INTERMISSION

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Not sure what you want? Perhaps it's time to pause and reflect.


Conflicted on whether or not to continue the blog, a break seemed in order before making any rash decisions. Once I know in my heart what is best for you, the blog, and I, you'll be the first to know. Next Tuesday is my self-assigned deadline to announce that decision. See you then.

In the meantime, below are some items that are crucial to your survival. Pick these up on your next trip to the shopping store.

You can't score any of the below items without this, so put it at the top of your list.

The new Scotty Gosson Combo album is finally out. But impatient fans are scarfing them up in unprecedented number. Get yours while you still can, at: https://www.createspace.com/800067476  And keep up with the band at: https://www.facebook.com/scottygossoncombo

The first SGC album is now a rare collectible. We've seen them on eBay for $20 or more. But a couple of fins will net you a sanitary unopened copy at: https://www.createspace.com/Customer/EStore.do?id=2233253

You may have seen this on the blog before. It's been garnering rave reviews (that make me blush). Best to check it out for yourself though, at: https://www.cartechbooks.com/lost-drag-strips-ii-more-ghosts-of-quarter-miles-past.html

Our own Motormouth Ray reads his copy while commuting on the Long Island Expressway. He claims it to be an able cruise control (Ray likes to hang his feet out the window at speed). (Photo courtesy Motormouth Ray)

Scale modeling is just too much fun. Prepare yourself for the coming winter doldrums with this handy guide to tabletop showmanship! Some copies still available at: https://www.cartechbooks.com/show-rod-model-kits-a-showcase-of-america-s-wildest-model-kits.html

Full-scale show rod junkies can eavesdrop on the original builders offering their two cents via this compilation of cool. It has pretty pictures in it, too. Procure your copy at: https://www.cartechbooks.com/america-s-wildest-show-rods-of-the-1960s-and-1970s.html

Burned out on the whole car show scene? Who isn't? But don't sweat it, Bunkie - we gotcha covered, at: https://www.cartechbooks.com/rat-rods-rodding-s-imperfect-stepchildren.html

How you gonna get all of this swag back to your pad? You gotta have a wagon. But it doesn't have to be a dullard. Learn how to convert your staid longroof workhorse into an eyeball-popping, be- bopping, panty-dropping bachelor pad on wheels, at eBay (since this product is now out of print).

Okay, now we're getting somewhere. An entire book, crammed from cover to cover with the stories that the big publishing houses don't want you to read! Yeah. This tribute to Joe Toolbox's passion and ingenuity has been banned in some countries, but is available to your lucky eyeballs at: https://www.createspace.com/4338903


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SQUIRREL AND TOOLBOX

Should this blog be put down, will the global squirrel fever die out with it? 

Will toolboxes cease to be feature-worthy?



GRIN

We have a winner! During a recent search through the SGE archives, I happened across this entry from September 29th of 2014, "Saluting the Michaelson Rocket Riders". It stopped me in my tracks. In my dubious opinion, this piece represents the realization of the SGE tenet. Plus, the Michaelsons are just plain amazing. Locate their story on the archive list at the right edge of your screen.

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THE CONDITION MY CONDITION IS IN

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Seventeen years old and livin' large in 1973, at my first private residence (a miniature windmill that rented for $75 a month - utilities included). I'm wearing my first (semi) mustache here, in an effort to distract from the Mary Tyler Moore hairdo. I'm still cursed with the flip today. And with the consequences of unfortunate lifestyle choices. My straight axle street racer is parked just out of frame. (Photo by Dave Wood, I think)

Last week on SGE, I alluded to becoming "an irrelevant sidewalk pedestrian now, watching hotrodding roll past me." It's true. And I'm mostly okay with that, though my ego is a little pissed. As detailed in the May 16th 2016 "Depth Perception Test" post, the masks worn by our self-created hot rod personas insidiously become a part of us that can be very hard to shake off. It's a process that takes as long as it takes for us to willingly say goodbye to obsolete baggage. I must say, it's pretty amusing to watch the procedure play out. Just when I'm enjoying the freedom of being a pedestrian among pedestrians, some overcammed badass will rumble by and trip the trigger again. So, baby steps, one day at a time, and all that. Again, it's a process.

