Memory Lane

After moving to Dayton and enrolling at UD and getting a job at Delco Products in March of 1965, it didn't take long to succumb to the siren's song of a hot car! And White Allen Chevrolet had just the cure. It was a red 1964 Chevy Impala Super Sport, 327ci-300hp, 4-speed, with black interior. I have several memories of this car (one we won't even discuss), but my first memory of it was driving across the Main Street bridge in Dayton on a warm summer day, windows rolled down, and the Rolling Stones blaring "I Can't Get no Satisfaction". "Course I had glass packs on it, American mags, and redline tires which made it even "hotter"! This was at a time in my life that I could have gotten into trouble, but luckily, I dodged it a couple of times and kept going to school full-time and working full-time. What a car!

My third car was another case of young male car worship. I owned the '64 Chevy at the time but for some unknown reason I stopped at Tatone Buick in Fairborn and this red 1965 Buick Riviera was gleaming all alone on the showroom floor. I had to have it. I bought it after talking to my indulgent father who said he would drive the Chevy and if he didn't like it would sell it. What a partner in crime! We tend to forget all those things our parents do for us along the way.... Anyway, the sticker price was $3692.00 I picked it up the next day, stopped at the store, bought a big fat cigar, and drove to Aunt Hazel's house to show cousins Dave, Sue, and Roland! Youth can be embarrassing in retrospect. But it's done and I have the courage to share it.

A couple of years later, if I remember correctly, I sold the Riviera to my Uncle Floyd and bought a used 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado. Car number 4. This was a hunk! The only memory I have of it was with cousin Dave, and we pulled my old 25 ft Trojan cabin cruiser to Kentucky Lake on vacation. When we got there from Dayton, I checked the oil and there was nothing on the dipstick! Once again, luck averted a youthful disaster. We won't even talk about our week on the boat! It was purple as in this picture.

And then the monster of them all! A 1966 Chevy Corvette Sting Ray coupe, 4-speed. midnight blue, 427ci - 425hp, 4:11 rear end, side exhaust pipes, and Goodyear blue stripe tires. Today the car is worth about $110,000. But in conjunction with cousin Sue's husband, I sold it when I was drafted in 1969. I bought it from Frank Z Chevrolet in Dayton. They gave a 30-day warranty on it. On the 31st day, I was driving back from Lexington to Dayton on I-75 and decided to see how fast it would go. The last time I looked at the speedometer it registered 137 mph. It's a wonder I ever grew to be this old. To make a long story short, the engine threw a rod and when they asked me how fast I was going, I said, "Oh, about 70 or so...." They went halves with me, which I considered lucky, but probably ended up paying more than that. It was a great car, no A/C, but oh the sound of those side pipes! Dave and I took many trips in it to Canada, and through the South with the radio blaring and the summer breezes flowing. Lots of other things flowed, but again we were lucky. It was on one of those trips that we listened to Natalie Cole in a nightclub in Atlanta when she was just beginning her career. We misbehaved, but never so bad to get into real trouble. For those Corvette aficionados who note that my 1966 had a 1967 stinger hood on it, I did have that changed. The pic of the maroon Vette is just for a little more detail or quality. And the best picture of it here was just after I bumped into another car on an exit ramp in Winchester, Ky.

After the Army, I returned to my job at Delco and couldn't wait to get another Corvette! Bad judgement and carelessness. I bought about the first one I found from Walker Brothers -- it was a 1969 427ci-390hp, 4-speed, roadster with only the hardtop. But it had air conditioning which was unusual and an ugly blue interior. I had to keep an eye out on the weather before leaving the hardtop at home! Just ask my brother Stuart! I was hard on it and raced it on local club tracks one car at a time against the clock. Again, cousin Dave was a "partner in crime". It had a lot of nagging mechanical problems that eventually dictated I sell it. Not a smart purchase. But it did provide an interesting weekend one time. I beloged to the Greater Dayton Corvette Club and during one day of the time trials, everyone drove in convoy to Indianapolis. At the city limits, we had a police escort to the racetrack where we got to make one loop around the track! I don't mind saying that was a thrill. I believe this was the last year they allowed this -- probably about 1971 or 1972.

Years later, about 1994, I bought a black 1981 Corvette, (identical to this one) automatic, with T-tops and black leather interior from my brother-in-law. It only had about 45,000 miles and was in great shape! It was a great car, but was a constant source of irritation in familial relationships and thus was a victim of one of those highway coaches commonly referred to as a conversion van. :-)

Uncommon Encounters

About fifteen years ago, I met and visited several times with the WW II German General Rommel's driver during the North Africa campaign. He was extremely likable, a devil-may-care attitude, and very outgoing. He showed several photograph albums from the war and many with General Rommel in the picture! If I remember correctly, he was spending most of his time now on a houseboat on Lake Cumberland.

And speaking of photographs, here's a story you probably won't believe. Unfortunately, most of the details must be omitted about this encounter. The guy had a wife and two darling, cute young kids. The wife was a former model for one of the "men's magazines" and certainly looked the part -- very nice and personable. Rumor had it that he was a former bodyguard for one of the high profile publishers of that magazine. Rumor also had it that before that job, he was a "hit man" for the mob! I didn't pay too much attention to those rumors, until a few months later when another guy I knew said that it was true and he had actually seen the album of photos of the victims the guy kept. Supposedly, he had made some kind of deal with prosecutors in another case and was never prosecuted. That's about as generic as I can get without relating too many specifics....

