what's up?

power slave

1958 buick special

1958 buick special

went to front street this morning. only photographer there for a while.

got home after eleven, and happily transfering pics from camera to computer, when the power went out. neighbors started emerging from their houses and actually talking to each other, so i knew it wasn’t just this building. hope the computer is all right.

better half says it’s widepread here in whittier. so no pictures to fiddle with for a while. should be interesting to figure out dinner if it stays off that long.

i’ll play a game. i’ll post a pic from my backlog each hour and see how many i get to. after all, they aren’t doing anyone any good

————

this backend was from mooneyes last month. i do so love cars with interesting back fins and lights. not sure i’ve seen this one before.

not today

1938 buick

1938 buick

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.

1956 chevrolet bel air

1956 chevrolet bel air

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.

short week

1940 buick super

1940 buick super

today’s a holiday. presidents’ day. pick one, and think about him. whatever. i just know tomorrow i’ll think it’s monday all day. and i can’t have breakfast until after i do a blood test, for my doctors who seem to be vampires, so i hope i remember that in the morning too.

going to be busy packing five days of work into essentially three, since i’ll be flying north for a meeting on friday, and i don’t take a computer with me, so pretty much only working for the two or three hours of the meeting.

better half and i finished taking down the xmas tree yesterday. it only ever got about three-fourths lighted, and his mom finally snapped and said take it down. he’s been so busy, he hasn’t had time to even do that.

well now it’s done, he put all the xmas crap back in the garage, and the room has returned to normal usefulness. xmas sucked this year, and seeing this stuff just made me more grumbly anyway.

just sat and watched out the window as storm clouds cruised in, dropped some unexpected rain, and the sun is starting to come back out. i guess it’s about time to head back to my mom’s house. maybe i’ll be back before my short trip, but taking my bags just in case. i feel more like i live out of the bag now anyway.


i see this car a lot. usually the top is down, so it’s probably the first time i have it with the rag top on it.

observations

1939 buick century

1939 buick century

a few things on my mind from the places i’ve visited on this trip, no particular order, and applies to pretty much each place:

  • airbnb owners do not provide enough toilet paper

  • especially when there seems to be no kleenex anywhere available

  • i hate the smell and feel of wicker furniture

  • mosquitos will find and dine on you while you sleep

  • i think i managed every mode of transportation except space travel all in one day, at least twice

  • cities here are like cities at home, just with older stuff and smaller streets and cars

  • most people are friendly, even if we don’t speak the same language

  • why the clothes washing machine, but not dryers? 

  • detergent makes clothes stink...or maybe the lack of fragerance and softeners uncovered how they should smell  

  • and everything enviro friendly...to an obsession

  • people are healthier/skinnier because of all the walking. some of the diet is just as bad. 

  • i do not like wine, and never have. and have reconfirmed it. smells like easter eggs coloring.

  • they like coke zero. i do not. coke “normal” seems to be mostly available

  • food is good in general, and i have tried some meals i would otherwise never have. doesn’t mean i’d ever have or cook them at home

  • lots of cheese and pasta. sauces are different. 

  • the light is different

  • dogs seem to allowed everywhere, except maybe church. restaurants, clothing stores, etc., ok. but no evident pet shops...where do they come from? and also, not really seeing them as being neutered. 

  • beggars all seem to have the same outfit and age. basket out, bandana on head, face to floor, butt in air as they kneel, scraggly skirts. kinda scary when they follow you right up to a building entrance if they think money is getting away. 

  • airbnb homes are neat alternatives to hotels. most have been old buildings, with modern european remodeling and conveniences inside. 

  • i’m a big fan of air-conditioning

  • bidets are an interesting concept

  • a lot of things just seem to be done more logically

  • guacamole withdrwals...avocados suck here

  • traveling with a family group is a joy and a hassle, at times

  • churches everywhere, and they do love ringing their bells. a lot. sometimes late at night. 

