Thursday, January 22, 2015

A Long Time Coming.

I had this pole barn built about 3 years ago and promptly filled it with projects. I became the guy I used to make fun of when I was much younger. A bunch of projects, and not really working on any of them, not really getting anything finished. Its not like I work for some spoiled son of a wealthy dad, who can piss money away paying me a weekly paycheck to build his pipe dream junk, to impress his fake friends. I had too many incomplete possessions, and not many quality completions. The funny thing is, I had the barn built so I could have a bitchin shop to build these projects, that were now in the way of that dream. Many factors come into play at the same time here. My day job that I loved was literally in a cave, an underground shop that was great, but due to my health and continuing sinus problems (body shop guys know what I'm talking about) I had to leave. I started another dream project the "Beatnik Bandit" clone, while some other things I have started still sat stagnant, waiting to be finished. While out of work, and with a lot of time on my hands, I did some hard thinking with star trek "Vulcan" logic, and the clarity of mind like a Kung Fu Shaolin Priest. In October my brother from another mother "Poncho Bill" dropped off his 57 Starchief for me to go through and give a make over. Bill was the final piece to the "get your ass in gear" puzzle. I didn't want to let my friend down, my wife, or myself. So, while fishing in the pond, sipping a few beers, chatting with Poncho, the harsh truth that came was the fact that if I cut loose those projects, that I have not yet started or was not really into, I could make room and money to build the shop I wanted, and finish up the projects that I love, and Bill's Pontiac. I took it several steps further and cleaned house of everything, old magazines, extra car and motorcycle parts, if it wasn't for a project I was working on, it had to go! I had a stack of old Barris "how to do it" books from the 90's sitting in my closet, that I had not looked at since I moved to Missouri six years ago. I sold them all, and got over $300.00 bucks! and that was just some old books sitting on the closet floor. I am still going through the many boxes of stuff I have in the basement of my house, and getting rid of it on ebay, Facebook and Chop Cult. To be honest, I have cleared just about $10,000.00 grand in my clean up (as a side note a good chunk of that went on the side for Mrs Fritz's new car) but I've spent well over five grand in the barn, and now have a 16 by 30 paint booth, a 24 by 30 machine shop and tool room, and a 30 by 30 work space. It feels good! It feels even better, mentally, to have unburdened my self of life's extra crap that accumulates as time goes on. I haven't posted much because I have taken my own advice. I got out in the garage and built something "A GARAGE" !!!!!! Do some early spring cleaning and clear your head, mind and soul, and a space in the garage for that project you have always wanted to do. I did it, and you can too! Qui Chang Fritz