what's up?

unbelted

another pontiac. kinda wish the hood ornament was crackled. it looks too new.

guy on the motorcycle reflected in the paint, was on the phone calling anybody and everybody. the belt on his bike was broken, and laying on the ground nearby. trying to get someone to help him out here. i think he was on his way to vegas, or maybe one of his bros was coming from there.

anyway, in the sea of music, he got off his phone, and cranked up his own tuneage. 

i can only assume someone got him a belt, but i bet it was a long wait.

our neighbor is an ahole

ya, the guy is a jerk. i don't even know him. he's recently taken up playing real heavy bass, butt-thumping music very early in the morning. and it's not even good music, just some techno shit. today is sunday, and he started around eight a.m. he's a middle-age, wanna be college frat boy.

so i'm sitting here with my earphones on, running breaking bad, so as not to hear his stuff. i think he finally shut the stuff off about ten, but everybody else here is still sleeping.

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saw several pontiacs at the show the other day. love the hood ornaments. pretty sure i've shot this one elsewhere, if i look through my files.

 

work in progress

here's the last one i promised to post. friend of the other guy from yesterday's post. real talkers those two.

this guy really wanted a shot of this car. says it looks like hell this year, but he's working on it. promises i won't recognize it next year.

i don't only shoot the pretty cars, mind you. just don't usually shoot these cars. but i don't mind mixing it up once in a while.

so, good enough?

neighborhood blues

another promised post. these aren't the types of cars i usually shoot, unless they have some exceptional paint job or something. 

we were heading back to the car, taking one last look around. i was actually hunting for that emerald green truck that had been cruising around.

my better half and i both spotted the bart in this car at the same time. he really liked it, so he went over to take a few pictures of it. the owner of this car called us out, and talked us up. really wanted us to take a picture of his car. my better half admitted he rarely has time to post his pictures, and passed him off to me. thanks d.

i took a few shots; liked this one best.

oh, and spotted the green truck back in the line of cars coming into the park on our way out. that sucks. another time...

on new year’s day

we got up way early this morning and found ourselves sitting in the mile-long line of cars at the dam by five-fifteen. i don't think anyone really realized the gate didn't open until seven...wasn't really mentioned on the flyer. 

we had a good chat. froze our butts off, ran the car once or twice to warm it up a bit. watched the group of guys ahead of us—club shall remain nameless, but you know who you are—stood around talking, watching their kids run around, toss their coffee cups in the ivy, run across the street and piss in the bushes one, by one.

finally the line started to move after seven. i stopped for a red light, and the goober behind us swooped around and got in front, followed by some other car. i'm in no hurry, and they didn't get much farther ahead, so congrats on that buttwad.

found parking in the same place as last year, and got going.

went through each lot, picking out what we liked. better half used his wagon to plant his tripod and camera on, to run some video.

i think we stayed until two-thirty, and only left cuz our feet hurt, and my better half seems to be starting a cold.

talked to a few people, and promised to post pictures of their cars. so here's the first one. if you happen to own this car, it's a beauty. and you can buy a print here.

beginning of the end

shot this very early at bo huff. out in the line up, waiting to get in. don't think i've seen a master deluxe this green before. and somehow it just seems like the wrong color for the model. just used to seeing them in blacks and browns, i suppose. still is pretty nice, otherwise.

last post of the year. only a couple hundred more, and there will be one thousand posts here. i can probably to that easy this year. i could do that easy, without hitting another show, if i wanted. but what fun is that? my next favorite picture is the one i haven't shot yet, so i'll keep shooting, as long as you keep bringing the cars out to show.

going to the majestics' show tomorrow. better half is coming with me, gonna pull his little red wagon behind him this time. maybe take some rolling movies. glad he can find a way to entertain himself, while i go off and do my own thing. sometimes he just likes to watch...

screaming meemies

i don't know why i shot this car or more, why i'm bothering to post it. no idea for sure what it is. it has some ford looking headlights and grille, but it's had some over the top cosmetic surgery.

i think what i enjoyed more than taking a picture of this thing, was the elderly asian couple that had been taking pictures of each other in front of various cars, this one included. suddenly, the old guy started screaming at the wife loudly in whichever language they spoke. kinda like a car wreck, i stared for a while, facinated like watching foreign soap operas on cable.

at this point, i can't remember if the old lady gave as good as she got, or if she just ignored him. i suspect the former.

they were still yelling when i left the area. maybe she didn't get his good side.

nomadder what

stopped by original mikes yesterday, on my way to my parents' house. still hadn't made my dad his xmas taffy. it's his annual thing. first time i didn't have it ready for him on xmas day in like, forever. just ran out of time. figured i'd just make it at their house, it would be as fresh as can be.

