Doc1647545523

Once it gets too cold for the outside meets, there will be meets at the Hangout on most Friday and Saturday nights. Besides the projects in the garage, there's Forza 4 races, foosball, air hockey, sometimes movies. The girlfriends go into the office to knit and leave the bench racers in the main room. Everyone's welcome. Here's a thread from last fall with the basic info and directions: http://www.columbusracing.com/forums/showthread.php?t=97107&highlight=hangout

How could you be having a silver anniversary? Did you get married when you were 6? Seriously, congrats Brian, both on your happy marriage and on having such a thoughtful wife to get you such a great gift.

10 p.m. forecast 47 degrees, 13 mph wind almost winter coat weather -- see you there

:lolguy: You, sir, are my hero. :thumbup:

It's a beaut, Brady. :thumbup:

Obama may be the lesser of the two evils, but I still have to vote for the best candidate. I'll write-in Ron Paul.

Kevin (KD93R1) is a wizard with RX7's, does custom fabrication 2nd to none. I don't know if he does more routine repairs on them or not. Perhaps if you PM him, he can point your friend in the right direction if not interested in doing the work. http://www.columbusracing.com/forums/member.php?u=7101

You're not really surprised, though, are you?

Those FD's were the sharpest cluster of cars in the show. I was disappointed that the car show judging wasn't organized and no real scoring was done. A lot of the usual car show guys said they aren't returning next year because of the way things were handled. Although disappointed, I still enjoyed showing the car to people who were sincerely interested in it. Thanks to all those who stopped by to say "hi." And again, the strongest driver with the strongest car didn't win the drift competition because of some really lousy luck. Next year, Packie. :thumbup:

my bad. old people can be cut a little slack if they get their numbers jumbled.

Real talk.

