what's up?

fire

cool paint job.

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if all the other stuff going on in my life isn’t enough, we just evacuated because of one of the fires going on today. mile from home is too close.

what the hell?

addlepated

early morning in barrio logan / chicano park. all the cars polished to a mirror finish, as shown on this bel air. always a good show, and hoping to go again this year.

missing some car shows. the concussion has been making me dizzy and tired, and i think i’ve got a damaged nerve in my arm, making it difficult to carry my camera and tripod very far.

my brother was in town earlier in the month, so better half wanted to take him to some nearby airplane museums in chino. i went along, knowing it would not be a long day because of my brother’s health issues.

i prefer the planes of fame over yanks air museum, but better half started with yanks. i brought my gear, but left it in the car at this museum. i used my phone for the few shots i did take.

my brother was out of steam by the time we got to the other, though the MiGs did perk him up for a sec. i brought my camera and tripod in with me, intending to take some pictures that i mostly would not care about – i take them, then generally do not post most of these things.

i moved slowly, wore a dorky hat to protect the scar on my head from the sun, and took some pics. i did feel an ache in my arm, that one of the doctors believes to be a damaged nerve from the fall and landing partially on my hand, breaking the fall not at all.

so, i’m basically grounded as far as going to car shows for some period of time.

i guess it’s a good thing i have more than fifteen years’ worth of old pics to sift through for a while.

what a day

here’s a car from my archives. mooneyes, a couple of years ago. rough looking car, contrasting the brick wall behind. i dunno. i just liked it tonight, as i scrolled through the growing set of unpublished pics.

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i got a not quite expected opportunity last thursday, to attend a conference the following monday—yesterday—in arizona. boss asked if i still wanted to go…uhh, ya. so i scrambled to price it out: registration, the flight (she wouldn’t let me drive), car rental, and hotel. got that approved, but didn’t book until friday morning. almost forgot to register after booking the other things.

there were/are a couple of car shows that i had been looking forward to going to, and the weather has been a perfect gloomy overcast shadowbox for the past week, and on into this week, and a lovely, chilly upper sixties temp-wise. my kind of weather.

saturday was spent doing laundry and packing clothes. alternating between being jazzed to be going, bummed to miss the shows, and the fact my better half couldn’t go, as he’s been working lots of overtime, including weekends, into the foreseeable future.

sunday morning, i slept in a bit. got up, had bfast and read what’s what on my ipad, and looked at pics from the old school bombs show i was missing. beautiful cars parked throughout what appeared to be an industrial complex parking lot, with cars in front of colorfully mural-painted brick walls. oh it would have been fun.

joked with my better half that i could drive up for an hour or so, then home, and straight to the airport. he laughed. he’s had to wait on me before, his fav story being when we were on our way our way to an anniversary road trip up the coast, and just wanted to run in and see what was at this one show in whittier for a minute. came back out an hour later for some water, and back in for another couple of hours. he bided his time cleaning the car windows, while guys drove by asking if he could do theirs next.

ya, i would have forgotten about the time, so stayed put.

then my flight was delayed by half an hour.

we decided to go to the airport at originally planned time anyway. he was working all morning, and was going to have to get back as soon as possible for more. he’s more comfortable driving his car. which was my old car, twice removed. i was the original owner, then sold it to my ex, who sold/gave it to my parents to use as a backup car. mom sold it to my better half after my dad died. didn’t need it just sitting in the driveway anymore. better half wanted it to drive his mother around before she died. i think she only rode in it a couple of times before that last ambulance ride.

——————-

that was then. this is now.

we hadn’t made it more than three blocks, with some stress bickering, when his car did a little shimmy at a red light. a little farther and it did it again. ya, no. turn around, go home. parked the car, which felt like it barely made it. he thinks the transmission is going out. come on, it’s only twenty-seven years old. sheesh. perfect timing. should i have taken it as a sign?

i waited by the garage while he ran in to get the opener. came back, realizing my car keys are still in the house.

i drove us to the airport to save trouble making adjustments to fit his better self.

still plenty of time, pulled up to the curb two-and-a-half hours early. kiss kiss, goodbye. i turned and watched him adjust the seat, mirrors, etc. he was taking so long, i’m surprised the cops didn’t come to hassle him.

anyway, he left and only had to drive the loop one time more, as he missed the turn off for the freeway exit. fortunately, the airport was pretty quiet in the middle of a sunday morning, so not really a problem.

inside, i decided i would check a bag. didn’t need to, but i wasn’t paying, so why not? company card declined. wtf. nevermind, i’ll check it at the gate. no line for security check, so at least i was in the terminal within five minutes, two more hours to wait until boarding.

