what's up?

toy drive

made it out to the dukes/latin gents toy drive yesterday. more cars than i expected. several people i've gotten to know a bit, even just on a passing hello basis were there. always makes me happy that there are familiar faces where i go, since my better half can't go with me much anymore, ya know, in case anything happens.

ernie, with the latin gents, always comes over and says hello. happy belated birthday, ernie! perfect day for a show, perfect weather...you guys lucked out.

several well known cars made appearances too. this master deluxe is one of them, in all it's stretched glory, sitting down practically on the ground.

even after being there for about three hours, stopping to eat across the street, and the sun going down, i still saw cars driving in as i headed home.

i saw the sun was starting to set, and that the sky's colors were going to be beautiful, but i didn't have the energy and my legs were pretty stiff from sitting a bit, to stop back over there. things to do at home, getting ready for whatever happens with my dad this week. and apparently, better half is about to start decorating for xmas, as he's pulled all the stuff out of the garage already. my yearly grinch is already percolating to the surface...grumble grumble.

few more days

looking a wee bit back a few months. so many shows i've shot, and haven't posted much from them at all. always a happy surprise when i find a set that i've completely forgotten about—usually when i've gone to more than one or two shows on a weekend. that's not many, compared to what i was shooting a couple of years ago.

got to the los angeles bombs' cinco de mayo show a bit early, and was able to shoot a few cars with few distractions and all alone. got this one in a seemingly empty lot.

clouds in the sky are similar to what's out there now. a bit of sprinkly stuff here and there...same as that day.

time winding down till my dad gets his date with destiny. one more test—an angiogram—then they'll decide what they want to do to him. hoping they can go up his leg, and not have to fillet him to get to his heart.

i'll be working monday, then taking off the balance of the week to get him to his appointment and back home again. they tell him it will be an outpatient thing. i don't know about you, but if i was getting a camera up my veins, i'd say give me the good stuff, and keep me overnight, if not a few days.

so i'll pack a bag for a few days' worth of clothes. should bring a pillow for the uncomfortable chair that converts into a 'bed.' going to wear stretchy pants, no point in being uncomfortable sitting on my ass all day, on my day off, right?

thinking about going to one of the toy drives going on tomorrow. no, not first thing in the morning...don't think i can do that...better half probably can't go, and i haven't been out for a while, so i'm not sure i can actually carry my tripod and camera or pull the bag out of the car. maybe if i go later in the morning, i won't feel so sore and stiff, and i'll be ok. mostly just ignore the aches in my joints. still a few weeks until a see a doc about that, so i just cope and ignore.

why bother?

beautiful fifty-eight last month at the veterano's show at the whittier elks' lodge. with these, it's either the back end or this side panel that's worth the shot. kicking myself, that i didn't move my pesky camera bag somewhere else.

please excuse, the following rant:

i see a lot of flyers posted online that are barely legible, and more than a few where the date has been cut off, but that was just the poster's fault.

some make my eyes metaphorically bleed, trying to pick out the important info. they make me want to cry, as i'd really like to share the info, but they're almost too painful to look at.

too many fonts, too many "special" effects, too much, too much... more stuff doesn't make them more cool; they are just cluttered and less useful for the purpose they've been created for.

not calling out any particular show/club, but omg.

thanks, and sorry. been a long day at work, and my eyes are tired.

uptown

so while i haven't had the energy to get out to any shows lately, i did walk uptown today for lunch. pretty fortunate that whittier is a popular place for low riders, and i can pretty much count on at least one car cruising by the house on the daily.

usually post walkabout cars i spot on my instagram, since all i have on me at most times is my phone. not much lately, since i've been out of town a lot, but posted a fifty-six bel air today. i drove past a thirty eight chevy out on whittier blvd, i didn't shoot it. being in a moving vehicle kinda makes it a bit difficult, though i have been known to pull over and walk back once in a rare moment.

anyway, this here car is from uptown, but on purpose. once upon a time, there was the low down in uptown store on the corner, and a couple of times they invited their friends to town for a little car show action. usually until the cops showed up and mentioned the fact they hadn't pulled permits or the neighboring businesses didn't appreciate the type of crowd or just the crowd that came with the cars.

if this is the car i'm thinking of, i believe it's sailed off across the ocean, to japan or australia or some other far away place. shame. it was such an interesting car.

deferred

i guess my impromptu roadtrip will be put off until the end of the month, or even to next month. looking forward to it even less them, as the weather will only get worse through oregon and washington. i wonder how much it is to just ship a car north. or my ex could just fly up and find something local, but he doesn't have time or trust the cars up there for some reason.

at least my boss is cool with whatever i need to do, whenever i need to do it. so many things intersecting, i don't know how i'll get through, except to just do it.

