Garage Cleaning

Sep 24, 2006 09:41

So... This past weekend, it was decided that the garage needed to be cleaned out and organized. One of the things that was moved onto the ramp in front of the garage was the 1947 Hudson Super Six Sedan that I requested from my dad's estate after he died. My sister was the executor of the will and it was her intention to sell the thing to a junkyard for approximately $250.00. I immediately protested that and said it couldn't happen. This car was purchased in 1947 by my grandfather. And then was passed down to my dad. It was his first car. And it was always my dad's dream to fix it up and ride in it again before he died. And he even had it set up that my cousin who does auto restoration for a living would take it and restore it. However, he died a couple months before that could happen. Needless to say, I was awarded the car from the estate.

Well, the day it got rolled out of the garage I was cleaning out a bunch of junk from inside it. Over the years of being stored it had turned into a mouse hotel. Most of the filling/stuffing of the seats was chewed out and made into little nests. The day it came to my house I managed to get the worst of it removed before rolling it into the garage. And then, I found more. So, I was crawling around inside getting rid of little mouse nests, even a little tiny skeleton or two, when I got the shit scared out of me. An older gentleman had stopped and come to look at the car. And I found out by a knock on the window which make me jump out of my skin almost since I didn't expect anyone there. lol

The first thing he asked was "Is this your car?" And I was tempted to say, "No, belongs to the neighbors," but of course I said "Yes." He proceeded to launch into a story of how he could remember his dad buying the same car. And then started up with more anecdotes and little tales. I paid attention to him because he knew alot about the car and I am always looking for more about the particular model since it's not a very popular one. And then, of course, he asked if I was willing to part with it. And no, I certainly am not. Yes, I could sell it and get a few bucks to pay towards bills. But, I can't bring myself to consider that option. The car meant alot to my dad and therefore it means just as much to me. Call me a sentimental fool over an old car, but that's what I am. It's a part of my dad and I just want to keep it. Who knows if I will ever get to restore it, but it's a nice dream to have.

It was interesting to talk to the man. He was definitely a store of information. I think I stood out there with him for almost 2 hours. That didn't help me get done with what I wanted to do, but I didn't care. He told me many things I just didn't know and probably would have never been able to find out about the Hudson company. I felt like asking him to stop for a moment so I could run into the house and grab a notebok to jot notes down in... hehehe And it was nice to see the smile on his face and the extremely animated expressions on his face as he remembered bits and pieces of history. It ended up that he gave me his name and number and he asked me to call him if and when I got around to working on the car. "If I am still alive at that point, I would love to watch, maybe help." So, I took his name and number and put it in the file I started on the car. And hopefully, I will be able to call him someday. :D

I do know, that if I have questions, I will be calling him. He was such a nice man and actually lives only 5 blocks down the street. It is surprising the things you can learn when you don't expect to.
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