy handwritten note under my wiper scolding me for parking too close. It repeatedly referenced someone named “Roger Henderson” and warned, “we know who you are.” As it turned out, I had inadvertently hung my Maryland National Guard security pass on my rearview mirror, prominently displaying the name "Colonel Roger Henderson – Security Officer."

 

I never did inquire if Col. Henderson ever faced an unexpected IRS audit.

 

Then there was the time I parked in the Pentagon Press parking lot for another meeting and inadvertently left my lights on. Upon returning, I found a note from NBC News Pentagon correspondent Ed Rabel on my seat, informing me that he had turned off my lights to prevent draining the battery.

 

One incident, in particular, foreshadowed a future problem. In 1994, while supporting a young man named Jim Rzepkowski running for the Maryland House of Delegates, I plastered Rzepkowski yard signs on both sides of Big Blue at the polling place on election night. When the election concluded with Rzepkowski's victory, removing the yard signs revealed an unexpected consequence: a chunk of blue paint about the size of a quarter peeled off with the tape—a peculiar occurrence indeed.