She's a beaut, Clark...errr, Kurt.

If anyone is interested in my thoughts and opinions throughout this project, here's your first insight. Into me, and my opinions.

The men in my life balance me. If you see me in my 9-5, you'll find a girly-girl. High heels and potentially overdressed for most occasions. But I am not afraid to dig in and work hard. I'll happily drink whiskey or wine, and I have always been comfortable hanging out with the guys or the girls.

My dad was a great coach to my sister and I in bowling (loved it) and softball, and we taught at a very young age. (you're looking at a left-fielder who had her time batting clean-up, baby!) My first car was a Chevy Celebrity with a manual transmission, and when my dad needed muscle to move something heavy, I was the one he summoned.

My husband, and eventually our boys, toughened me up further as they were all wrestlers and played rugby. No faint of heart females allowed here.

Our go-kart with a detachable fiberglass Corvette body. It was cool, but hindsight says safety may have been an issue... Photo circa 2004.

Little boys are loud and funny and I was only concerned when it got quiet. And of course, we cannot ignore their love of all things with wheels.

I have a true appreciation for the beauty and power of vehicles. My ears are just as likely to perk up at the sound of a distant muscle car growl as are my boys'.

I have enough of an understanding of the mechanical side to stay interested and engaged in car conversations. And of course, I know a whole lot about carbon fiber.

This old truck obsession didn't surprise me. When Cole brought home his 1969 F250, I was excited for him! Stick shift. Clean. The original bench seat. Cool color. Sounded great. She was not perfect, but she was pretty. And she was very Cole.

Then Kurt showed up with Old Blue. In the movies, this is where the crickets get loud and everyone sips their drinks in silence, avoiding eye contact while kicking dirt with the toe of their boot....

I was a little concerned. She was battered.

But he was joyous, so what could I say?

Mind you, I didn't know either of these yahoos were buying trucks. They always think it's fun to just show up and see the look on my face. I'm sure it is.

When I learned the blue bomber was headed for a make-over, I understood. What I did NOT understand was the fact that Kurt was determined to complete this undertaking in a record amount of time. Normal, sane people who work 50-60 hours at their day job tend to execute projects like this over the course of 3-10 years. But noooo, my energizer bunny of a husband planned to do it in 18 months.

As with the start of the business, I was a little (A LOT) leery as to how it would all go. I'm not going to lie, I gave myself an ulcer when they quit their jobs and started BC. I was less stressed about the truck build until I started to see the receipts...

Don't get me wrong, I knew Kurt could do it. But take the shower remodel that he proclaimed would take 2 days that took 2 weeks. He was completely capable of doing it right, but unexpected hiccups popped up and then he decided to add some things, and you know how it goes. It's the same with this build. So 18 months, even to me, seemed like an unreasonable period of time. I and told him as much. Especially when he'd spend a beautiful Sunday working on the truck instead of taking the boat out with friends. He needed a break in my opinion.

My opinion didn't seem to hold much value, lol, so I'd go without him.

Certain guys have a vision though, and this build is a dream. Currently, if you were to ask Kurt, he doesn't have it in him to rapid-fire build a vehicle again, but he's not regretting it.

I continue to harass him that I am now used to my weekends without him. Cleaning and reading in peace. Having dance parties with the dogs without judgement. I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do when he re-enters my life. I'm only half joking.

Kurt has been like a kid in the candy store every step of the way, and even when my eyes would glaze over as he would talk through things, I listened. I swear. I care. Or I wouldn't be interested or capable of writing this.

Kurt's selfie with his new motor.

We'll get back to the build next. I promise!

But I told the wives/girlfriends/significant others that I was here for them too, so you're going to get more of "me" here and there. Our lives are affected more than you think when you have that mistress in the garage. There is a reality to the time missed on our end.

Even when we know what you are doing is pretty amazing.

Stay tuned for a rundown of the first of many hiccups in this build!

#fordtruck #carbonfiber #truckbuild #reality #mistressinthegarage #projecttruck