"RING"
"Hello?" "May I speak to the Editor please?" "Speaking." " Yes this is Captain Happy Pants calling about the e-mail you sent Mary Sunshine about not using our material for toilet paper anymore." "Yes that is correct". "May I Ask Why"? " Sure ...
Ok I'm being sarcastic, but the phone did ring and Captain Happy Pants did sing his song of woe about how we could work things out and he wanted our business and please please please and the answer was a resounding NO.
Trying to make him understand the issue, was to say the least, futile. Trying to get him to see that this was not an attack on him or his magazine was like trying to teach a pig to sing, a complete waste of time and it usually pisses off the pig, it did.
Letting him know that him waiting for me, to pay to put my event in his book was going to be longer than waiting for the second coming of Christ, was probably not my best play. Having him state over and over "Its Business" got old real fast.
Needless to say I am going to the All Clubs Social. It could be interesting. But then what would this hobby be without that personal touch of fucking drama.
... it is to glossy and way to slippery and like your brain nothing sticks to it".
1/22/15
1/14/15
Rebooting What
In the post titled Target of Opportunity, I railed at the publisher of Cruise Maine Magazine for a "fee" to be paid for the privilege of having your event published in his glossy paper little guide to the universe. I also mentioned the old book that was put forth by a car club that basically got run out of town by the same glossied ass wipe publication.
Now here is the thing. Do we rebel against this affront to our wallets by not attending the "All Clubs Social" or do we react by attending and having a good time and eating some potluck? I say go. By doing so we are showing our support for the event. We are showing that there are reasons to attend other than Direct Display. I attend the event because of the event not because of the sponsor. We all know that an untrained monkey with a checkbook could sponsor an event.
The subject of rebooting the old book has been kicked around a bit and could be viable in theory. It would take some planning and more than one club. It is not cheap to publish, distribute and will be man hour intense. Expecting one person or even a small group to get this done in a few hours is asking the ridiculous and a task of this importance will be a weeks long or even a months long endeavor. The question is are we willing to step up and work on this as a many faceted team for the long haul or are we just venting our rage over the "fee".
We need to look at the bigger picture and see that printed publications are not the wave of the future but are possibly the next thing to get flushed down the technology toilet. Alternatives are mobile apps and web sites posting your event for free. Free web sites are abundant or some are cheap with most yearly fees deductible if you are a registered non profit. These can be built by your organization so that you can post yours and others events with a network of sites sharing information. Road Scholars, Hemmings, Old Rides and yes even Cruise Maine provide free listings for all your events.
We need to show our disdain for the "fee" without showing our hand and we need to look at the odds before playing that hand. A poster of the 60's Anti-War movement read "Suppose they gave war and nobody came ?"
Suppose they published a book and nobody read it.
Better yet maybe I'll send him a bill for all the years I helped distribute his publication free of charge
Now here is the thing. Do we rebel against this affront to our wallets by not attending the "All Clubs Social" or do we react by attending and having a good time and eating some potluck? I say go. By doing so we are showing our support for the event. We are showing that there are reasons to attend other than Direct Display. I attend the event because of the event not because of the sponsor. We all know that an untrained monkey with a checkbook could sponsor an event.
The subject of rebooting the old book has been kicked around a bit and could be viable in theory. It would take some planning and more than one club. It is not cheap to publish, distribute and will be man hour intense. Expecting one person or even a small group to get this done in a few hours is asking the ridiculous and a task of this importance will be a weeks long or even a months long endeavor. The question is are we willing to step up and work on this as a many faceted team for the long haul or are we just venting our rage over the "fee".
We need to look at the bigger picture and see that printed publications are not the wave of the future but are possibly the next thing to get flushed down the technology toilet. Alternatives are mobile apps and web sites posting your event for free. Free web sites are abundant or some are cheap with most yearly fees deductible if you are a registered non profit. These can be built by your organization so that you can post yours and others events with a network of sites sharing information. Road Scholars, Hemmings, Old Rides and yes even Cruise Maine provide free listings for all your events.
We need to show our disdain for the "fee" without showing our hand and we need to look at the odds before playing that hand. A poster of the 60's Anti-War movement read "Suppose they gave war and nobody came ?"
Suppose they published a book and nobody read it.
Better yet maybe I'll send him a bill for all the years I helped distribute his publication free of charge
1/9/15
Chalk Outline
As you know I don't compete at the shows. I hide my placard or I write on it "Do Not Vote", which is a 50/50 shot at getting a vote, as people will find my placard or they are illiterate and vote anyway. Over the years there has been a slow but steady migration toward my way of thinking with some of the perennial winners coming to the dark side. They have discovered that they can actually have fun at a show without the sweat equity of the ultimate shine or the stress on trying to impress every mook that even looks at the shadow your vehicle is casting. All for a $25.00 Cheap Ass Trophy.