I wish I could tell you that I received my pedestrian status by simply recognizing a situation and dealing with it. Truth is, I'm always the last person to see my own foibles, but the first to spot someone else's. And you can ask anyone who's seen me struggle with a mechanical challenge: I'm no fixer. No, it took an act of providence to get my attention. Even on this blog founded on full disclosure, I've been pretty coy about the experience. That ain't right. So here's how it (and I) went down...

Work commenced on the Lost Drag Strips II project last spring. Mega-stoked at finally getting a drag race-related assignment, I gleefully dived into the deep end. Twelve to sixteen-hour workdays had been my modus operandi for the last several years, but a week into the drag strip book, I found myself thrashing from sixteen to twenty hours a day. The adrenaline, gratitude, caffeine and nicotine kept that momentum going to about the halfway point, when I finally noticed the extended work hours weren't producing any more content. Not only was the quantity down, but the quality was, too. I was repeating myself, and finding grammatical and factual mistakes that I'd missed while editing. I knew something was up, but didn't want to brake dance at the finish line. I powered on.

As it turned out, I missed the book deadline by a week (the only deadline I've ever missed), due to time spent fixing said mistakes. At that time (late summer), I took a part-time job, watering plants. Three weeks into that gig, I was fired for incompetence. No matter how clearly instructions were explained to me (and despite taking copious notes), I just couldn't process or retain the information. The jig was up, and I was down for the count. No work equals no income, rendering me destitute within a month (I posted the ensuing homeless adventure on this blog). I ultimately found advocates for shelter and medical care, so everything is all rainbows and kittens again, today. But my team of doctors (really) can't agree on the cause or cure for my condition, so there's yet another process that must play out. Meanwhile, I try to keep my chops up with this SGE stuff, but the blog posts that previously took a couple hours to create now require a solid week to assemble, due to memory loss and dyslexia. I'm grateful to have this time to lavish on this last vestige of my automotive journalist career, but just don't know how many more stories I have left in me.

So now I attempt to transition into my new role as a civilian retiree. I'm off to an awkward start, under the weight of my guilt around being on the dole. And I don't have much patience for fellow retiree's grandchildren and fishing stories. Windy as I am on this blog, I'm actually quite shy in real life. But get this: While on my daily walk yesterday (a couple of miles, on average), I sat on a park bench and watched moms and toddlers feed birds - for almost an hour. It's been years since I've done such a thing. That shocking realization, combined with the warm fuzzy before me, had me fighting tears. I haven't been very nice to myself. No wonder I'm damaged goods.

2016. Forty-six years later, and none the wiser. The Mary Tyler Moore tribute continues, but will this blog? That is yet to be decided. (Shellski shot, maybe. Looks more like a selfie)



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SQUIRREL AND TOOLBOX

Only the visionaries at Atco Records had the nuts to release Al Caiola's beautiful gift to the space squirrel kingdom. Since its release, I've felt that I was born to record the sequel. Perhaps the time is nigh. I just need to get some of those magic guitars.

My Craftsman rollaway was sacrificed last winter for the sake of survival (three weeks' rent in a cheap motel). Fully loaded with a lifetime collection of quality tools, I priced it at $150 for a quick sale on Craigslist, hoping for the best. Less than a minute after posting the ad, it was sold. The new owner was ecstatic. My emotions were mixed .

Before handing over the rollaway, I selected as many tools as I could cram into this little Craftsman 4-drawer box (found next to a dumpster with the lock busted off), so I'd be somewhat prepared. So far, I've used a Phillips screwdriver from it. I don't have much use for tools now, but can't bring myself to part with them yet. (Scotty shots)



GRIN

Should this blog continue, the focus may shift to music. I'm into it again. Upon moving into my tiny new apartment, I realized I'd have to jettison some instruments, or make them smaller. Something about the overall design and tone of this $40 Chinese Harmony copy irritated me, so...

... the pick guard was modified, which then revealed the need for accompanying body mods. My neighbor, Rob Jones, helped me get my old jigsaw going. Rob and wife Judy spent the same three weeks in the same motel I was holed up in last winter, yet we never met until we moved into the same apartment complex. Rob (who has some of of the same baggage as I) is yet another semi-retired author. Judy used to run a fuel altered with her former husband, in Georgia. I live for such synchronicity. Anyway, what began as a pick guard reshaping quickly devolved into this. (Photo courtesy Robert Jones)

Ta da. I think it has kind of a Vox prototype vibe. Whatever. It was therapeutic. Rob knows about electricity, and soldered in a better ground wire. I fine-tuned the set-up...

