Random Car Memories

Since I began working in Foley, I've had a nice half hour drive to work each morning which gives me plenty of time to think... or listen to college sports analysts on the radio. This morning I was doing both and, for some reason, began reminiscing on things in my life that had taken place in or around vehicles. I thought I'd jot them down for memories sake:

My friend Gavin owned a 1980s Daihatsu Charade in high school. It was his first car and it was pretty sad. The size of Nissan Golf (or standard golf cart), it was just big enough for four of us to cruise around in. I don't remember a lot about this car in particular, but I do remember we chose it as our escape vehicle when the time came for us to roll houses; an annual tradition our high school had for seniors. My memory is a bit hazy about that day, but I remember rolling only a few houses before the cops pulled us over and told us to go home. I also remember Gavin driving into a ditch and the car being so small that we all got out, picked it up and put it back on the road. That last part may have been a different day entirely, but I'd like to think it was part of the same event.

To stick with Gavin owned vehicles, the Charade didn't have the longest lifespan and it wasn't long before his dad purchased another used vehicle for him; a Chrysler 600 LE that we lovingly referred to as the "GOOL-E" (600LE). For the purpose of continuing this story I should mention that Gavin and I were roommates in college at this time and I owned a red Jeep Wrangler (mentioned and pictured in prior posts) that was in pretty bad mechanical shape. It was also around Christmas and our friend JD was graduating from Marine boot camp at Parris Island, SC. I had promised that I would be there for graduation but my Jeep wouldn't make it, so gavin let me borrow the goole. The only catch was that his car did not have a functioning heater, though it would stay warm on the road from engine heat.
It was a long drive from Auburn, Alabama but I made it into a town just outside the island at about 10pm and pulled into the hotel I had reserved. Unfortunately, I was apparently out of money and my card didn't work. Not smart enough to call my parents for assistance I decided I would just try and find alternative forms of lodging. I remember walking into a 24 hour convenience store and contemplating sleeping in a bathroom stall. In the end, I slept in the car; parked in front of a walmart. It was a long cold night and I had to leave the car running the entire time for warmth. When it got cold, I drove around the lot until the engine would heat up. As soon as the sun came up I was at the gates to the Marine facility and was probably the first person in that morning. I walked around as future marines were doing, what I believe was, morning drill in the distance. There was a diner so I went in for warmth and a stranger bought me coffee after hearing my story. I hated coffee back then, but I sure drank every warm drop.
It's odd, but I remember sitting with JD's dad and him giving me a pair of gloves to keep warm while the graduation ceremony was going on. I remember seeing JD and him looking like he hadn't had food in months and being surprised by the precision of the marching. Afterward, JD had made a comment about how sloppy it was, but I don't think the spectators had noticed. I remember everything to that point, but I don't remember much about the facility even though I think JD gave us a short tour and I don't remember what happened afterward or going back to Auburn. I'll never forget the cold night in the goole though.

My first car was a red and white Chevy S10 Blazer w/ a crimson red interior. Looking back, it was a disaster of a car, but the thing was like a tank. I made a lot of memories in that monster, but a few of them involved the police. I was pulled over for speeding a couple times; once in Gulf Shores b/c I had to get some medicine to my mom b/c she was having heart palpitations. Thankfully the cop let me go on that one. Another time, I was going to an Atlanta Braves game with Gavin, Kevin and JD and, having not known how long I was being chased down the interstate, I panicked and pulled into the median. After he instructed me to pull off the other side of the road he handed me a ticket and commented on my 'No Fear' brand sticker that said "Drive it like you stole it".
It was in this vehicle that I lived the majority of my high school years; where JD smacked me in the face and I cursed out a guy named Charlie Bussey for it by mistake. Before I sold it I spilled gasoline in the rear storage compartment and the carpet shrunk to half its original size.

Going back to the Jeep Wrangler mentioned above; it was a piece of crap. Don't get me wrong. I loved that jeep, especially in the Summer. The problem with that vehicle was that it was running for only about 80% of it's ownership before it was permanently stored in my parents shed. It was so bad that at one point my father acquired the help of a shade tree mechanic in Opelika that worked at a trailer park. He seemed nice enough and was willing to work for the cheap. At least, he was at first... before my Jeep ended up at his house. After a while he kept asking for more money and basically held my Jeep ransom. One afternoon I had enough so gavin and I went to his place with a U-Haul trailer hooked it up and basically stole it back from him. It took me nearly an hour of pounding on his door to get him to give me the keys. We solved those mechanical issues later by using a legitimate mechanic.

