Making it thrugh another year, '24-'25

[Ljohnsaw]

My first car in 1977 was a 2 door '68 Delmont 88 fastback with a 2 barrel carb. At 70 mph, the rear end would lift from the airfoil shape and get pretty squirrelly. That car had nearly equal parts steel and rust (NY State) later upgraded to 50/50 steel and Bondo.

Edit: Forgot to mention, it had a 425 engine!

[aigheadish]

That looks to have been a fun car John! Eek to the squirrellyness! My wife drove a contemporary (modern era) VW Beetle a couple years ago as a rental that felt the same way to me.

[SawyerTed]

My first car in 1978 was a 1969 Pontiac Lemans.  Awesome car and I wish I had known what I had then. 

[jb616]

My first car in 1978 was a 1969 Pontiac Lemans.  Awesome car and I wish I had known what I had then.

Same year,  1978, I had a pristine 68 Lemans...I wish I still....oh well. I also sold a 1968 GTO, 1976 TransAm, 1969 442 Convertible...SMH

[doc henderson]

I had a few nice old cars but always needed the trade in value for the next reliable car.

[aigheadish]

My first was a hand me down several times over 1981 Honda Prelude that I eventually burnt the clutch out on. 900 bucks to fix so I sent it along, which, today, makes me quite sad. It was a neat and fun little car that I did several terribly irresponsible things in. 

[GRANITEstateMP]

Tom,

Thinking about your shows and interesting items that could move rather quick, without large amounts of time to make them.  It was 4deg outside, so I'm not jumping to get out the door!

A neighbor friend, that has since moved to the other side of town, is a carpenter / framer.  He always slows way down during the winter months. He needed some cordwood, cheap, to keep his tiny shop warm so he could do something.  He didn't have the cash, but I wasn't too worried about getting paid right away, I knew he would pay when he could.  Anyways, as a thank you, when he came up with the money in early spring, he gave me a few wooden,state of NH cut outs.  He said thats some of the stuff he'd work on during winter in the shop.  He didn't have many fancy tools, but plenty of skills.  I think he cut it out on a scroll saw.


I'm not sure how he got the "old man of the mountain" inlaid.  I know he didn't have a laser/engraver, unless a friend did it for him?  I just thought it might be an idea, or maybe inspire an idea.

[aigheadish]

That's pretty cool. I would buy an Ohio one, if the price was right! Doesn't appear to be laser engraved to me, unless he went back in and cut out the burns.

[Otis1]

Stuff in the shape of a state always seems popular to some people. Here is an Adirondack chair I made for my mom's retirement several years ago. Different states seem to lend themselves to different objects like chairs, benches, cutting boards. 

First one is a pain, but if you have a template all the rest are quicker. Seems like Colorado wood be an easy one to start with. 

[Resonator]

...or Wyoming. 

[aigheadish]

Ohio!

I like the Wisconsin shape! 

[doc henderson]

Ks would be easy!

[Otis1]

Here's another idea if you have access to skis. Sometimes ski areas have old rentals laying around that you can get cheap. I've also seen them with snowboards (benches), cross country skis or water skis. 

[Old Greenhorn]

I love the chairs, which I had enough skis laying around, I have to take inventory.
 Those state shapes are neat too. I bet Hawaii would be a challenge.

Things remain slow here, I was going to read some today and enjoy the weather outside somehow. But the wife went off to town and was back in 10 minutes with a blown master cylinder. So there went my day. I moved stuff around in the shop and made room, fired up the stove and pulled the van in. The shop in town had a master, so I drove down and picked it up. Turned out to be the wrong one, wrong fitting sixes. Back to town again and the other 'option' was not in stock. On order now, be here in the morning, so another trip to town. The whole affair pretty much blew up the whole day with not much accomplished. Brining the cold van in the shop pretty much drew the thermal mass down pretty well, but it's catching up now. I'll give it another shot tomorrow.
 I had a nice thing happen this evening. But I am too tired to share it now. Lots of words involved. But it did provide the highlight of my week and some work for me to do coming up. Not business work, but fun work with hopefully, a nice reward at the end in the form of pure joy for others and myself. These things used to come along regularly, but I haven't seen one in a while, so I'll make another post when my eyes don't want to close as I type.
 A high and a low all in one day. I guess I have some kind of balance in my life now?

