Yep, I've been away for a while

Did you ever notice how dependant we have become on these little machines that were designed to make our life simpler.....when all they do is make life more complicated....I have been away for a while doing what most fathers of teen age and pre-teen age children do.....since I've visited here last I have traveled over 200 miles to watch an eleven year old play softball....not once, but twice.....I've argued with my wife over how much chemistry a sixteen year old boy must study on the night of his birthday....I was wrong on that for the record.....I've washed the love bugs off that big white truck my wife drives twice....and waxed it once.....I've had the pleasure of sneaking off to go fishing with the kid.....not catching a damn thing....but that is the idea in my world....and then driving across the big bridge to hang out with Jon-Jon.....lounging in a beach chair watching old cars cruise by.....and watching no less than 20 police cars respond to a robbery at the Walgreens across the street....while watching old cars cruise by....I think I need another cold pop now.....tailgating softball games can be a blast if you do it right.....and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are still very good....but only on Sunday afternoons for some reason.....but since I've been away I have noticed that when the time is available we use these electronic marvels and rely on them almost too much.....when we turn on these machines we expect instant gratification..yep, we are products of a microwave generation....
the point of all this rambling is that when over the course of the past several days I have had the time to sit down and turn on this modern day communication device I find that I have missed so much....no longer do I subscribe to the daily print media so I rely so much on the web for information.....got a brother running for a political office in his county....got a brother looking for a job in his....got a brother trying to decide whether to buy a new bull dozer, a new disc, or an old jeep......damn that seems like an easy decision to make....but you see, I have missed so much....
didn't get to the beach this weekend.....missed some wickedly sweet waves.....didn't get to work on the old willies either.....
did get to see the kid's sister play some softball and I think that it was worth it all to spend time doing that....so that is why I have been away and where.....
guess this about as much time as I have now.....

Celebrate Life.....

Taylor's new jeep

brought the new (old) jeep home Saturday night.....my bride agreed with one condition.....if she doesn't like it, it is back to the place it came from.....pronto.....

used a tow bar and pulled it with the kid's jeep......nice and slow ten miles up US Hwy 1 in bikeweek packed Daytona Beach....got so many looks from other drivers......the kid stated at one point that he now knows how Jon-Jon feels when driving the old Falcon.....people giving you thumbs up.....but the best was when another Jeep would honk and wave......

well....it is now parked in it's new home right next to the

kid's CJ-5.......spent the better part of this cool Sunday working towards making it road worthy.....pulled the old fuel tank....cleaned the new one only to find multible holes.....gotta put the old one back in......pulled the master cylinder hoping that I had a spare....not to be, gotta find a new master cylinder now......pulled the carburator apart and tried to reseal it.....still got a vacuum leak, but it runs.....

but back to Taylor's Jeep.......after getting it home my bride asked what color we were going to paint this jeep.....the kid and I both agreed that Michigan Yellow was the best......then the kid's sister pipes up and says that since this was going to be her jeep, she wanted it painted pink.....

not quite sure that was an original color but told her we would paint it pink as long as it looked like Michigan Yellow when the paint dried.....of course the kid's sister has laid claim to this one and my bride seems to agree that this is a cool little jeep.....I am not sure she believed me when I told her that the CJ2A was smaller than the CJ-5.....but now she knows.....she even commented that she thought it was cute......not sure if I want a cute jeep or a pink jeep....but it is home now....

of course my bride said that this was the last one........

NO MORE dragging old vehicles home anymore.................

for now..........

CELEBRATE LIFE...........

The Year of the Jeep .... revisted

If I thought I could blame Yogi Berra for this I would......
.....deja vue all over again.....
.....here I am just enjoying life.....great family.....beautiful wife.....wonderful, talented, children.....
...a lake wobegon life......had to look that one up the first time I saw it....a term that immediately comes to mind.....but then.....a thunderbolt hits.....well maybe not a thunderbolt.....an email will do in this era......seems two of my brothers are constantly surfing the net looking for the deal of the century.....and then forwarding it to me.....don't get me wrong....they send some really cool stuff that is worthy of the time spent previewing it.....but then occasionally they send items that have been recycled more than photos of Brittney Paris.....or whoever she is today....
a lot of the time I spend more energy deleting these offerings than I spend viewing them......but you never know with these brothers of mine....so you gotta look at each and every one......every so often they sneak a nugget in amongst the bulk so you better pay attention......
today was one of those days......I opened my mail box this morning expecting to see the usual cache of jokes and funny videos I seem to collect over the weekends......mixed in among these laughs and chuckles is a craiglisting of a 46 jeep in my back yard....well actually 1.3 miles south of me at 7:00 am est.....
got this from both the bus and the longroof and thought 'what the hell' I give the gut a call and see what it is.....called the seller and arranged to view the offering in the late morning..... never thought I would have to pay two people for the same product but ended up paying a potential buyer to leave so I could put in the winning bid.....called the local tow company and had them drag it to the shop......feel like the bus when he got home from Colorado...

