Just Keep Trying

I got home from work at the library the other day and found my husband outside trying to bend a bumper with his bare hands so he could get the crosspiece back into place. He's restoring a '67 Volkswagen Bus and had taken apart the bumper to paint it. Yes, I'm sure he could have gone and purchased the correct tools, but bother! He wanted to get it done right that moment. Well, right now turned into an hour or so of pulling and tugging and pushing. And who got talked into helping? Me, of course.

After helping him for what seemed like forever (I have a short attention span for things that involve trying to force pieces of metal into places they don't want to go) I said something about how it wasn't going to work. But he was determined. He knew what needed to be done. He knew he could do it. "We just needed to keep trying," he insisted. So we kept pushing and pulling and bending, and all of a sudden we got it, and it fell into place so easily and (seemingly) quickly.

It was a simple yet brilliant reminder for writing life. Write, revise, repeat. Query. Submit. Know what needs to be done. Work hard to gain the knowledge. You can do this. Just keep trying. All of a sudden things will fall into place.

Transporter!

 

It's funny how things work out. With the Bug restoration underway, word has gotten around that we're into VW's. There aren't alot of Volkswagen's in these parts. I daresay I know where most all of them reside, the ones in use that is. It's the old broken-down, undriven ones that hide out. Until people know that you're into them.

The other day a guy shows up at our house and wants to know if we're interested in buying a Transporter. For those of you who don't know, a Transporter is like a Volkswagen Bus Truck. Also known as a Buck around here now, since we have one sitting in the driveway. 

Yeah, it didn't take long for us to decide we needed to have it too. DH has been talking about getting one for ages. Now if we can just get a Notchback (that'll be mine) we can call our collection complete.

But really, this one isn't gonna be done for like fifteen years. The poor thing needs alot of work. Plus we're in the process of buying a building which looks about as bad as this bus. Sometimes I wonder what the heck we're thinking.

The Family Car

We recently scored on a 1958 Volkswagen Beetle. My husband had spotted it in a yard on some obscure street in town and had been eyeing it for a week. To his sheer delight, one day it had been moved and there was a ‘For Sale’ sign on it. He was on it like a fly on molasses.

And I must agree, it’s a beautiful thing even with all the moss that was growing on it, and the rust, and the holes in the floorboard. Even with all that this bug is in pretty good condition. Hell, it even runs!

Now, I’m sure you understand that some people are just Volkswagen people. Our heads turn when we see a squareback drive down the road, even if it’s a piece. I was born into a Volkswagen family, my Dad being the owner of a Volkswagen repair shop, we had our share of the v-dubs. I remember most vividly our 2 powder blue squarebacks and our camper van when I was little. At my Dad’s shop there was always a long line of VW’s parked out front. I loved getting to help push the cars out of the garage in the morning. When I needed a job my Dad would put me to work with a bottle of windex and a roll of paper towels and I’d go out and wash all the car’s headlights. It was very important work.

When my husband was around two he was out by the light of a coleman lamp handing his Dad tools while he fixed their VW Bus. He remembers it. He wanted to be like his Dad; long hair, cigarette hangin’ out of his mouth, bringin’ his old VW back to life. They had that old bus for a long time. When my husband turned 16, his first car was a Rabbit.


My very first car was a 1974 Superbeetle with a sunroof. I always knew when it had rained the night before with that car because when I pulled out of the driveway a carload of water would pour out on my head. My next car was a Ferrari red Fastback my Dad had rebuilt for me with a souped up engine and racing brakes (no sunroof). I wish I still had that car.


So now you can imagine how excited we are about this Bug. We’re debating paint colors and interior. We’re not sure if we should go totally stock or reasonably priced. Solid color or two-toned? (I vote two-toned.) Either way, it’s going to be sweet when it’s done. I just wonder how long it will take to complete. My husband’s out there everyday tinkering with it, and the boys love to help. They sand their little hearts out, remove bolts, and just plain play in it. I wish my Dad was around to talk to about it, and he’d be so proud to see his two little guys out there working. For me Volkswagens are a family car.