spring – the time of love and new cars
Posted: March 20, 2015 Filed under: history | Tags: first new car, love and new cars, my history, rugby trips, spring, toyota corolla 68 CommentsIt’s spring, when thoughts turn to love and cars. Fondly I recall my first new car, a 1974 Toyota Corolla. I was so green I didn’t know you could negotiate the cost so I paid the full sticker price. I went in to pick it up tried to haggle with the salesman and he said, “You can’t do that.”
“Oh, OK” What did I know about the world?
Imagine $4,300.00 for a new car. It thrilled to drive it off the lot and if I lurched about trying to learn to drive a stick, that excited too.
It was the perfect car to drive about the Midwest for rugby matches, including the Ohio Under 23 select side match against Michigan. I drove with “Moose” and we won the game, on the
way home my mileage was way down and I was sure my car new car was failing. Imagine my relief when I discovered Moose’s bulk cost me six miles per gallon.
Now I dream of a Toyota Land Cruiser and a Corvette, but somehow I don’t think they’ll thrill like a Grey Toyota with a motor smaller than Harley Hog.
I’d love to hear about your first car.
We had such good comments, that I invite you to share a picture if you have it…

First car love from Diana
at https://talktodiana.wordpress.com/
putting out the Christmas tree
Posted: January 10, 2014 Filed under: history | Tags: christmas trees, my history 15 CommentsI put the Christmas tree out. It stands at attention in the snow bank on the tree lawn. It was a good tree, had served us well. To leave it on it’s side, forlorn seemed unworthy disrespect.
I remember going out with my father to pick a tree. We would drive out to the country were a farmer would let us go across his land for a few dollars paid.
We would always find one that had a flaw, not the prettiest, but something that made it special. Maybe a bald spot, or a branch bending the wrong way.
I would cut only a full pulls before my child arms tired, and my father would finish and I would help him drag it back in the snow to home.
My sisters would complain that we never got the right tree, but they never understood, it was just the right one.
So I guess in so many words I am saying that in your poem is the power to bring forth old memories.
graduation…
Posted: May 4, 2013 Filed under: food, pearls of wisdom | Tags: food, graduation, history, love, michigan state university, my history, ryskes restautant 42 CommentsMy favorite oldest daughter, not to be confused with my favorite youngest daughter, graduated yesterday. Read the rest of this entry »
little things…
Posted: April 9, 2013 Filed under: cancer, history, pearls of wisdom | Tags: big horn mountains, black tooth, cancer, history, little things are important, my history, pearls of wisdom, travel, wyoming 28 CommentsOnce, my brother in law and I rode horse back 1/2 a day from our cabin bordering the national forest and hiked up to the wilderness area planning to overnight just above the tree line, ( 11,000 feet ). Read the rest of this entry »
a bit of bragging
Posted: March 27, 2013 Filed under: history, pearls of wisdom | Tags: basketball, believe, challenge, hoops, my history, open gym, pearls of wisdom, try 19 CommentsSummer open gym was pure joy. Read the rest of this entry »
life changers
Posted: March 19, 2013 Filed under: Chicago, figures of speech, food, travel | Tags: Chicago, coaching, girls basketball, inspiration, life changers, my history, Portillo's hot dogs 29 CommentsI had lunch with one of the life changers today. Read the rest of this entry »
from kbytes to petabytes
Posted: March 17, 2013 Filed under: figures of speech, history | Tags: 1108, chi corporation, computing, core, fastrand, growth, history, memory, my history, self aware 30 CommentsIn 1975 I took a job as a computer operator at Chi Corporation. Read the rest of this entry »
who has your back
Posted: March 1, 2013 Filed under: figures of speech, history, pearls of wisdom | Tags: back to the wall, beer, fighting, history, my history, pearls of wisdom 44 CommentsToday is my birthday, well past halfway to one hundred. Read the rest of this entry »
take february off
Posted: January 21, 2013 Filed under: history, pearls of wisdom | Tags: drink, drunk, history, my history, sauce 28 CommentsMy dad learned to drink in World War II. He left a young boy and in the combat of Germany and the Pacific Islands he became a man.
After the war he taught, and while I don’t recall him drinking on school nights, when he drank, he drank hard. Each year he would give up the sauce for a month, just to prove he could do it. It was always February, the shortest month.
May you get through the hard times as lightly as possible. Sometimes that’s were change starts.