So... Once Upon a Time...

[Poppy]

bykfixer,
I really enjoy your stories too :thumbsup:
That's a pretty ingenious way to light up the tree.

A few weeks ago, we took the kids to see the Radio City Music Hall, Rockettes, Christmas Spectacular. And right across the street was the Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center that was wrapped in scaffolding so that they could dress the tree. I didn't see anyone with fishing poles

Tre_Asay,
Yeah, when I read your post, where you said that you could relate... I chuckled to myself, and wanted to comment but didn't want to discourage you from participating, but since bykfixer already did, here it comes. Nah my friend.... you haven't a clue. It's the accumulation of injuries, and degenerative changes that occur that really put you down. My advice.... accumulate as few injuries as possible.

Talking about acoustic memories...
back in the day when air conditioning meant... "open the window" I have many memories of my uncle playing his reel to reel tape player with all kinds of Polkas... "The Beer Barrel Polka" and "She's Too Fat For Me!" LOL... that's before the days when we became so politically correct, that we can't even say....

 

[bykfixer]

^^ my brother used to use a reel to reel back in the days when to attain any sort of bass, furniture sized speakers were normal.

Ahhhh, the good ole days.
Back when nearby radio antenas signals bled into your electronics, so your doobie bros recording had a hint of a nascar race in the back ground...

Sounded something like this...
"Jesus is just alright, oh yeah" (quiet passage with only bongos part) "Donnie Allison and Cale Yarbough are nose to nose in the infield!"

^^ Note; you have to be old to understand what any of that means...
Old like when tube tv meant actual vacuum tubes..not picture tube tv's that the local best buy kid calls 'tube tv's'.

 

[Poppy]

^^ my brother used to use a reel to reel back in the days when to attain any sort of bass, furniture sized speakers were normal.

<SNIP>
^^ Note; you have to be old to understand what any of that means...
Old like when tube tv meant actual vacuum tubes..not picture tube tv's that the local best buy kid calls 'tube tv's'.

LOL... you're talking audio components, and vacuum tubes, and 6AU6 popped into my head. It's amazing what kind of information our brains might store.

Back in the day when places like Nidisco, and Radio Shack, were actually manned by radio and electronic geeks, my dad would try to fix our TVs before calling in a tech. He used to pull tubes and test them at home, and occasionally have to bring an odd ball tube to Nidisco to have it tested. Often when he was troubleshooting something, he'd have me sitting next to him, holding the flashlight for him. Of course I had to pay attention to what he was doing, or the light would wander off target, and I'd get yelled at.

When working on something mechanical, again... I'd be holding the light, and hear this now and again... "You know, the sign of a good helper is that he'll have the next tool in hand to give it to the mechanic, before the mechanic actually needs it." That was his way to teach me. I had to watch what he was doing, follow his train of thought, think of what the next step might be, and how to go about it and then have the tool in hand.

Sometimes I'll take things apart that I am throwing away, just to see how it was designed.

 

[bykfixer]

^^ amen brother.

I hated it when my pop had to fix the tv again. Hated it for him anyway. He worked in a factory around molten metal all day then had to fix the stupid tv so he could watch Walter Cronkite tell bulls@#+ about how awfully our nasty ole troops in Nam were treating those poor vietkong....
I learned not to trust the press at a young age.
Anyway...
My pop had number sticker on each tube. Like your pop he did the diy thing, and yelled when the flashlight wandered off target.
One year we got a solid state tv. I still have some old hot wheels cars with a tube number sticker on the door of it

You mention having the next tool ready...today I was helping my son work on his car. A couple of times I'd jump in. You know, impatient dad thing....
And when it was time for a different tool he had it ready. I was dang proud of him. I don't recall teaching him that.
My pop expected me to know what tool he needed next. He was a diehard Ford guy. So it didn't take long to know which tools he'd need and when.
I suppose that's why I became a Ford guy...I knew what breaks and how to fix it since Ford will muck around and use the same flawed part for 30 years. lol.

Dawg gone Poppy. It's sounds like we grew up on the same street. A street where you knew not to screw up when the neighbors were looking. Cause they'd give you a good chewing or a couple of whacks, then tell your parents. We weren't scared of the cops. We were scared the cops would tell our folks.
One day this guy down the street with a cool Impala went to war and never returned.
The first 2 weeks of summer break seemed like forever but the last 6 flew by.
Air conditioning? Only rich people had those.
Color tv? Only rich people had those too. But ours had a clicky remote control that changed the channel...all 3. lol

Ahhh the good ole days.
When pot was a cooking utensil and coke was a soft drink.

