What! Another Checker

Jerry snapped this shot of me barrelling down I-5 corridor at about 72 MPH. Yes, I got another Checker. I must be mad, but this 1976 Checker has got a lot to offer. It's a daily driver, got a powerful 350 chevy engine and the famous Hydromatic 400 tranny. How could I say no? We drove up from Salem leaving at about 9:00 am Thursday. We arrived at the Fort Vancouver Regional Library where we introduced ourselves to Jon and Joyce Garner. After a close inspection I was thrilled at the test drive and cinched the deal by the time we arrived back at the library. This car purrs and can lay a long track of rubber, too.



Jerry and I decided to stop off at Mission Mill and show the gang the new acquisition. Poor David wasn't around at the time and later in the afternoon barrelled into the drive at home and wanted to see and hear it. His prelimenary inspection was one of approval and he said he would help me troubleshoot the idle problem with the car. (recirculating pre-heater tubes, etc.)



Here I am doting over the little darling. Later I gave the family a drive around South Salem. I think they like it, too. Later, later about 45 minutes before "Survivor" (one of my gotta watch shows) I took her out for a solo spin around town. She turns heads... did I mention... she turns heads!

It must be late...

Showed this to my sister (the one on the left). She cracked up.

Oh My God!

Erik this is for you. You wanted to see my new thinner physique. I told you I would not show my true turkey white so out comes photoshop and ..well I guess after giving my self a deep tan I just couldn't stop. Hey, what do you think of the makeover? I swear I did not take off any of the outline. I am now 34 pounds lighter. Tonight I had a large sprout salad with grilled chicken and a large delicious glass of chilled water.

Checker Trunk Day

Today I tackled the trunk. I only broke 3 of the the 4 bolts holding it to the car. Other than a test strip with the stripper it was covered in this rhino skinned grey paint under which lay yet another grey , a robbins egg blue and a base of red primer.In spite of the nuts breaking the piece came off relatively easy.



Here's a shot of the trunk with the mat removed. The mat just needs a little repair and a good cleaning. The walls of the trunk are great. The bottom of the trunk is a troubled area, but not impossible. From the picture you can see the tire well has rusted completely through. I will get to use the Rust-Mort and recapture all the rusted areas. The hole will have to be patched with sheet metal shaped and then welded into place. I will learn to weld right here. Maybe I will take off the gas tank...heh?



These are my friends...the guy on the left likes to boil paint off metal. After 2 to 3 applications and much elbow grease paint gives way to bare metal. The guy on the right makes rust tremble at the sound of his name...Rust-Mort. This is a winning team.



I did the deed at the top of the driveway on a couple of sawhorses. Usually, I will apply the stripper and let it set for about 30 minutes. Then I get the putty knife or another scraper and lift the paint away. It is tediuos and a process that can eat a day right up. It will be cool if I can disassemble most of the fenders and hood and work them flat on the sawhorses.



Here I am with the trunk lid down to bare metal. There wasn't a gram of paint on the piece. I finished it with a good sanding. Then I layed out the tarp and put on my first application of grey primer. Yes, I really felt I had taken a big step forward and admired the painted trunk lid for some time. the reality of the situation is that this piece may be only 8 square feet of some 148 square feet I have to do. God help me!

Checker Garaged

Home at last, thank God Almighty, she's home at last.

Today, I bit the bullet and decided I was going to get the Checker in the garage.
With the weather expected to turn rainy and the ever present danger of vandals the car was at risk on the street. She started up straight away, I ran her back and forth to loosen her up. I had wanted to drive it in directly, but opted to just get it up to the level surface at the top of the driveway. I was hampered by the fact I would have to run her up in reverse because 1st gear isn't working. After about 2 attempts and a full head of steam I ran her up the driveway with just enough power to crest the final tires to the level. I didn't want to count on the brakes and the time it would take to "pump them up".

She made the journey fine with a few of hiccups and a shudder or two.

Neighbor Steve was orchestrating from a safe distance and did the right thing after she landed... he brought out the cigars. I fetched the IPAs. After much discussion it was time to talk great things of old cars. Old cars, cigars and brewski ...not bad, not bad at all.



OK, so after dinner and taking Spencer's friend David back home. Time for round two. I went out to drive the car into the garage, but opted to rock her back and forth (pushing) to line up and slowly, safely steer her back into the nest. I had promised Dawn to put a diaper under her and did! So babys fed and curled up in her new home.

Apple Pickin' Time

In the back corner of the yard is an apple tree. It leans over the corrugated metal roof that protects the patio. At any given moment day or night the apples fall onto the roof sounding like a huge drum. It makes makes me jump up from a dead sleep. Anyway, I finally got it together to harvest the apples. I was the picker and this Northwest Beauty was the packer. She and I sampled the product, too. Yum, that apple tree produces great tasting apples.



I don't know the variety, but I will call it "Red Drum" Red Drum is a slightly tart, crisp sweet apple. The birds love it, too. I have seen what appears to be worm holes, but haven't seen any critters, yet.