Defining moments/days that changed the world (it's not really about 9/11, it's about me) When I grew up, it seems there was a lot more interaction between people, often people of different ages. Stories were told ...... The conversations which began, "Where were you and what were you doing when _________ happened?" were not uncommon. The charge at San Juan Hill When I was just a little squirt, I loved playing soldier. Toy soldiers, guns, insignia, neighborhood recon, tree forts ..... I loved it all. Imagine how cool it was when I first met "Uncle Taylor." He wasn't really any relation, but my mother always referred to him that way, and he was some old family friend of my grandparents. Anyways, Uncle Taylor was a bona fide veteran of the Spanish American War, and if I remember correctly, the last living veteran of that war in my hometown when I was a kid. In warm weather he often sat on his porch a couple of blocks from where I lived. He always welcomed me to join him and his wife on the porch. I think he especially liked it when I visited because I wanted to hear his war stories. He said he lied about his age to join the Army. Uncle Taylor told me of a defining moment of his life--the charge up San Juan Hill in Cuba. His stories had everything a little boy could ask for--a former Confederate General, charging Rough Riders getting their horses shot out from under them, Gatling guns, Teddy Roosevelt, the "colored regiment" ("most of 'em died there", Uncle Taylor said pensively, ".....but they died bravely, a credit to their Race.")--obviously I grew up in different times, black-and-white times in more ways than one. I was too young to understand war and death and "colored people" and just how this battle became a defining moment for some 16 year old boy who someone transformed into this tattered old man sitting across from me on his front porch, grasping his canes as if preparing to make that charge again, gasping for breath as if he'd already run up the hill and jumped over the wall. My ancestors sat out World War I, so there wasn't much talk about that. My grandfathers were too old to be drafted and both had already started their families by 1914. My dad's dad had defining moments related to farming (and, therefore, weather) and his beloved horses. He was a teamster by trade, but also traded and raced horses. December 7, 1941 What were you doing when the Japs attacked Pearl Harbor? I must have heard hundreds of answers to that question. For my Mom and her sisters, it meant going to work in the war effort. She worked at the Ration Board. Dad and his brothers all joined the Army. Dad went to Africa and Europe, his brothers went to the Pacific. D-Day plus 1 That's when Dad landed in France in a glider. He swore he'd never ride in another. He figured he was going to die that day. Little did he know just how much he would be in harm's way the next few years. He eventually ended up a medic in the Third Army. If you know much about WWII history, you know that a medic in General Patton's Army was a pretty busy guy. Dad said he didn't have much training to be a medic, but he had a lot of experience doctoring farm animals, and that seemed to be enough to qualify him to become a medic. As kids, we were all pretty accident prone, as I guess all kids are. It didn't matter how far or fast we fell, how many bounces we made, how much glass we just stepped on, or how much flesh was hanging from the cut, Dad would pick us up and inspect the injury site, and tell us "It's too far from your heart to kill you," then send us to Mom to get washed and bandaged. I'm not sure what injury would have been so severe to cause him to alter his response, because it never changed. It wasn't until long after my Dad's passing that it occurred to me how many times he must have said this phrase of reassurance to wounded soldiers in the War--some to whom he had nothing but reassuring words to give. He was decorated at the Battle of the Bulge, and at the relief of Bastogne. I imagine he tended to literally hundreds of severely wounded and dying soldiers. He also helped liberate concentration camps in Germany. He didn't tell any stories about that last part. Ever. The Day JFK got shot I was sick and stayed home from school on November 22, 1963. I stayed in bed until early afternoon, but then came downstairs to the living room to watch afternoon TV. When the show I was watching got interrupted with the bulletin that President Kennedy was shot, I went into the kitchen to tell my Mother, who told me that I was confused, and it was just a TV show, not real. As I recall, she put her hand to my forehead to check for fever. After a couple more news interruptions, I convinced her to leave the kitchen (these were different times, remember) and come watch the TV to see the next news flash. When she saw it was true, she telephoned my Dad, then her mother. Then we cried. Everyone cried that day. If you didn't live through it, it's hard to understand. But for a brief, shining moment in America, there had been touch football on the White House lawn, a dream of freedom for the whole world, a young President with unabashed optimism, courage, and a young man's stubborn resolve. Now the King was dead and Camelot died that day, too. 9/11/01 I was in prison, looking out a second story window at razor wire, glittering in the sunlight. I wouldn't be sleeping here, as I was an employee and would be going home at 5. A psychologist came into my office and told me of the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. I wasn't sure what to make of it all, but I had work to do. I glanced out my office window--clear skies. No hijacked plane needed to be crashed here to destroy Western civilization's values. That damage had already been done within these walls. I got a few updates as the day went on but didn't think much more besides "someone's going to get nuked over this." I didn't listen to much news over the next few months. It was over a year before I even saw the video of the towers falling. There's been a lot of suffering and death that began that day. Human casualties, civil liberties traded off for the illusion of security, irreparable damage to the ethical standards of human conduct and the conduct of nations. It was undoubtedly a red letter day for the world. But not really for me. I had already reached my personal limit for the defining days created by war and death. My defining moments aren't even dates--they're just little snippets of personal memory--happy times with friends, births, a lover's embrace, the time we couldn't stop laughing, that time I thought I could fly, the times my parents told me they were proud of me, a heartfelt thanks from someone I didn't know. Thoughts I treasure, mistakes I made I learned from, mistakes I'm probably destined to repeat, sad times that made me stronger and some that knocked me down hard. I guess my landmarks are internal, personal ones.

Lots of sobering thoughts in this thread. Mine's pretty trivial, by comparison. It's hard for me to imagine how young you all were on that fateful day. I'm also wondering if you can become too old to have any more "the day the world changed" defining events related to war and death. I'm thinking the answer for me is yes. Because this thread is about 9/11, not about me, I put a few of my ramblings here, in the Kitchen: http://www.columbusracing.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1606060#post1606060

I'm not sure if Thorne still does this type of work, but even if not, I'm sure he can make some good recommendations to you.

It's the best new music I've heard in years. Regional at Best is always in the CD changer.

Yeah, I'm not happy about the timing, but it was the only time Steve can break away to come down. Matter of fact, he leaves Sunday afternoon to drive back to Mass. It's also the morning after "the big wedding" that a bunch of CR people will attend. I imagine a few won't be in very good shape to get up early after that reception Saturday night. I guess you could hit my reception for an hour or so and then go on to the car show. Registration for the show lasts until noon I believe. Also, if it ends up being crummy weather for a car show, I've got an indoor event to attend instead. This might not be a big event, but it'll be a fun.

