1967 GTO - Tiger

1967 GTO – Tiger

This weeks installment includes monkeys, cartoon animals, ankle nipping dogs, and a collection of animal enthusiasts who proudly display their adoration of the furry, fantastic, and flying members of God’s creation.    Throw in a  Goat that says, “Grrrrr”, and we officially have a four lane zoo filled with a herd of Hello Kitty.   I tried my best to see a correlation between the animal and type of car, but to no avail. Enjoy!  PS  The history of how the GTO/Goat got it’s name is pretty cool…Click here to be informed.  The whole Tiger thing was news to me and pretty interesting.

Dog Paw
Adopt a Dog
Love Mutz
Cattle
Chick
73 Gremlin
Woodstock
Hmm? Snoops?
Red Cat
1967 GTO – Tiger
Sock Monkey
2 Shelties
Posted on August 31, 2013 by Debbie | 10 Comments

Dick’s Last Resort Dallas (Eat There!)

Posted on August 30, 2013 by Debbie

Hey all my blog friends. This an amazing young fellow who is traveling across the Americas. It is worth a minute or two to check out. You decide.

Posted in Journal | 2 Comments

Cool friends put mustang wheels on their trucks.  I’m guessing 1994-2004.

Mustang wheels on a truck!
So cool!!
Posted on August 26, 2013 by Debbie | 6 Comments
Best Friends for 30 years!

Best Friends for 30 years!

From check in to check out, our stay was glorious.    It became obvious very quickly that the Garden Inn Hilton in Springfield, MO knows their stuff in the area of customer service.  Greeting us as we walked up to the counter was Clayton, energetic, happy, and ready to make a good first impression.  Check-in meant the usual banter between employee and guest, but of course Yvonne and I had to put our unique spin on things…

Clayton: Checking in?

Yvonne: Yes

Clayton: Last name?

Yvonne: Henderson

Clayton:  I show that as a one night stay, 2 queens

Debbie: Why yes we are…

Yvonne: Yes, we are royalty!

And that’s the way we were treated during our whole stay.  Thank you, Clayton for laughing genuinely and heartily at our joke!

Darren at the bar was amazing.  Asking all the right questions, joining in our conversations when appropriate, and serving up much appreciated Jack and Cokes for Yvonne, and cold Miller Lites for me….(Hey Darren, it all happens for a reason.  We take on the qualities of those who pass before us and share them with others, making us people with more than enough to give.)

We ordered dinner…Yvonne and I agreed that we had never had a chicken salad sandwich quite so delicious.  Served on crescent was a mixture of finely diced chicken that had been marinated with rosemary, tossed with fennel, dried apricots, celery, and a honey aioli (Yvonne, you will be quizzed on this word at a later date) base.  Our sandwiches were served with a chilled fruit cup of melons, pineapple and strawberry, perfectly cut and fresh from the farmers market next door.  Yum!  Ordinarily we would have opted for a box, but not this time!  Obviously, we were not concentrating on our diets.

Our room was fabulous and had everything we needed.  The next morning we enjoyed a ‘made-to-order’ breakfast.  Chrissy was our wonderful waitress, James and Ethan our willing chefs, and Jennifer mirrored Clayton’s fine example as we checked out.  I must make mention that this hotel prides itself in being ‘green’ making great efforts to help the environment.  This building is certified by Project Leed and the US Green Building Council.  Kudos for that!

Yvonne and I would certainly recommend the Garden Inn Hilton for anyone who is traveling through Springfield, MO, especially those who need slumber after navigating the twists and turns of the great Route 66.  Visiting our sons at college and touring the Mother Road provided us the opportunity to live it up in true royal fashion!

This is a great beginning to my travels on the famous Route 66.  While I won’t be able to travel all of it, I most certainly will try to share much of its history and existing structures with my followers….PS  Did you get your kicks today?

Side note-my apologies to any staff member that I forgot to mention or if I misspelled a name.  It goes without saying that there are many folks who made our stay enjoyable – including house keeping, dish washers, grounds keepers, etc.  The behind the scenes staff is just as important!

