On The Road Again... sorta

Part 3 of the series

I waited until I got home to discuss the Jeep option with my wife, Diana. Discuss is a loose term here because I wasn't sure that Irma would take it to heart that the Jeep was for my daughter and sell it to me for the $600.00 I was going to offer. It seems to me, looking back, that terms like "needs work" and "not that bad" were bantered about from my end and terms like "not running" and "money pit" were fairly regular replies from my wife's side.

I have to admit that I had already made up my mind. The math, by my estimations, was right. (see my 2nd post for details) I couldn't get hurt on this vehicle. Even if it all blew up, as long as I had sense enough to sell it when I needed to, and my daughter understood this, we (I) would be OK. So I sent an email offering the $600.

Amazingly, within an hour I had got a reply. Irma had to speak to the (now deceased) owners son to ensure he was OK with the sale, but if it was, the Jeep was mine.  I completely understand this, but the waiting was kinda rough. The Jeep was going to need to be towed, and I couldn't pay for a tow. There was only one man I knew with the trailer and truck for the job - Don. So I called Don. 

Let me go off on a tangent here and tell you a little about Don. Do you know anyone with a 50s Diner in their back yard? I mean a real honest-to-goodness 50's Diner. How about someone with about 30 classic cars, parked all shiny and full of awesome, inside a warehouse - in their back yard. Not just a warehouse, but an ever growing and improving building full of wonderful. Storefront facades of a custom rod shop, general store, church, toy store, gas station, and an elevator that will eventually lead to what I can only guess will be the ultimate man-cave ever created, all inside the warehouse in his back yard. A wall full of awards,trophies, and pure win from his auto-body and towing days. To top it all off, hes got a full-on garage with about 4 lifts and more tools than the local Autozone store. Ya, Don is a car guy. To say Don's a great guy is like saying gold is a metal. Don didn't hesitate. He agreed to help out with the tow. Thanks again Don. 

Don, driving to the Jeep (that's his best side)

Irma called, the son agreed, and the game was on! My Daughter called up her boyfriend, Kyle, I left work early and we all met up at Don's house Friday afternoon to go tow the car in. Don had Andy with him cleaning out the house garage, another car nut that does a lot of Don's finish carpentry and miscellaneous skilled jobs on the property. They hooked up the trailer and we all piled into Don's Ford for the ride out. 

Kassie and Kyle -All full of "excitement" sitting in traffic on the way out.

 Other than an extra hour of traffic heading out to Victorville to get the jeep, the trip out was, well, boring. Don and Andy pointed out every classic ar in either direction and Kyle and Kassie sat in eerie silence. Me? I was nervous that two "car" guys were going to rip into me for not seeing something that made the Jeep a waste of money - even at $600.


We got to the Jeep. I met Irma and her husband, paid for the Jeep, got the paperwork, as Don and Andy set about getting it, and it's flat tire, onto the trailer.  Luckily, the trailer had a winch, and I rode in the jeep, steering badly, as it slowly crept up the ramps. A few "rocking it back and forth" maneuvers later, and we had our prize.

Kassie and Kyle. First time seeing and sitting in the Jeep.

I tried to give Don some money for gas, but he would have none of it. Don, for friends, gets paid in Diet Coke apparently.  We stopped at the local Carl's Jr. and I bought everyone a round of nice tasty beverages. 

More Stuff

Pulling out of the Carl's Jr. we took an alley behind some businesses. As luck would have it, Don spotted a huge Bridgestone sign laying against a building. He and Andy bantered back and forth about if they thought the owner would sell it as we waited in line to get on the freeway home. Before we were much further than down the on-ramp, Andy had the number of the tire shop on his phone. (Google for the win!) They elected me to negotiate for it. It was really hard to get them to sell it. It went something like this, "We just saw a large Bridgestone sign out back of your place. What are you going to do with it?" John, the manager replied, "Sell it." "oh" I replied a little stunned "how much" A quick response of " they sell new for $3000, but we're selling that one for $250. We have 2 of them. Come take a look." ... Next off-ramp, we turned around, and after some creative positioning and strapping down, Don had a new sign for his warehouse full of wonderful. On a side note, the sign was about 20 feet long and about 4 feet tall.... and that fits easily into his warehouse... in his back yard. Ya, Don's a car guy.