decided to walk to the far end, two terminals away, in search of a cookie, but the place i was looking for was no longer there. piss.

hiked back to my gate and sat by the window, watching planes take off.

my plane arrives, late as expected. we board late, as expected. pull back from the gate within a reasonable amount of time. then we just sit for a bit. thought we were inching along in line. you know how it feels like you’re moving, but when you look out the window, haven’t actually moved a wit.

i was in an aisle seat at the back. the girl by the window was some kind of native american, and was having a lovely conversation with the older hispanic man between us. sounded like they had started their chat in the terminal, and it eventually lasted the whole time we were on board. they talked about their families, abuelitas, cousins, work, life. she had moved to phoenix for work, and lived with a boyfriend, had just visited family.

he was a widower, who grew up in michoacan, mexico, but now mostly traveled doing some construction work. both seemed to do government-related work. he couldn’t get secret clearance, or even work on some things, as he wasn’t u.s. born.

i chimed in once in a while…my ex was from michoacan, but not the same town…i’ve traveled on amtrak across country, taken this route and that…etc. i’m so socially inept, i finally stopped cutting in. mostly i tried to read a book until i decided it wasn’t worth the read. author should have not bothered to write this sequel.

girl in the window seat said she thought she saw smoke or dust coming from another plane on the runway. the captain soon made an announcement that the plane in front of us had some kind of engine trouble on the runway, and had spewed metal parts all over. he would tell us when they have cleared it and we could take off; hold your horses.

people were becoming impatient the longer it was taking, as they had connecting flights that were very tight on the other end. an old guy sitting across the aisle from me about popped a vessle arguing with the flight attendant, because he had a subpoena waiting for him at the other end, and he absolutely could not miss the appointment.

after about an half an hour of sitting there, they decided to return to the gate to let those people disembark if they chose to, as well as anybody else in search of other options of travel. We were at the gate for a while. if it had gone on any longer, they would’ve had everybody deplane so they could go eat, as it was originally a short flight, and were not doing any kind a food or drink service.

when they pushed back from the gate again, we sat in line for another period of time. all in all, we took off two hours later than originally expected, and took another hour in the air to phoenix. they did manage to conjure up plastic cups of water to offer to us midflight. i was starving as i hadn’t expected to be this late. i was hoping there was still something open besides mickey d’s on a sunday night.

—————

at the car rental counter, there was no line, and the girl thought she was doing me a favor, giving me an upgrade. i thought she was giving me a free upgrade, as happens sometimes, but when i put my company card in the reader, it declined again. i thought there must be something wrong with it, so i used my own card and would expense it out later. my work only allows a smaller car and i already reserved and priced it out. when i went down to find my car in the garage, it was a damn lexus suv, bigger than i needed.

found a sandwich shop down the freeway, closing soon; good enough.

did i mention it was still ninety-six degrees at ten at night? ick. self-parked somewhat away from the lobby.

the sky was clear, the stars twinkled, and the full moon lit the way from the lot. otherwise, it’s pretty dark out there.

i finally arrived in my hotel room after ten-thirty p.m., i looked over the contract—the thing was priced at three times my original cost with the added insurance stuff i was supposed to decline. i called the credit card company to find out why the heck my card was declining. they told me the girl had originally tried to charge me over a thousand dollars for six days, but currently have a lesser balance, so she couldn’t charge my card for the car they gave me. no reason given for the decline at bag check.

i found it hard to go to sleep, as i was worrying how i was going to tell the boss i fucked up. it was after midnight last i looked.

in the morning i called the rental company to ask if i could return it for the original car that i asked for? the customer support person said I could try taking it back to the airport, but didn’t guarantee anything. the fine print said i was going to have to pay for twenty-four hours anyway, so i went after my day of classes were done. i figured that i would pay for my mistake for one day, then charge the other days at the lower rate on the company card.

it turned out not to be a problem, save for having to wait in line at the little office in the garage. air conditioning was poor at best, and the door kept popping open when people were too nearby, letting the oven temp evening air in.

a stewardess had flown in specifically to argue in person about a huge charge for a lost key she said didn’t happen. props to the manager for keeping his cool.

got my teeny car finally, and pedaled it back to the hotel.

would have been easier and faster if i had driven. could have gone to that car show. could have brought my camera gear and found something to shoot picks of here.

today was boring, by comparison. still hot af.

change of plans

better half and i decided to go to the azalea festival show last weekend at the south gate golf course.

used to wake up early and be there before the sun rose, to get that early morning light on the cars waiting to get in the gate.

then there were a couple of years, where my better half couldn’t go, while he was taking care of his mother. i’d go, but there weren’t as many cars; then the gate guards wouldn’t be persuaded to let me in to take pictures before the official open time.