 

[scout24]

Tre Asay- Stretch all you can now... I was indestructable at 18, 28, a bit less at 38. Not so much staring at 48... Mechanic for 25 years, I am in physical therapy now after rupturing a lumbar disc in my back a couple months ago. Two more bulging, a bunch of degenerative associated wear and tear according to the MRI. Started wondering a few years ago why the first 10 minutes out of bed in the morning had me hobbling around like an old man. Dad was right, work smart, not hard. Wish I could tell him I get it now...

 

[Poppy]

scout24,
I am sure that he knows, and so my Christmas wish for you, is that YOU KNOW that he knows. I am sorry that you can't tell him directly, and see him nod his head, with a little knowing grin.

Merry Christmas.

Oh... have you ever done any Klondike Derby/s with the kids?
Our cub den has one coming up in January, and it will be our first time, and the camping trip where we would have taught the kids some of the principles/tasks they'll need, was cancelled due to really nasty weather.

 

[bykfixer]

Tre Asay- Stretch all you can now... I was indestructable at 18, 28, a bit less at 38. Not so much staring at 48... Mechanic for 25 years, I am in physical therapy now after rupturing a lumbar disc in my back a couple months ago. Two more bulging, a bunch of degenerative associated wear and tear according to the MRI. Started wondering a few years ago why the first 10 minutes out of bed in the morning had me hobbling around like an old man. Dad was right, work smart, not hard. Wish I could tell him I get it now...

Eh,
Your pop is likely looking down from that big telescope in the sky going "kids...can't tell 'em anything".
Then he smiles and tells an angel "that's my son" and grabs a fishing pole to use in the great big pond in the sky, knowing his boy turned ok.

Hope you get better soon and the therapy works.

 

[scout24]

You're both too kind... Aaah, the Klondike Derby. Some years we has snow, some years not. The kids always have a good time. Layer up, no cotton clothing, make sure they drink a bunch of water if they're running around sweating. Winter camping was almost always a treat!

 

[bykfixer]

So it's nearly Christmas.

Anybody got a memorable Christmas morning story?

All of mine are special.
Yet one from my youth sticks out.
It was the year I discovered 'dad' was Santa.


It was around 1973.

I was awakened by tools clanking and peaked around the corner to see my pop assembling a new 20" columbia 3 speed. No sleep after that.

The next morning I'm all anxious to wake the folks. Well they weren't up to rising at 5am. What's a wide awake kid to do? Go wake up your brother and get him to hassle the grownups!!!

At some point my folks arose and we got to open our usual socks, long johns, am radio and what-not. But that bike....

It was time to go on the maiden voyage. I'm walking it out and hear my dad saying "take the brakes off and I'll never"... I was out in the garage pulling off the brakes before he'd finished saying if I modified it he'd not help me fix it back.

It seems like every kid in the neighborhood got a new bike that year. Some were choppers, some had ram handle bars and others had road bikes.
But I had a brakeless Columbia, and by now had swapped the handle bars to motorcycle type.
Evel Knevel would be proud I thought.

Eventually that bike became one of the first real bmx type bicycles in my area and that Columbia frame held up to a whole lot of abuse. Motorcycle style handle bars, 10 speed mini seat and heavy duty wheels with knobby tires. At one point I'd begun experimenting with differing cog sizes and crank arm lengths. This was oh, say '76/77?
Other kids got bmx bikes for Christmas but I still had that Columbia. It was fast and durable. Then one night our garage burned to the ground. So much for the Columbia.
Yet by then skateboarding had stolen all of my thoughts and energy.
That's another story that causes certain body parts to be weather predictors these days.

CPF

 

[Poppy]

During the early 1990s, my wife and I used to run a toy drive for about 25-30 children who lived in a home for battered and abused children. We picked up a few Sears Christmas Catalogs, and let each child select toys totaling $50. If we didn't have enough donators, we'd make up the difference. A Police officer friend had a professional Santa suit, and would deliver the gifts to the kids at a party.

Of course, when at the party, he would see my kids, and know them by name. That was special. :thumbsup:

We used to take the kids to a Mall for pictures with Santa, and while I don't know for sure if he was the REAL Santa, or not, but he sure looked like the one who did all of those Coke commercials at the time. Real beard, rosey cheeks, and he really filled out his suit. Well... just to be sure that he REMEMBERED my kids names, I would be the first in line to go sit on his lap, and remind him of their names, and why he knew them in particular... (he helped my wife and I with the toy drive).

One year, my wife made arrangements with two or three other couples to meet in NYC, and see the Tree at Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick's Cathedral, the windows at Macy's, and most importantly... to have Breakfast with Santa! Of course my daughter would know that he wasn't the REAL Santa, if he didn't recognize her, so before he got to our table, I had to chat with him.

