My uncle is 91 , it is such a chore for him to get around I can't get him to go out for a ride anymore. Every time I stop over to visit he tells me he loves to hear the loud pipes so when I pull up in his driveway I always gun hell out of whatever I am driving(unless I drove the wifes late model Buick) Almost every time he tells me about the 58 Pontiac with Tri-power he had and how the junk-***ed va***n linkage set up stuck the end carbs in and almost killed him one time.
cool on you....thanks for making his day.....and from what I read there are more days - good on you !
I remember in 1990, my wife(expecting as well) and I drove our Model A roadster to Spokane for a regional event. We were stopped for lunch in a little mining ghost town in Montana, northwest of Yellowstone, and an older couple approached us about the A. He said he had a stock one back home and didn't get it out much. So, I took him for a run up the highway a bit, he was smiling ear to ear, and started asking how hard it would be to modify his so he could enjoy it as much. Don't know whatever happened, we were from Ontario, they from Nevada? maybe, but made his day that trip.
Ron was his name. A packer in his younger days. He helped build the Going To The Sun Road. He was missing an eye. A Veteran of WW II. I'm not sure if he looked scarier with his eye patch or without his eye patch. His laugh was menacing . He rolled his cigarette with one hand. Maybe his cigarette rolling technique had something to do with depth perception. I don't know. Ron probably learned to roll one handed while riding. He rarely listened. Why would he? I had no stories to compete. Most of the veterans are clean shaven. The staff takes good care of them. Not Ron. He looked like hell most of the time. My father-in-law had stories about him, having worked in the park. He would sleep right in the bushes and wake raring to go to work. That's all. Just drinking beer with Ron
I like when older people stop me when I'm out with my car. Mainly store parking lots and I always shoot the **** with them. Most of them get the year and model right.
The 46 Military Dodge had enough left to be able to identify it. At a light an older Lady pulled up and told me she used to build them. We pulled into the neighborhood and I took her for a ride around the block. She couldn't stop smiling. Its one of the easiest things to do, that means so much.
Just try and remember the stories that they tell, when they are gone you will never hear them again and oh the history their eyes have seen.
What a great show of respect for someone who has 'earned their stripes' so to speak. You're a good man.
I hope that this thread will inspire more of us HAMBers to share some kindness to others. It made my day reading this! Sent from my XT1585 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Oh man! What a kind , thoughtful act. Thanks for reminding me how many good people are Out there. Sent from my iPad using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I hung out with Mr. Bush and talked about going for a ride to Donut Derelicts one of these Saturdays coming up. We ended up talking for a bit about his life in General. He broke out some of his personal pics and even an old Buddy L dump truck he got new for Christmas when he was a young lad. This guy has had a fascinating life as you can see. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Well the thing of it is, that is us tomorrow. good on you. Hope someone is as kind to you when you are his age.
Thanks for all the nice words guys! I told Mr. B tonight that I posted a story about him here and that you guys were diggin the story and photos... he was all smiles ear to ear
I always take the time out to talk with the older-than-me folks. Some tell me the '59 Ford was their first car, some took their road test in one. Interesting stories and I dig them all.
Hey LBCD, Great thread and story. You are doing a very kind and generous thing for that generation. They all have/had a ton of history and personal stories filed away. On his 98th birthday, my (late) father in law, remembered the cars in the slide show that I created for him and the family. Out of all the old photographs included in the slide show, his eyes lit up when this old 1959 Chevy Station Wagon popped up on the screen. "...59 Chevy Wagon, Salton Sea, vacations and camping..." and trailed off. When the next slide showed him washing a cool looking 50 Chevy Coupe, his daughter asked if he remembered that car and house. Selective memory caused him to give back a blank stare. He did not even recognize the 47 Buick Convertible that was shown on the screen in the following slide. The more we talked to him over the years, random stories would pop up that sparked something in the son and daughters. That was very cool. There is a feeling of happiness when these older generation of folks get to remember something from their past that makes them feel proud. Jnaki At the place where he stayed in his last years, they did have an old car day(s) which brought plenty of smiles from all those that could attend. Even my grand daughter and her ballet/dance group also put on a mini concert for the "older generation." Stay connected... LBCD, great job in your idea of doing just that with your visits.
My Dad and his car club do a cruise in to a retirement home every year for father's day. You should see the look on their faces as they come out with their caretakers or their visiting family members and reminisce about what they used to drive and how their lost buddies had this or that. It's a show I do NOT miss with my father.
You area GOOD Man ! Someone said to me years ago " Be Nice to old people, remember, one day, You will be old" Hell, I'M sneaking up on old quickly, hope I have a neighbor like you and your wife in my future. Funny with time, old keeps getting older, 70 soon, now to me 80-90 is old, remember at 40-50 thought 70 was ancient, one foot in the fire, on the way to the big show.
You've done some good work there! We had a bit of a get-together recently, at a Returned Soldiers League club, the diggers came out and checked over the cars, and then the stories would come out! One fella was telling me that he had a Chevy like mine ('47), and that they made better 'roo shooting wagons than the Fords! I always listen to these guys (and gals), and I can relate to them, they usually did so much with so little.
Back when I had my Flathead T bucket I made a run to the parts store. Came out and there was an 80's-something old man really checking my car out. Took him for a quick rip down the road, pulled in a lot and told him it's his turn. He drove it so hard it was tough to hold on!! That was the best day ever for me and my car.
When I worked at the nursing home .I used to take the residents out in my Green 56 Chrysler.{I drove it to work every day}They all loved it!Bruce.
The Jalopy Journal