then another year, i went on my own again. before the sun. in the lot, in the dark before six a.m. before the people running the show and the vendors. before anyone bothered to show up, to line up, to get in. almost left, after sitting for an hour, but then, i’d already waited, so waited some more. not much went in the gate, didn’t wait until start, as they again wouldn’t let me in, so i left.

same thing last year, with my better half. we shot all the cars that bothered to be there, until they all went in, and decided it wasn’t worth the wait, and found a much better show elsewhere.

this year, same deal, but we didn’t get up early, got there after ten a.m..

i was worried we wouldn’t get a place to park. it wasn’t an issue; we were right in the lot.

we were stopped by one employee, asking if we were with the band. nope. better half strode right in the gate where the cars enter, so i followed. i thought for sure that employee would stop him, but they just walked the other way.

where once the golf course was crammed with cars to the outer fences, there were only a few rows. a stage was set up across the way, and a live band played later on.

the vendor’s truck had overpriced food, while outside the course, at the main street front, there were boy scouts selling a reasonably price breakfast for a reasonable amount of food.

also, whatever happened to the carnival part of the festival? there was just a baseball game going on in that field.

we stayed only two hours and shot everything we wanted. chatted with an old acquaintance, who said they search the cars for booze and drugs, don’t allow barbeques, or outside food, which pretty much will eventually kill off this show.

ended up in norwalk, at an easter basket drive, with a whole lot more cars.

here’s a chevy with a really amazing paint job. better half chatted with the owner for a while, who said originally he only wanted a solid color paint job. the painter convinced him it would be too plain, and that he’d be back, he went with it and here is the result.

one of those cars, where you wish you carried a ladder, because i am just too short, and the tripod isn’t tall enough.

i wonder what my better half’s pics look like, or if he’ll post them on his blog.

i don’t think we’ll be back to the south gate show.

we had thought about going to the true pride show yesterday, but those plans also changed. my younger brother had been visiting my mother for the past week. he had been dropped off, while his wife was out of state, and so we ended up in san diego, driving him home, and staying in the area for the night.

it was a good break. our jobs have been very stressful lately, with more work than usual, and we were just exhausted, without realizing it.

what holiday?

so i’ve been sick since my mom’s birthday on the twenty-first. better half got sick after getting back from visiting his sister, so he sent me over to stay at my mom’s house.

then come xmas eve, she wasn’t feeling good, so i mentioned she should take a covid test. she didn’t really want to stick a stick up her nose, but she finally did. yup. positive. so no matter how i was feeling, i was stuck in quarantine with her. didn’t want her to be alone anyhew.

so, cancel xmas, xmas dinner, new year’s dinner. better half started feeling better, so would drop off food for us, and any groceries needed.

sister and brothers couldn’t drop in cuz we had cooties.

sort of narrowed down her covid to a church function she attended. best we can figure. hallelujah and amen. another reason to stay away from that stuff for me.

so many phone calls from relatives, checking on my mom. she had a mild case, so she got lucky.

i never did test positive, but she officially tested negative today, new year’s day. she’ll still stay in for a few days, but i finally went home, still with a cough.

i’m sure the house is much quieter without me coughing in it.

i was supposed to have the week off. i was supposed to have fun. i was supposed to book a trip somewhere and drive away, but nooooo. sick sick sick.

it was fun sleeping all day, and staying up watching stupid movies with my mom until late in the night. i sort of got on her usual late schedule.

it’s going to suck on tuesday, when i have to start work at six am again.

now i’m home again, backing up files. finally back to playing with pictures from ramble on the ranch a couple of weeks ago.

hoping to post a few pics, but i sort of liked this one right now. i like how the shot is framed up. i like the car, the branches of the tree above it, and the pizza place…really good pizza. kinda sorry i didn’t get any that day.

did see one grandkid, my son and his wife. the doggo yowled, and went for a ride with me to pick up lunch before the show. the other kid slept the whole time. oh well.

rumor has it

i really should get back to posting more often. just noticed i hadn’t posted since i was sick with covid. can only imagine what my friends are saying, with me not writing, not being a quiet fixture on the edges of the car shows, my camera perched on the tripod.

apart from just enjoying the company of my better half, have been busy doing some home improvements, and slowly turning into a potato (potayto, potahto, tomayto, tomahto). i guess i have some lingering symptoms from being sick, and get tired quickly, and often enjoy getting dizzy, like a listing ship, when i walk. not really conducive to taking pictures, carrying equipment.

we have been going to the mall, trying to get my better half to his ten thousand steps a day, in air-conditioned comfort, since it’s been averaging about ninety degrees outside lately. some days, i get around one lap, before i get parked in the food court, while he continues on for an additional three or four rounds.