Here's my crude, but effective device for apple pickin'. I used a 2x 2 pole, bolted 1 x 2 for the picker part and bolted a big ass can underneath. It's only drawback is it is probably a bit heavy and short. (Sounds like me!)



Harvested 100 pounds of apples in an hour. I went inside and got on eBay and using PayPal I bid on a Buy It Now item. It is the latest model in its day (1956) apple peeler, corer, etc. It's coming out of Pocatella and I hope it will be here Wednesday, Thursday. I can't wait to make some delicious homemade applesauce.

Beauty Shots

My artistic side.



Practicalities.



A casual moment.



Cute derrierre.



That Mona Lisa smile!

We Pickup the Checker

I was putting out a despondent want on Craig's List for the umteenth time. Wanted Checker ... well on the Seattle list, I got a bite, it came as an email with a link to a set of pictures. I had a feeling the second I looked at the car that I had found my Checker. I again spoke with the owner, Erston R., and before we finished our conversation I knew this was the one. Well, I later confirmed and "shook hands" over the phone. I then called a local rental agency for an aluminum car trailer and got Jerry to agree to run up to Tacoma with me to retrieve the Checker. This all transpired over ten days and today we brought her home.



Here Erston and I seal the deal. He's got half his garage back and I have a project for next seven months. The car is rusted and haggered, but underneath that aged rhino-like skin lies a wild animal waiting to be released on an unsuspecting public!





Here's Jerry's rig. This baby has got the POWER. I had to look back to see if the trailer was still there. The ride back from Tacoma was really a straight run with a bit of a slow down in Portland for the evening rush. We got back to Salem about an hour before dark and the trailer, which was great, did all the work of lowering the car safely to the ground.

To say I am excited is an understatement!

Covered Bridge Tour

I read in the paper about a narrated tour of the covered bridges in and around Stayton. It was to be guided by a gentleman named Bill Cockrell and he wrote the book. Literally, he wrote the book on these "Roofs Over Rivers". I had to go. I tried coaxing the family, but no one wanted to go. We had done our own tour of the bridges last spring with Lauren, Dawn and Abel, but this time I was on my own. The tour started at 9:00 am and I got to ride a flat nosed rear pusher school bus on a 3 and half hour tour. I was as excited as a kid on his first day of school.




I had asked Bill if he would mind my making an audio recording of the tour and he said it wouldn't be a problem at all. I made almost an eighty minute minidisc from about 7 segments. Here you see Clarence Wood, an eighty eight year old, who as a young man of twenty helped to build the Hannah Bridge. His father in law gave the state the land for the bridge with the stipulation they hire Clarence to help. Clarence said as the young man in the crew he did all the odd jobs. But, for a year he and a crew of about 8 worked with nothing more than block and tackle, shovels hand saws and muscle to erect this beautiful covered bridge.





Martin Harding, on the left, is the Linn County engineer who oversees the bridges of the county. I think he said he had been at it for 30 or 40 years. He had a lot to say about how his crews with their limited funds were hard at maintaining these structures. Covered bridge maintanence costs ten percent of the bridges budget and account for less than three per cent of the bridges. Unfortunately, when decisions are made to deconstruct a covered bridge it may solely be based on funds not its historic importance. The Covered Bridge Society of Oregon is championing the fight to save and preserve our covered bridges.

The gentleman on the right is Bill our guide. He was really great with just enough facts and just enough humor to make the three hours go by very quickly.



In account of the day, I must say I had a great time. These bridges are wonderful just to look at and hear the sounds of the creek rushing underneath. To have as speakers and guides the fine folks of the Covered Bridge Society made this an educational and heartwarming experience. I want drive someone around to these bridges and share with them all the insight I gained from todays trip.

Shrewsbury Faire 2004

Shrewsbury Faire is a mediaeval blast. The sponsors really have their olde acts together and a fun time is had by all. 150 vendors, 1,000 costumed participants and 17,000 visitors in two days. Nestled in the beauiful King Valley somewhere between Dallas and Corvallis this anual event gave us a great day for $8.00 bucks each and a coupon.

The Food circle had appropriate fare and I dined on haggis and stag sausage.



Lauren befriended a fine Lady and her Lord. The Lady gave Lauren a beautiful stone and assured her it was a dragon's tear she had collected from the snow.



I'll bet there was a face painter at a gatherering of more than 5 neanderthals 10 million years ago. Today the tradition lives, and Lauren sports the latest Elizabethian eye swirl.



OK, she's cute, we all know that! But, this outfit really made her cute. At only $45.00 clams I would have bought it if it were in rose(pink) and two inches longer....I have her card.



I felt like a child reading Horatio Hornblower for the first time. This old man spun a tale of Magellan and his trials and tribulations in trying to circumnavigate the deep blue. The old man was a true master of storytelling!

