Snake45

I've actually gotten at least four projects done this year, but have only posted two. Have two more photographed, just need to find the time to write up the stories and post everything up. Stay tuned, as they say in the radio bidness.

Carl, drop me an email sometime. Been wanting to talk to you. SnakeACP45 at AOL dot com

Danno, you did the right thing. Trust me. More later, probably.

Last year, when I had my stroke, I was offline for nearly two whole months. When I returned, I was VERY moved to see a thread had been started on me in the Where's Waldo section, and was amazed at the number of posters in that thread. I had no idea.that I was or would be that missed. One of the posters in that thread—a man I'd never met, only done a few trades with—went to the extra trouble to track me down in my hospital room and call me, and he didn't even have a phone number on me to start with. We talked for a good long time, and maybe two or three times, I really don't remember now (hey, I'd just had a STROKE, ferpissake), but I will ALWAYS remember his effort and kindness. I won't name him here but he knows who he is. BTW, I regularly post on six or eight other boards like this one but on different subjects entirely. I'm just as prolific on those boards as I am here. But nowhere else did anyone ask where I was, much less start a thread on it—ONLY here. When I came back here, I made a special effort to be a good neighbor. I don't agree with all the rules here but I've tried very hard to follow them because I've learned how much I value this place and the people here and I'd hate to get thrown out. Many times I have erred on the side of caution and NOT posted something I DESPERATELY wanted to post. But hey, life is full of little tradeoffs, right? After I recovered, some of my friends and I started a private email ring. We didn't communicate often, but when we did, we kept stuff off this board that shouldn't be here, so it was a VERY GOOD thing. The members know who they are. (Sadly, one of them passed a few months ago. I miss him to this day and always will.) Now another member of my “very private fan club” is missing, and I'm again VERY moved and pleased to see that he too has been missed enough that someone started a Where's Waldo thread on him. I can assure you that wherever he is, he appreciates your concern just as much as I did last year. Can't/won't say more about it now. Just wanted to post that even for a notorious loner/hermit/misanthrope/grumpy old man like myself, it is NICE to feel part of a family, and we really are a family here, aren't we? Thank you to everyone who deserves it.

This story gets even MORE awesome, if you can believe it. I posted exactly the same story on a worldwide model airplane forum. You will never guess who answered the post. D2! I had NO idea he was on there! He remembers the sale even better than I did. Wasn't the least bit miffed at all. I hope to reconnect with him in the very near future. Maybe I have some other "holy grail" kits of his. I'm in the mood to let things go, to the right people. D2 is definitely a "right people."

AFAIK, Bill is in good health. I'm hoping we'll see his return to the forum sooner or later. He's a very valuable and valued voice here, and I miss him.

Since my stroke and mitral valve replacement last year, I've been on blood thinner (Warfarin). I have to get my blood tested every four weeks for something called INR, whatever that is. Shortly after every INR test I get a call from a Nurse Practitioner who tells me what the number is and (almost always) that it's good. This week the call came from a stranger (my regular NP is out for some reason), telling me my number is low. We discuss this and what to do about it. She says she'll have to get back to me. She doesn't. BUT.... Next morning (yesterday) first thing, the phone rings. It's a complete stranger, a man I've never met, but I recognize the last name as the same as my childhood family physician. He (my childhood doctor—for this story, let's call him D1) has a son a year older than me, whom I knew casually from Boy Scouts over 50 years ago, who is also a doctor now (we'll call him D2). The guy on the phone is HIS son, now also a doctor, whom we'll call D3. (My wife tells me later that this guy went to school with her son, my stepson.) So after discussing the medical stuff (and he seemed VERY competent—I was impressed) and exchanging a couple pleasant memories about D1, I say: Me: “I haven't seen your dad in 20 or 30 years. [D2 was a sometime member of a local modeling club I started in the early '90s.] Last time I saw him, he bought a model airplane from me. [I remember this clearly because I almost never SELL any of my models. I only sold this one because he wanted it bad, and I knew I'd never actually build it, and the only reason I owned it in the first place was that Squadron Shop had had it on closeout, CHEAP, a decade before, and I knew a hot bargain even then. D2 offered me at least twice what I'd paid for it, maybe 3X, and I knew he could afford it, and I prolly needed the money. We were both pants-wetting happy with the deal, and I'd be willing to bet that that kit is now worth two to three times what HE paid ME for it on eBay. Such is life.] I wonder if he ever got around to building it.” D3: [Without even asking what the model was]: “I can assure you that he has not built it. It's sitting in his basement, along with hundreds of others. You should SEE his basement. It's a gorram mess.” Me: “I don't need to see his basement. I know exactly what it looks like. It looks just like MY basement. In fact, I remember a perfect description of it from an old episode of Parks & Rec where Leslie Nope described her own house as 'a scary hoarder nest.' I thought this was such a perfect and hilarious description that I bothered to memorize it.” D3: “I remember that episode. Yes, that is a pretty darn good description of it.” Didn't bother to tell him that Kit Hoarding Syndrome is a Thing, and that it's not at all uncommon. D3 is a doctor, and his time is valuable, and I'm sure he probably already knows. I also didn't mention that I also do it with model CARS. D3 seemed like a nice guy. I hope I get the occasion to talk to him again sometime. I might even try to reach out to D2 and tell him this story. I don't know him that well, but I'm 100% sure he'll think it's hilarious.