When he came to her table, and called her by name, I hope I never forget how brilliantly she BEAMED and delightedly explained to her friends why Santa knew her in particular. She wasn't bragging, she just wanted to explain, so the other kids didn't feel badly.

Last week my daughter and I took her kids to NYC, and we did the tour. When we met with Santa, in Macys, I asked her if she was going to sit on his lap first, and she said, no. lol... she DID speak with one of the elves though.

 

[Poppy]

My first dentist was an old-timer with OLD slow, painful drills, that just grinded away at the cavities in your teeth, and when the pain got too much we had to raise our hand. Sometimes if he was going to do a lot of work, he would use Novocain. Then he really went to town, and I could feel my jaw vibrating, and smell something burning as he ground away.

Yeah, it was a blessing when he, either died, or retired, but at any rate we switched to a new, young dentist who had just bought all new equipment. Vacuum suction, water cooled, high speed drills, with sharp drill bits! He was young and caring... a nice guy.

I believe that it is said that Dentists have the highest suicidal rate of all professionals. It's been explained to me that it is because they bring pain to their patients, most patients are afraid to go to them, and their world in within a few square inches, all the while looking at a wide eyed, person who is in a near panic state, afraid they are going to be suddenly hurt!

Slowly, but gradually this new, nice dentist, became a little less patient, and wasn't as friendly. And just like the song (Some Beach) he'd often start drilling before I was numb. Regardless, his practice grew, and he had to take on a new young doctor. He was a really nice guy, always with entertaining stories to tell. He also always had a tan, because he would take week-end trips to various islands. We don't get winter tans, here in New Jersey At any rate, more often then not, our family saw this new guy. He'd use novocain, and be patient, and wouldn't start drilling unless we were ready to go. :thumbsup:

One day, I was out in the waiting room.
I heard that un-nerving sound of that high speed drill,
AND the sounds of a very uncomfortable patient.
Oh... he was grunting, and errh! ERRHH!!! AAAGGGHHHH!!!! ing, and the drill continued to whine!!!
Oh... my heart started beating faster and harder, and I started taking deeper, and slower breaths...
Close your eyes... deep breath IN... slowly exhale.... oh no.... OPEN your eyes, fix them on that picture of the sail boat and the beach. Deep breath.
OK... that's a bit better. Finally that poor tortured patient was finished... Oh NO! I'm next!

As I walked by the first dental chair to mine, I looked into the room, and who was in the chair?



The other dentist! Yep, the one who became ornery and didn't wait for the Novocain to kick in.


Lol... what goes around, comes around.
I sat in the chair with a smile on my face and a cavity waiting to be filled.
You see... there is such a thing as Karma

 

[bykfixer]

Love the end!
Karma is a ______ (you fill in blank)
No pun intended.

 

[bykfixer]

Once upon a time there was this winter storm called Jonas...

Apparently something coasters in New Jersey and Delaware won't soon forget...

 

[TEEJ]

Jonas is a whale of a storm.

 

[bykfixer]

I haven't watched tv in 10+ years. But looking at my radar the storm had seemingly passed...but it was snowing even harder. Whut-thuh?!

So I pulled up some video feed on the phone to see why and saw that some of what was replaced after Sandy is gone again.

Not so far from me...Aseteague Island had been pounded over night by 85mph! wind gusts and parts of Delaware might now be located somewhere north east of the Hamptons.

I'll know Monday what was what... For now we're just dealing with the whiplash effect of it where I am.
It drizzled all night here, so the 6-8" of snow had a 3/4" ceramic hard glaze over it. But that's now buried under the eh, 3-4 more additional inches (so far)

 

[Poppy]

Another Christmas story:

It seems that each year there's a gift that Santa can't bring, so it is up to the parents to get. Yes... it is that ONE gift that is virtually unobtainable. Maybe a few are available on ebay at five times their cost. You know what I mean.

Well one year, at the last moment, it was decided that my son wanted one of those 2'x3'x4'High work bench with hanging tools. It was primarily plastic and bulky.

Well, my wife was determined that we were going to get this. She must have called 50 stores, and found a Macy's, 40 miles away in a huge six anchor store mall, (about 150 smaller stores too). The mall had multiple parking lots, acres of lots. All jammed full of cars. It was the last weekend before Christmas. Traffic was bumper to bumper, through-out the lot and in the four lane road that ran around the perimeter of the lots.

The gal at Macy's promised to hold onto the work-bench, it was the last one that they had, she would hold it until she left for lunch at 1:00. I was working that Saturday morning, and closed the office a little early so that I would have over an hour to get there. Oh... boy! It took a little longer than expected, with all the traffic and all, and from the looks of those parking lots, it might take an hour to find a spot.

