A Walk In The Woods

I took Evan and Seth on a little hike on Thursday, about 2 miles up and back down Shady Canyon.  I told them that I had seen road runners, rabbits, eagles, lizards, and other critters; so they were disappointed as we saw only some ducks and bugs.  They had a magnifying glass and studied the bugs, seeds, and rocks.  At one point they made a pile of rocks in a small gully on the trail.  The hike is very nice and is isolated from any road.  There is a lake and vistas up there.  But they mostly like the rolly polly bugs.

Trip to North Carolina

Carol and I flew to North Carolina and spent a week with Andy, Jamie and Emma.  It was a lot of fun.  I hadn't seen Andy's house even though they have lived there almost a year.  Here is the amazing part:  Andy and I were able to make his riding mower and other gasoline powered tools work.  We took Emma to Hiro's, a Japanese eatery where the chefs put on a show in chopping and cooking the food.  We saw a 3D film called something like, "Aliens v. Monsters."  

We ARE Number One

My last post was rather negative about things here in the Golden State.  Of all the places I have lived or visited, I would rather be here. Irvine is the safest city in the country.  The city is well thought-out and has everything.  The weather is perfect, it doesn't get hot or cold or rain often.  The beach is nearby, as is Disneyland and many other great things.  

Houses cost too much, taxes are absolutely too high, our legislature is comprised of the worst people in the state, and the freeways are often crowded.  But there is no better place.

CNN today reported that New Jersey and a couple of other NE states have higher taxes than does California.  Hard to believe, but might be true.  

We're Number One!!

In the mid-Sixties, when I was in here in California, we had the best education system in the country.  JC's were free, Universities were almost free, high schools were producing scholars; freeways, houses, cars and airplanes were being built at full pace, and workers were moving in from all over the country.  

Today, the people moving in are illegals and others needing or demanding governmental help. Every year for the past several the receipts in Sacramento have increased--but spending has increased faster.  A few weeks ago our legislature, made up of the dumbest and most corrupt among us, passed the largest tax increase in the history of the republic.  That on top of a tax rate that was already among the highest in the country.  So now we are Number One again, this time in taxes.  And what has happened to our top-rated educational system during the decades of ever increasing tax receipts?  It fell 48 places.  Only Mississippi has worse schools. 

We should number one on our elected officials.

Arizona Trip part II

The day after Ardell and visited Taliesin West, we went to the Barrett-Jackson Classic Car Auction.  For those of you who have not heard of this annual event, it takes place in Scottsdale, AZ and is the mother of all such auctions.  The very best cars appear there, including old Rolls Royces, Packards, and so.  The very first 1957 Chevy was there as was the first 1957 Thunderbird.  The sellers are prohibited from having a reserve on the cars, so each one sells. There were some serious show cars, all beautiful and historic.  One among many that caught my eye was a 1942 12-cylinder Lincoln.  There were only a few 1942 cars produced due to the outbreak of the war.  Anyway, the whole experience was religious both for Ardell and for me, two car nuts.  Observations:  first, the cars were incredible; second, the prices were very low.  If I had any money, it would have been a good time to buy.  

On the way back from Arizona, Carol and I stopped at LP Racing, dropped off some parts, and looked at the car which Carol calls my "girl friend."  Lang says it should be finished about the end of February, 2009.  Lang had the steering column in, carburator on, brake system almost done, wiring almost done, and most of the parts had arrived.  The car looks great.  

Update on February 23, 2009

Carol and I went to Las Vegas over the weekend to fete Ardell and LaNetta who have now been married fifty (yes 50) years!  All of their children were there along with some grandkids and great-grand kids.  Melanie was there and we had a great time.

On the way home, Carol and I stopped and saw "my girlfriend."  The progress has slowed and I do not believe it will be done by the end of February as was the schedule.  The carburator was being set up, the tail lights are partially installed, and they figured out how to install the ash tray, which I thought would have been impossible due to lack of space in the transmission tunnel.  It looks great!

Update on March 24, 2009

Yesterday my friend, Frank, and I drove to Upland to look at my car and his 1956 Oldsmobile. We were a little disappointed as not much progress had been made.  However, our cars have, according to Lang, risen to the top of his list.  He had a 1400 horse power race car he finished over the weekend.  He promised to have the motor in my car running by the end of March.  He did not say what year.

Update on April 11, 2009

Frank and I drove to Upland again to pick up his 1956 Oldsmobile 98.  It his attempt, like my Corvette, to regain his youth.  He had a car like this in High School.  We had intended on driving the Olds home, but it was not ready.  It is beautiful and will be great for him (and for me when we go someplace in it).  

My Corvette was not finished either although I had not expected it.  Lang has made progress. One area that is driving him nuts is the exhaust manifold.  He ordered one, installed it, and started working on the exhaust system.  He then discovered that this manifold blocked the spark plugs and had to be replaced. So he had to stop working on the exhaust system and reorder.  I complained about how long it is taking to finish this car.  He agreed to have it done by the end of April. While he made the same promise about the end of February and the end of March, this time we shook on it.  Therefore, it is a binding contract and you are my witnesses. Hope to have significant news in early May.

Trip to Arizona

Carol has two wonderful sisters. One lives in Sun City, AZ, near Phoenix, and the other is a "snow bird," who spends the Winter in nearby Salome, AZ, with her husband Ardell.  The three sisters decided they needed to get together for whatever reason girls need this.  Thank goodness for another male; otherwise, I might have gone nuts.

The girls, sewed and did scrap-booking and re-lived old times.  Ardell and I hung out together and had two notable adventures:  we visited Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright's Winter home and school.  The next day we went to Barrett-Jackson and saw some cars that brought back memories from our youths, oh so long ago.

When I was in high school, I worked for a small decorating store in Idaho Falls, my home town. The owners' sons were Frank Lloyd Wright fans and it rubbed off onto me.  I love Wright's work and think his structures are the most interesting and beautiful buildings around.  His Taliesin West was built as a place to get away from the cold at his Taliesin in Wisconsin. He brought his school with him and they built the place from nothing in the desert near Scottsdale. The apprentices studying under him, and paying him for the privilege, did drafting and built the buildings by hand mostly using local rocks held together with concrete diluted with lots of sand.  In his genius way, he got a beautiful building for free and earned money while doing it.

Christmas 2008

Christmas with grandkids is almost as much fun as Christmas as a child.  Carol, Melanie, and I went to Jonny and Kimberly's early Christmas morning.  We actually got there before Evan and Seth were up.  It was nice to talk with Jonny and Kimberly but, when the boys woke up, the fun intensified.  A bike Jonny and Kimberly got for Evan was sitting in plain sight, and Evan jumped on it. Seth likes the bike too, photo to right. Emma, their cousin in North Carolina, got Seth the monkey in the top picture.  The three boys posed for a great photo, all wearing identical pajamas, in picture above.