[WV Sawmiller]

   We are all sitting here (hear?) with bated (baited?) breath (bredth?) waiting (weighting?) to (Two, too?) see (Sea, Si?) what (watt?) you (hew, ewe) have to tell us.

[Old Greenhorn]

Howard, after these years we've shared, you should know (no?) me by now. Don't get your hopes up.  Really it's just a very personal (music) thing, but I am really so very tired tonight I can't put the keystrokes in to deliver it in a way that might have any value to even a few. I have a small life, so my little joys are really nothing in comparison to so many others here. But for me, a joy is a joy, and I do revel in that. It's just a tiny thing, but I am already deriving pleasure from it.
 Tomorrow man, I promise.

[Old Greenhorn]

Well, since COVID, followed by retirement, the life I enjoyed in the local music world, as well as on a national level sometimes has been greatly curtailed. Along with that came much reduced contact of a casual nature with local musicians that perform on the world stage. The opportunities have diminished greatly, local clubs have changed significantly and we've lost most of that 'local feel' where one could walk into a small club on a Wednesday night in February and see someone like John Sebastian, Maria Muldaur, or Happy Traum playing with friends. It just doesn't happen anymore. Making it worse is that I (we) are losing these folks as the years go by. We lost my buddy Bill, then Eric Weisberg, and just this past Year, Happy Traum. Even the non-local pros would sometimes stop in at a small local gig to visit old friends and play a few tunes. I met and enjoyed so many people on a personal level through those experiences and hanging out with Bill.
 This has left a big hole in my life, as you might guess. I still have friends in that world, some remain close, but it's not like it had been or even close.
 So last evening I got a phone call From Bill Keith's wife that was a delight to receive. We hadn't talked in a few years since Bill passed because she expressed the need for some space to reorganize her life. She told me that period is over now and she wuld love to have me drop by for a visit. After catching up on things she told me that and old friend, Thierry was trying to set up a Bill Keith Workshop at Grey Fox this summer so that he could explain and teach the nuances of what make Bill's playing unique. Thierry is likely the world's expert on this subject and among the best players in Europe right now. He lives in Belgium. As a young adult Thierry came to stay with Bill for an extended period in the 90's and then spent a summer on tour with him, going from festival to festival and living in that Tipi I now have. He also hosted or attended many of Bill's shows all over Europe. Along the way he spent his days in study, documenting and practicing those special traits Bill had, as well as learning how he thought and approached his music. For nearly 40 years now Thierry has worked on this craft and even has a website teaching the 'Keith Style' which goes well beyond that melodic style that most people think of when they here 'Keith Style'. I spent a few days with Thierry when he visited just a few months after Bill passed on. He's a marvelous player and extremely knowledgeable. I know his workshop would be a benefit to the Grey Fox patrons, but he is not very well known here in the states.
 So the point of last night's phone call was to find out who and how to make introductions to the Grey Fox Senior staff to see if Thierry could get a shot. Getting a slot at Grey Fox can takes years of hard work, doing it in just a few months, if at all, will be a tough road. Claire (Bill's wife) sent her email off last night and I will follow up with mine in a day or two. Getting involved in making something special happen at Grey Fox is something I have not done since Bill passed on. We had put together a Bill Keith Banjo Summit just before he passed and he was on stage for that. We had 8 or 9 of the best players in the world for that one covering 50 years of his music. It was a lot of work and I was so proud of being on that team and how we pulled it off. (That entire show is available on you tube in two parts, each an hour long.)
 So this is a small thing in a  big world, but it feels good to get involved on that level again. Hosting Thierry in our campsite along with friends Mike & Ruthy and their band who are performing once again, PLUS my long time friends from KY who wil be int3erviewing artists and creating radio shows, will be a super fun experience. Since I will be repeating my temporary assignment as the staffer in charge of the VIP/Artist's camping area again this year, my 'job' will be to hang out in that area for 4 days and enjoy the music and fellowship as well as make sure things go smooth and take care of the artist's needs if any arrives. Probably next year I'll have to find another job, but for this year, it's working out pretty good.