On Sunday, October 7th, 9 a.m. to noon I'll be having an open house and reception at the hangout for author Steve Ulfelder. Steve is a thirty-year friend of mine, author of the Conway Sax novel series, car guy, and he'll be in the area to attend Bouchercon, the annual mystery writers' conference which is in Cleveland the week prior. Steve's first novel Purgatory Chasm was nominated for the Anthony Award, which will be presented at the conference. He'll have copies of his first two novels at the hangout in case anyone is interested in an autographed copy. Steve's novels feature an unlikely hero, an ex-con auto mechanic and former race car driver who struggles to hang on to his sobriety. His loyalty to his friends and to his AA associates puts him repeatedly back in contact with the violence and criminal life he strives to avoid. If you're into cars, film noir and violent themes, these novels are worth your time. His third novel is set for launch in 2013 and the publisher has signed-on for the yet-to-be-written fourth novel. I'll serve coffee/hot beverages and rolls. They'll be a lot of tire-kicking in the lot and Forza4/foosball/air hockey inside. We'll be set up for rain or shine. The first novel:http://www.columbusracing.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1484285&postcount=4 Second novel: http://www.columbusracing.com/forums/showthread.php?t=103431 Everyone from CR and from Cars & Coffee is welcome. In case you haven't been there, here are directions: Howald Industrial Park 320 London Road, Suite 101 (in Building 100) Delaware, Ohio (across from the intersection of London Road the Liberty Road) the place is 14 miles north of Home Depot/Sawmill it is 1.5 miles from the large Jegs Warehouse at Route 42 and London Road If you are coming from Columbus, it's easy to just go north on US 23 to the first Delaware exit (South Sandusky Street, exit to the left but turn right on Sandusky, then go about a mile and turn left onto London Road at the McDonald's. The place will be on your right just after the Delco Drive Through. If you are coming from Sawmill, go directly north on Sawmill Road until it ends at the Hyatts Road Roundabout. Turn right (east) on Hyatts Road, go into the village of Hyatts, turn left (north) on Liberty Road. Liberty road dead ends at the industrial park (turn left onto London Road, then immediately right, into the park).

According to Edmonds, dealer retail for that car in average condition is 11,200. Dealer retail for one in outstanding condition is 14,300. So I wouldn't say that the price is so low as to be suspect. I'm sure the techs and other BMW illuminati will post specific problem areas with these cars, but I think a general rule is that the car is at an age and mileage when electronic component failure is common. Keep in mind that many of those components are pricey.

In for bluefin

Bathed in red lens flare, it's truly resplendent. I think I can hear angels singing faintly in the background. Congrats on getting another fun vee-hickal. :thumbup:

Jesse, you've made some interesting choices and direction changes since your first plans, but it's all good. I look forward to see and hear of your progress with this car. :thumbup: I remember that one of your original goals for the rebuild was weight reduction, but that was back when you were going with the 5m block. Now that you have 2jz power, are you still planning weight reduction? I'm curious (and ignorant) how much weight reduction you can do on one of these cars while keeping the interior looking stock. Will you need many interior parts in the process, and if so, have you found good sources?

To accomplish that, we'd have to go for a spin in the DeLorean first (I sold the Lotus a couple of years ago).

You're making me envious, Norm. I putz around with my little projects ... don't get me wrong, I enjoy them ..... but then see a friend get something like this car, so well put together ..... Enjoy it in good health, my friend. I think you made a great deal. I didn't know much about Hinson until I met them in person at the Ohio Mile. Those are some very fine fellows, and I would have a lot of confidence in one of their builds. Driving back to Ohio soon?

I've heard some positive advance reviews for this movie, but might have missed it had you not posted about it, Eli. Thanks! Another film along the lines of western, trailerpark, film noir (a pretty small category, as I think about it) is Red Rock West from 20 years ago. http://i355.photobucket.com/albums/r445/martyr65/RedRockWest_loc_95148764-AEC1-4776-B2EF-9DFF01115DDB.jpg Americans gave it a cold reception and it was sent almost immediately to HBO and video, then was rediscovered by the art house theatres and made strong openings in Europe. Dennis Hopper, Nick Cage, Lara Flynn Boyle, and J.T. Walsh at the top of their acting.

Am I supposed to feel somehow challenged or insulted by you, considering you don't even know how to spell the plural of the word Bentley? Perhaps you should limit yourself to provoking mental duels with the VW and Honda crowd.