The engine wasn't the only problem. I had apparently been driving around on Firestone tires that had been recalled a year prior. I found out why they had been recalled while driving back home from Auburn during a school break. I would say somewhere between Auburn and Montgomery, AL, the rear, driver-side tire began rumbling and before I could slow down to see what was wrong, it exploded. Well, that's not entirely true but it might as well have. The tread disconnected from the tube, slapped the back of my car (ripping my cloth top, tearing off the plastic wheel well and crushing my license plate) and then flew into the median. This event, combined with my breaking, sent my car into a 180 degree spin. I think my Guardian Angel jerked the steering wheel at the perfect moment to bring me to a stop instead of sliding sideways and flipping.
The problem with a 180 degree turn on the interstate is that you end up facing the traffic you were driving alongside. Thankfully no one was directly beside me, but there was an 18 wheeler not far behind that had to make quick adjustments to get by me. Not long after I came to a stop, people started flying around me and honking as if I had done it on purpose. That was the thing that confused me the most. Still in a state of shock, I began trying furiously to start the vehicle back up. It seemed like an eternity, but I think it was only about 4 turns of the key before I realized there were people walking up to me from the median. It wasn't until they were feet away that I realized they were all in orange jump suites; part of a clean up crew from a nearby prison.
God send help in odd ways sometimes, so I'm grateful for the help regardless of it's source. I would have even given them the weed they asked about if I even knew where to get some. After they were told to get back to work, I spent the next hour changing my tire before making my way home again.

It might have been the next trip home in which I met hitchhiker Dan; a New Yorker heading to Florida to reconnect with his sister. This time, my tires were new and safe, but I was still super paranoid about driving on the interstate (that actually lasted for years). It was also on this trip that my engine was sputtering and having difficulty accelerating to over 50mph. I had actually made my way just through Montgomery this time when I pulled off the interstate to try and figure out why my Jeep was acting the way it was. I popped the hood, looked around and noticed nothing. Got back in and started up the on-ramp. It was there I saw a fat guy, a little dirty with a single medium luggage case. I don't know what possessed me to pull over but I did.
Dan turned out to be a pretty nice guy. I bought him Subway at the next exit and in return to took a broken pencil and plugged up an unattached vacuum line in my engine that was causing the problems. Turned out he knew a thing or two about engines. I also learned that he was broke and homeless; having lost everything to drugs. His wife and kids wouldn't talk to him and the only family member he had left that would accept him was that sister in Florida.
He sounded like he was getting his act back together. He had made his way nearly the entire distance so far with little problems apart from some A-hole stealing one of the two bags he had started out with. He had plans of finding a job in Florida and buying a dirtbike to get around until he could afford better. It's funny the things like this you remember. Anyway, we chatted  the entire way to Mobile, AL where I dropped him off at a Salvation Army shelter for the evening. I ended up giving him $20 dollars before I left. He hadn't asked for it, but I thought it would do him more good than it would me. Hopefully it wasn't used on his past habits, but it's a chance I was willing to take on this guy. Of course, that was the last I ever saw of Dan. Hopefully he made it to his sister in Florida.

All for now...

The Trip New York Forgot

While cleaning up a closet two weekends ago, I came across a CD labelled "NYC Trip Pix". I don't remember ever making this CD and, apparently, I don't remember the majority of the actual trip I took back in July of 2002.
I do remember going and it being something I couldn't really afford at the time; I had to take a loan from my roommate Chad (featured in the photos). I also clearly recall taking the Staten Island Ferry just to view the Statue of Liberty "up close" for free. Apart from that, there are scattered thoughts of a bar that Lincoln visited, Central Park, walking a few streets in Upper Manhattan, a super small apartment I slept in, 4th of July fireworks and black market street deals in China Town.
It may come back to me one day... but for now, all I've got is pictures. Man, was I skinny.

