Our last post was August 31st, a measely TWO MONTHS AGO! I apologize for not posting, but just when I thought things were about to slow down, they just seemed to dial it up yet another notch. Between running from a hurricane, restarting a chemical plant, having a major garage sale, finishing a remodel job, and holding a back-yard wedding reception, we've been pretty stretched.

This weekend though, we slept late, watched TV, drank a few brewskis, burned some meat on the pit, and in general, we took life as it came at us without any agenda...... it felt great!

I promised I'd post some pix of the remodeling and they'e below... After this post, we're through talking about flooring, sheet rock, and coutertops.

I HAVE made some headway on our little Ford project in the last couple of months. The short block is assembled sans camshaft, as we're waiting on our heads to come back from Akron, Ohio, where Total Engine Air Flow is working thier porting magic on them. They're supposed to give us some flow data after they're reassembled, and we'll go to Comp Cams with that info to build a custom ground camshaft. I still have a long way to go.....

OK.. on w/the show...we'll start in the kitchen...
at the sink.....before:

And after:

Then we'll show the entire sink couter....before:

And after:

Then we'll cross the kitchen to the stove counter..... before:

And after:

Then we'll ease off into the dining room.... this is the bar between the kitchen and D.R....before:

And after:

Then we'll step into the foyeur....before:

And then, PRESTO-CHANGE-O! wall gone!...After:

The second wall came down in the den...before:

Then after....oh yeah, the front door was replaced too...

Turning 180 degrees, there was a signifigant wall/cabinet modification....before:

Then after:

We wanted to be able able to visit kitchen-to-den, so we made another hole.....before:

Then after:

That about sums it up with the work done inside, ecxept I didn't take any pix of the carpet....carpet's carpet. I do have an outside pic of the deck that WE built while I was PAYING contractors to suck up my air coditioning doing inside stuff....


The last pic I'd like to post is the newlyweds with the latest addition to thier family.

I also want to let everyone know that coming soon to the Wild Cherry Racing team is our granDAUGHTER! Yep. it's gonna be a girl!. I've lost total track of time, but Travis & Jonda found out the gender of the baby a couple of weeks ago, and came by to show us a cool video of the latest sonogram. She's fully developed, and she even yawned and stretched!.......I think it looks like me...

DON'T WORRY! PIX OF THE MOTOR ARE COMING SOON! It's patiently waiting in the dark shop.....

[ 4 comments ] ( 54 views )

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Unbelievably, the last post made on this site was August 5th. There’s a reason(s) why I haven’t posted since that date. It’s not for lack of eventful stuff to communicate, it’s that things have been SOOOO eventful, that posting at 11:00 PM every nite wasn’t on the top of my priority list.

So here’s a brief listing of significant happenings at WCR. I’ll try to list them in chronological order, if my memory holds up that long:

