Need a lift?

I was cleaning up my home office and rummaging through some old files and photos last night, when I stumbled upon this snapshot, circa 1988. It’s a 1980 Datsun 310 GX - the car I learned to drive in. I know my dad drove it to work every day, and I want to say he eventually put over 200,000 miles on that car.

This photo brings back so many childhood memories, not only of this car, but also of growing up. Don’t worry, I’m not going to bore you with a “Jonathan Quail Higgins” style story (as in Magnum, P.I.). What I do remember about this car is that it had a manual transmission, which was no big deal since I grew up riding motorcycles (see inset photo), and quickly learned how to shift gears, manipulate the clutch and brake – without stalling the car. When we took long road trips the car was cooled by a method referred to as “2/60”, as in two windows down and driving along at 60 M.P.H. - it had no air conditioning. The car was a hatchback, which could be released / opened with a small lever located just left of the driver seat (next to the fuel cap release). The interior was cloth / velour, and it had rear-folding seats. Overall it was a great car to drive, although when dad did swap out the transmission, somehow the shifting sequence was now mirrored that of the original shifting pattern (right dad?). Actually, I think it was a different style transmission, but at any rate, the fact is that my dad is the best when it comes to vehicle maintenance. I learned from him that it’s easier to keep things well maintained as opposed to waiting for things to break and then fix them. Honestly, in these days of rising fuel prices, I’d be happy to drive the old blue Datsun.

My 1978 Yamaha GT80

Now if you have been reading my blog for any length of time, you know that I had a pretty funny story to share last month (Dude…Where’s my brain?). Well, seeing this car brings to mind another funny story. I think this happened in 1982 or 1983, I can’t remember which year. One Saturday morning, while my dad and I took care of some early morning errands, we made a pit stop at the local bank. I think dad had to make a few quick transactions inside, so I decided that I’d just stay in the car while he went into the bank. Well, as I was sitting there alone in the car, I thought it might be nice to listen to some music. I noticed that dad had left the keys in the ignition, so I thought I’d just turn the keys over a notch to the Accessory / ACC setting and then turn on the radio. Well, the car was parked in a spot that was adjacent to and overlooked another parking lot that was separated only by a small concrete curb and a difference in height of approximately 2 feet (if you are from Madison, it was the old Bank One lot overlooking Lawson’s). Remember I mentioned the Datsun was manual transmission? Well, when I turned the key from OFF to ACC I went a little too far and turned the ignition all the way to START. The Datsun lurched forward, jumped the little curb, and then teetered on the embankment between the two parking lots. Needles to say, I was in a panic. But for some odd reason, I just sat there like nothing had ever happened! So my dad is inside the bank and he overhears one of the tellers say something to the effect, “Yep, someone’s gone and done it again – jumped the curb!” Much to my dad’s chagrin he quickly realized that his son had been the one that had “jumped the curb”. I can’t tell you how embarrassed I was when dad walked over to the car, opened the door and asked me “What in the hell happened?” I think I mumbled, “I don’t know – I was just trying to turn on the radio!”

Fortunately, one of the benefits of growing up in a small town is everybody knows everyone. My uncle owned an auto parts store across the street from the bank and one of his buddies owned a towing company across from his store. So, the Datsun got a little “lift” from the tow truck off the curb and we were on our way, once again. It was another lesson in humility, but the lesson didn’t last too long because I seem to recall doing something very similar a few weeks later, but this time I almost ran over my dad! I do recall his reaction being a little different from this one!

Dad, you’re the greatest! Sorry about some of the stupid things I did as a kid. I guess with kids of my own, maybe someday Joey or Gabby we’ll be able to share some of their stories with me someday.

You are the best dad in the world. I love you!