Yup, yup, yup,,,, A feller shuda called his friends,,, all it would have cost was some pizza,,, And if you were a Rod Rider, you would have received the Dumb Shit Award for the month,,,,,,
Having done some growing up in Maine, getting stuck is a quite common thing. People would stop and help anyone in a ditch or mired on the side of the road. Hell, in college, I had a '76 Jeep Wagoneer and a tow strap and I'd go around campus looking for the hopelessly stuck, good beer money.
As I reflect on my 50+ years of hotrodding many of my friends don't understand why I don't go to every rodeo possible. I think it's the almost 20 years I spent on the road doing 8-10 shows a summer selling my products and traveling from coast to coast. After probably 40+ cars with everything from turn keys to package roadsters I find myself like you enjoying my solace and struggles. I'm as content to take my ride for an afternoon journey alone or working on a customers chassis in the shop as I would be sitting in my lawn chair at a show. I guess I to have became hermit?
Maybe we can organize this hermit thing into a club of it's own...Nah, we wouldn't go to any of the meetings. I couldn't have come up with a better description than "Family free Saturday". I live for the few hours a week I can spend undisturbed in the garage. But knowing when we need help is a sign of ever elusive wisdom.
I know up here on my mountain top home.I usually have to work on cars by my self. Asking for help from my step son is like pulling teeth. LOL. But if I ever break down on the main roads with one of my old cars people pull over right away to see if I need help. I guess that's why they call us the Volunteer state. Bruce.
I have an old Craftsman table saw. Old enuff that it has the cast iron table. In my younger days I could belly up to it just right and pick it up, set it in the pickup. Well that was maybe 15-20 years ago. Now I'm a back surgery and 4 discs later unable to do such heroics, and I know better. Still, I tried my best to get it on the tailgate and just let the weight do the work once up there. I should mention the other truck wasn't a 4X4 dually either. A lowly 1/2 ton much lower to the ground. I texted my associate to slide by and give me a hand on his way into the shop. 45 min later no reply, now I'm angry and determined, "...I'll get this fucker loaded myself dammit!" Stuck a floor jack under it, with a little balance and enough trickery to make a circus performer jealous I got it in there. So I decide I'll text him back, "Forget it, I got it." only to find I never hit 'send' on the 1st message. Lesson being, you actually must ask to get the help. Technology is awesome, huh? That was 2 days ago and I am paying a little in pain and angst.
g EL Caballo when I lived in Wilmington .N.C. on the weekends I would do the same thing with my wagoner while fishing or crabbing. There 3 beaches in the area and on the weekend tourists always were getting stuck in the sand. They were always were glad to give me a tip just to get them unstuck.Kept me in beer and pizza and gas too with that gas sucking jeep.LOL.. .Bruce.
i do my best and most work when i am left alone. that said: i could have put the motor in myself but what fun would that have been........
I just Turned 30 on Monday so it may be the younger guy in me, but as much as I love everything about what I do for a living and this lifestyle in general. I just don't enjoy it nearly as much unless I have someone with me. I can't get motivated to work on my personal projects unless I have a buddy around to shoot the shit with while we get some stuff done.
I'm 31 and I do and like doing everything solo, if you want a friend get a dog. Sent from my SM-J700T1 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
There are times for me when help is really appreciated, but sometimes too much help is a pain, everybody has an opinion on what you should do. So that's when I get in superviser mode. As a rule I like to work alone and my wife is a amazing helper when I need 3 hands,,she also no,s the right time's for beverages and snacks.
Add ahother 30 years to your life and you got me .Then you will take the help if you can get it.LOL.Bruce.
Remember...."The older I gets, the better I was"... After spending some time in hospitals and trying to avoid any more, sometimes I look at a job and remember the pain that the last one gave me....and then I find something else to finish, and wait for a buddy to visit and help. I just leave a couple of beers near the front gate and it brings them in, like flies to shit....