1. When we got home from Joey’s graduation exercises, the remodeling had begun. Both 32” entry doors had been replaced on the shop and exterior paint work had begun!
2. I drove to Pearland and picked up our Pony’s new block that Owen’s Racing prepped for me. It’s sitting patiently on an engine stand under a towel in our shop, awaiting assembly, which will begin as soon as all the remodeling is complete.
3. The exterior of the house was painted. We went from a 2- tone federal blue to a 2-tone forest green. Contrary to how it sounds, it looks really good.
4. The walls came down! Our house was opened up from the front to the back, with only a framed load bearing wall in between. The next step is to install a pre-engineered constructed load supporting beam in the attic to eliminate the wall.
5. The beam was installed, & the cabinets in our den were modified to install a set of French doors leading out into the back yard.
6. Veronica &I took some vacation days to install a 16’ x 32’ deck in the back yard between the French doors and the pool. On the 1st day we went to Houston to pick out granite for our kitchen counters. It was hot as Hell all week working on that deck.
7. Joey received a packet from UTI in the mail that included all of his official merit certificates. Included in this packet was a surprise…… They gave Joey the “Dave Hill” award!! I don’t know any details on why they didn’t present him with it during the graduation ceremony, but it was disappointing that his family & friends didn’t get to share in the presentation.
8. Joey & Loni went to Arlington, Texas for a few days, where he accepted a job with Penske Trucking as a diesel mechanic, and Loni landed a transfer with a Home Depot Store. They also put a deposit on a real nice town home just a short drive from both employers. They both are scheduled to start work around mid-September.
9. Texturing & interior painting began, countertops stripped, front door replaced, blah, blah, blah…… Engine block still patiently waiting in dark shop.
10. Deck finished!
11. Meeting of the mom’s to discuss wedding budget….. lots of $$$$$, so a drastic decision was made….. please sit down for this one: J&L were scheduled to take a “graduation celebration” Caribbean Cruise, beginning September 4th. After discussing several issues, J&L spontaneously decided to get married in Jamaica while on their cruise, as it was scheduled to be one of an all day excursion to an exclusive tropical resort. As it turned out, this could not happen due that you had to be on the island at least 3 days to get married. Soooooo, Joey in Loni will become husband & wife this SUNDAY, in a small outdoor garden wedding in Galveston, prior to setting sail on their now “honeymoon” Caribbean cruise. Following the honeymoon they will be Arlington residents, and return home sometime in October after our remodeling aftermath, where we’ll hold a back yard reception for them…… Veronica never ceases to amaze me.
12. We went to the 1st “Gulf Coast Paper Chase” race at ADW Saturday evening. There were 14 ProMods, and countless outlaw cars there. It was one of the best races that I ever went to, even without our car in tow. We had a blast!...................... Engine block still patiently waiting in dark shop.
13. The granite countertops and the entertainment center have been installed, and the hardwood floor is being put in today. If we survive the weekend, we’ll empty all the bedrooms Monday & Tuesday to install carpet next week. At this point we’ll pretty much be in the “home stretch” of the remodeling……. Engine block still patiently waiting in dark shop.


WHEW! That about catches us up over the last couple of weeks. I’m sure I left something out, but I’ll post it if & when it comes to mind. Like I said before, we’ve ALL been running 90 to nothing, 12–14 hrs/day, & hopefully the pace will slow down soon. I WILL POST PICS OF THE HOUSE (before/after) WHEN THE PROJECT IS COMPLETED (if that ever happens)……….. Engine block still patiently waiting in dark shop.


[ 3 comments ] ( 35 views )

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Yeah folks, the smile sez it all.....
Joey "walked" today.... not once, but twice.
This morning he graduated from 15 weeks of "Ford Accelerated Credential Training"(FACT). This is post graduate work that deals strictly with Ford product repairs and prepares students to be certified Ford repair technicians. He was presented with several warm cogratulatory hand shakes from all his instructors, a packet containing documentation of his certifications, and a real nice watch that only FACT graduates are awarded.

This afternoon, he graduated in his regular UTI class graduation, where he was recognized for several accomplishments, and as we understood it, he was nominated for the "Dave Hill" award. This is a pretty prestigous award given to the top student of the class. I never saw the award given out, so I don't know who the actual recipient was.

Congratulations, Joey! We're all so proud of you!
.....NOW GET TO WORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ 5 comments ] ( 69 views )

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Joey called me this evening on his cell phone.....

Dad: Hello?
Joey: I'm through!
Dad: Huh??!??
Joey: I'M THROUGH! I'VE GOT MY CAP & GOWN, turned in all my stuff, and I'll see y'all tommorrow at graduation!

Dad: I'm so proud of ya Joey, I'll see you tommorrow...


I didn't know what else to say...... this is our last one.

Beth's coming in from NYC to watch him graduate....

Too much "special" stuff for this old guy.

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OK... Let's try this another way....What would you rather see the pictoral progress of:

THIS???????




....or this...........?



...let's be honest now...

[ 7 comments ] ( 62 views )

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