The back of Diane Peterson’s car is completely loaded with adorable stuffed animals. For many, this would be a total dealbreaker, but one man was willing to overlook the suction cup Garfield on Peterson’s passenger side window and ask her out on a date.
“Before we ever met, I would always see this ’98 Corolla in the parking lot filled to the brim with stuffed animals,” Nelson reminisces. “I always thought it was strange, but then I got to know the beautiful person inside that car.”
“I can’t help admiring how committed she is to that collection of hers,” adds Nelson.” And I feel like she’s equally committed to this relationship of ours.”
“I thought it would be difficult for anyone to see past the massive hoard of stuffed animals Diane likes to keep in her car,” says Diane’s sister, Barbara. “And I mean that literally—they are hazardous and completely obstruct the view of whoever’s driving.”
Barbara adds: “I’m surprised that she found love, but I’m even more shocked that she hasn’t been pulled over by the police.”
“In the beginning, I only had one Beanie Baby, but I liked the look of it so much that I kept on adding new critters,” Peterson confesses. “Some of them I won at the claw game, others I picked up from the supermarket. Let’s just say if it’s stuffed, it’s going on the dash.”
Peterson is ecstatic that she has found true love, in spite of owning the entire stuffed collection of characters from Toy Story 1 through 4.
“Gary’s not like all the other guys out there,” Peterson gushes. “Once I noticed the ‘Coexist’ bumper sticker on his ’91 Camry, I knew he would take me just as I am.”
