maipenrai

Well, I know the guy who originally brought this car north from California in the '70s - not the present owner because he was forced to sell it through divorce, along with other interesting cars he owned - but I figure he probably added these "defacing" safety features so he would feel more comfortable giving his small daughters and her friends rides around town in the car; then again, perhaps the car already had them thanks to a former owner who had similar concerns - do you want a museum piece or do you want a driveable car? I think you are the real "airbag" here.....

And now for something completely different....this lovely old 1937 Packard was in my buddy's autobody shop for a touch-up the other day:

I left my dirt bike a little too late to put away properly for the winter and had to warm it up to start it, using this old tent and heater I salvaged from my workplace years ago; the joys of preparing for winter....

I've been favouring this brand of spiced rum for some time now as it is much cheaper than Kraken, Bayou or Sailor Jerry but still tastes good - I went to our local gov't run liquor store to pick up a bottle last weekend and found it with the fancy new label and paper advertising sleeve and sure enough, it's now $3 more than it was before....

Just relaxing at the end of a good and productive day and feeling happy that the flu that has dogged me for the last three days or so is finally lifting....

288 GTO, very rare indeed at only 272 examples manufactured...

Now we're talking - never mind the bloody choppers or equally ugly modern crotch rockets, this bike is MY definition of two-wheeled nirvana....would love to hear it run and I'll bet it drives as well as it looks...TFP.....

Twenty days to wheels-up - and the time will go by quickly....

Well, the snow has finally stopped so I'm gonna go outside and clear my driveways and walkways, then I'm going to fill a few sandbags for weight in the back of my little pickup; later I'll go to the nearest Post Office station and get what I need to send my passport out to the Thai Consulate in Vancouver for my 60 day visa....

Just getting ready to head off to my local for a few pints with my mates - at 1440 the thermometer still hasn't gotten above 0C, yesterday's snow hasn't completely melted yet and now we have another 2-4cm promised for overnight...way too early for this time of year but on the brighter side, I finished my seasonal employment on Friday so now I can concentrate on getting home and affairs in order before I head off to Pattaya again...

Well, I sure hope you do because I would love to meet you, Ray - best wishes to you.....

50 days until wheels-up....

My first new dirt bike, a 1977 Maico 400WR:

Another great name from rock'n'roll passes on: https://etcanada.com/news/507056/lead-singer-of-the-cars-ric-ocasek-dead-at-75/?fbclid=IwAR1eh7bNgbgLVt5VPl1NNU0ussudD7A0SOLYJqyN0ZMdGe4vqPaBQeqj1wE Not only was this guy an outstanding musician and songwriter, he was also married to one of the most beautiful women in the world for 28 years.....

I was always more of a dirt rider - still really don't like street riding that much - and this is one I wish I had kept; 1983 Husqvarna SC500, desert bike with 6sp transmission and 100mph top speed, last of the classic metal tank, twin shock Huskies: -and this is the craziest bike I ever owned, a 1991 Honda CR500 - I didn't keep it long, was just too much and wasn't suited to the cross-country riding I preferred:

A couple of classics I've owned over the years:

The other car is a 365GTB4 Daytona, the last real front-engined Ferrari GT - it was superseded by the 365BB, or "Berlinetta Boxer" that was a mid-engined model with a flat-12 motor. I was a Ferrari nut from childhood, and had an Airfix model of the original 250GTO that was sent to me by my English grandma back in the day - it was a lovely model and very well detailed and I am sure would be a collector's item today. Ironically, in my youth some classic Ferrari models- mainly the 2+2's - from the '60s were actually quite reasonably priced and if I hadn't lived virtually in the middle of nowhere, I might have taken a chance on one....kudos to you for actually owing one back in the day....

A pair of my favourite Ferraris:

I must admit that I got off to a slow start on this forum while I watched the "Shhh" forum die its slow death but I'm enjoying it now....

Sitting here on Saturday morning listening to the weekly "Buy and Sell" phone-in program on the radio - I just love it, I seldom buy or sell anything but some of the idiots that call in really crack me up.....a real cross-section of humanity...

Cold, clear morning which means that it's going to be a lovely sunny day later - and the weather office promises us a week more of this stuff. We used to call this "Indian Summer" but in today's PC world it's probably better to say "Aboriginal Autumn", 555...

We'll probably start as the former and finish as the latter, 555.....

When people at home ask me, "isn't it dangerous over there?" I reply that the only danger I ever encounter in Thailand is crossing busy roads on foot every day....you really have to pay attention and you can't take any driver's potential actions for granted; here in my corner of Canada, the pedestrian is God and can bring four lanes of traffic to a screeching (or sliding, in winter) halt at a crosswalk and then amble across taking their own sweet time about it - I'd like to see them try that in BKK or Pattaya, lol..... As for Passion Club, it's only about a 5-7 minute walk in from the Hanuman statue - just keep your eyes open because the sign at the end where you turn right is quite small; it's a nice little place and there are often some good lookers working there too. You should grab a taxi and make it out to Blush, as well - it's pretty impressive since its recent makeover...too bad I wasn't there right now, I'd take you on a tour of Jomtien clubs....

I've stayed in that area many times myself and that Thappraya/Thepprasit junction always gives me the willies too....