The Honeymoon in South Africa (Part 4)

Sunday, Oct 20, 2013:
We flew back into Cape Town mid-day and made a pit-stop in the Jeep store in the airport to replace the black Northface backpack that I was wearing, it had been falling apart for days, was leaving black powder on everything and driving Jillian crazy. While in the shopping mood we picked up a bunch of refrigerator magnets for Jillian's family members and coworkers.
Thankfully, all our remaining clothing and souvenirs from days before were still in our rental car when we returned to the parking deck. It was nice to know I'd have new pants to change into later. On the recommendation of a shop worker in the airport, we made a detour on our way back to Camps Bay and drove south toward the town of Constantia. We were told that a store called CNA would have items like bubble wrap and shipping tape and Constantia had a mall with a CNA inside. There was a little bit of an argument in the car about driving places we weren't familiar with but, ultimately, Jillian had us on the right track and we had a very pleasant drive through what is essentially a beautiful neighborhood. I wouldn't actually mind living in Constantia if South Africa was my home. I should also mention that the mall was very impressive. As good or better than what we have in south Alabama.
We found said CNA (the equivalent of Office Depot) and, packing materials in hand, headed back to Victoria Road, following it into Camps Bay for our second stay; this time at Azamare Guesthouse. Hooray for a parking garage!... (that we never used.)
When we arrived, Jannie (a guy - pronounce Yonee) gave us elevator and door keys and showed us to our room, which was the entire second floor; complete with it's own terrace and swimming pool. The view, again, was amazing and could be seen from every part of the room. We had called ahead and asked for the honeymoon special so there were rose petals everywhere, a bottle of chilled champagne by the bed, chocolates and a few unlit candles here and there. Despite it being our least expensive hotel, it was easily the best. There was a nice wine and hors d'oeuvre snack in the evenings and filling continental (or personally prepared hot) breakfast in the mornings. The only downside to this place was that they had a dirty hot tub that didn't really work and if you wanted to use it, you had to request that it be turned on like 6 hours in advance.

For dinner that evening we wanted to go a little more informal so we chose a pizzeria that Jannie said was more of a family restaurant, called Col' Cacchio. Great decision. The atmosphere was relaxing and the food was great. Not to mention it was another cheap meal. Very satisfied, we went back to our room with a view and called it an early night. We had an early morning ahead of us.

