Toys

 

Long before there was rubber tired wheels available to Mill Hill kids for wagons there were ‘cog wheels’. These were gears that had cracked or lost a tooth or two. When a boy could find two or four of the same size, that was a wagon. Many times there were two larger ones in the back and two smaller ones in the front. Guys would trade around until they had four that would work.

Most boys were bare foot, man when they ran over your toe it HURT! The motor was a buddy to push you, or a hill to ride down, and then pull it back up before the ride down again.

(Neither of these are Jim, but similar cars)

Most boys dreamed of entering the Soap Box Derby, but it was mostly a dream. It was nothing like a ‘Soap Box’ by the time I was a kid. They were streamlined and fast. Shirley’s husband Jim, rest his soul, won a soap box derby in Charlotte. I think she still has the Charlotte Observer coverage of the race with his picture and the sleek Soap Box he drove. But for most boys it was just a dream. I did witness a couple actual races in Albemarle, NC, but of course never could enter.

I have always been curious. Why did girl’s dolls eyes close when you laid them down? Shirl had a big doll, all it took was one hit in the back of its head with dad’s ball peen hammer to open a hole so I could see.

It was a counter weight, neat. Then I put white first aid tape back over the hole and colored it brown, looked good to me. I was practically a brain surgeon. Would you believe she noticed, and told mama? (If only the little sucker had had hair or a cap!)

Well at least at 7 yrs. old I knew about why eyes closed at night! WE have this counter balance in our heads that close them. Shucks, I should have gone into medicine as a surgeon. Probably could have prescribed something for a sore rear end too.

What was your favorite toy? Any home-made ones?

Thanks for coming by the log, I appreciated your time.

Nite Shipslog

PS:

Nash (or Hudson) Metropolitan 1955 We actually rebuilt two of these, it has an MG engine in it. great little car. Superman’s girl friend Lois Lane had a convertible Metro.

Something heard when this car was new:

'It's too bad things are so tough nowadays..
I see where a few married women have to work
to make ends meet.

More on our New Home

We are now relaxing in our new home. The new home being a different RV site. We are in rural Florida. We have horses and cows just across the barbed Wire fence. The closest town is Wildwood, a very small community with a main street which is US 301.

(Our home from across the lane at the white fence)

It closes down around five PM. WE are near I-75 though, if we want anything to eat in the evening.

(Part of our view)

Many folks don’t know that Florida is a big Equestrian State. That word sorta turns me off. I like the word HORSE! I don’t care for Polo or the fancy horse challenges. I realize it takes a lot of training and practice to do all that stuff, but I am stuck back in Cowboy times and stories. Although I see some beautiful horses here. It doesn’t rate in the top ten though, I actually thought it did, seeing that Ocala boasts itself as the Horse capitol .

(A colt and the Mama, not far away)

(These did not want to talk, just continually nibbling here in a Live Oak Hammock)

There are also some huge cow herds in rural Florida, but they are not in the top ten states with beef either, TEXAS is tops in cows. I guess Kentucky is tops in horses.

Florida does have some springs though. When I think of springs, I see a little clean dugout with a gourd hanging beside it. Here springs put out millions of gallons a day. Silver Springs is one example, 550 million gallons of crystal clear water a day. It immediately forms the Crystal River. These were some of the first ‘Glass Bottom Boats.

(For an idea of how big the springs are, these boats are sitting in the actual spring)

I say a lot about living in this motor home & I like it. But like your home there is always something going wrong. I spent an evening taking our commode apart to replace the gaskets that allows it to hold water in the bowl. RV toilets do not have the standard ‘trap’ that your home commode does; it drops the waste directly into a tank. That way we use less water with each flush. Our flusher is a foot lever instead of the tank handle. We have been doing this so long every once in awhile in Walmart I reach with my heel to flush. Haha!

Thanks for coming this way to read the Log, I appreciate it.

Nite Shipslog

PS:

1955 Willys Jeep.

This statement was heard when this car was new:

'If they raise the minimum wage to $1.00,

Nobody will be able to hire outside help at the store. '

I hoard, and I also cook a little bit!

There are some things I just can’t throw away. As a matter of fact most things I throw away I take something off of it, if it will come apart. I know what drives some of the things. Like the other day when I took the cook top out. The knobs were good. So naturally I pulled them off and kept them. The reason is, in our other motor home the knobs had worn so you could hardly read them and I could not find replacements, so I kept these.

I have decided to put them out so the ‘walking folk’ can see them. I have some other stuff I want to give away so I will put those things out also. I save entirely too much stuff.