And speaking of encounters with notable people, but certainly not related, a couple of years ago when Anne returned home from a visit to Philadelphia I picked her up at the airport in Asheville. It was a small plane on a connecting flight from Atlanta so there weren't many passengers. As Anne walked down the ramp I recognized the person walking next to her. It was Andie McDowell who lives in Asheville. Most people know her from her role in "Ground Hog Day" with Bill Murray and her modeling for one of the major cosmetic and shampoo companies. A beautiful woman, but I have to say Anne outshone her! Andie looked as if she had had a tiring trip so I declined asking her to star in a movie about something dear to my heart! But I have regretted it ever since!

Although not very exciting, but, to a 25-year-old, this was quite a heart-warming encounter. During my tour in Korea during the Vietnam war, I came home on leave and for some unknown reason, I was arriving in Dayton and waiting for someone to pick me up. So what does a 25-year-old G.I. do to kill time in an airport? I sat down at the bar and after ordering, noticed my stoolmate (?). It was Blair Thompson, general manager of what was then Delco Products and who was well-liked and respected by everyone; not one of those jerks that would follow (but that's another story). When drafted in 1969, I was a young, green supervisor there. 'Course he didn't know me from Adam, but seemed thrilled to meet one of his "crew" in uniform. He bought my drink, asked all kinds of questions, and kept insisting I call and come out to his home and visit while in town. The encounter was especially memorable because returning G.I.s weren't receiving heroes welcomes from the general populace at the time. Unfortunately, I never had the nerve (or good sense) to follow through. Upon my return after service, I would have done anything for that man and, to this day, I treasure that good man's conversation.

Years later, while in Purchasing, several of us were at the Tech Center in Warren one day and while having lunch, Rick Waggoner came in, went through the cafeteria line, and asked if he could join us. What do you say to the President of General Motors? :) I can tell you he did not have the "presence" you would expect, nor the interest in some of his fellow employees.

Memory Lane

When I think back about the money I've spent on cars since a young man, I'd rather not anyone knew.... But the memories they give me may have been worth it after all. This new "Memory Lane" will show a few pictures of those cars and maybe jog your memory for you own "special" cars. My first car was this 1957 Chevy Bel Air convertible. Mine was a lime green metallic with matching vinyl upholstery. I paid $795 for it in 1964. When you combine a 19-year old boy with a 1957 Chevy convertible, there are memories I will share with no one!

Life in Dixie

I understand why not many people do this blogging thing. After the first few postings, one begins to think "Who is interested in these mundane, boring posts? There is nothing to write about unless you are a fervent political junkie or have some other overwhelming passion". Well folks, that, for me, just leaves my wife and I know no one wants to read about my passion for her!

So this comes down to something like a vague, sporadic diary that will win no Pulitzer Prizes. So be it....

Anne and I like to cook with red bell peppers. They are so much sweeter than the green. So we like to find a good buy at a produce stand periodically and cut or dice them and freeze for use in soups or stir fry or what have you. They won't be crisp but that is not a problem. When they are usually priced between two and three dollars each, we just don't buy them. One day last week, we went for a drive to a place called Flat Top Mountain -- about 20 minutes from home. It would appear that half the produce in this country comes from there! We found our way to Wooden's Apple House where they were selling boxes of 40 huge red bell peppers for 20 cents a piece! Now we have enough red peppers to last for 2 or 3 years!

If you are a country music fan, you probably know the history of the Loveless Cafe in Nashville. We haven't been there but I found one of their cookbooks and made a peach cobbler last week with absolutely the best fresh peaches I have ever eaten! The cobbler was great. Like everyone else we are reveling in nature's bounty this summer - fresh vegetables, strawberries, peaches, watermelon, squash, and corn. We are waiting to get back home next month to make and freeze some applesauce. In the past , we have tried to use a combination of Granny Smith, Jonagold, or Mutsu apples. I think we thought that it would be a little more interesting to use two different kinds, but now we wonder about just using Granny Smith. Anyone have a comment?

Andria and granddaughter Katy were here last month. They are having a lot of remodeling done and both needed to escape the chaos and come visit Grandma! We had a great time and you can see pictures on Andria's Picasa site (follow the link at the end of this blog). Grandpa taught Katy how to "cluck" and by all accounts, she is still clucking away! Katy is now 10 months old. We will visit them the end of this month and maybe take an extended trip through Upstate New York and Toronto.

I have abandoned all interest in the current political circus. I know for whom I will vote and the constant hysteria and rhetoric is embarrassing for our country. Unfortunately we never really "know" a candidate -- we vote as if in a beauty pageant and stridently expound upon the virtues of one because we choose to believe that person will be the one we want. Most often we are wrong or greatly disappointed. We have biases that one party's platform represents small government, or enhanced social reforms, or has a history that we think is good. Those opinions as to the differences in the parties have been eroded over the years to where there really isn't too much difference between the two. It's all in the eye of the beholder. We see what we want to.

Our prayer list seems to constantly grow longer. We hold our friends and family close to our hearts and send our love to all. I miss those younger days when we were all healthy and happy and always anxious to visit with one another.

The Book Corner (9/11/08)

Anyone who enjoys reading about the history of the Revolutionary War, The War Between the States, WW I, and WW II is probably familiar with Jeff Shaara and Allen Eckart. Sharra's books are historical novels that provide the events in novel form by following 3 or 4 individuals through the wars. Pardon my trite expression, but he brings history to life in a readable and enjoyable form. Allen Eckart has written a series of books about American history and the "winning" of this country from Native Americans. His books are 99% factual. History is not always "pretty" and his books give what I think is a "fair and balanced" account. The books begin in New York and gradually work their way west to the "winning" of Illinois and the Black Hawk Wars. There are about seven of these books and I reread them almost every three or four years.