[droptopcat70]

Hi all,
Today i went to the turkey rod run in daytona florida today.Alot of very nice cars out there.Kinda made me sick though.Why you ask? Well unfortanetly i had my ol man come with me today and i had nothing but a total headache when we were together.Like a blank piece of paper, no comments,no show of enthusiastic,no emotions.I drove the 70 convertible there to meet up with the Sunshine State Cougar Club members,and could barely see in front of my face due to all the spectators."Go this way,You went the wrong way!" Etc,etcmade me wanna lose my breakfeast.So with all the bickering going on, then he started to pick apart my cougar.Now im jerked.So with that in mind i got 2 quests.(1) build the baddest eliminator i can build.(2) after the nationals i am gonna start gathering up all the necessary parts to redo my 70 convertible.AGAIN yep for the 5th n final time i am gonna redo this car over. 1st things 1st is the eliminator. Hate to say it but its gonna end up being totally radical. I`m tired of the bickering, really sucks when you order something and you get the dreaded question(s) whats that for? how much that cost you? Truly sucks cause now you have that damn 2nd eyes overlooking what you do n what you spend. No i am not married if i was i think i be divorsed by now or worse. lol... So after the nationals i think the car (convertible) will just be a cruiser and the eliminator will be the radical ride it needs to be...
thanks
pat
1970 standard triple white convertible
1970 eliminator MADCATT(turning it into a pro touring car SUICIDE style)
1970 xr7 convertible COMPLETLY rusted out will notify when its in my possesion

 

[sixt9coug]

i have neighbors that pick apart every car i do. even mine.... words of wisdom that a teacher gave me.. " whenever someone bends over to look down the side and scrutinise your car.. give them a swift kick in the ass " i hate when people do that. even the Jaguar which came out nice ( no not perfect ) i had a neighbor picking it apart. worst people that do it? the new guys at school who take auto body for the first time. aayyy. if there ever was a picky person .. its them. then they become humbled after they give it a try and they shut the hell up.

 

[leonbray]

I'm a bit older and I don't give a rats when others pick my car to bits. None are perfect but they are long term projects that I probably won't finish before I turn up my toes. I just sit back and rest on the knowledge that I have one of the 33 428 ra XR7 convertibles built and they don't

Don't let it get to you - your car is an expression of what you want and can afford. If you build the meanest show car ever you will regret not being able to drive it

 

[texrep]

I here ya mann... My pops was a mercury line mechanic for 40+ years.... he was awesome. BUT everything I EVER did to my 73 was WRONG to him..... In retrospect.... he was probobly right. he was a purest, hated holly carbs('they used to cause fires in edsels!") but he could rebuide anything! I guess Thats why I'm a "purest" He told me a long time ago that pure stock is worth more money in the long run. Anyway cut him some slack. I do the same thing to my boy... when he put th skull shifter on the totally stock cherry 84 bronco i gave him I about SH*T.... I guess it's a generational thing.... my .02




Don

 

[droptopcat70]

IT really sucks though

Sucks
that im 28 and have had cars come and go and hear nothing but bickering about this and that and still get a earful when i wanna do something and he says likewise. I had all intentions of giving my folks the 70 vert for their 30th anniversary and keep the eliminator for myself, but they told me to keep it and i was in no shape to be giving things away.So they wanted me to get rid of the eliminator.I tried 2 times but now it is staying, after all the damn conflict i have had w/ him i`m keeping it. Ya live only once and you`ll regret getting rid of something you know if you waited a little bit longer everythnig wouldve been ok. If i knew now what i was going to have when i was 16 i wouldve never gotten rid of a daily car i had when i was 18 (83 cougar) and still had loads of cash to play with to redo my 2 cars now. But alas i was to stupid and dumb and was achild and couldve saved myself a load of cash. Even with a television set i had purchased a real nice entertainment center for my bedroom, pretty big for 75.00 from a friend.I got this dinky looking 19 inch color tv sitting in there. The guy that sold me that thing sold me the 36 inch color television set to go whre it was.Again my ol man said you dont need that. See what i mean? cant do anything to please myself, and make others happy for me.
thanks
pat
1970 standard triple white convertible
1970 eliminator MADCATT(turning it into a pro touring car SUICIDE style)
1970 xr7 convertible COMPLETLY rusted out will notify when its in my possesion


p.s. i know i am sounding like a whiner but damn noone can see what i`m going thru here (well a couple can)

 

[dark7068]

Gotta love family huh Take a deep breath Pat, and plan one thing at a time. It will all come together for you. Patients right, isnt that what you said to me

Rick

 

[Cougrrcj]

Old man over the shoulder syndrome

Yep, mine has it big time! That's one of the main reasons that I stopped working on AlphaCat 18+ years ago.

Dad had left home in Setp 83 on his life's quest to 'sail the world' for 10 years. I moved back home to take care of the 'man's jobs' things around the house for my mother. I had cosmetically fixed AlphaCat the summer before, over at my buddy's place. Now that I had a place to work on my cat, and really take my time, I decided to do a total restoration.