  • my back hurts

  • americans are just slobs and terrible at pulling together outfits, comparatively

  • parking is almost impossible to find, and mopeds and vespas are popular, though they typically have really torn up seats

  • hard to find a car without a ding or scratch

  • no tipping, as it is already built in to the bill, but also an extra charge if you sit versus to go

  • eat where the locals eat for the best food. don’t be obsessed by yelp or trip advisor for recommendations

  • my feet hurt, i’m exhausted, but i’ve lost some of my jiggle. just need a few more weeks of vacay, i guess

  • didn’t win the mega millions, so i guess i will have to come home anyway... 

time to find dinner, or i’d go on and on…


old buick from the last pomona swapmeet i went to. gotta get back one of these months. 

 

drywall

1938 buick

1938 buick

drywall going up in my kitchen. the guys were an hour late. one step closer to getting a kitchen back. still have to chip out this crap tile the original owner put in, and pick out cabinets. no kitchen sink makes cooking a bit difficult for my kid.

i owe six hours of work this afternoon at the office, whenever these guys finish up.  if i want to be honest. not sure, but i think the building is shutting down at three, so i may just have to use some vacation hours against it.

thinking about ordering pizza. share with these two workers, or wait till they are gone? no doubt they’d refuse. company policy is usual excuse.

sort of craving baja fish though. guess i’ll wait. 

——— 

pretty sure this buick shot is from the veteranos’ show at the whittier elks club. hot day. friendly people. second time i’d been there—good show both times. 

kid is back

1952 buick eight

1952 buick eight

pretty sure i saw this one last week at in-n-out, before my trip. figured i just post this one from last year’s uptown whittier show, since i just saw a flyer for this summer’s show in a store window recently. 

so highly polished, like they poured liquid shellac all over it. 

———-

so i drove over one-thousand, one-hundred miles over the last two days. i’m feeling that i should have split it over three. today i get to unload the rental truck, but that somehow sounds easier than loading it was, though my arms are pretty tired from just holding the steering wheel on the truck. 

of course, the worst part of the drive was going through los angeles. traffic could have been worse, since it was easter sunday, later in the evening, but it was moving, even if it was slow. thank goodness the dodger game had already started, so we weren’t stuck in that traffic. 

knew we were back in california, just by the sudden decline in the road quality. washington and oregon seem to actually spend money on their highways. maybe because the weather up there makes it critically important, but california roads are just shit all the way down. sure there are stretches of road that are smoother, and maybe those counties cough up the money for it. but the majority of the way, especially in the right hand travel lanes, are bumpy, potholed, tire eating grinders. 

i am surprised that none of the kid’s tarantulas or spiders died from the stress of all that bouncing. she had the snakes in pillowcases, and when she had to leave the dog in the car, would put them in the truck, so the dog wouldn’t stomp or chomp on them. they creep me out, even in the bags, and i only imagined them getting out and slithering around my feet while i drove, so i always made sure i gave them back before we got going again. i can only wonder what we looked like handing bags back and forth between truck and car. 

had to hold up the line at the cali inspection stop, to open the back of the truck and have the inspector peek in. no fruit, or drugs, or guns, or whatever they look for, but at least he was nice enough about it. 

i also had to drive through a weigh station at one point. never had to do that before, and that guy was a little snippy because i didn’t know i needed to drive three miles an hour while they weighed in motion. got yelled at by the invisible office worker via an intercom.  

otherwise, i think every other weigh station in the state was closed for the day, so what was the point? i could have loaded up a shit ton of bricks, drove a lot, ruined the roads, and they’d never know. or what is the point of those stops anyway? guess i’ll have to ask the one trucker i know. 

i do remember seeing someone northbound in norwalk, with a broke down white thirty-nine master deluxe. tow truck was there, and with all the road construction on that part of the freeway, i know that was a pretty tight place to have to take care of that type of thing. but really, my first thought was whether i’ve taken a picture of it before... 

stay or go

buick

buick

there's a cruise tomorrow before the big game. i've been the last four or five years. it's a fun time, a good variety of cars drives through.

here's the thing; my better half can't go, which is a shame, cuz he likes this show. i've been to it on my own before, so that isn't the problem. i previously mentioned a few stitches; still have them for another week. doc did say i should be careful, and not to lift anything heavy.