also down to the last few weeks, waiting on the arrival of a second grandkid, this time supposed to be a boy. that will put me out in temecula in august…maybe i’ll finally get out to vail headquarters—i believe i saw a flyer for an evening show.

whatever.

if i can get over the dizziness, i am thinking about driving up to some of the friday evening shows, in whittier, garden grove, etc. my company is giving us half-day fridays, so i would have time to get to where i’m going before weekend traffic gets started.

for now, i only have pics that are, at best, several months old. so flipping through them, here’s a chevy in a nice yellow on a relatively gloomy day out at a park in norwalk. pretty sure i had a quick chat with the owner, since he is in the other pictures i took. he was sitting behind me when i took this one.

sick

the second day out in riverside, i ran into an old acquaintance.

i believe i met gary, who owns this lovely chevy, as well as that turquoise ford in the background, back when my kid was studying out at ucr. so, what. about a decade?

it was nice to see this car again. i believe it was out for repairs the last time i’d run into him.

i suppose i should also post a shot of his other car, only i’m a bit under the weather just now.

been traveling for the last couple of weeks, on the east coast, followed by a terribly long train ride from DC to chicago, then chicago south through texas and along the border, a total of four nights on amtrak.

so much time rocking and rolling, that when we’d have time to hop out and get some fresh air, i felt like a sailor on dry land, at least i thought that was the reason i was reeling. nope.

apparently, i caught the covid, so here i am, hiding out in my room, for at least five days. just feeling terribly sick. haven’t been this sick since 2017, when my dad was in the hospital for a valve replacement surgery.

slipped

i remember this back end from the viejitos show in anaheim. i was there super early, before the club members even showed up. this was one of the first few that morning.

i do like the years with the big fins at low angles. i should have pulled in closer and distorted that thing more. maybe another show.

been at home taking care of myself. slipped and fell in a puddle of water and landed right on my butt. just in time for xmas.

was going to go to ramble on the ranch in temecula this past weekend, but unfortunately, i wouldn’t have been able to lift my bag and tripod. my back is sore sore sore. skipped it, and didn’t even get out to see the grandkid out there either. :(

they tell me nothing is broken, just bruised bones, and will take time to heal.

mostly hanging around home or at my mom’s. took her out to dinner yesterday for her bday. happy bday mom!

trailer of dreams

holidays coming, my least favorite time of the year. but maybe i’ll find time to post a few more images more often.

helped the better half sift through storage this morning, to pull out the boxes of xmas decorations—from the back of the storage unit—of course. jammed my thumb helping to shove the perinnial, ancient xmas tree into my back seat. bent the nail back a bit, and now have an aching bruise going on the end under the nail. so adding that to my list of why i don’t want to bother with holidays.

makes my better half feel happy to decorate, but the pain involved wrapping the five- to ten-thousand lights on the damn thing sucks. guess he plans on the toy story theme this year, so it will also be covered with toys.

it does look good when it’s done, but the process makes me want to find some way to be able to throw it as is in a box every year. no way we could, though…the lights make it too heavy to even move. i’d consider just leaving it up year round, but our front room is too small here.

anyway, my mind is drifting to past and future trips. i think i’ve officially attained burn out at work yet again, but with the holidays, the work load is expected to be light through to january.

saw this truck full of project cars in october, out in seligman, arizona. the driver, who was across the street, spotted me shooting pics of his rig. he walked up and noticed i had a “real” camera. he was cool. said he and his brother—who had another rig full of these cars around the corner—were heading to southern california, delivering project cars to eager owners.

hope to see some of these at shows someday, but i’d never recognize them, probably.

not today

imperials show was today. intended to go. better half says when i wake up arguing with myself about going to a show, he already knows i’m not going, and goes back to sleep, no need to walk me out to the car. so, ya, one of those days.

stayed in town. went back to sleep after breakfast, instead of driving away. decided to go for a walk when i woke up. unfortunately, it would have been an ideal day at the show, as it stayed overcast until about one p.m., at least in whittier. walking uptown, i noticed some sort of thing going on a block up philadelphia, tents and vendors selling stuff. took a detour from my walk to check it out. whatever it was, they’re terrible at advertising it.

going with casita del pueblo running it, as it was all latin culture sort of stuff for sale, t-shirts with skulls and aztec symbols, paper mache art, jewelry and food trucks.

at least, i wasn’t the only one who missed the imperials’ show – lo and behold, the “mayor” was there, with his fifty-six.

he said he was invited, but was unable to go. i guess i just wasn’t up to hoping they’d let me in early.

pretty buick from the other day in cypress. nevada plates, but a boyle heights flag or whatever you call those metal things. so confused.