I ripped into the car on my birthday in May of 84. I had the engine and trans out, the front clip removed and was working on the engine compartment, replacing the radiator support and front fender aprons when we got the phone call that Dad was flying home. It was July 4th.

He ran into a bad situation on his trip overseas and was coming home to let things cool off. Long story that I won't bother getting in to. Anyway, so now Dad is home with nothing to do. He's retired, doesn't have his boat to retreat to and he's following me around, looking over my shoulder constantly making derogatory comments like 'Why are you doing that', 'You're spending too much time on it. It is just a car', 'You don't know how to weld'... and the like. Finally after a couple of weeks of listening to this I had enough. I threw a cover over the car, pushed it into the garage (another sore point) and didn't work on it again.

By the time I got married a couple of years later, my enthusiasm for working on the car had left me. Now I had other priorities as well. Learning to live with a wife, housework, honey-do's... I tried to get back to working on the car, but I was constantly getting sidetracked with other things.

This past year we were going to be relocating out of state to follow my wife's career. Moving out of state meant that my cars had to go. We wouldn't be able to take my 'treasures', (AKA non-running cars), with us. My wife knew deep down in her heart that I really didn't want to get rid of all of my cars, so she gave me the OK to open the pocketbook to get AlphaCat done, or at least in some condition to take with us. At the time, AlphaCat was just a bare body shell sitting on six jackstands in the garage. Now that the move is off, the time-constraint pressure is off and again I can take my time with the restoration. At least now I have gotten a push in the right direction, and things are actually progressing. At least now I have some ambition again to get it done -- by spring.

Now I gotta figure out a way to pay for all of this, but that's a different story...

 

[droptopcat70]

whats next?

Ya know?
is there such thing as having to many cars? i mean is having 2 cougars 1 to many? Cause all i hear is that you dont need that car , why you buy it ,you got 1 already why do you need another ? Iguess when you have so much heart and love for a basic model you cannot ever let go of it.Like Chuck hanson on Horsepower tv since i been watching that show he has had 11 cheveles on that show.Iknow everything is donated to them as a show product to the public, but he does have alot of vehicles from what was told.But where i`m getting at is that its like a little child. You expect that 1 child to play with that 1 toy n not get totally bored of it? Like having 1 matchbox/hotwheels car, at 1st its great you love it, after a while it starts to bore ya you want something new to also play with.Ifeel that way w/ the cars i have had nd now own like that saying someone on this list said COUGARS ARE LIKE A LAYS POTATO CHIP ya cant just have 1.
Even w/ the diecast collection i have i got 26 still in the packages unopened and the backing in perfect shape.Ya think i didnt get a earful there?Hell yeah lol.. sure did like everything else. At least i am not doing drugs or drinking it away,(well i am on drugs, addicted to cougars) lol..
thanks
pat
1970 standard triple white convertible
1970 eliminator MADCATT(turning it into a pro touring car SUICIDE style)
1970 xr7 convertible COMPLETLY rusted out will notify wheni ts in my possesion

 

[droptopcat70]

Hi all,
Today i went to the turkey rod run in daytona florida today.Alot of very nice cars out there.Kinda made me sick though.Why you ask? Well unfortanetly i had my ol man come with me today and i had nothing but a total headache when we were together.Like a blank piece of paper, no comments,no show of enthusiastic,no emotions.I drove the 70 convertible there to meet up with the Sunshine State Cougar Club members,and could barely see in front of my face due to all the spectators."Go this way,You went the wrong way!" Etc,etcmade me wanna lose my breakfeast.So with all the bickering going on, then he started to pick apart my cougar.Now im jerked.So with that in mind i got 2 quests.(1) build the baddest eliminator i can build.(2) after the nationals i am gonna start gathering up all the necessary parts to redo my 70 convertible.AGAIN yep for the 5th n final time i am gonna redo this car over. 1st things 1st is the eliminator. Hate to say it but its gonna end up being totally radical. I`m tired of the bickering, really sucks when you order something and you get the dreaded question(s) whats that for? how much that cost you? Truly sucks cause now you have that damn 2nd eyes overlooking what you do n what you spend. No i am not married if i was i think i be divorsed by now or worse. lol... So after the nationals i think the car (convertible) will just be a cruiser and the eliminator will be the radical ride it needs to be...
thanks
pat
1970 standard triple white convertible
1970 eliminator MADCATT(turning it into a pro touring car SUICIDE style)
1970 xr7 convertible COMPLETLY rusted out will notify when its in my possesion

 

[Paul G.]