Monday: 
Shark Day was upon us. What every man fears; waking up 4:45am to drive across a foreign country and jump into 50 degree water. I don't think either of us were thrilled when the alarm went off, but it didn't take us long to get ready, grab what we needed and get going. Our destination was Gansbaai; a small fishing village known for it's dense population of great white sharks... and for being a two and a half hour drive from our hotel room.
Most of the ride was bearable as the scenery was phenomenal regardless of your location, but our directions were a bit sketchy at best and we were low on gas. I would say at about our halfway mark we were running on empty and, thankfully, came across a shell station. I'm not sure if I had mentioned it yet, but the stations in SA are full service, so we were a little confused when an attendant came to my car window and asked how much fuel we wanted. I was going to go with an amount but Jillian just said, "fill it up". After pumping we paid in cash, the attendant walked toward the main building and Jillian and I made a mad dash for her notes and cell phones to see what the standard was for tipping attendance. He answered our question when he handed me all my change and walked away without asking for a tip. We found out later that you only tip if they offer to check your oil and tire pressure, etc.
A couple towns away from our destination, I couldn't help but think: This would be the absolute perfect spot for a golf course. Why my mind went directly to golf, I don't know. I was right though. Some of those views with the ocean on one side and the mountains in the back would have made for world class golf locations. It's just a shame that around every corner there was mass poverty and people living in tin shacks. I realize it makes me look bad, or heartless to think a country would be nicer without the poor, but it's true. South Africa would be a prime place to live if there wasn't such a drastic disparity between have and have nots.
Anyway, we were the first to arrive at our diving shop, early enough to grab a couple cups of hot tea and some breakfast food... some of which was moldy; A good catch by Jillian. Once everyone had arrived, we signed our "if you die, we aren't liable" forms, watch a short instruction/safety video and walked down a hill to the pier where our boat was being placed into the water.
The channel out of the harbor was extremely narrow and would have made me very uncomfortable if I was navigating my own boat through it. I guess experience counts and our captain had no problems. In the end, I wish the channel had continued b/c not long after, we were jumping twelve to fifteen foot swells. I'm not exaggerating on the jumping part. The boat was leaving the water. It was very rough and it showed on a few people's faces before we even made it to our destination.
Once there, we were handed well-used diving suits and changed in front of each other. There was no nudity, but one larger guy was wearing a mankini. It ranked pretty low on the view scale for South Africa. Changed, they took us in groups of five and six to the opening of a cage they had dropped in the water and attached to the side of the boat. They put weights over our shoulders to keep us submerged and handed us masks. One by one we dropped down into the long submerged cage and moved to the left to let the next person in, until full.
The water visibility wasn't exceedingly great this day; they said 2 meters. So to get everyone a good view of the sharks, they tossed a tuna head attached to a rope into the water and reeled it in when the sharks went for it. The ol' dollar on a string trick. To an extent it worked well, but there wasn't that much to see until they were right on top of you. I can't imagine how terrifying it would have been to not be behind a cage and know those things can pop up so quickly.
Unfortunately, Jillian and I were with the first group to go in b/c no one else was volunteering. There were even a couple people who decided it wasn't for them before they even made it into the water; some others that were already seasick and chumming the water for us. The water was FREEZING and it was all I had not to yell expletives the entire time. The sharks were amazing to watch in the water, but I was very happy to get back on the boat. Jillian didn't have a lot of luck in the water b/c her mask didn't fit her properly. Getting out, we both planned to go back in for another round and hopefully fix her mask beforehand.
Unfortunately, it was also so cold out of the water that pretty much everyone who went in once got into warm clothes shortly after. Jillian nearly made it, but succumbed to the temptation of warmth. A couple from the last group and myself managed to stay in our suits and go down for a second time. The guy admitted to both of us that he really needed to pee and, it being so cold, we both gave him our blessing. Disgusting, yes. Warm, yes. Do I regret admitting this on the internet... we'll see.
Before the trip, Jillian had tried numerous times to convince me to take and wear a sea-sickness patch on the trip, but I had refused, knowing the affect they had on my body (extreme dehydration). It wasn't until getting out of the water for the second time that I completely regretted not taking her advice. I had never been seasick before and I have to this day never thrown up off the side of a boat... but I came pretty close that day. It didn't help that while I was changing back into warm clothes, the crew pulled out a box of sandwiches. The ride back to shore was not going to be pleasant at all. Thankfully, Mankini had some gum and was sharing. I didn't know that chewing gum helped with seasickness but I trusted the captain. The trip back seemed longer than the one out but we made it with only one more episode of vomiting while the boat was in motion... poor girl.
Before we arrived, we knew that there was a guy who would be filming and selling videos afterward. He was in our face a couple times while we were on the boat and even had a GoPro attached to a pole for some underwater shots. We also expected that video to be $50. I'm not sure why, but the video turned out to be $25. It was a pleasant surprise. We were going to buy one anyway. An added bonus was that there was another edited one available later that day online. See the whole thing below:
We had our dvd after a short wait and since we had not had ship sandwiches we were on the hunt for a lunch destination. As we were leaving town we turned in to a small shopping center with some fish place and a burger joint called 'Wimpys'. We thought it was a fast food place like Burger King b/c they had a menu up above the door front cashier. Turned out it was a sit down place with a menu and we had inadvertently ordered from the to-go menu. It suited us though b/c we didn't really need to stick around. We had a short chat with the manager about her sister in Texas, got our burgers and were on the road again. In short, the food was awful. I'm not sure what kind of ketchup they use, but it was not a compliment to any meat product. It really was a shame b/c I really was looking forward to a good old fashioned hamburger.
As we were getting back into town, we decided to do a little souvenir shopping back at table mountain. I grabbed my brother a t-shirt and we got several Christmas ornaments. Once back, we took showers and tried to grab a quick nap. Three and a half hours later we awoke and, having missed our afternoon snacks, made a mad scramble to get ready for dinner. We knew we liked that pizzeria from the night before so we decided to make a repeat visit. This time we ordered lasagna and spaghetti w/ meatballs. It was another lovely meal. Bellies full we went back to bed for another few hours sleep.