What is your favorite ‘splurge’ food? One you really look forward to, not because of the cost but because of the taste. I have come to love the ‘Pecan Waffle’ at the Waffle house. It just seems to hit the spot with me. Sherry likes it too.

Her special treat is the ‘Veggie Lover’s Pan Pizza’ at Pizza Hut, I love it too. It works out that we have two slices left to bring home and the most of the time we have my ‘special soup’ and a slice of pizza within the next two days.

I ‘normally’ cook (when I cook) in one pot, the pressure cooker. I tried BBQ sauce on my chicken while pressuring it the other day and it worked well. I made mashed potatoes and opened a can of sweet peas. I made gravy out of the BBQ sauce left in the cooker. I did well that time and had it all come out about the same time. I am usually not good at that.

So the pressure cooker is something I cannot throw away, I like it. Mama used a pressure cooker, I believe it was in canning (not sure) but once the regulator blew off and hit the ceiling. She didn’t even get excited. My mama was cool.

I met a Wisconsin Mama (belonging to Mel, Darla and Cher) who probably comes close to being like my mama, you can bet she is cool in tough situations!

Thanks for coming this way,

Nite Shipslog

PS:

1955 Hudson Hornet

Something that could be heard when this car was born.

'I never thought I'd see the day all our kitchen
appliances would be electric.
They are even making electric typewriters now.

Handyman and Mechanic

Being a ‘handyman’ has its advantages. It saves money, but more than that it saves time. When we rented, and something broke, if I could fix it I would. Otherwise we had to arrange for the house to be open for the repairman and usually you want to be there. That meant getting off from work etc. So I would rather fix what I can, if it’s mine or the other guys.

Mechanics are different now-days.  In days gone by a handyman could pretty well keep a car going with common sense a pair of pliers and some bailing wire. Friend Dallas once changed an Oldsmobile engine with a pair of pliers, vice grips, an adjustable wrench screw driver and a hammer.

That is me& Gary , oh yeah, Sherry to my left, Debbie and Terri!

I get frustrated because many things I cannot fix now. Most old mechanics will agree, it is not as much fun to work on the newer cars. I had the pleasure of meeting Gary, a mechanic and great guy. Indirectly I met him thru this blog. He happens to know Debbie pretty well, so he reluctantly tagged along when we met them out in Kentucky. He was relating that being a mechanic now has become more frustrating. He struck me as being a lot like me except a lot smarter ‘in mechanics’. (I couldn’t say completely smarter it would hurt my ego, but he probably is! Ha!)

This is me showing off my tool compartment to Gary. He was nice and smiled thinking (Yeah, Jack, I have that many tools in my backpocket!)  LOL (I still have that shirt and I’d bet Gary still has his!)

Gary knows what it is like to raise a hood and grunt to himself. I do the same thing, but I shut the hood and take it to a guy like Gary. He can’t shut the hood, he has to do SOMETHING. I take my hat off to a guy like that who can and must, continue to advance with the changes of the day. Me? I just tell Sherry we need to buy a 1955 car and fix it up!

I think of the advice Jimmy gave a customer, “Take it down town park it and leave the keys in it with the doors unlocked!”

I forgot my point, if there was one. Thanks for coming by the log.

Nite Shipslog

PS:

1955 MG Roadster (Loved this car, never got it though!)

Something heard the year these cars were new.

'Did you see where some baseball player just signed a contract for $75,000 a year just to play ball?
It wouldn't surprise me if someday they'll be
making more than the President.

1955 Morris Oxford

Traveling is such fun!

The things I mentioned yesterday in prep for moving is not that much in time. And yes sometimes we make a mistake. Yesterday we got a call from the last site. I had dropped my little note book I carry in my shirt pocket. We will go back to pick it up.

(From our Picture Window)

Travels have allowed us to see some BIG tourist attractions also. Just down the road from Deadwood, where Wild Bill is buried on Mt. Moriah, is this huge hole in the ground. It is 8,240 feet deep. Yes, it is a mine. Located in Lead (pronounced Leed), SD. Do you know what was mined out of this huge hole?

(Those ridges are roads going down into the hole)

a. Silver

b. Gold

c. Diamonds

d. Lithium

Just down the road is Mount Rushmore carved by Gutzon Borglum. We have the faces of four Presidents. Originally the carvings were supposed to show the men from the waist up, but the project ran out of money. Presidents George Washington and Thomas Jefferson of course are there, who are the other two?

a. Abe & Franklin Roosevelt

b. Franklin Roosevelt & Theodore Roosevelt

c. Abe & Theodore Roosevelt

d. Abe and Hoover

If you go on down the road a few more miles you find a carving in progress. Started in 1948 by Korczak Ziolkowski. He died in 1982 and his wife Ruth continues the project. Do you recognize the project and who is going to be riding that horse on that mountain?