Garden Inn Hilton
Hotel entry
Clayton is specializing in Hotel Management at MSU
Ready for Royalty!
Watching the Cardinals game…
Hotel dining
Yummy!
Lights turn on when you walk down the hall.
Not as cool as mine, but very nice
Country music with the press of a button!
Just a little night cap.
Going Green
Going Green
Making it easy!
Best Friends for 30 years!
Posted on August 25, 2013 by Debbie | 6 Comments
Hobby Lobby Circa 2013

Hobby Lobby Circa 2013

I may not be able to restore a ’57 Chevy to its deserved beauty, but I sure can place a model of one on the back of a toilet.

While the boys lived ‘full time’ at home the second bathroom was home to razors, wet towels, and a pyramid of body wash bottles in the shower.  With Brad’s help we spit shined the basic components of this space, then I went to work….SHOPPING!

The goal was to have a fresh space that was unique to guests. (The underlying goal was so I can see a bunch of car stuff when I use the bathroom.)  LOL    There is a bit left to be done…I’d love to have black and white photos on one wall of our favorite cars, both past and present.  And catchy muscle car phrases on the towels seem appropriate.  My last idea includes garage style peg board on the wall behind the toilet holding a few tools, in an organized fashion of course.

Finally, I can’t bring myself to compose a joke about fuzzy dice in the bathroom…we’ll leave it at that.

Oh, well, one last comment…I guess a bathroom really is a “gas station”.  🙂

If you have any ideas for this new space please share!

These are refrigerator magnets.
Route 66
Fuzzy Dice!
A model by Michael
Just makes me happy!
Route 66
Everyone needs NOS!
What should be embroidered on these towels?
Some of my Mustang collection.
Hobby Lobby 40% coupon = $2.40.
Seems like a vacation.
Nothing says Hot Rod like rusty metal.
Posted on August 22, 2013 by Debbie | 4 Comments
What a guy!

What a guy!

There is good new, there is bad news,  and there is more good news.

First the good news…we are happy to report that after a great deal of thinking, processing and observation, Jon was able to give the local authorities a few more pieces to the puzzle.  He noticed the order/sequence of numbers and letters in plates and gave new troubleshooting info to our local police.  The partial plate became a usable plate letter/number combination and the officer on the case located, questioned, and confirmed the suspect.

On to the bad news…this person was having medical issues the evening of the event and was reportedly out of control.  I say “bad news” because we don’t hope the worst for anyone and truly want this person to get the attention they might need.  In the beginning I was waving my magic emotional wand and transporting this person to places destitute and chaos riddled.    If it is true that health issues were involved, I was quick to judge.  But hey, it was my child after all that could have been seriously injured.  So,  I’m hoping for some leeway in criticism.

Finally, more good news… Where do old cars and their valuable parts go to die?   A St. Louis pick and pull can answer that question.  In true Nuessle spirit a new bumper has been fashioned out of an old discarded one.      A bumper was found, made whole again, and in the span of 9 days father and son made the best of a very bad situation.  We are collectively happy about the outcome.  Thanks to everyone for their prayers and well wishes.  Thanks to Jon who didn’t give up.  And kudos to Brad and Jon for working together in the “do-it-yourself” work ethic and a “people might sometimes suck, but we’re gonna make your car look good again” way of thinking that is oh, so  familiar in the Nuessle household.  Drive on Jon Nuessle!

After the accident
Close up
Inside and out it was bad.
In good spirits! …hopeful
Scrapyard bumper find.
Phase 1 of the Bumper in the living room, no problem!
Many phases later….
Outstanding.
What a guy!

Posted on August 18, 2013 by Debbie | 11 Comments

Jon’s visit to Greece. He left his car at home, and drove into a whole new culture.

I am not disappointed because I am not surprised.  Consequences…another story.  If you don’t want to live amicably (oh what I really mean is PROUDLY)  in the United States of America with fellow citizens then you should live somewhere else that accommodates your way of thinking.  Somewhere there is a place where you will fit in and feel right at home.  Get the hell out of our country and find a more suitable location to arm your weapons and unleash your anger.  You won’t be missed.   I am not “an eye for an eye” type, but I’d love to see a big boat full of jerks have their USA DNA checked then shipped off to parts unknown.