I know I got a good deal...now I just have to convince myself of it...the seller supplies antique and exotic vehicles to the movie industry and this was a reject from a recent flick....somebody welded in an entire new floor pan with 1" tubular hat channels.....the tub is solid but it needs a little mechanical TLC.....I hope I can get a buy three get the fourth free deal at my local starter rebuild shop....gotta fix the brakes....sound familar Jim.....still haven't heard the beast run yet...but I got faith that the little flat head four won't let me down.....if all else fails I do have a parts vehicle....just keep that quiet around the kid.....seems he has no desire to see his 67 CJ5 go away.......on a by note....the tail gate on the new 46 is incorrect...seems it is a gate off a 60's era CJ5.....what a shame.....the kid gets a new tail gate with the correct Jeep logo stamped into it.....

A Week Away From the Beach

As we all know, and the bus has recently experienced, sometimes the best things come to those who wait....we both spent many an hour following jeeps around the country only to find the right jeep at the right price, after we quit looking.....kind of like finding what you are looking for in the last place you look.....a while back the kid decided it was time to look for a new surfboard....
during this search for the best deal on the best board we scoured every pawn shop in town......I put the word out to everyone I knew......no results......gave up looking for a board.....then the longroof hooked us up with a sweet board down in New Smyrna Beach.......the kid got a great deal...

check earlier blog for details....but...par for course, earlier this week word comes to me about a decent board to be had cheap.....how cheap is the first thing I think of....the kid already has a board so I'm not pressing this too far.....the response is it's 6'6" Orien real cheap......how cheap....REAL CHEAP.....seems a guy I once did a favor for knew a guy...you get the drift here....anyway, the board shows up today and it is all it is led up to be......guess that favor was worth more to him than I thought....but man it is sweet board....6'6" three fin fish Orien board, with a lease.......just about perfect......but the kid already has a board......but perfect for the kid's

sister......okay, maybe a little to long, but hey, a long board is soo much easier to ride.....but as the price is right along with my favorite word......you know.....CHEAP....I snatch this baby right up..... got to the house while the kid's sister and the sun goddess were at softball practice...... so the kid and I were alone at the house.....how much trouble does that sound like.....but the kid was studying for a History Exam so I am alone to unload the board.....when the kid finally comes out to the garage and sees the new board I am amazed at what I got.....the kid was ecstatic to say the least.... I guess it a pretty good board because he wanted to hit the beach immediately to try it out....not so fast kid....this is for your sister......WHAT.....you got her a sweeet board Dad.....guess it was a good deal after all if the kid approves.....the kid says it would be cool to put the board in the kid's sister's room so she would be surprised when she gets home from practice.....so we tried to hide it over by her closet against the wall......

when she got home and headed to her room to get cleaned up after practice...of course I tagged along trying to hide behind the wall when she went into her room....you ever notice that when a guy enters his room he goes to get what he wants and then leaves...girls don't do that....they look around...kind of like taking an inventory....then they got get what they came for .....you can only guess where I am going here.....the expression on her face was priceless......when she saw the board leaning against the wall her face first contracted in a confused look...what is that...??? then the look of recognition...that is a surfboard..... then the look of realization that because it is in her room, then it must be her's......total surprise and joy......when she turned around and saw me standing there she literally jumped into me.....remember the last time your child jumped into your arms......WOW....she clung to me like we were in ten feet of water.......take your arms away and the kid is still hanging around your neck type of hug.....last time I experienced that was a few years back when the kid didn't understand why he got nothing for Christmas until he walked out into the garage and saw the go-cart.......jar dropping, total shock, total surprise, then sheer joy at the realization that this was their's....and no one else's......it was that type of hug.... I guess it was then that she realized that there would be no more arguing between her and the kid at the beach about who got what surfboard...... she had her own board now.....and a sweet one at that.....anyway....the kid's sister is now sleeping with the board and is totally 'cool'.......no longer does she have to compete with her brother over who has a surfboard in their room.....not sure if this will help her play better in this weekend's softball tournament.....but it sure made her get her homework done sooner.......

see you from the beach soon......


Celebrate Life........