The ice has all but vanished in my yard.
Today hit 70, making a good day for a cruise to the countryside. My ladyfriend likes going for long drives, so we decided to have Valentine's day lunch/dinner at another hole-in-the-wall cafe like last year.
Luckily this is HER idea and I very much enjoy it...
This year it was Leonard TX, founded back in 1880.
New for her but not for me. I knew about this place long ago from some group rides with the HOG club. Our annual "rollercoaster ride" takes place here...

Everything turned out great. We left home at 130 pm and it was sunny and 68. We arrived at 230 and had an awesome buffet with almost-perfect chicken-fried steak.
Afterwards we walked the town square a bit, then on the way home we stopped at lake Lavon to watch the sunset. We came home afterwards at 6pm as it was getting cooler (low 60's).

It sure is nice to put the cold and ice behind us. It is supposed to be 70 all this week!!

 

Cool! That sounds like fun! I remember those days..... Great pics too. Lady looks good sitting there!! That looks like a neat little town.

 

ok now you've done it,I'm jealous...a ride in an olds and chicken fried steak! I suppose your gonna tell us next you also had mashed taters and milk gravy covering everything.

Nice pics and glad you enjoyed the ride and food

 

Looks like a fun time, no lighthouses?


Listen to him," It sure is nice to put the cold and ice behind us".
You can tell your grandchildren about how you had to fight cabin fever and boil and eat your leather track shoes and Nolan Ryan baseball glove for sustenance until the weather broke during "The Great Texas Winter of One-One" Rob.


If you think it's nice after that little bothersome episode you ought to live here for a winter.
The only reason we put up with it is to feel how good it feels when it's over. It's the same high you get when you cheat death or the thrill you get while driving a Pinto around and slamming on the brakes in front of semis.

Oops... forgot you drove a Pinto Rob.

 

Glad your enjoying it Rob, after the winter you've been having its about time

Every year we get a couple weeks of spring like weather in February. This year it came the middle of January. Yesterday the high was 66 and sunny, but predictions are for rain all week with the snow level falling near the valley floor by Thursday. Oh well, gotta enjoy the sun when it comes!!! John

 

glad to hear the turn around in the weather. The crew I have working in Waxahachie will be happy with the change. Talked to them on Friday and it was still cold.

 

Oh - there was a lighthouse at the "Security Self Storage" in Farmersville. Not worth the photo though...

Forgot about that - it was all so tasty! Awesome white gravy.
And also there were frog legs, crab legs, salad, chocolate cake.........

I am still full. <burp>

 

Man, you guys are makin me jealous. It actually went into the low 40s here in NY today. Thats the warmest its been in over a month, still alot of snow on the ground. I hate this winter!

 

Yes it was a great weekend. I worked on the 442 out in the sun shine most of both days.

 

Oh, go away.

It hit 50 here today, and I almost washed cars, but decided to piddle moving parts instead.

I can't wait for 70 degrees and sunny, and more than two consecutive days off to be able to do something.

 

I had the top down all day in Kansas City, it was only 50, felt like 70

 

lol yeah that weather was nice this weekend, spent saturday cleaning the gaskets off the block and today i spent the whole day fixing a friends of mines car. and another friends truck lol

 

Wouldn't you know. Like Rob and Richard said, it's been great the last couple of days. Yesterday, opened Big Red's garage, unplugged the spotlight under the hood, after removing the blanket on top of the motor!!! LOL! We are just not too used to 8-9 degree temperatures, and I was taking no chances with the fairly new rebuild on BR. Started her up (pretty quickly, as havn't tried in a couple of months) on Saturday, and let her run a good bit. We planned on dropping the top today, and driving over to Arlington (yeah, I know, where they just had that recent Super Bowl with that wonderful group the Black Eyed Peas playing) for our NTOC monthly meeting. Juju is Ms Prez, and BR is hers, she was driving. Went to the garage, and daggone battery was dead-dead-dead! She (Juju) wasn't too happy, and we (I) had to drive the CCRider over. Doing some mods on the Silver Bullet. Oh, well, we head down to Bolivar Island next Friday for 3 days on the beach at my son/daughter-in-law's beach house, hopefully with temps in the low 80's! Cannot wait. Rob, what's the name of the cafe in Leonard? May have to hit it down the road.

 

Cool Rob,


Gotta make hay wile the sun shines ...........unless of course you've got lights on your tractor.

 

X2 The temps here warmed up to 25F or -4C and I decided to wash my car. I would love to have the 50's right now. It would help melt the snow away so I can see my street from the driveway. The snow at the street is as tall as my '03 Grand Am, you can see the roof line in the picture.



Snow cone anyone?

Adam

 

Mix 'em up with the liquor of your choice. Actually they are good this way (I just had to try). Sell 'em to neighbors, too. Just make sure the snow is white.



Most tractors have lights but some farmers just opt not to use them...

That sounds like a good plan for sure.
The place we ate is int he first picture - Lea's Restaurant. Very recommended!

Uh - what 442??? Is the shop done?

 

Yup, It hit in the 70's here today we managed to wash all the rigs today!!!

