Another Spring At Last



Ready to go to St Pauls Church on Easter Sunday

        I Love when Spring gets here. It means Summer can't be far behind. Sometimes Spring seems to take forever to get here but it is here chronologically, just not biologically, at least to my shivering body it aint. Sooner or later the Sun gets so high in the sky that Spring has to break out, it just can't be stopped. Spring looks about the same as Fall after the leaves drop off the trees. The temps are almost the same. We get cold dreary rain followed by lots of clouds. There is a fantastic difference that I have always Loved and that is [You Guessed It] What comes after Spring!
            I must admit I lied a little bit. Spring does have the new sounds of birds that migrate from the south and tiny plants start waking up and misting the air with the scents from newly opened flowers. We even get an hour more of evening daylight to celebrate Spring. Not to mention the leaves are all raked up so that is one huge chore that is gone and out of the way. That definately makes Spring better than Fall.            Spring brings forth new life as plants grow from the ground and birds lay their eggs. It has been this way for a very long time and if we dont totally trash this huge boat called Earth, I suppose we will see a lot more Springs.

My Pinto

11 years later in 1985 [some jerk stold the ringcaps around my headlights]

My New Pinto - April 1974

This is my new Pinto Wagon I bought in 1974. The price was $2400 out the door. I saved up $1700 from my first job and put that money down and was worried about making $44/month payments. I was so worried I saved up $900 and paid off the car loan. The Pinto ran good except not much power up hills like my Dads 65 Mustang 289. The day I bought it, I stalled it out 12 times trying to drive off the Dealership. I had never drivin a stick-shift before but I had watched friends and relatives drive theirs so I felt I had enough experience. Well getting home all the way in 2nd gear was a new experience but I only had to go like 3 miles on back roads so that helped tremendously.
             I didn't do any city driving for 3 weeks so I could get used to stopping and going again. I hated stopping on steep hills cause I stalled it out a lot and had to listen to horn beeps and cuss words of the drivers behind me. In a few months I had it down much better.            My sisters started being nicer to me also. I suppose it was because I could take them to friends houses or to the Mall. I even took my little sister Mindy to a Donny Osmond concert in Detroit at Cobo Hall. Man could those girls scream at Donny. I thought I might lose my hearing but I survived. On the way back we got lost but only for 30 minutes or so.                     One year my Uncle Jerry came to visit and we all went to see the Cascades Waterfalls. They turn different colored lights on the waterfalls at night and it looks pretty and they play nice music. Cascades also has a room to purchase souveniers and T-Shirts and posters  and stuff. Well we came in 2 cars but when it was time to go home, my dads car battery died so we all piled into my Pinto Wagon. It made it home ok but I think I heard the shocks bottom out a few times.The nice thing about a wagon is you can put huge stereo speakers on the floor in the back and with the back seats lowered it sounds so nice. Sometimes I would open the back hatch and turn the speakers around and blast them during an outdoor party.One day I was driving and my pinto would not speed up. I couldn't understand what was wrong since it was only 1 year old. I managed to get it to the dealership I bought it at and they said it had a defective timing belt. They put a new one in for $85, not a bad price, but a lot for me on my teenager job. After 1 year I had it undercoated, but some people told me that just sealed in all the rust. They must have been right because the body rusted like crazy. I gave up washing and waxing my pinto. She did get me to a lot of chess tournaments in Lansing and Ann Arbor and one in Chicago and Columbus Ohio.After about 9 years I could not close my drivers side door so I bought a used door from a junk dealer thinking this would cure my problem. Didn't work. It seems the trouble was with the latch that had a big crack in it so I got it welded for $10. Too bad I wasted $120 on that junk door. Oh well live and learn. [I never seem to tho] After 11 years I decided I needed a new car because my pinto would wiggle back n forth over bumps and I could see my front tire spinning around while I was driving. The floorboards were rotting through. So I sold my Pinto for $150 to this young guy. He gave me $50 down and promised to pay $50/month for the next 2 months. He did the 2nd payment, but it took him 3 more months to finally pay me off. I didn't mind because at this point in my life I was doing better financially and didn't need the money that desperately.The old gal brings back a lot of memories like the time I changed a flat tire on the side of I-94 Highway during a snowstorm. Lucky I didn't get killed. Also rebuilt the carburetor by reading the instructions. Never even done a rebuild before. Thats how simple parts were back then.

