compensating

playing with old pictures. thought this one was funny. this truck was way too big and high up. 

that's not the owner, just some goober looking under it's skirts. love that doofus "golly gee" expression he has.

i saw this truck and it's owner around the corner from here later in the day, after i'd already put my camera away. truck was parked, and the owner was getting into the car. he was waaaaay shorter than the average guy, and looked like he should have had a ladder to getup into this beast. kind of like a toddler trying to get into daddy's truck.

says it was for sale; this pic was from 2014, so i suppose someone else is now doing the compensating.

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better half had to work today. says pasadena is no place to be on new year's eve, unless you have to be there. security everywhere. he got pulled into a checkpoint and cops ran a drug dog through his vehicle before they let him go. just being vigilant, what you'd hope for the cops to be doing.

i, had the day off. didn't realize it was a company holiday until tuesday, when a coworker was asking what i'd be doing for the four day weekend. what what. car shows, dude, car shows.

took a four mile walk today, out to lunch on washington blvd, and a random route back. saw a thunderbird, and an old cadillac. 

on the way back, at hadley and whittier blvd, waiting for a walk light, watched some of the goodfellas club drive on by, the swirly script placas in the back windows...too quick to whip out my phone for a picture. i've seen them before. wondered where they were going...cruising up whittier blvd, or heading to a party. wherever, be safe.

to the dam tomorrow, possibly also to southgate...party on garth.

evening light

spent the weekend in riverside. three day car show. this is from early friday evening, when there were still not so many cars out.

just liked the way the neon played on the car. and gotta love an impala. this one was pretty nice.

later in the dark, the crowd surrounded two cars that blew fire out their pipes. they stood awfully close to two cars that blew fire out their pipes. sometimes people are stupid. nothing happened, other than a lot of noise from the engines, but it would have been interesting if they all had hot dogs on sticks to cook, i think. but that's just me.

feast for the eye

yes, i know it isn't perfect. but it is fun. aside from the obvious signs of aging, most people wouldn't give this one a second look.

rust, chipped, distressed paint may distract from the fun, but there's more to meet the eye. this is a great truck. really. it's in the details:

into the gloom

another from riverside. first day. this belongs to gary, who of course when he saw me, exclaimed, "the hood's down!!!"

i took a couple of shots of it that evening. i like this one best—it hides the port-a-potties he always seems to park in front of. i suppose that might be convenient, but they do ruin a shot.

good thing i got these pictures, though. he was there the third day, but his car wasn't; said it wouldn't start so he left it at home. bummer, dude.

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i skipped a show yesterday, and then we'd intended to go to riverside today, to the phil braybrook show, but my better half has been putting in too many hours at work, and was so tired. alarm went off at four a.m. i figured if i got up and drove out there, he'd feel obligated to go, so i stayed home and we slept some more.

instead, i went to a couple of small, local shows later, at nearby high schools. just a few cars i bothered with at both. and some confusion with my better half, who was still sleepy on the couch when i left. he didn't realize i left, and the rest of the day has been kind of 'off.' maybe after a good night's sleep, things will fall back in place.

feel free to buy a print.

early early

best time to go to a big show is before it is supposed to start, the earlier the better. especially a show out in riverside, where the daytime temperature can shoot to over a hundred degrees on a cool day. wasn't the case this year, as it was unseasonably overcast and cloudy, but i still only managed to go out early in the morning and later in the evening. stupid foot was bugging me. still is. i'll give it a few weeks then go back to the doc.

this belonged to a couple who spent the night nearby in a motorhome. poor things. really roughing it. not. he found me out behind another motorhome shooting a little pink coupe, and he headed over to uncover his car. i had no idea what was hiding behind door number three, but i was pretty happy with what was revealed. 

sun coming up, trees, and few people and cars passing by, so i was free to take whatever angle i liked.

i have one more promised car to do, if i can decide i like any of the shots. then it'll be time to get back to a nice old chevy.

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working eight hour days, but they feel like twelve. my foot still cramping my style. i went to the broiler tonight—first time in a couple of months—really going down the drain there. got there later, and still not much in the lot, so i took a few shots, chatted with my buddy angel and his friend, and left.

checkered past

i still have a couple more cars i promised before i get back to my favs. 

this one was just different than the typical hot rod. mainly the checkered paint job on the radiator and inside the engine compartment. otherwise, pretty standard hep cat.

wonder what that guy in the doorway is thinking...or the zombie to his right. neither is looking at me, nor the car. must be something driving by out of the shot.

coming & going

i spied this one driving around the circuit on the last day in riverside. i hoped i would be able to find it parked somewhere before i left.

i was across the street shooting the rambler i posted yesterday, when i spied it here across the street on the corner. i was trying to hurry from the rambler so i could get to it before they possibly took off again, but the owner of the rambler was busy telling me her story. then i watched as the owner of the car popped the hood for a crowd of guys, and i kinda slowed down. why, why?

i took a couple of shots of the rambler and headed over to this one anyway. the group had mostly left, and the guy sitting with it saw me trying to shoot the hood ornament, and offered to close the hood for me. even better i said.

his story was that the car belonged to his father-in-law, and he had fixed it up. i thought it was pretty stunning and asked if he thought it had won anything. he said, no way, there were much better cars there in his opinion. dude, this one is a beauty, have some confidence. and thanks for closing the hood.

she's a rebel

i was shooting this one because i'd never seen one before. the owner came over and asked the usual questions. then told me her hubbie had bought this for her fifty-seventh birthday. not sure if the rebel part relates to her personality, but she was very nice.

wonder what age i'd choose to be to get an age-appropriate car. i'm thinking i'm due for a chevy bomb about now...

buy a print here

sedan, i am

this is bob's pontiac. i'd seen it parked off the street in this side lot for the last couple of years that i'd been to this show. finally had the time and inclination to go over and have a look. initially, there was another car parked on this side, and i was just shooting the hood ornament. he came over and apologized that it wasn't a better ornament—said there was more to it, but someone had snapped the other pieces off at some point in the past.

then, the car next to him took off, so i had space to shoot the car. happily, he moved the dust mop thing off the hood. 

the car is showing its age, but that's fine with me. imperfections just make it that much more interesting, so don't apologize when you're car is less than perfect.

pretty fair

i spent the weekend in riverside at the show and go. not as much time at the show as i'd have liked, because my foot isn't totally healed and i could only take so much time walking around. my better half would have helped if he'd been able to be there, but no, he's still working on that deadline. missed a really great room i had over at the inn, but it worked out perfect because i could go crash when it got too hot and when i couldn't walk any farther.

i talked to several people over the three days i was there, and should they happen to be looking for their car, be patient. i have a day job, go to shows when i can, and i squeeze in the pictures here as i can get to them in the evenings if i'm not too tired. please check back—i try to put cars up of the people i talk to before others.

i took over 1,600 pictures over three days, and i've spent the evening sorting them and backing them up. so quick post now. this one belongs to jimmie. really, really clean fairlane. he was, of course, curious what i was doing behind his car and came over to chat a bit. i took a few angles of the car, but this one was my favorite. so jimmie, as i was saying, click here if you are interested in buying a print.

gotta catch some sleep now. up early for work and wondering if it's going to rain, or if the weathermen are just being incompetent as usual. but i hope they're right. my birthday is coming, and really, i just want it to rain. i'd rather it be raining and i was hearing it on the roof of a cottage in solvang, but i guess if it was just raining, that would be good enough.