now, i don't really consider my camera that heavy, but my better half probably does. that will probably make him strongly voice an opinion that i should not go. i mean seriously, if anything is heavy, it would be my ass, pushing up out of bed, off of chairs, etc.

not like i'm going to pop open and bleed out.

then the other thing is getting up at five and driving out there. just like a work day. i'll probably be awake anyway. it's just the thought of getting up that early on a sunday, that i like less and less the older i get.

and i'm down one camera. really hope the other one doesn't crap out on me. got them at the same time, and this one did start having the same symptoms last week. crossing my fingers.


pretty buick out at pomona last month. was so candy red and shiny. the sun coming up, the light grabbed it and started it glowing.

waiting on that change

1937 buick special

1937 buick special

waiting. right now, for lunch.

things changing at work. tis the season for reorganization. sidesteps, but mostly day to day things will continue unchanged.  

life at home has been and continues to be hectic as well as erratic.  

my dad out of the hospital, but they really haven't fixed him. so more to worry about there. 

right about now, i'm thinking about vacation. wondering if better half will take a ten year anniversary trip with me, or if i will go solo or with my bro. happy to just get in the car and drive, but probably will fly somewhere, anywhere really. 


another car from the front street show. don't see too many of this model around, and it's beautiful.

i was told the city did not allow them to use the streets for the show this year, and just kept them only in this parking lot. does explain why there weren't so many cars there. but on the plus side, i found close parking easy. 

fiddlin’

i need to get to bed, but i was messing around with this picture. still needs some tweaks, but i wanted to post something. my hard drive is almost completely full, so i'm surprised i got it to do this much.

saw this rivi at los boulevardos show last week. i should really post some other point of view of it, so you can see the really interesting paint job on the roof.

there are a couple of shows to choose from tomorrow, and i've never been to either one, so don't know when to go or where to park. i think they start later, so no point at beating the sunrise really. wait too late, no parking and i can't take the heat.

stayed at my mom's house last night. woke up this morning with half my cheek puffed up a bit, and my eye sort of squeezing shut. guessing something bit me in the night, otherwise i have no other explanation. kind of calmed down to mostly normal by the end of the day.

if it had turned red, into pink eye, i would have blamed my brother...maybe he let one go on my pillow when i wasn't looking...

 

as old as

1933 buick

1933 buick

was my dad's birthday yesterday. he's as old as this car, but hasn't aged as well. 

for whatever reason, he had his mind made up to go have dinner at red lobster. fine. but he would only go to the one in brea, though there are a couple that are closer to home.

he claims that the chef and service at that one is the best. at his age, it is hard to argue any other opinion except for his on anything.

well, like hell i ever let him drive us anywhere when i'm there, but he knows that. if i hadn't gone to their house, he would have driven my mom out to dinner. i don't even want to think of that white knuckle ride...he drives his soccer mom van like it's his old porsche.

anyway, i wasn't looking forward to more driving. i'd hoped it would be just simple dinner, cake, then sleep early...i'm so tired. after his insistence on going to brea, at near the end of rush hour, i knew it would be stop and go traffic. i was going to take the canyon, just as long, but at least i'd be moving, but he said no, he wanted to go the freeway.

so an hour and a half later, we made it to the restaurant. he orders a dozen raw oysters, followed by some shrimp dish and salad, and something else i don't remember. my mom orders shrimp linguini. i get some dungeness crab legs and a cup of clam chowder. was late, i was tired, not hungry anymore.

they were happy with their food. mine was sort of not hot, for the crab, that didn't matter so much, but the soup was only lukewarm. meh.

after the journey out there because the chef is the 'best,' my dad says the best part of the meal was the oysters. the raw, uncooked oysters. so much for the chef. shucks.

and just before they bring the check, my mom mentions that it was his birthday. that is followed by a small crew of wait staff singing the song, and a plate with a ball of ice cream for him. nice, but since they were basically trying to close and get us to leave, it was a pretty weak display. i'm sure they have to do that all day, every day, so i don't blame them for it.

back to their house, hoping the angels game hasn't let out, which it hadn't, so thank the stars for not getting stuck in that post game traffic. so tired when we got home. i guess he was happy, and who knows how many he has left, so i was glad i went, in spite of all my inner mental bitching.