Michigan Theater: Still Going

The Michigan Theater opened April 30,1930

My first real full screen movie was at this theater, the Michigan Theater. I can still remember the first movie I saw there. It was "ThunderBall", the James Bond flick. I was only 9 years old then but that movie sure had an impact on me. The images were so large and the sound was so deep and strong that it felt real, like you were almost in the movie. It was also the place were I got hooked on eating popcorn while watching a movie. Chewing one kernal at a time helped me to concentrate really well! Plus it made the bag of popcorn last longer.
Other notable movies I remember watching at the Michigan Theater were, "Cleopatra","The Reivers","Scrooge" [Albert Finney],"Camelot" [Venessa Redgrave and Richard Harris], "Oliver" , "Mary Poppins" and "Network". These selections were mainly Momio's choice since she was paying, but I do think she had quality taste. Now, when my brother Brad took me, we saw the kind of movies we really dug like "Planet of the Apes"  and "2001: A Space Odyssey"                        The Theater inside had these huge concave domes where different colored lights would glow and eccentuate the ornate marble designs in the ceiling. Also this building was the first to have air-conditioning in town so I suspect it was packed with customers on hot days during movie showings. One time I was watching a movie there and it froze up. The still picture was sitting at a 45 degree angle and it was at this moment I knew the film and snapped in half. It took the projectionist about 15 minutes to splice the film back together and we were on our way , enjoying the rest of the celluloid fantasy.

Sometimes Freedom means Obeying the Rules

Jimio next to Liberty Bell

If you are wondering why I have that perturbed expression on my face, it is because the security guard yelled at me for stepping inside the "roped in" area of the Liberty Bell. I thought it wouldn't hurt just to get a closer pic of me next to the Liberty Bell and also the inscriptions would maybe be readable, not to mention a much better view of the crack! As I stepped over I heard "Don't you know what those ropes are for dude!" I knew immediately that I had overstepped my bounds. And even tho I knew I was getting my picture taken, I just couldn't shake off the momentary embarrasement in front of all those nice foreign tourists. Well at least I showed the tourists I can comply with orders. =B-]

How to save money when Bicycling



Jimio riding around Gilletts Lake on his Fuji Finest

 I donated my Fuji racing bike since it no longer suited my purpose because I dont race anymore, I'm getting too old and the odds were very high my Fuji would have been stolen while I had it chained up at Walmart. So I went looking for a nice old comfortable bike. I found one at Barber's Bike Shop, a small store that has been open for many years. The salesman wanted to sell me a wonderful mountain bike that cost around $1200 but I said that's a little over my price range. "Do you have any junkers?", I said. After he showed me 5 used bikes, I settled on a nice old Murray Elk River 18 speed. I took it for a test drive and was amazed all the gears worked though I was only going to use 1 low gear. Like I said, I'm not racing anymore, just putting around, taking my time. I asked how much and he said $35. Right in my range! The only other thing I purchased that day was a steel cable and master lock for $10 so that brought it up to $45. The Murray was comfortable but kinda heavy. I could probably ride off a 50 foot cliff and it wouldn't hurt this bike. I leave the chain on the middle gear of the 3 sprocket gears and the on the 3rd gear down on the hub. Its a nice cruising gear for me.
It took about 3 years before I had to buy anything for my bike which was a new inner tube after I got a flat one night. I didn't even know it till I got home. That cost me $4 [Up to $49 now] Then about a year later a pedal broke off [they were old] so I went to Barber's Bike Shop to get a used one. He had lots of used ones but none in my size threads so I was forced to buy a new pair of Redline pedals for $12 [Up to $61, $62 with tax] Then about 3 months later my inner tube was starting to pop outside through the side of the tire. The tires were so worn out the knobs were peeling off. Back to Barbers Bike Shop again for a pair of Kenda knobbys for $20 [Up to $83 with tax which isn't bad for 4 years, remember I only paid $35 for this thing] Now it has been 8 months with no more expenses, but I am worried about the cables. Maybe they will hold out another year.