 

Got about 70 here in houston. So me and the wife decided to take the 88 prostreeter to sonic for a coney and a dr. Pepper. Every thing was great until. Going home the wife said there's sheriff behind us. Low and behold i got pulled over. Ticketed for expired tag and no proof of insurance. My wife left the tag and insurance on her desk at home. But he said i had a beautiful car. So my wife sweet talked him in to following us home. So she could show him The proof. He followed us home . Than he ended up staying 11/2 hrs. Found out he has a 1970 chevelle ss 454. So he teared the tickets up. So i made a new friend with help from my wife. She has a big valentines present coming today. I have to love her.

 

No I wish.

I picked up a 66 442 in pieces about a month ago. I bought it to do a little work to and make one piece running driving car again and sell. Still need some shop money.

 

I'd say so!
She sure got you out of a big hassle and ended with a good time talking cars!

So where's the thread?

Once upon a time, one piece at a time, there was a '66 442..........................

 

What 442? Did I miss a post? Haven't heard about this one

 

It got up to about 37 F on Saturday and 41 F on Sunday here in Windsor/Detroit. Got both the daily drivers cleaned up, they were full of gunk from 3-4 weeks with no washing. Fired up the Olds to let her run and pulled her out of the garage so I could clean up a bit in there. Found the cardboard under the car was soaked with tranny fluid which is not good. I guess the new gasket did not work that well...that is the only pesky leak after the restoration, so when the weather gets better we will drop the pan to make sure it it square and true and install another gasket. Come on spring!

 

Hit 45 in Chicago, felt like 75 still too much snow to even back the car out let a lone drive it but I did start it and moved some parts around as well.

 

I agree...this weekend was a very pleasant relief. We took the dogs out for a nice long walk, washed the daily drivers and took my boys to their first baseball practice of the season - now that felt great.

 

No build thread not much to see. It was a pretty original car with a few small dents. They pulled it all apart and started doing body work and mostly did more harm than good. The only part of the car that is not an original panel is the RH front fender. I did not see the original but in must have been crunched pretty good so they just replaced a fender. None of the bolt holes lineed up. It had a few bolts in the back and only 1 bolt in all of the front and even it would not line up. They had it cross threaded catching only 2 threads. I pulled the fender and found the rh of the core support was back and down a little. I spent about an hour massaging it to where I thought it was pretty close. I got the fender to test fit and see how much more work it would need. I was expecting to have to fit it a few times but all the holes lined up on the first try.

Its almost ready as a driver. I will take some pics the next time I am home in the daylight. That will be next Sunday

 

Hit 38 here yesterday, which was good enough to untarp the pick up bed and haul the 425 over to the pole building and unload it. That felt pretty good after 3 months of no car work.

 

I'll be looking come Sunday.

Should be posting some pictures soon on the 48. engine being assembled as we speak. should have pictures about the same time you do.

 

Had bunch of friends over for a wild game feed last night. Everyone brought there best dish,pheasant and dumplings, venison and elk steaks, shish- kabobs,cranberry Burgundy pheasant, elk tacos, some kind of a spice wild rice dish. Opened a new bottle of Forest Ranch White lighting(the dark side) had a good buzz a going. Great wine everywhere, God I ate so much I hurt, Then it started to snow again what a buzz killer..... Winter sucks Lost in the 50's ...Tedd

 

Yow!! How come I did not get the invitation!!
Sounds like an awesome time. My neighbors have me hooked on wild game for sure.
After the White Lightning, the snow was probably enjoyable!
I can almost see it, smell it, taste it..........

There's a contradicting set of sentences right there...
We will be awaiting the thread with pictures after Sunday.

 

Ok Rob , rub it in while you can You know we will get back at you when it's so hot there you can't even get outdoors You time will come

 

Yea, it will come sooner than I want it.
However, it is nice to rub it in FIRST...
But just wait til after I move to the oregon coast!

 

Oregon?? Don't they get rain there 300+ days a year? My sister and 2 brothers live on Vancouver island , I visited there for 2 weeks once and the sun came out 1 day.

 

The rain rumors are what keeps it from getting to crowded out here in the Pacific Northwest. Keep on telling everyone it rains all of the time. Tell them that Pat and John both have web feet that should keep them away

 

I will do my best Pat , I went out to B.C coast originally when I was 19 and spent a summer there , I think it rained at the most what I could count on one hand. The rainiest season seems to be late fall through the winter , unless there is an occasional snowfall.

 

Yeah, like I do hate you. Well it is supposed to get to 60 here in NJ this weekend. That TX town looks like it belongs in a John Wayne movie....except for the paved street............did anyone have a shoot out in the street??????

 

Hey - 60 was our LOW last night! Yesterday's high was 78.
Today will be the same (as well as most of the next week!)

I saw some old B&W pictures of that town long ago with horses ties up at the stores and wagons full of hay parked out there. If it was founded in 1880, then I can imagine what it was like out there. The church was built in 1906 and looked quite new still.
No shootouts in the bricked street, probably because the police station and city hall was smack-dab in the middle of the square... That place was huge!

 

yea it was sooooooo nice last night. I got out the flood light stand and worked on the 442 until about 10:30 in the cool air.

 

I was doing the same thing on the SB, working on the dual snorkel modification w/4" ducts going through the fenderwells. I'm reluctlant to drill 4" holes through anything on any car, much less the Silver Bullet! Velly interesting....

 

Well it is supposed to hit 60 degrees here in NJ this weekend......we'll see!!!!

 

From freezing rain and snow to 70+ degree weather, only in Texas. You guys do everything in excess.

Aron, i would be nervous cutting those holes as well, put on your big boy pants and go for it