I found the unpainted one mentioned above (while looking for something else, of course) so I'm good to go to proceed with my Grand Evil Scheme. Oh, I do need to find one more thing--the time to actually DO it.

Yah, I've decided that it's a complete waste of time to even THINK about trying to build an accurate model of ANYTHING from this kit. So I'm just gonna channel my inner 14-YO kid, build it the way I would have back in 1968 (with much more SKILL, of course), and just generally have FUN with the little monster. This is a HOBBY, right? If you're not having FUN, you're not doing it right.

After being safe for several months, my poor wallet/credit card is going to take a BIG hit this month. Oh hell, it's my birthday--how many more of those can I have coming?

Operation Tidal Wave, August 1, 1943. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Tidal_Wave#

No, and if you want a stock '68 Vette model, there's the Revell so there's no justification in trying to "convert" it to stock. If you can let it be what it is, however, you can actually have all kinds of modeling fun with it. I have one on the bench right now. The idea is to build it like I built stuff when I was 14, and didn't know/care about accuracy.

I can think of two good reasons. The Getaway is one of my favorite movies of all time. I enjoy it more every time I see it, and I've seen it a lot. Surprisingly, the Alec Baldwin remake isn't horrible. Oh, it's not as good as the original, but it was nowhere near as bad as I expected.

I just discovered Sabaton a couple months ago. Absolutely kick-ass stuff! Here's a few of my favorites.

Great score! Some of those CA kits are REALLY sought today. I'm fortunate enough to own a few.

Almost certainly the nicest model of this car that I have EVER seen. VERY well done and model on!

This pic reminded me of a lyric from Warren Zevon's "Desperadoes Under the Eaves": Don't the sun look angry through the trees?Don't the trees look like crucified thieves?Don't you feel like desperados under the eaves? Heaven help the one who leaves

No, and it never was. AFAIC it's found a permanent home.

Reminds me of an SNL bit a few years ago, where Pete Davidson was saying he used the women's bathroom because "it's the only place in the building with good wi-fi." And Colin Jost said, "I've seen you going in there. I always assumed you liked it because it was cleaner, or something." And Pets said, "Cleaner? Are you kidding me? Most of the time it looks like a man made out of toilet paper was murdered in there."

Or, as my Late Great Dad used to say, "If we can't laugh at other people, who CAN we laugh at?"

Here's the Wheel Horse club I mentioned. Their annual picnic/show is in just a couple weeks. Might ask my kid if he'd like to attend. https://wheelhorseclub.com/

Wrong scale, what a shame!

Absolutely magnificent in every way! It does my old heart good to see a kit this beautiful and rare kit built so skillfully by someone who really knows what he's doing. I built an original '68 in 1968, and a few years ago I restored a '68 promo in blue. Couple years ago I scored a '69 promo factory-painted in this very color or its 1969 equivalent. You have just inspired me to dig that thing out and get 'er done. Many thanks for the inspiration! VERY well done and model on!

My folks had a Wheel Horse, too. I started pulling wheelies on it when I was 12 or 13, back in 1966 or '67. Never got the front wheels up a foot, but I'd get 'em up at least 6 or 8 inches, and that's with the cutting deck mounted (but not engaged). Could only do it on the paved driveway, though, not on the grass. And NEVER when Dad was around! And that old Wheel Horse is still running, too. My son still has it, though he doesn't use it. A friend of his is trying to talk him into taking it to some sort of vintage Wheel Horse show not too far from us. Von Zipper, now ya got me thinking. My tractor is darn close to '69 Chevrolet Hugger Orange. How do you think it would look with Z/28 stripes on it? Shouldn't take me more than an afternoon to mask 'em off and squirt 'em on with a rattlecan....

AFX, drop me an email, please. SnakeACP45 at AOL dot com