Bike Touring: Wind or Rain or Snow or Blazing Heat - It Doesn't Matter

My friend Jeff took this pic while he was riding his Raliegh

I first learned to ride a bike when I accidentally went into a small dip around a man-hole cover. I did not have my feet on the pedals, afraid that I might fall over. After I went through this dip I gained my balance and was able to glide longer distances. In a few days i was able to put my feet on the pedals and I no longer needed slightly declining hills to propel me forward. I had found "feet power" and was loving my new ability to reach farther out into the neighborhood. Some people say you never forget how to ride a bike. Well I'll never know this because I never stopped riding long enough to find out. When I was a kid living at home, my brother and 2 sisters and I always put our bikes away by November 1st because winter and it's cold temps were decending upon us. I never knew what it was like to ride in bad weather untill just a few years ago when high gas prices forced me to save by not driving.Riding in inclement weather really isn't that bad. If its raining you dry off when you get home. If its -40F you ride much slower. I also ride much slower against the wind but like I'll get there plus if you can start your trip against the wind, its oh so nice going home with that added "wind push". Wind can be our friend sometimes. If theres 2 feet of snow on the ground, you don't make sharp turns and you stay in the car tire ruts [If there are any on that particular part of the street] If a car is comming in deep snow, you just get up over the curb and wait for the car to pass, then get back down in the rut again. It's slow but i made it home eventually and usually the roads are cleared after a few hours and it's much better.I stay away from busy roads as much as possible. I value my life and on those roads, more cars means a higher percentage of getting hit by a car or by a door they open. I have always found that most side streets will take you where you need to go and If I do have to ride a main road, Im taking the sidewalk. It may be illegal, but a cop has never stopped me. Either he doesn't know the law or is going to the Donut Shop or just doesn't care or is too lazy. Maybe he feels sorry for me being the only bike he can see. whatever it is, I like being left alone. I'm a lone rider, I don't ride in packs like wolves do. In a pack you can get hit by other bikes and prob greater odds of that than getting hit by a car! If I get near pedestrian walking, I just slow way down and "crawl" by them. I'm never in a big hurry. whats getting somewhere 5 minutes later going to do? Just leave your house 15 minutes earlier to make up for these small "slowdowns" and going by walkers slow is a lot cheaper than hitting them and getting sued for their broken bones. A broken leg can cost $20k to $50 if complications ensue.

My Hungarian Peashooter

The photograph you see above was taken during the summer after I graduated 5th grade. That was the first year of band classes and I loved blowing my Hungarian Peashooter. After I learned the 7 positions on the slide and how to change octaves, I would come home and learn how to make other noises on my trombone. The race car noise was the best as the slide on my trombone helped it sound like the motor was going faster or slower. Bringing the slide up to my face made it sound like the race car was going faster and pulling the slide out farther, sounded slower. Trilling my tongue fast made for a powerful motor and I could change the trilling for different motor sounds. I could do a large block V-8 or a small 4-cylinder Model-T. I could even sound like a Volkswagon engine. I also did exotic bird noises and crows and hawks and ducks, geese and loons. I even did Elephants and Tigers and T-Rexes [at least what I thought a T-Rex would sound like] Plus my friend who played trombone and sat next to me in band did all the sounds also. In fact most of the trombones did some kind of weird sounds. We were the comedians of the band. I think all trombone players are. It just comes natural when you got such a goofy looking instrument in your hands.
 On occassion we would do our animal or car sounds during a song the band was playing. Many times the band director would ask us tromboners to play a certain part in the music because he felt something was not jiving properly [Boy if he only knew!]