I work alone fulltime, I do my best work by myself, that being said, every so often I need some help. My wife helps out when I need an extra set of hands steadying a hood while punching louvers. Once and a while I'll need a hand taking a frame off the table. I'm lucky I have a couple of close friends close by, they'll come by, give me hand, have a cold one and see what I'm working on. We're a pretty close group, I've always been more of a 4 quarters kind of guy than a hundred pennies, if you know what I mean.
I usually work alone- I actually prefer it that way- but sometimes you need a hand and you have to be creative. Example- A couple years back I needed help to lift the box off my pickup truck and I was home alone ... what to do? My neighbor's kid and his buddies were shooting hoops in his driveway. Most 16-17 year olds would shy away- I walked over and gave them a challenge I bet you guys a pizza you wimps can't lift the box off that truck ! 10 minutes later the box was on saw horses and I was placing their order Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
There oughta be an old( blank a te blank ) club, as it is like we take turns sitting in a chair as moral support for each other. Some friends show up and i get more things done, to return the favor i go to their shops, and sit in a chair ( ya right ). How does one explain this phenomena, do the OLD get revitalized around the young (active). Heck i'd take 10 no 20 youngins and go out and whip the world , if they'd just show up on time and sober. clickety clack rant off...
Its that other guy thing like asking for directions.Dont want to bother someone etc. I too work for the most part alone at my real job. What goes on is my responsibility.I also like to escape to my shop and do my own thing. My wife and son are kind of that way too. When the heavy is on though you have to ask for some help.If you are lucky enough to have friends and the like that will actually show up and on time ,take advantage of that for sure.Dont be found dead under something because you got stubborn. And dont forget, and this was on another thread here, Make sure you thank those that helped!! My son is 24 and still at home. He is my #1 guy. I really hope when he buys a house that its not too far away or Iam sunk.Its amazing what a case a beer and a couple buddies can get done!!
I've done my share of dinging grilles and fenders pulling cars around with a tractor and no body in the seat to hit the brake. I do work alone most of the time. I have the tractor, chainfalls and a lift to pick shit up. If I get lonely I talk to the dog.
I've been using that quote for my tag line since I joined in '09 I always work alone, I also tried being a car club guy a few times, never seems to work out for me.
seems like a good time to whip out the old Groucho Marx quote; "I don't want to belong to any club that would accept me as a member."
Im 64 and have always done things myself...pisses my wife off, but I almost never call anyone for help, though sometimes I get done and while Im recuperating think....next time Im callin someone....but I never do.
I spent many years working alone. Now my oldest son is my right hand man. He's worked with me for real since he was about 10. Knows my tools and what I want. We communicate well without wasting time. Sometimes I do have to call for assistance from more bodies for larger items. More people, more talking, less gets done, but the large item is moved and once everybody leaves I can get back to accomplishing something. Devin
Hello, I remember that when friends dropped by to watch our 40 Willys build in 1960. It was a little nerve-racking. When more people dropped by, work slowed, just to do little things. You had to answer questions, put a spring in the head, talk to others, tighten to correct specs and so on. It was very slow and tedious. But, the camaraderie was priceless teenage stuff, so it was acceptable. When our friends left, then work moved along smoothly without any mistakes or errors. No outside interruptions. But, it was usually a long night of work for us. Entertain first, bring out our mom’s great cooking snacks, laugh, joke around and lose time from the build. This went along until someone that knew what they were doing came along and pointed out that we did not add…etc. Then it was jump around and get it done with that guy’s help, of course. We did not have time to race our 58 Impala very much because of the time spent doing this Willys build. Plus, those new stock cars had 45+ more HP than we did , so we were outclassed in the same A/Stock class. That was ok, because, it was a topic discussed while working on the Willys. The unfairness of a stock car with 45 less horsepower being in the same class as those two year newer models with bigger motors... Jnaki Friendships are priceless and time spent with them cannot be pushed aside. Plus, everyone liked that my mom always brought out “special” stuff to eat and it was gone in a flash… “Hey, lets go to Nak’s house for dinner…” HA…
The Jalopy Journal
