Smoke in the Wires Jan 2016

January The British Line submission for The Marque by Richard Lewis
Without being told, Your
Loyal Correspond (YLC) suspects
that you already know this is a new
year. With that knowledge firmly in
place, what are we going to do about
it? How can we make this a better
year than last?
YLC is not going to delve into
all those issues that usually make
the list of New Year’ s Resolutions,
things like lose weight, stop
smoking (What, you are still
smoking? Are you mad? Has Demon
Nicotine rotted what few brain cells
still rattle around in that cavernous
space? This is your mother
speaking—Stop!), or all the other
things you promise sincerely and
with the best intentions and are
eaten with guilt by January 31 for
failing to deliver on.
No, this is truly YLC speaking
to himself in regards to resolutions
related to his own British car, and if
you want to tag along, jump aboard.
First and foremost, he
resolves to make sure he takes the
shining, sparkling TR 6 out of the
garage more often than monthly. It
is amazing, at least to YLC, how
many excuses one can find for not
unlimbering the LBC---“Looks like
rain, Its really cold, It’s just a short
trip and the sedan is so much more
comfortable, My back hurts and
those seats are murder”, and so on,
ad nauseum. No more! The noble
engine’s roar will be heard with
regularity, even the top will come
down, and on to the open road.
Next, he will start doing more
of the required work on the car than
he has in the past. Yes, getting
under the car is harder than it used
to be, Yes, bending over the engine
bay can bring on back pain, Yes,
skinned knuckles are not pleasant,
but there will be no more of this
taking it to the mechanic for every
little thing like changing the oil,
adjusting the timing, changing the
points and plugs, rotating the tires,
and so on. While there are likely
jobs that will require more expert
hands, these aforementioned are
jobs that can be done by YLC, and
even a few more even more complex
ones, and he will desist with taking
the easy way out.
Lastly, since three resolutions
are enough for anyone, he will resist
the temptation to covet every
beautiful car he sees, and definitely
resist buying any more of them. In
the past, YLC has yielded to the
siren song of the desire to own “just
one more, that can’t hurt anything.”
Yes, it can. No more irrational
purchases, no more buying cars
that are mainly held together by
rust. YLC seeks focus, and the
pleasure of owning a car he
cherishes and, most of all, uses.
Well, we’ll see how all of this
goes. If any of these resolutions
strike a chord with you, help
yourself. If YLC lives by any of these,
time only will tell.
The end of 2015 was a busy
time for PBCA. Let’s review some
highlights.
Recent
Dec. 1 saw the Tuesday Morning
Breakfast and Show Committee
Meetings. We enjoyed breakfast and
then continued work on the April
15-16 Brits on the Bay Show, which
promises to be a humdinger. Last
year’s show saw stormy weather,
which caused a drop in attendance
but still a surprising number of
attendees brave enough to challenge
Smoke in the Wires January 2016 Page 6