Oregon State Fair 2004

Sunday morning September 5th, 2004. We have arrived early, to beat the Christians, and the heat. Paper said they'd open at 9 AM. We park right outside the gate and no one takes our money. Starting out just fine I think to myself. We get to the gate and the sign says it opens at 11 AM. Bummer. Time to regroup. We decide to walk around and see if we can find a way in early. I love to see setups. We wind up walking halfway around the grounds and find on the opposite side an open gate and its near the animals! Yee haw! We're in!



This matron had her hooves full. She was drinking from one end and delivering the goods out the other. And she had to work to keep up with all twelve of her youngins. Whatever she had it really livened up the piglets and seeing them tear around the pen made the entire crowd break into laughter. I recorded the ambience with my Sony Minidisc as well as the digital camera.



Here, the queen of the fair repasses with some cheap ice cream. We are taking a break in the Mexican Village. This would have been good to come back for a taco or civiche, but alas there were way too many distractions. Soon we were off to the craft section, but discovered they didn't have it this year.



Fortunately, we found this South American band and we camped for about three songs. These guys were so delightful, I willingly removed money from my pocket and bought their CD. Also, I managed to bootleg (Sony Minidisc) 3 tunes. I must say after hearing the CD that the bootleg is more natural and lively. The Sony Minidisc with the Sound Professional binural mics can really capture the moment!

After 5 hours of sensory overload we were burntout and made our way back to the burb. What a fun day!

Perseid Meteors/Ochocos

So I had this idea... why don't we all pack up and run over to the Ochocos and take in the Perseid's meteor shower, do some prospecting and get back in 24 hours!. And.. Jerry and Spencer agreed! We left Salem at about 3:00pm and drove about 150 miles, had dinner along the way, made camp in the dark and sat in chairs staring heavenward to enjoy a wonderful meteor display (about 5 an hour). The satellites were cool, too.



Jerry and Spence take in an incredible view of the Ochoco Mountains. As we walked onto this site we startled two grouse who exploded into flight. This place was very near our Thursday night campsite at a breathless 6200 feet. After a morning of flapjacks, scrambled eggs, sausage links and steaming fresh brewed java we wallked here to check out an abandoned thunderegg claim.



This monstrocity is known as Stein's Pillar. It should be Steen's after the man who discovered it, but it had been mispelled soo long no one wanted to change the name. Standing 350 feet tall this monolith proudly basks in the last rays of a hot eastern Oregon summer's eve.



Here Cindy, Bob(retired army chef), Spence and Jerry stand outside Kop's shack on the Lucky Strike mine. These guys were cool, with tons of stories about strikes, claim jumping and little known spots just waiting to be discovered. Kop was in town selling a ton of large thundereggs and came back with a fist full of dollars. He is quite a character. At 6 foot and weighing in at 128 pounds this strapping lad is a dynamo for an 86 year old.



Pardon my driveby shooting, but the Crook County Court House is not only the place where we miners file claims, but is also just plain pretty to look at.

Mediaeval Book

Here's a book I've just finished. It was a commission to be the Grand Prize in a HackMaster's game contest. Inside is the player's handbook of rules for HackMaster.

The book contents were perfect bound so I modified that to a more permanent kerfed channel linen laced binding. Outside the cover is binders board with raised panels covered and formed with split suede. Onlaid in the corners are triangular pieces of rawhide. The design in the middle is of a Phoenix rising from the sun. The Phoenix is black pig and the sun is gold tipped rawhide.



One of the fun things with this binding was to include train squashed pennies riveted through the corners. This allows the book to raised from the table surface. I had to beat the flat copper nails in a vice to "age" them.



The clasp I formed from #12 copper house wire. Then it was lamiminated between the boards with the receive being stitched for extra strength.

All and all it was tons of fun doing this and wish I could have more of these fun projects!

Antique Powerland at Brooks

Antique Powerland is at crossroads just north of Salem. The famers from near and far come to see mostly farm related machinery including tractors saws, water pumps and a variety of both small and humongous motors. Some are steam and some "one lungers" are gas. This train depot now serves as a museum.

This old guy must have been a hundred! He had the biggest smile in the whole crowd. I will bet he's older than the tractor he sits on.

The old steam tractors puffing all in a row. At high noon they all let go with their whistles and it is deafening. I couldn't hear for half an hour!

Abel's Departure

The three host families that had Abel in their homes gather for his "party of the goodbyes". Here seated are Martha Deutch, her husband and family, Glenda Melton, her daughter and family, and Dawn and our munchkin.
The Last Supper ... Abel couldn't leave the country without another hamburger for the road. It was a double patty double cheese! (1,000,000 calories)
Security was tight at Portland Airport. I've been to the airport so much this summer that I am thinking of writing my name on a reserved parking spot. The security guard checked the papers carefully and sent Abel through the metal detectors. On the other side he stopped for a moment caught our eye and gave us a big wave bye. He's a good young man and I hope we see him again.