Tuesday:
On our second to last day in Cape Town, Jillian and I only had a trip to the South African wine lands on our schedule. It wasn't something that required us wake up early, like past days, but neither of us were able to sleep in. I suppose our bodies had grown accustomed to early morning excursions. After getting ready, we went up to the third floor for a relaxing breakfast. We picked from a selection of fruits, grain cereals and pastries. Jillian enjoyed a chocolate filled croissant and I grabbed some sliced bananas and frosted flakes... b/c I like to live dangerously. We had a little time before we needed to get on the road, so we went to the shops down the street and the on-site post office to mail a few of the post cards we had acquired at earlier stages of the trip. Before we left we grabbed a few drinks and snacks from the Pick-n-Pay.
There are a few towns in the wine lands of South Africa and we had decided to visit Stellenbosch; mostly because it was the closest. There was also a vineyard and restaurant called Stark-Conde and Post Card Cafe that received very high ratings on TripAdvisor.com. The drive up wasn't nearly the task we experienced for shark cage diving. The drive only lasted about an hour with pretty low amounts of traffic (thanks to it being a weekday). It wasn't exactly a scenic view though. More-so than prior drives, this one took us along the long stretches of shanty towns sporadically interrupted by the occasional gas station, gated stores and factory building. It was a harsh reminder that even though the country may have been beautiful, not everything within it was perfect.
A few miles off the interstate we began to drive through what I believe was the center of town. If I hadn't been fully aware of my location, you could have convinced me that that I was driving through any small town in America. There were 'tyre' stores, an electronics store with laptops in the window and several restaurants and shops. It did have an unusually high number of young people walking around, which was a mystery solved as we drove by Stellenbosch University. Though the streets weren't marked at all, we were able to navigate the roads and approximate our way to the entrance of Stark-Conde.
The entrance itself was pretty plain; a wooded area with a solid brown street sign marker. I thought for a moment that it was going to turn out as unimpressive as the three or four vineyards we had passed as we drove up. Doubts quickly dissolved as we pulled out of that wooded area and into the parking lot. The vineyard was almost completely surrounded by nearby mountains, something we had somehow failed to notice driving up. We found a parking space close to the winery and, getting out of the car, our eyes were immediately drawn to the pond that ran across the front of their cafe. Squarely in the middle of that pond was a glass-doored pavilion surrounded by weeping willows; a wooden bridge connecting it to the restaurant.

We had shown up just in time for the beginning of their wine tastings on the pavilion so we walked out and took a nice seat halfway in the shade. We were handed menus and a woman gave us a run down of the wines available for the tasting. We were both able to select five different wines but we pretty much pick the exact same ones. Neither one of us are really big on red wines but we both found a couple that we liked... even if they weren't the same ones.
We had just about finished our fourth glass of wine when I swore I heard someone inside the pavilion mention barbeque and SEC football. It got my attention but I was pretty sure the odds of that were slim so I ignored it. A few minutes later my ear caught the words "Birmingham" and "Alabama", so I was pretty confident that I hadn't imagined the football/BBQ conversation from before. It was too coincidental to stay quiet so I excused myself from the table, walked inside and interrupted a couple by asking if I had heard them correctly. It turns out I had not. The couple had been trying to convince the owner of the vineyard that barbeque in Alabama was better than that in Missouri and that the couple was from Birmingham, AL. Jillian joined in by telling them that she was originally from Birmingham. A few more minutes of conversation and we learned that the owner of this vineyard was an American Ex-Pat from Missouri and the married couple actually lived a couple streets down from where Jillian grew up. Not only that, they had attended the same dental school (at different times) and knew a few of the same people. We both found it so incredible that you can go around the world and run into complete strangers from your home town. "Small World" was used a lot. Once we finally finished chatting, Jillian and I made our way up to the restaurant to grab some lunch before we made our way back to Cape Town.

For a cafe, the menu was much more impressive than I expected, but it shouldn't have surprised me as the trip, to this point, had reflected the rave reviews it had received online. After a few minutes of taking pictures I ordered what was essentially deer meat stew over mashed potatoes. I don't remember which wild animal it was but it was delicious. I think Jillian had a sandwich before ordering cheesecake to share. The meal would have been perfect except that Jillian misread the bill at the end and gave our waitress about a 40% tip. She said, "It left a bad taste in my mouth"... whoops. The silver lining was that each check comes with a post card. Fitting for a place named postcard cafe.