 So again, not a bid deal for anyone but me. But it does bring me a pretty good dose of joy in an otherwise boring life, so I will take it.
(See Howard, I told you.)

[WV Sawmiller]

   I'm plumb purple with excitement for you. Congratulations and I have every confidence you will be able to add this new act to Grey Fox this year.

[Old Greenhorn]

Well Howard, it's not up to me. I am not even a fly on the wall when it comes to talent selection and scheduling. When I had decided that my friends Mike, Ruth and their band would be a good fit and become popular at Grey Fox and also learned they had submitted for it several times to no avail, I started a gentle 3 year campaign to try to make it happen. I talked them up to the right people, wrangled them into conversations, shred their CD's with the key staff and none of it really worked. Finally I got cre4ative. The woman who owned the festival at the time was a big Del McCory fan and personal friend. Her favorite tune that he did was a Richard Thompson tune called '52 Vincent. There was a video of Mike and Ruth doing this as a duo, they have their own version. I sent the link off to the festival owner just saying that I knew how much she liked the tune and thought she might enjoy Mike & Ruth's version. I said nothing about getting them in the festival. A month later Mike and Ruth got the call, just like that.
 We don't have that kind of time this time, we are almost late to the party, but I will give it my best shot.  I think the timing is right on this one. Given his international travel and booking ahead, we need to get moving. But first I need to fix that master cylinder.

[Resonator]

Again I tip my hat to you Tom, with all the who's who's in music you've got to know.

a big Del McCory fan and personal friend. Her favorite tune that he did was a Richard Thompson tune called '52 Vincent.

Great song, one of the great bluegrass standards. Perfectly written ballad with a motorcycle, robbery, true love and a shotgun blast. Del and his boys nailed it out of the park, with bluegrass banjo, mandolin, and vocal singing.

Interesting side note, when made from 1948 to 1952 the Vincent Black Lightning was THE fastest production built motorcycle of its time. There's a famous photo of a stunt racer wearing a helmet and swim trunks, laying flat on his belly on the back fender, and gripping the handlebars for dear life. Setting the world speed record at the Bonneville salt flats, doing 150MPH.

[Old Greenhorn]

Just dumb luck I guess.
 I went and found that video I referred to. M&R were doing a northeast promo tour I think and did a bunch of radio studio interviews along the way.
 Is it hard to see why these are two of my most favorite people, friends, neighbors, and musicians?

edit to add: In a strange twist of fate. Eric Weisberg was a collector of rare cars and especially rare motorcycles, which he kept in running order. He had, for a time in his collection, a Vincent, but I think it was a '51.

[Wlmedley]

Said Red Molley to James that's a fine motorbike. One of my favorites also.

[Old Greenhorn]

I have seen Del perform that tune several times, I have also seen Richard Thompson perform it at least twice. Their version is by far my favorite and I have seen them perform it at least 25 times. Never get tired of it.

[Resonator]

Will say those 2 have a beautiful harmony together, and he's got the claw hammer strum mastered.

[Old Greenhorn]

Good ear Res, Ruthy 'sings like  a sparrow escaped from the city' and Mike is no slouch either. You can hear a lot of their stuff on you tube, just search for either "Mike & Ruthy" or the full band "The Mammals" You should be able to see a bunch of their headlining shows at The Hoot and some of their stage sets at Grey Fox.