Now some have gone one step further and only go to "Cruise Nights" or stopped all outside activity other than driving the vehicle to get ice cream. Their loss is the fact that they are not supporting the local Car Show or even the local Cruise Night. Even though we as a small percentage of the hobby don't compete we still support the local shows. We still give at the gate. We still applaud your endeavor to show off the best wax job and chrome doodad.
Some have even gone further by selling their ride and washing their hands of the whole scene stating that they are tired of whining and crying over this, that and anything that caused the weekly dose of drama, all for the sake of faux marble, plastic tube and a stick on plaque that says some drivel of class and place. Yeah right, like I'm thinking that's a little harsh in a reactive sort of way. What were they thinking???
Please realize that I'm not opposed to anybody competing for what they see as a badge of honor or some type of recognition. I find the drama and antics that some of the shows bring us quite entertaining and in some cases quite humorous. Remember the 3rd place trophy slam? That was definitely the "Oh Snap" moment of that season and probably the next.
Oh believe me when I say that I get awards at shows. Usually at some little Podunk East Bumfuck Show where Aunty Mom and Grampa Dad have decided to take a day off from humping the stump and voted for me because the skull on the door looks like Uncle Zip and has better teeth than they do. FML
For your information the Dark Side isn't dark at all, we left a light on for ya.
Now some have gone one step further and only go to "Cruise Nights" or stopped all outside activity other than driving the vehicle to get ice cream. Their loss is the fact that they are not supporting the local Car Show or even the local Cruise Night. Even though we as a small percentage of the hobby don't compete we still support the local shows. We still give at the gate. We still applaud your endeavor to show off the best wax job and chrome doodad.
Some have even gone further by selling their ride and washing their hands of the whole scene stating that they are tired of whining and crying over this, that and anything that caused the weekly dose of drama, all for the sake of faux marble, plastic tube and a stick on plaque that says some drivel of class and place. Yeah right, like I'm thinking that's a little harsh in a reactive sort of way. What were they thinking???
Please realize that I'm not opposed to anybody competing for what they see as a badge of honor or some type of recognition. I find the drama and antics that some of the shows bring us quite entertaining and in some cases quite humorous. Remember the 3rd place trophy slam? That was definitely the "Oh Snap" moment of that season and probably the next.
Oh believe me when I say that I get awards at shows. Usually at some little Podunk East Bumfuck Show where Aunty Mom and Grampa Dad have decided to take a day off from humping the stump and voted for me because the skull on the door looks like Uncle Zip and has better teeth than they do. FML
For your information the Dark Side isn't dark at all, we left a light on for ya.
1/3/15
Losers
We are all a bunch of Losers. Admit it, we are.
We have lost people that were part of this hobby. We have lost shows and cruise ins that were a destination. That makes us losers.
Wayne, Roland and Norman are the 3 people that come to mind. There are more that could be listed but these are the ones I knew.
Wayne and Nan were part of every show that they attended. They competed without fanfare or bravado and laughed off a loss because there was always next week. Meticulous care and a hand stretched out in friendship is what Wayne taught us all. Hopefully we are the better for it. His car remains as a reminder of what was.
Roland wasn't as active in the past few years as he was when I first met him, but who could forget the deep purple 50 Merc with that light custom flare. Perhaps his pompadour duck tail hair (that was worn every day) that stayed in place even in the strongest wind. The fact that he was a founder of the Knucklebusters went unknown to many or the fact that he was the only founder that remained is even more unknown.
Dry ( I'm talking Sahara dry) wit and a mid coast drawl coupled with jet black Chevelle made Norman one of us for sure. Nap time at 1pm, trophies at 2pm were his afternoons spent out on the field. Ice cream was mandatory on the way home and he knew where the best spots were. He was the shirt off his back type of person we all wished we knew.
Car Shows come and go and our losses in that area were noticed. People that are this hobby come once and when they are gone they are noticed more.
We have lost people that were part of this hobby. We have lost shows and cruise ins that were a destination. That makes us losers.
Wayne, Roland and Norman are the 3 people that come to mind. There are more that could be listed but these are the ones I knew.
Wayne and Nan were part of every show that they attended. They competed without fanfare or bravado and laughed off a loss because there was always next week. Meticulous care and a hand stretched out in friendship is what Wayne taught us all. Hopefully we are the better for it. His car remains as a reminder of what was.
Roland wasn't as active in the past few years as he was when I first met him, but who could forget the deep purple 50 Merc with that light custom flare. Perhaps his pompadour duck tail hair (that was worn every day) that stayed in place even in the strongest wind. The fact that he was a founder of the Knucklebusters went unknown to many or the fact that he was the only founder that remained is even more unknown.
Dry ( I'm talking Sahara dry) wit and a mid coast drawl coupled with jet black Chevelle made Norman one of us for sure. Nap time at 1pm, trophies at 2pm were his afternoons spent out on the field. Ice cream was mandatory on the way home and he knew where the best spots were. He was the shirt off his back type of person we all wished we knew.
Car Shows come and go and our losses in that area were noticed. People that are this hobby come once and when they are gone they are noticed more.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