Before we continue:  This is not political and Plate of the Week fans can find pics at the end of the post.

Anyone who knows me can tell you that I don’t get angry about many things.  My biggest pet peeves are litterbugs, gossip, and things like that.  But when someone tries to harm another person, I am understandably upset: in my own way.  My version of upset shows not much evidence or reaction.  It’s mostly internal which will quite likely lead to my demise of heart failure, a stroke, or a stress induced coma.  My glass is always half full no matter how many times some jerk tries to knock it over.  Never mind that this happened very close to our own front porch.

On to the story…

Evidence says a Lesabre?

Evidence says a Lesabre?

Son Jon was the victim of a hit and run this past Thursday evening.  It’s one thing to ding someone’s door and not leave a note…another to be the person to cause a fender bender…but let’s face it-It takes quite a mean person to purposely ram their car into your rear bumper while you’re doing the speed limit, then speed away.

I think the most disturbing part of this story is that the guy purposely pulled over so Jon could pass.  He then rammed Jon’s car from behind.  This is the first time I’ve wanted to take the G rating off my blog profile.

When I asked Jon to talk about the worst part of this whole thing-1. Damage to his car and the bumper he had just finished doing bodywork on or 2. the scariness that there really are seriously mean people in this world willing to do harm to another.  He had a different answer all together.  His main concern was not that it happened to him, but that it most likely has and/or will happen to others.  He went on to say that it bothers him quite a bit that it creates an unnecessary financial burden on the victim and the bad guy pays nothing.  Proud of him for putting a very humane spin on this bad situation.

The worst part for me was knowing that he could have been seriously hurt or even killed in a senseless act of stupidity.

I want to thank all of our friends who sent out a Facebook alert ASAP with the partial plate and description of the car.  And I want to send a note of appreciation to my WordPress followers who are car enthusiasts…Thank you all for loving your cars, for loving other people and their cars, and for knowing that cars are meant for so many wonderful reasons. Shame on those who see any car as a weapon.

Jon loves his car and has a hereditary love for all automobiles.  Never in his wildest dreams did he envision one being used to purposely hurt someone.  Life is full of lessons and some of them pretty much suck.  But I’m hoping that my amazing son keeps his windows rolled down, his radio up, (heat cranked in the winter), and doesn’t let this incident change his positive view of the American road and the wonderful people who drive it.  Drive on Jon Nuessle!  Be the example…in every country you tour.

Windows down, radio up!

Moving day Freshman year
Cleaning supplies a must…Freshman year.

One final note:  Let me again stress that this is not a political post.  The USA is still certainly a melting pot. The DNA reference is strictly figurative, not literal. However, I don’t care who you are…If you want to live here, you should play nice.  Thanks for letting me

Ventilate

Ventilate

about the….

IMG_0548

Land that I Love

Everyone should have a USA

DNA Test

DNA Test

and that’s

No Bull!

No Bull!

Posted on August 10, 2013 by Debbie | 13 Comments
Go Cards!!

Go Cards!!

Baseball, football, or hockey…St. Louis is a sports town so it’s no surprise that it was easy to spy a few fans fanatical enough to display their love for said sports on a vanity plate. To have a personalized plate (here in Missouri) of almost any kind, you pay $15  on top of your regular DMV fees.  Then I did a little more digging and found out the fees for displaying a plate with the actual emblem on them (like the red bird above) requires an additional one time fee of $35 to the sports team.  A final little tidbit-As of July of this year there are 1559 Cardinal fans, 306 Blues fans, and zero Rams fans willing to pay that extra $35. Hmmmm.  It’s an interesting little list- http://dor.mo.gov/motorv/plates/

Louisiana State Fan
Cardinals
Dream On!
Or maybe his name is Bill and he’s 6 feet tall?
Hockey Cab
Curtis Joseph #31
Greenbay Fan
Oh, to be Blue!
Posted on August 8, 2013 by Debbie | 8 Comments

Gettin’ High in a Pick Up Truck!