OK... get off property. Ah... here's a pretty empty lot. An electronic trade school. I'll just pull in here and walk over.
Hmmm shucks... a six foot cyclone fence surrounds the property. Ah... there's a split in the fence near one corner. OK, so I step on through, then up the embankment, across the rail road tracks, down the ravine, three steps on rocks (across the brook) back up the other side of the ravine, over the guard rail, across four lanes of slow moving traffic, across acres of parking lot, into the mall, find my way to Macy's, and finally to the counter. Whew... just in time!

OH NOooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!
Look at the size of that box!!!!!

It's like the size of a dish-washer. If I try to carry it in front of me, I won't be able to see where I am going. OK... so up on my right shoulder like a case of water. I have to lean about 30 degrees to the left to somewhat balance it. Ouch, the edge of the box is digging into my neck. Alright dad... suck it up.

So I make it out of Macy's across the parking lot, and I can only see directly in front of me, and to the left, but not the right, because I have this big friggen box on my shoulder. I make it to the edge of the lot, and step out into the road. I could see the traffic stop for me on the left. I cross two lanes of traffic, and pray that God is with me and stops traffic coming from the right, because I can't see them. Fingers crossed.... here I go!

OK... across all four lanes of traffic, place the box on the other side of the guard rail, slide down the ravine, with it sliding behind me. Pick it up, back onto my shoulder, across the brook, back up the other side of the ravine, across the rail road tracks, and through the fence. Toss that box into the back of the minivan, and back on the road home.

The things we do for our kids, eh?

 

[Poppy]

Yesterday I was reminded of a story when I saw my friend get out of his car with is doctor's bag in hand, but it was a denier nylon/leather combo rather than his traditional black leather bag. $15 for this... and over a $100 to take the other to a leather smith to be repaired. He knows of one who works with a shoe-maker.

Of course, I had to tell him that if I didn't fix something right, or someone else didn't, my Dad might comment... "What kind of a shoe-maker job did you do there?" or "What the Hell kind of a shoe-maker are you?" well... you get the picture.

When my daughter was about 12 years old, she was taking a tap class, and needed a new set of tap shoes. Well you buy the shoes, and then the taps, and put them on. Really a simple task. The taps come pre-drilled, and counter sunk so that the tapered flat head screws are a little recessed. My wife being the perfectionist that she is, and me being the "just get it done" kind of guy, she didn't believe that I could do good enough a job, and they had to be installed by a "professional" someone "who knows what he is doing!"

OK, so there is a shoe maker 10 minutes away, and he agrees to install the taps. Just drop the shoes off and pick them up at the end of the week.

A week later, I pay and pick up the shoes.

My daughter goes to class, puts them on, and is tripping all over the place. Her taps aren't sliding, they are getting stuck to the floor.

I said... let me take a look at them. I couldn't believe it. The professional! He put the taps on upside down so that the recessed holes were up against the leather, and the screw heads were sticking out of the bottom! The sharp edges of the screw heads were digging into the wooden floor!

Now... I was furious, for two reasons, my wife insulted my manly manliness, and that this guy was such a fool.

I walked into his shop, with the shoes in hand and said... "What the hell kind of shoe maker are you!"

Shocked... he replied, "I'm a professional!"

 

[nbp]

Then what happened?!

 

[Poppy]

It was just he and I in the store, so I didn't have to worry about embarrassing him in front of anyone.

I asked him "How can you be so F..ing Stupid!?" Of course he had a dazed look, so I continued... "Look at these... you put them on back wards!"

He tried to come up with something, but when he realized his mistake, he offered to put them on correctly. I don't remember if I had to come back or if he did it then and there.

Nothing came of it. I didn't want my money back, I just wanted to lash out at him, and get them put on properly.

Part of my anger was because I dislike paying people to do something that I would just prefer to do myself, and it was inconvenient. 20 minutes round trip, so it was at least 60 minutes, when I could have installed them my self for free in five minutes or less. But no... I had to keep my wife happy, and have a professional do it.

 

[xtn]

Campfire story, huh?

Two buddies and myself, all with our girlfriends, so six teenagers. It was freezing cold. Like the kind of cold where your sock fabric is melting to the skin of your feet by the fire but there is frost accumulating on your face. We made the fire pretty big. The fire and us...we were all down in the bottom of a dry creek. Creek had about ten foot high banks. It was about twenty feet across at the bottom. Clean, hard shale rock bottom.

Well, sometime early into the morning, the fire exploded. Half-burned, flaming logs and embers flying up into the air and coming down all over our circle of sleeping bags. We figured the shale creek bed underneath had been trying to expand from the heat and finally popped from the stress. The girlfriends were NOT impressed like we were.

xtn