i got there, and he had the idea in his head to use some of it to make popcorn balls. wtf. couldn't argue it out of him, so why not experiment.

i boiled up a double batch. he popped a bag of popcorn. burned it. he can't hear it stop popping, didn't notice the smell. so he did another, and i told him when to take it out.

i poured about half of the sticky tar into the bowl of popcorn. told him to let it cool a bit, so he doesn't burn his hands. typical guy, doesn't listen. he only waited a few minutes. then started shaping it into balls.

it worked in theory. it formed into balls, and held the shape. only when he was done did he realize he hadn't separated out the unpopped kernels.

the rest of the taffy, i pulled after it cooled off a lot. still not sure that it turned out as brittle as it should have been.  either way, brittle or soft, he usually ends up each new year with a dentist appointment to reglue a crown or two, and has been known to use super glue or epoxy to do it himself. but he wouldn't have it any other way.

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oh, and the lot was pretty full at original mikes. got there at almost one. lots of hoods up, so that winnows down the selection i'll bother with. this one had the hood up, and there was a group of people up at the front. so screw'em, i just pushed in on the part i like anyway, and ignored the parts i don't care about.

on 56, 57, 58, 59 chevys, it's all about the back end anyway. i'll shoot them, no matter what's going on up front.

not quite good enough

here's the other car that was uptown last night. didn't quite have enough time to get a good shot.

owner took a few minutes to let me finish this shot, but he seemed like he needed to get going, so i didn't want to keep him waiting longer. shot this one before the previous post, but didn't have a chance to mess with the camera settings, so it is what it is. 

as always, can't pass by a pontiac. it's the hood ornament. and no, didn't get a good close up of that, since i didn't take the time to bring the macro lens. just as well. would have had to delay the guy longer.

and now i can't remember what year he said it was...

i've seen it before; i'll see it again. i'll have better luck next time.

tonight, tonight

went uptown for dinner tonight. saw a couple of very nice cars. took pictures with my cell phone. i put those up on instagram: #randomcarsuptown. service in the restaurant was soooooo slow.

this one was sitting across the street from the restaurant. i kept an eye on it through the window. it was still there after the meal. got all the way home, and decided to get the camera and wander back uptown, to see if either car was still there.

my better half came along to keep an eye on me, i suppose. or maybe he just enjoys my company. he was suggesting i try shooting some different settings, being that it was night time. told him i'd give them a try after i shot them with my typical settings.

guess i got lucky. they both were still parked. just barely. shot a couple of a pontiac before the owner came back and took off. then continued down the street, to see if the other car was still there.

yes it was. this really cool ford. but the owner was sitting in the driver's seat. looked like he was texting, so i went ahead and started shooting, hoping he wouldn't leave before i was done. takes longer exposures when its dark.

i guess he saw me set up, and was just stalling until i was done.

my better half got his attention, mainly to thank him for waiting me out. he got out and introduced himself, and we got to talking about all the work he'd put into the car, and the plans he had for improving it, and making it go faster. dude just got his hair cut and was dressed for a night of cruising, i guess.

a few random facts, that i can remember: same owner for fifteen years and his daily driver; suicide doors; working on a bigger engine to drop in -- 400 something, sorry don't remember the specific model. (if only my bro were in town with his photographic memory); will be adding additional exhaust pipes on the sides with laser engraved skull and bones; chopped three inches; no back window; flames look fairly prominent here, but earlier were more of the ghost variety; after market racing skirts on the rear wheels.

talked quite a bit about the paint job. said he should have listened to the paint guy about the clear coat. apparently he opted not to follow the guy's advice, and there's some rust starting up under the paint. i suppose he'll eventually have to redo the paint.

i didn't shoot it from the back end, which i should have done while my better half was talking him up. had really unique tail lights. rare, he said. after market add-ons from the fifties, that he got lucky and found on ebay from the original owner. original packaging and screws even. some old dude cleaning out his garage. it happens sometimes. anyway, haven't seen another like it anywhere.

so much info, and i had hurried out of the house without my phone, so couldn't type in some quick notes, before the details fell out of my head. so this is the best my recollection of the info. can't remember the engine specs, but the new one will definitely be faster.

very nice guy. kept him talking about his car for a good fifteen minutes. all the while, he kept ignoring his cell phone ringing; hope his girlfriend didn't get too pissed. really appreciated him taking the time to chat. hoping to see him and the car at the dam on new year's day.

i'll put up the other car tomorrow.