... then applied the shaky custom graphics package. In my dubious opinion, it plays, sounds, and looks better than before. (Scotty shots)


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WANT!

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A random collector, surrounded by his findings. The satisfied smile says it clearly: Everyone needs a hobby. (Photo courtesy Garlits Museum)

General Motors' 1956 lineup, including concepts. There are people out there who actually collect collections like this. Get your head around that. (Photo courtesy Ford Motor Company. Just kidding)

Gotta have it! Against all odds. Despite impending ruination. I am a collector. OCD is but one of the disorder acronyms I live with, but it's certainly the most fun. It started with childhood wrecking yard excursions to gather fasteners, fittings, wiring connectors, horn buttons, shift knobs, and on and on. You know, stuff I'd need when I got a car. That hardware proved to be the gateway drug to hoarding decals, posters, model cars, diecast cars, T-shirts, then on to the hard stuff: Tools, speed parts, car projects, parts cars to support the car projects, garages and storage units to support the ever multiplying number of projects. Before I knew it (way before), I was chronically strung out.

There are dire consequences for indulging in such insanity. For me, the lessons learned resulted in a scaling back of the hunt to better match the dust in my aching wallet. Today I make due with scouring yard sales and thrift stores for vintage car books and magazines, along with orphaned guitars and their associated obsolete parts and accessories. An old man and his hobby. Happily puttering.

Present circumstances dictate a further shrinking of my collecting activities. This latest chapter of my life requires a simpler, more humble existence. The payoff has been improved physical health and a marked reduction of stress. But the collector still wants to scarf up nuts and bolts to fill more fruit jars. So it's off to the internet - abundant with cool photos of cool car stuff. And it's mostly free, which suits my current situation nicely. I'm an irrelevant sidewalk pedestrian now, watching hot rodding roll past me. But the photographs offer me some level of comfort as I grieve. You can guess the rest... There are literally too many files and folders to count in the SGE Photo Archives. It's sick, ridiculous, and sad. Below are cover ID Photos of some of my favorite folders. Some images may have posted previously.

The early days

Street roadsters

Coupes and sedans 

Street racers

Race cars in transit

Lucky kids (Photo courtesy Paramount Pictures [the only movie company I can think of. But it was probably them])

Landspeed racers

Doorslammers

A/FX

Gassers

Funny Cars

Diggers

Miscellaneous drag racers (Photo courtesy Captain Jack McClure)

Hoarders

Muscle cars (Photo courtesy General Motors Corporation - not really)

That's right - we've even amassed a bulging folder of gearhead dog photos (oddly, there's not a single Greyhound in the mix). And thanks to OCD, I too am a dog on a bone.

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SQUIRREL AND TOOLBOX

The hardcore collector will go to any length to search out their prey. This individual sports the same aura of gratification as Don Garlits (in our lead photo). It's universal. NEXT WEEK: The latest CDC report on obsessive collecting. See the unabridged edition here first!

Southern California SGE flatfoot Kristen Cline hit the mean streets to sniff out the latest hot boxes, so you don't have to. You're welcome. But Kristen also had an ulterior motive: It's no coincidence that tool and toolbox collecting go hand in hand. Now that she's splitting wrench time between her Falcon, Studebaker and commuter (a Dipshitzu, I believe), Kristen has the perfect excuse to binge-splurge. Lucky gal! (Photo courtesy Kristen Cline)

GRIN

Drag Race photographer Fred Simmons contributed a ton of info, images, and wonderful stories to the Lost Drag Strips II book. He was everywhere in the Sixties, and photographed everything that happened. We haven't met yet, but the phone calls and e-mails feel like the foundations of a solid friendship. In passing, Fred casually mentioned the drag racing paraphernalia in his basement, and I asked if he had a photo of the collection. Below is part of what I received from Fred...

Fred was presented this gem from Crane Cams Vice President David Smith. The Dyno Don Nicholson photo was shot in the backyard garage of Dyno's Atlanta, Georgia home. Fred adds, "He's working on his red '65 Comet. I have pictures of him moving the rear wheels forward, and doing bodywork." Of course. God bless ya Fred! (Photos courtesy Fred Simmons)

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