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pretty bel air out on the street at the old memories' pancake bfast a couple of months ago. almost kinda want one, just this color. but then i remember i'd rather have a fleetline.

oh my

i went to my mom's the other day after work. she was sitting at the kitchen table chatting with my brother, who was sitting opposite at the table. the day's mail was strewn about on the table in front of them.

my mom must be on someone's list. she gets tons of catalogs, especially when the holidays are coming. you know the type: miles kimball, lillian vernon, sharper image...? so there's several laying on the table.

i'm just standing nearby, leaning on the kitchen counter, listening absent-mindedly to their conversation, while flipping through a magazine. don't even remember what they were talking about, and it really doesn't matter.

i happened to look up at some point, took a minute, before saying, "what the eff mom, what kind of catalogs are you getting now?" they stop talking and look at me.

i point at a catalog laying open in front of her. the two page spread displays a selection of 'muscle relaxers.' no, those are definitely an assortment of dildos, vibrators, and cock rings.

she looks at it and sort of shrugs. she doesn't really get what she's looking at...ya, she is that 'innocent.' my brother, though, he starts giggling and goes off on a routine of jokes, totally leaving whatever topic they were discussing in the dust.

grabbing the catalog, we realize it's just those two pages. the rest of the pages are filled with kitschy junk you would expect. after explaining what they are to her, she was just like, "oh my!" as she realizes pretty quick what they are selling.

my brother meanwhile starts talking about the various models, and for some, starts rotating his body, in a rendition of whatever movement is promised by said model. he's very good at physical comedy.

at some point we tease that maybe she thought they were just dog toys...at which point my brother starts running around, a perfect portrait of my daughter's doberman, who'd just been there for the past week. he's a teenage dog, tall, gangly legs, long head and strange eyes. the dog bounded about the house, not quite able to put on the brakes on the linoleum flooring, or getting all up in the food on the counter, as yes, he is that tall.

my brother skittered across the kitchen and bumped right into my mom, still playing the part of the dog. it was just a bizarre scene and turn of events, and definitely livened up an otherwise boring day.

nice back end of a classic ford, back from the beginning of the year. clouds are sort of similar to what's floating outside right now. i should have gone out to a show somewhere, but i've got other things on my mind just now.

sweet

saw this truck at the dia de los muertos show last month. that paint is so cherry red and delicious...so appropriate it's in front of the candy store.

my kid had spun out on the freeway on some ice last month, and insurance totaled her car. her dad has been looking for a decent used car for her—he said on friday that he may have found one. i'd previously offered to help drive it up there, but now he can't get the time off.

so i may be taking a not completely unexpected road trip north to washington state this week. just wasn't expecting to have to go so soon. i guess i'll have to tell my boss as soon as i know for sure.

then i need to get a one-way ticket back asap, before the price gets much higher.

my brother may go, or i'll just drive it alone. either way, i like being on the road. he's gotta be back by a particular day, cuz he needs to get somewhere else, so timing will be tight.

just saw my kid last week, and pretty much will be handing over the keys, and maybe get a meal, then outta there, and back to work by monday.

they've said i need to use my vacation time anyway.

countdown

world series, game seven, playing in the background. my sister-in-law is a serious fan of the dodgers, and she's been terribly silent and avoiding the tv a lot this game. previous games have been a roller coaster, with her screaming and moaning, depending on which way the scoring was going.

fifth inning now. was uptown a little bit ago, and all the bars with any sense and tvs are packed—one bbq place uptown is absolutely empty...don't know if it's the food, the booze, the mangagement, or lack of a tv being the reason...i've never actually set foot in there. and they really are never busy...how do they stay open?

also now the countdown has begun for dad's date with destiny and a surgeon. got his first set of tests done yesterday, and a date for the first procedure coming up in a couple of weeks. after that, heart surgery of one sort or another.

my younger brother has been in town for almost a month, as he was here for his anniversary, then stayed on, expecting things to have gotten rolling much sooner. he's anxious to get home and see his kids, but now his wife is coming back to town next week, and is talking him into staying for at least another couple of weeks. basically, he's bored, and would rather be bored in his own house, with his kids and his dog.

told him i'm rearranging my schedule, so i can get dad where he needs to go for the next part.

i may need to get my gall bladder out, but that can wait...that doc wasn't seriously concerned about it. i'll see about that when i can't just ignore that ache any longer. more important stuff going on, and ain't nobody got time for dat.

hhheeeyyyy!!!

owner of this pontiac always greets everyone with an enthusiastic "hey!"

as part of the host club's membership, he was busy running around, directing cars, and making sure everything was good. there was no worry there, things seemed to be very well organized, and parking was better than the year before.

i really like this picture. the car balances out the building behind, and all of the angles and perspective. could just be that i like the car.

seventy-sixers

antenna balls. could say he's got balls for the post title, but i've probably already used it before.

this car belongs to tj friends car club. they pretty much fill up this section of the elks lodge parking lot for these past couple of years. mostly convertibles, they were booked for last year's whittier uptown xmas parade, chauffering all the pretty, pretty princesses and bigwig city butts down greenleaf.

not sure if this car was there for the parade, but i probably already told the story about that day in another post.

owner of this car stopped for a quick chat at this show. asked me to shoot his car. i liked the back end the best, of course. so, there you go...