On the way back to Camps Bay we decided to make a stop at the V&A Waterfront for some souvenir shopping. There were supposedly a lot of local vendors selling things there, but it turned out to just be a lot of the same things we'd seen on the streets but at 10 times the price. We did manage to find a couple of things we wanted to buy as we walked along the waterfront. There were several musical groups performing along the way. That was entertaining. In all, the V&A Waterfront was essentially a mall with a ton of seafood restaurants out front. I wouldn't say it was worth going there in the end. Some tourist traps aren't even enjoyable for the tourists.

That evening we went out for dinner in Camps Bay and tried a place called Parangas. I wasn't a big fan walking in because it was a crowded and the tables were a little too close to each other. It probably didn't help their case that their employees seemed to care less that we were there. The food was pretty mediocre and we left disappointed. The night took a surprising turn though because on the way back to our hotel, we stopped at ZenZero and convinced the night manager to give me one of their fancy Peroni glasses that is currently sitting atop my pint glass collection case.

Andrew had left me a message for me that Stella Blue wasn't acting normal so we called them via skype that night. Both of us having cameras, Stella sat by Andrew looking at the screen; quite confused as our voices came through the speakers. It was a nice way to end the night and I think it cheered her up.

WEDNESDAY:

Our last day in Cape Town was designated to be a shopping day so we started off with plans to get Stella Blue some toys or treats. Thankfully there were two dog stores pretty close. We went to one back in Constantia first. It turned out to just be a small shop with basic food supplies. It would have been a complete bust, but I was able to see how armored cars make bank pick ups in the cape and we found a small South African flag in a craft store next door that we planned to hang in the garage. We also picked up a nice hand made photo album. After a little online research, we found another pet store in Hout Bay so that was our second stop. It wasn't much better but we did find a tiger toy and something for the cats. It was nice having that off the list.

I had seen a t-shirt the day before in a surf shop in Camps Bay so we went by there to grab that as we headed into downtown Cape Town. I had read before our trip that there was a place called "Green Market Square" that claimed to be a smorgasbord of souvenirs, food, flowers, clothes; you name it. We spent about half an hour trying to find a parking spot and then another long, hot hour walking by stand after stand of purses and candy bars. We managed to get a couple souvenirs in different shops that weren't part of the square but it was a little disheartening. Things got worse later when we went to 'The Dubliner' for lunch only to find out that they didn't open until 4pm. '

Jillian was pretty bummed out by our lack of progress and she had really had her heart set on some items that we hadn't seen since our first day in town when we toured the cape so I convinced her to drive with me back to Boulders Beach (an hour south) to try and find those items we hadn't had the cash for days prior. She agreed and it turned out to be a great decision, despite the long drive (and unreasonable traffic jam halfway there). 

We stopped back by the CNA in the mall on our way home to grab a little extra wrapping supplies and spent the rest of the afternoon packing up all our goodies. Once we were done we went upstairs to try the hottub out again; this time having asked to have it turned on for us. Unfortunately, it was only lukewarm and uncleaned so that was a short trip. Before bead we headed back to the Tuscany Beach restaurant for our last dinner. It was a little fitting that we ended with the same place we had first visited.
 Thursday:
My plan for our last morning was actually to get up early and drive straight to the airport. I'd rather be really early than seconds too late to board our plane. Jillian, however, was not keen on the idea of sitting in an airport for roughly 4 hours just to be safe. I'm glad she convinced me to make one more stop before we left.
Our last stop of the trip became the top of Signal Hill; a spot that overlooked Cape Town, Camps Bay and the distant Robbin Island (where Nelson Mandela was held). It was a great final spot to take in the beauty of the area. I'd say we stuck around for about an hour before heading to the airport.

I'll be brief with the rest... b/c lord knows I haven't been brief at any other point. We dropped our car off with AVIS and they guys there tried to screw us by saying we had a scratch that wasn't covered by our insurance policy (another story). We made our plane in plenty of time and arrived later in J'burg. Being 'second timers' at this airport we were a lot more familiar with our surroundings so we did a little last minute shopping while during our layover. I got a nice polo and Jillian got another shirt, I think. We finally boarded our last plane and made it into Atlanta Georgia early Friday morning. From there we drove back to Daphne and spent the rest of the weekend relaxing.

THE END!!!!