Hey guys,
Here goes. I was at work one night. I'm a gas and water trouble shooter. So I was called to meet a customer whose mother Inlaw had passed away. The house had been broken into and the copper piping stolen. So my job was to gain access and determine if the water could be turned off inside.
The person I was to meet was late ( pretty common in my job). So while I was waiting I began checking the home to see if I could get in. All doors had been locked so I was stuck waiting. That's when I noticed a small brick garage on the elevated back yard. The garage backed up to an alley. So I walked up the the alley to see if maybe the guy was parked where I could not see him. He wasn't. I glanced into the broken window of the garage and saw a little dust covered red car. That's when I thought "what a cool little car. ". It was completely covered in dust and it looked like a small child had written a message in the dust "wash me daddy". Again, I thought how cool and wondered how long it had sat In that tiny model A garage.
About that time the guy showed up. We did our business and made small talk as I repaired his leaking water service. The owner explained that his mother Inlaw had lived in the home for all of her 80+ years. As we walked up out of the basement the little car came back to mind. I asked him if he knew anything about the little car or who wrote the message. As it turned out he was an MG guy and the car was his. His eyes lit up when he started telling me about it and how his daughter about seven at the time had left the note as a joke. He obviously loved midgets and apparently had one or two.
He explained that he had bought in 1998 after seeing it sit at an auto repair shop for a couple years. He had driven by it every day on his way to work for two years. One day he stopped in and asked about it. The garage owner said a lady had dropped it off for repair and never came back. So he bought it and had it towed to the little garage. He was planning to part it out for the wire wheels. He explained that life got in the way and he literally forgot about it. Now the house was being sold and he would have to leave it to the new owners or get it towed.
I asked if he would part with it. He looked at me and said a little sad that he would. We agreed on a Price and shook hands. I had one day to get towed. So I borrowed a trailer pack up the wife and kids a went back to the little garage. We pushed the little car out of the garage ( after airing one tire) and on to the trailer. I took a few pictures of the car in the garage and as we loaded it up. My youngest daughter grabbed me and said "Daddy I love this car can I have it"? I smiled and said its yours if you help me fix it. She giggled and squealed when can we start!!!
As soon as we got home she was all over the MG. She pretended she was driving and shifting and acting like she was in a race screaaching around the corners and turnin the wheel like a 6 year old. Priceless.
To my suprise, the garage had done a tune up on the car, with a jump and and an auxiliary hanging gas tank it started right up. We drove it up and down the driveway a few times and pushed it back into the garage smiling and high fiving each other.
Now the work is beginning....
I wrote such a long post because I think this car will be as much about my daughter and families journey as it will be about the car. And ten years from now she will be able to read how it all started. In short memories.
Thanks for reading And sorry so long....
Here goes. I was at work one night. I'm a gas and water trouble shooter. So I was called to meet a customer whose mother Inlaw had passed away. The house had been broken into and the copper piping stolen. So my job was to gain access and determine if the water could be turned off inside.
The person I was to meet was late ( pretty common in my job). So while I was waiting I began checking the home to see if I could get in. All doors had been locked so I was stuck waiting. That's when I noticed a small brick garage on the elevated back yard. The garage backed up to an alley. So I walked up the the alley to see if maybe the guy was parked where I could not see him. He wasn't. I glanced into the broken window of the garage and saw a little dust covered red car. That's when I thought "what a cool little car. ". It was completely covered in dust and it looked like a small child had written a message in the dust "wash me daddy". Again, I thought how cool and wondered how long it had sat In that tiny model A garage.
About that time the guy showed up. We did our business and made small talk as I repaired his leaking water service. The owner explained that his mother Inlaw had lived in the home for all of her 80+ years. As we walked up out of the basement the little car came back to mind. I asked him if he knew anything about the little car or who wrote the message. As it turned out he was an MG guy and the car was his. His eyes lit up when he started telling me about it and how his daughter about seven at the time had left the note as a joke. He obviously loved midgets and apparently had one or two.
He explained that he had bought in 1998 after seeing it sit at an auto repair shop for a couple years. He had driven by it every day on his way to work for two years. One day he stopped in and asked about it. The garage owner said a lady had dropped it off for repair and never came back. So he bought it and had it towed to the little garage. He was planning to part it out for the wire wheels. He explained that life got in the way and he literally forgot about it. Now the house was being sold and he would have to leave it to the new owners or get it towed.
I asked if he would part with it. He looked at me and said a little sad that he would. We agreed on a Price and shook hands. I had one day to get towed. So I borrowed a trailer pack up the wife and kids a went back to the little garage. We pushed the little car out of the garage ( after airing one tire) and on to the trailer. I took a few pictures of the car in the garage and as we loaded it up. My youngest daughter grabbed me and said "Daddy I love this car can I have it"? I smiled and said its yours if you help me fix it. She giggled and squealed when can we start!!!
As soon as we got home she was all over the MG. She pretended she was driving and shifting and acting like she was in a race screaaching around the corners and turnin the wheel like a 6 year old. Priceless.
To my suprise, the garage had done a tune up on the car, with a jump and and an auxiliary hanging gas tank it started right up. We drove it up and down the driveway a few times and pushed it back into the garage smiling and high fiving each other.
Now the work is beginning....
I wrote such a long post because I think this car will be as much about my daughter and families journey as it will be about the car. And ten years from now she will be able to read how it all started. In short memories.
Thanks for reading And sorry so long....