Thursday, July 31, 2008

One of these days. . .

. . . I'm going to get around to joining The Procrastinator's Club!

'Nuff said.

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Interesting Phone Call

Had a very interesting phone call from my son today. He's stationed in Germany with the USAF, so I don't get to see him very often. We email back and forth about once a week or so, and every now and then he calls.

So today we talked about his mom's visit a couple of weeks ago, his cars, the fact he hasn't received his birthday gifts yet, and a few other things. Then, in the middle of a sentence about some of the big, old, cathedrals he, his girlfriend Sara, and his mom were visiting in Cologne, he said something about history repeating itself and kept right on talking.



Took awhile for me to process that little tidbit, and then the light went on!

Hmmmm. . . very interesting, indeed!

Thursday, July 17, 2008

A Bittersweet Day

Yesterday, July 16, 2008, was bittersweet for me. I watched ruefully, a ton of memories flooding my mind while my last Corvair rolled off into the morning sun. I've owned this van since early 1970, literally 38 years of memories:




Some of those include:

  • The great deal I got on it from it's previous owner because it wouldn't move - and fixing it in his driveway with borrowed tools!
  • All the wonderful little trips Bev & I took in it while we were at Chico State, a couple of which especially stand out in my mind. Care-free days!!
  • A trip to Colorado with Mom & Barbara to see family, and breaking down in Reno, NV on the return leg - over a $2 part. Fortunately there was an auto parts store just two blocks away and we were back on the road quickly.
  • Working with Jim to get the Spyder dashboard and all the other new instruments up and running before we left to attend the big Corvair show in Seattle.
  • Taking a break in Redding, CA on the trip to Seattle because it was so hot and Jim & I were concerned about the high engine oil temperatures - never mind that we were hot, too!
  • Rolling slowly along the shoulder of I-5 in Northern CA at some point in time while taking photos of the odometer turning 100,000 miles. Still have those photos in a box somewhere. . .
  • Removing half the interior so I could fit my motorcycle inside and then stuffing the van full all around the bike when I moved to Fresno in the early '70's.
  • More trips with Bev as we settled in Fresno, often to Corvair-related events.
  • All the little customization things I did to it over the years, like the Spyder dashboard and extra instruments, side marker lights all around, Chevy Pick-up exterior mirrors, Chevelle station wagon wheels and the fattest tires I could stuff into the rear wheel wells without cutting up the body, and, of course, the wire wheel covers (on a van??)
  • Driving it around Laguna Seca racetrack near Monterey, CA - no, not racing, but in a parade lap:




  • Planning for years to have the two dents in the rear fixed, and the whole van repainted, but never getting it done. . .
  • Somewhat sadly stopping it's use as my regular daily driver because it was going through a quart of oil with each tank of fuel, and I was getting spoiled by a vehicle with air conditioning.
  • All those years of using it as a storage shed alongside the garage on Fourth St.
  • Several years of using it as a storage shed inside a mini-storage unit. (Weird, I know. . .)
  • Finally having the courage to let it go. . .



Good bye, old faithful friend. . .