(The white figure is how the final product will look)

a. Chief Joseph

b. Geronimo

c. Chief Sitting Bull

d. Crazy Horse

These attractions and places of interest are in the Black Hills of South Dakota. In this area is also Custer State Park a beautiful area of wild life and unique rock formations. We were there just after the winter and the animals were losing their winter coats.

Thanks for traveling along with us again, traveling is fun.

Nite Shipslog

PSa. 1. b. GOLD

2. c. Abe & Theodore Roosevelt

3. d. Crazy Horse

PS:

1955 Plymouth, I remember thinking that paint job is great.

Statement heard when this car was new:

'I'm afraid to send my kids to the movies any more..
Ever since they let Clark Gable get by with saying
DAMN in GONE WITH THE WIND,
It seems every new movie has either HELL or DAMN in it.

Moving our HOME!

We have moved again. We were on Lake Griffin in the state park. We got to go fishing one time, no hits or bites, therefore no fish (If it wasn’t tooooo cold we would go to the FISHEREE in Northern Wisconsin). We will try Lake Okahumkee next week I guess. The name should at least produce a fish, don’t you think?

During these Switches we do not travel far. Most times from 20 to 60 miles.

 

But the move is always fun. It is the same amount of work to move 20 miles as it is to move 1000 miles. It is not that much of a chore.

****Roll the awnings in.

****Then disconnect the water.

****Move the slide-outs in.

****Lower the TV antennae. (If we have raised it, most of the time we have not.).

****Dump both the black water (Sewer) and the grey water (sink & bath water).

****Take my Flags and name plates down and store them.

****Load the boat on top of the car.

****Disconnect the electric

****Raise the jacks.

**** Then I start the diesel engine to build up air pressure and raise the coach.

****While it idles, I hook the van up for towing. Yeah we tow the van, even for 20 miles. I want my Sherry up front with me. It takes about 30-45 minutes.

****After a final walk around, we are on the road again with our house.

****All the time I am outside Sherry is inside securing stuff so it won’t go flying in case we have to hit the brakes in an emergency. Doors and drawers have to be secured and noisy pans and dishes need padding, etc.

Today’s trip took us thru the ‘The Villages’, a famous retirement area here in central Florida. They are still building there.

We are back at our home park here in Florida, Three Flags. We will be here Three weeks before heading to Rainbow Springs State park, closer to the West Coast of Florida.

Thanks for coming to our move….

Nite Shipslog

PS:

Statement heard when the car below was NEW.

1955 Ford Convertable

Who would have thought gas would someday cost 29 cents a gallon. Guess we'd be better off leaving the car in the garage.

Rewards and Politics

I am tired of all these ‘rewards’ cards and coupons. Just sell the stuff at a reasonable price. I know it is a PR thing. I also know it is a ‘tax credit thing’ when you have the buy one get one free. Each ‘free’ item is charged off to advertisement.

We have never used the ‘Rewards’ the bank says we have, one day I might just get a pink Caddy, who knows?

We have all these little card thingies! No matter where I seem to shop the clerk asks if I have one of our ‘REWARDS’ cards? If I say no, they give me one or grab on from behind the counter and ring it up. I even have a Best Buy rewards card. I haven’t noticed it doing anything for me yet.

I think of rewards I think of ‘Jessie James’ or ‘Billy the Kid’.

POLITICS:

I guess the ‘State of the Union’ will be on tonight. No I won’t listen, since I don’t hear anyway.

I am getting to dislike politicians more and more. There is some kind of Constitutional Amendment Suggestion going around to limit all terms of politicians, like we do the president. I think that is a good idea, but it will never fly. Just circulating that around the internet, and it getting read, gives the impression someone if already behind it. I sure hope so, but I have not seen anything officially.

In the beginning I don’t think our founding fathers intended our country to be ran by ‘Professional Politicians’, but by good men sent there by their states who would do what they could and return home.

Thanks for coming this way.

Nite Shipslog

PS:

Statement heard when this car was new:

(1955 Dodge Royal Lancer)

'Did you see where some baseball player just signed a
contract for $75,000 a year just to play ball?
It wouldn't surprise me if someday they'll be
making more than the President.

PS2: Aol and I are about on speaking terms again!