Parents

Pat,
I can understand how you are frustrated with your father. But keep your chin up, things will certainly get better for you. And they could be worse. My father walked out on my mother and my four brothers and I when I was 15. I have not seen him in over twenty years. He was not there to see me get my drivers license, graduate high school and college, marry, and have kids.
You may think that your situation sucks, but your parents probably just want what they think is best for you. Unfortunately they are not doing the best job of expressing that.
After my father left, my brothers and I became very close to each other, and very close to my mother. Two years ago my mother passed away. I am 38 years old and no longer have either of my parents. That sucks.
I am very close with my two children, and I really appreciate every minute that I spend with them. I look forward to seeing my children grow up and do all the things that my parents will miss. My wife's father is very much like yours. Nothing is ever good enough for him. However, we both know that deep down he really cares a lot about his children, and simply wants the best for, and from them. His intentions are good, even if his delivery sucks. Like I said, Keep your chin up, keep things in perspective.
Good Luck
Paul Garvin
69 XR7 Convertible

 

[cougarguy]

Dont sweat the small stuff about your cars and to answer your question no you cant have to many cars. I get it from people even in my thunderbird oh do you know you have this and i answer with "no I just have been over this car millions of time wahing waxing and fixing it but thanks for pointing out the flaw, oh by the way do you own one since you have such a critical eye?" i say it nice and it never fails to shut that person up.

 

[greggieatthebat]

Off of the parent's subject (on which I could fill volumes, as we all could, I had to comment on droptop's comments:

AGAIN yep for the 5th n final time i am gonna redo this car over.

Sorry to tell you, but cats have nine lives... there's at LEAST 4 left AFTER this one...

 

[72cat]

Hey Pat, I am almost 40 and also get the whole story about the cars, from my sisters tho', my Dad gave up on us long ago, point is, to all of you who have become disheartened and pushed the car into the garage - its your car, do what ever you want to it, when you work on their cars then its a different story, no-one can tell you what to do with your own cars. Let all the moaning etc go in one ear and straight out the other, two of my kids have running cars and project cars, the one kid 'knows everything' and the project car will proberly never run again, but apart from b*tching about the money I have to spend I just let him get on with it, the other kid does'nt have a clue, mechanically wise' but I have more faith in him getting his project [Holden Monaro V8] on the road, sometimes less knowledge is best, if he wants advice we give it, admittedly we also give it when he does'nt but........ we try not to diss him about his decisions.
My sisters on the other hand are way worse than any of your father's, they just go on and on about having to many cars, what do you want with a V8, chews petrol, why do you need another cougar, who is going to drive them all, can't you spend your money of better things, the list is endless, in one ear - out the other, I think we actually just aquire more cars to freak them out.
Currently we have 14, + a couple of bikes and a boat.

My motto, our money, our cars, don't like it, get ..............

 

[LiLWrink]

Ive seen that look on me(a thousand times)

This explains some of what makes me, ME...also why I don't get along with many people, and why I have a attitude as big as Texas.
I will not pay to enter a show. I dont care who, when where or why. I'm a big boy I can give my money to whoever I see fit and look them in the eye without being judged, I refused to let some jackass pass judgement on me, until they have earned the right to do so.
My dad was a real PITA, and we fought about a lot of things.(with our fists) Cars,and my way of life were always on the top of the list of things to argue about.
Everything was always an extreme with him,(sounds like someone else here, huh...) and he was a very ruff & redneck type.
He was the type that could not be impressed with a new car, but loved home grown tomatoes, homeade whiskey, and shadetree hotrodding...
I guess he was raised hard, a poor widow's son. He drove a truck for 45 years, and would quit a job if he could not take off to go hunting or fishing. He done some things that I know would be considered politically incorrect, But me and my brothers always had neat stuff when we were kids. My mother had a nice house(small) and a pretty yard, and if us boys didnt have it taken care of, the old man would really break the old boot off in us...
He was a real ruffian...
8 years ago he died of cancer, hard...very ugly...the kinda s**t you wouldnt wish on nobody.
I really miss the Old Fart, 8 Years, now...
I had the trunk of my beloved 55 Chevy airbrushed, It reads- the way my daddy wouldnt have it! And if he was here you could bet your last dollar he'd be *****in about it, not what it said, but how it was done...
There isnt anything in the news worth hearing, I still have the same friends, and fewer understandings.
Homegrown tomatoes, homeade whiskey, and shadetree hotrodding, sounds better and better all the time dont it?
now I'm a poor widows son, and getting a reputation as a ruffian also, I did not have this in mind twenty years ago, you just got me real sentimental there for a second...

Shane:xoli:

 

[72cat]

Shane, he is proberly up there telling everyone who will listen about what was wrong with the way you did it. . I like to think my Mom looks down on whatever I do and makes endless comments, and I guess everyone up there knows my entire life story, just like most folks down here, that she knew, did.

 

[droptopcat70]

Everyone,
i appreciate all the comments and feedbacks i got from this. we only live once and if we dont enjoy what our hearts love and wanna do, we will be miserable for the rest of our lives.I cant stop to think how life was when my father was my age, comming from a family of 12 brothers and sisters, its tough to get into a car hobby when you have a family of 3 to support and gotta pay fer the roof overhead and such.But i know eventually, i`ll break his attitude and get him into gettinmg dirty w/ me and redoing a car over w/ me and enjoy it, perhaps thats what he and i need. A prodject to work on as a father n son, since when i was 16 and got my licenc i had cars come n go n never really worked on 1 from start to finish w/ him
thanks
pat