9/05/06

I think I might have come to a decision this morning. When I really, honestly, think about it, I must admit to myself that I'm never going to finish all of these car projects. I think it might be time to really think about selecting the one or two toys I really want to keep and selling the rest. I have said for some time that I could never sell the Chickenhawk because it was my first 1200. I think I can sell it. I only paid five dollars for George originally, but he could go. Barbecue Bob looks so cool but he could go. John's car and Gigi, neither has real sentimental value, both could go. If I pared the fleet down to a daily driver, a tow vehicle, the trailer, and one toy, I could move to a smaller shop or even to the garage at home. Oh yeah, I'm never going to poop or get out of the Ganges about the place in Boyd either, and we all know it. I think I really ought to try and sell off a bunch of stuff. It would sure make life easier for my friends in the even of an anvil falling on my head or something. Perhaps I'm just burned out at the moment and will change my mind before anything happens, but this sure seems to be the logical and adult thing to do. Ok, so now we’ll move on to what I did over the three-day weekend. Last week I decided that with it being inspection and license time on the Seven, I'd change to the full windscreen. Saturday I went to the shop with the intention of doing just that. I got all of the bits together and was in the process of attaching the uprights to the windshield when Dick Brink called back. Remember, I had sent him an e-mail asking for the price on a replacement scuttle? We talked it over and he found one for me that for $200.00 he’d sell. I know that last sentence doesn’t scan well but I hate ending with a number. We decide to meet at the Awful House, er, I mean Waffle House on 377 since he was about to head south to Fredericksburg or someplace. I decide I'd better go get cash for the transaction right then rather than have him wait on me. I lock up and start to head out when I meet Marty Smith. He decides to come along so we go. I get $400.00 out of the credit onion and we head for Hobby Lobby for some snaps and straps. The snaps are for the tonneau cover to attach to the new scuttle and the straps are so I can roll up the tonneau cover and stop folding it behind the seat. We find those and head back to the shop. Actually, there were two options for snap size so I bought one package of each. At the register I realized my wallet was in the car and bummed $11.00 from Marty. I repaid him in the car and then we headed back to the shop. I played with the snaps and straps while I waited to hear from Dick. John called to ask if I wanted to do lunch and I told him about waiting for Dick to call. We agreed to meet at On the Border by Lowe’s and that I'd redirect Dick there instead of the Awful House. About a minute after talking to John, Dick calls and I give him the new plan. I lock up again and head for OTB. I find a good parking spot next to the curb so that only one car can park next to me and snuggle up as close to said curb as possible. I get out and walk around looking for either Dick or John. Neither one is there yet. John parks next to me and we stand around waiting for Dick. John asks if I knew what Dick would be driving and I pointed to a black BMW as it turned into the lot. I said, “Probably that black BMW right there.” Dick pulled up and we chatted a bit then made our transaction. I loaded the scuttle into the back seat of Matilda and we bid Dick farewell. He and the wife took off while John and I went inside. Pat joined us and we all ate. After lunch John and Pat went on their merry ways while I went back to Hobby Lobby to trade the wrong size snaps for the correct ones. On my way back to the shop Pat calls to say he’s going to Kennedale and wanted to know if I wanted to join him. I needed to return a wheel stud to Smiley’s so I suggested he meet me at the shop. I almost called him back to say that Smiley’s was probably closed and that he should go on without me, but I didn’t. We went to Kennedale and, sure enough, Smiley’s was closed. We went to the junkyard Pat wanted to visit but the part he needed was broken after all. Turns out, the whole trip was for naught. We went back to the shop and I installed the strap for tying the tonneau back. It works well enough. We hung out for a bit and then both went home. I wasted the rest of the evening and then went to bed. I'll tell y’all about Sunday tomorrow. Have a day.