ford play

if only more of you would just ignore the clouds in the sky. it wasn't going to rain today. driving west on the 605, it got less cloudy, and more beams of sun peaked in and out through them. come on, the overcast sky makes for better pictures.

out at the fuddruckers in lakewood, i can never guess how many cars will show up. there were only about a dozen here for the show today. ran into angel, who said it was too cold. i think it was the clouds. he said there'd been way more cars just a couple weeks earlier.

i figured i'd shoot at least a few shots of the few cars that didn't have the hoods up and/or owners standing in front or in the shot. mostly trucks.

actually, i shot this one down low, not only to snag the clouds, but because there was three or four dudes on the other side of it talking dude talk. that's ok. i like this angle better anyway.

put my gear in the trunk, as another primer covered ghost pulled in and parked and dropped down. was tempted to get it all out again and shoot it. but no, i needed to eat a very late lunch. real bangin' headache today. mostly gone now.

thought about driving to another show in anaheim, but heading back east on the freeway, the clouds really were darker and more threatening to rain, so i just went home and did a few of the things i keep saying i gotta do. my better half said it was sprinkling over at the frys off the 60.

indecisive

i've gone to a few shows this past week. just about done doing the backup on my computer and have made some room, so i figured i'll start shooting again.

made it out to the broiler last wednesday. was relatively warm out, so hoped more cars would show up. actually, there were a lot of regular cars taking up space. good for business, bad for car shows. 

anyway, this car i'm pretty sure belongs to one of the guys that works in the broiler. i see it a lot, but usually parked over on the other side. i saw him back this puppy into one of my favorite spots to shoot, and the space next to it stayed empty for quite a while. figured i'd take a couple before someone would want to park and move me out of the way.

i walked up to it and saw this first picture, and knew i had to get that reflection in the window. the pictures are a little rough, and there's a bit of lens flarey stuff, but i still think they're interesting.

trouble was, i couldn't get the rest of the neon in the picture. so i couldn't decide which picture to post. so, i'm posting the other view, because i like it just as much. and why not, the owner is a nice guy.

buckets o’ fun

i was looking for a picture to play with last night. found this older one. started tweaking the pixels. was about half an hour from posting, when one of our visiting college kids decided to warm up something in the microwave, which is pretty standard for a college kid, right?

well, i am currently living in an older place. not a nice victorian. not even a craftsman. just some old thing from the thirties, that happens to not have enough juice running through it to power all of this century's technology. at least not all at once.

so, when my mother-in-law has got her space heater on, and i'm running my computer, and there's a tv or two on, as well as my better half running his puter back in the back room, well, the house kind of squeaks by. but the key seems to be, add the microwave or the little toaster oven, and the place throws it's hands up and blows a fuse. which just does wonders for my attitude.

my computer is on the same circuit as the kitchen and the front room. so it all goes dark up front, and my computer and whatever i'm working on, just goes poof. and my vocabulary gets very loud and colorful. really makes me a joy to be around.

oh, and it has no effect on my better half's room. but when he hears me dropping loud f-bombs, he knows what happened. doesn't save my file, but does get the place lit up, and i'm welcome to start all over again.

so, as i was saying, while i had saved my file not long before the fuse blew, it was late, and i dreaded seeing if my file was ruined, so i didn't even start my computer back up last night. and don't step on all the f-bombs i dropped all the way down the hall to the back room, and back. took a hot shower instead, and went to bed.

took two tries to get my computer back up and running this evening. my file was ok this time, but other times they've corrupted. had to rework some stuff, but here it is. i've got things to do, so i'll just post it before someone gets hungry again...

move over

ahhh, the holidays. time of brotherly love. can you feel it, driving through the parking lots at the mall, everyone waving the one finger salute in peace and love, while they angle for the closest parking space? mouthing two short words; i'm thinking possibly 'love you,' but i can't be sure. yes, i don't go to the mall during the holidays and post xmas sale season, there's just too much friendly repartee for me to handle.

move over. exactly what i'm thinking when i'm driving down the freeway. little old ladies, get out of the way, captain insano, get away from me. just want to get where i'm going in one piece.

merciful

so i hung out at the broiler for a few hours. its a different crowd now than there used to be. the vibe is different. maybe its just me. maybe its just the cold, or the holidays. i really intended to stay later than i did, but i just wasn't feeling it. 

there were a couple dozen cars there. some of the new clubs tend to gather in front of their cars and don't move. kind of bovine, just standing there. i didn't feel like out-glaring them out of the way, so i skipped them. shame.

i'd already spent time shooting cars i'd taken before. mainly, if they were in a different location, or the light struck them different than before. fricking richard's car got in a few shots, but i'll pretend it isn't there, since it doesn't exist in my universe.

sometimes, you just need to look at something differently, and it will be a lot more interesting. i've shot this one before, but i wanted to get some of the roof, then noticed the neon, then the sky, and angles and colors. just wished that the soccer mom van and other newer cars were not there, since they were hiding some other nice old cars.

this one seems to be for sale now; tiny tiny "for sale" on the window doesn't really scream that you're trying too hard.

michelin man

another from the legends show. my memory is already getting fuzzy, and i forgot to make notes on my phone, but i think this one belonged to the guy who said he was also from whittier.

i looked through my photos, and i was right, i've seen it before. i took a picture of it at a viejitos show in july. and if i looked further, i bet i'd find a few others, but probably more likely, of the hood ornament.

he did specifically ask me if i'd taken a shot of it. truth be told, i was going to pass it by. but since he asked, i hope he sees it here and thinks it's ok.

racy lacy

got things to do this evening, so quick post.

saw this tangiers club car "moded" at the showlows show at st hilary's last month. one of the few cars i shot that day. as always, couldn't get all the detail of the paint job, particularly on the roof. maybe i'll get a ladder for xmas, if i'm a good girl. what fun is that? and then i'd have to get a little red wagon to pull the thing along, or persuade a big guy to carry it for me... >:)

gold member

ok, i'll throw this one up, if only to make fun of it, and because its the only picture i had ready to post.

ya, its a custom hot rod by hinkle's hot rods. but shit, too much blingy goldness. i was looking for the crystal chandelier on the inside. i guess its just too much for my taste.

i did like the pinstriping on the center of the wheel. missing the usual nerf balls in the pipes, but there still seems to be some type of foam filler there anyway. 

i believe i've reached the point that i have to backup and remove old stuff from my hard drive...only ninety-two gb of space left. ya, sounds like a lot, but i could fill it easily by going to a few shows and posting up a dozen or two pictures.

i'll probably do that this weekend. maybe finally get around to upgrading my applications too. or, maybe i'll do the usual, and find any excuse to go out to a show...

on the down low

i guess its cool to customize a car and install hydraulics or airbags or windbags or whatever you call it. you can make them hop, bounce, dance, sit on three wheels, and slam to the ground. i seriously doubt this one would ever bounce; it would mess up the beautiful lines too much. leave that to the low rider guys.

then there's my dad. drives my sister's mid-90s nissan quest. no hydraulics at all, yet he's had it up on two wheels. only way to explain the broken motor mounts. no idea what he was doing or where the hell he managed to do it. sometimes a man's heart is a deep well of secrets. or maybe he just forgets stuff.

opposite day

is this thing a ford of some sort? driver sits on the passenger side. so did he customize it or import it? interesting in it's simplicity and its hydraulics. inky blackness really reflects the sky overhead; just wish it was more natural light than of the fluorescent variety for illumination.