Here’s a little post for my friends “across the pond”.  These pictures were taken while out and about with my mom ( willing accomplice to take prisoner a picture of any roadside oddity).  This is my favorite stretch of road to travel; Hwy 61-67 winding south as far as one cares to go.  It plays cat and mouse with both Hwy 55 and the Mississippi River.  My love for this road is a story saved for another day.

Just a guy we met on the way!

Just a guy we met on the way!

Getting the truck was a breeze. I was able to easily walk the parking lot.  The beware of dog sign was not supported by any evidence of a wildly barking dog sporting a metal studded collar.  This truck, which seemed to double as advertising for the junk yard,  appeared to be sitting up on something behind the fence.  Quite the attention grabber as we drove by.  On the other hand (or foot),  flip flops were not the proper attire as I made my way across a suspicious area of overgrown grass, empty gatorade bottles, broken glass, and an Igloo cooler lid.  Non-the-less, I was able to get the Mustang.  Perched upon an old trailer with bars on the window indicating treasures abound on the inside, or not.

This is not a contest of any kind.  But guesses for make, model and year are welcomed and encouraged.  Sure, one is a Mustang and the other a truck.  I don’t know the year of either, but I’m sure buddy Mart over at onemanandhismustang.com and my friends at mustangmaniac.org will come up with the correct year of the pony that’s lost its gallop.    The truck…I do know the make, but that’s it.

I would love to hear from everyone.  First question might be- are the vehicles up for purchase?  This particular business seemed abandoned.  After seeing the triage challenges that mustangmaniac is up for perhaps a bed might open up in their horse hospital.  LOL

1960’s orphan
On a trailer?
I had to go back to find out the make!
Truck, yeah!
Posted on August 4, 2013 by Debbie | 12 Comments
Shook's Bike

Shook’s Bike

What a great way to spend one of my final days of summer… by taking a road trip with my mom to Winfield, MO to visit an old friend.  Catching up with a dear old friend is an understatement.  Shook was friends with Mom and Dad way back beginning in the 60’s and thankfully he and my mom have kept in touch.  Shook and my dad made a great team during the racing years as you can see by the trophies in one of my recent posts.  (Click Here)  Over the years this great man has served his country, worked to retirement, had his own small engine repair service, worked with youngsters in town, taught music, and has become quite the wiz with technology.  We enjoyed lunch at a local restaurant where his ‘favorite server’ Lisa dished up some pretty great food.  It was obvious that Shook is known by many and loved by all in his small town.  Upon leaving to head back to St. Louis Shook decided to do a little “show and tell” from his shed.  As you can tell by the picture it takes a man with vision to build such a machine out of a Huffy Aluminum ATB.  As we kidded around about Horse Power Shook said it would get up to about 40 mph.  As I headed to the car to get my camera I couldn’t hold back the tears thinking about all the memories my dad and Shook had shared, and mostly about all the ones that never happened.  Thank goodness certain friends are just naturally part of the family like Shook. …The last treasure I saw was a rusty sign with his name on it.  As I showed interest in the sign he gladly offered it to me.  What does one do with a beat up old sign with someone else’s name on it?  Keep it forever, of course.  You never know what you might encounter in your travels through Smalltown, America. Most of us are  hoping to see a shiny quarter panel sticking out from underneath a tarp in a leaning barn.  Or perhaps a field whose only crop is  side-by-side Oldsmobiles just waiting for someone to come and pull a useful part.  Well, in this small town it wasn’t the “one spark plug” Huffy or the unique sign that stood out.  A gentleman named Richard Shook with a history of life worth living, a handful of good honest friends, and a willingness to take each day head on with a one of kind attitude….He was the real Diamond in the Rough today.  We love you Shook!

One Horse Wonder
Priceless!
One of a kind times two.
Posted on August 2, 2013 by Debbie | 22 Comments