Chadmouth: Grandpas Rule!

[JRoberts]

Re: Chadmouth: Grandpas Rule!

Chad this is a great story. I really loved it. With my dad in the army I never was around either of my grandfathers very much. This story makes it all too obvious what I missed.

You gotta know I love that truck. That front bumber is really cool. I'd like some more details on it.

[Autodoc]

Re: Chadmouth: Grandpas Rule!

Great story Chad but I think you left out the most important, we know the names of the two daughters and one must be your mom but how about the one your grandma was pregnant with,was it just another girl so that would give you three aunts or did you get lucky and have a stud UNCLE ,just one of those things that make you go HMMMMMMMMMMM

[walt reynolds]

Re: Chadmouth: Grandpas Rule!

Chad great story. Yesterday we had lunch at aunt Carolyn's and the whole family was there including your cousins and of course Bunkle Uchie whoops I mean Uncle Butchie!!!!!!!! Mom read the article and all of the great comments from all of the carjunkies and Grandpa was almost speechless. I printed him a copy since he doesn't have a computer anymore. I also asked if the Stude is ready for Power Tour in case we go and he said yes.

[Falcon67]

Re: Chadmouth: Grandpas Rule!

Excellent article. Hope that my grandson will think well of me as time goes on. That's all us GPs can hope for.

[AllenK]

Re: Chadmouth: Grandpas Rule!

I miss both my grandpa's dearly! My Dad's dad died in '83,and I called him "Pa" He was a machinist (apprentice course!),and he loved to go to the stock car races. He wasn't a hot rodder though. As a matter of fact, he drove some BORING cars. Four-door Torino,Granada,and a Fairmont too! He did have a '56 F 100 and a Unibody Ford truck. He was a great guy,but I couldn't really appreciate him as well as I should've. He was very quiet and reserved,but very dry and funny too. I know we could've gotten even closer,but he died when I was 13. My dad has all of his old machinist stuff,and it is so COOL. They lived 20 miles away so I only saw him maybe once a month and a week or two spent with them in a year. I wish he could've lived to see my cousin and his son race! He wouldn't have missed a race for anything.

My mom's mom was the greatest man I've ever known! He was not a hot-rodder or racing fan at all though. I was his first grandchild,and the only one for 8 years. My two other cousins never lived close to here so I still pretty much had him to myself. We lived just down the road from my grandparents,and I practically lived down there especially in the Summer. I have countess memories of things I've done with him. We rode all over the county when he was playing music,and I rode with him a bunch on business trips. I wish I was still 8 years old riding on his Farmall trike tractor with him!!! I missed buying his old '64 truck from my mother's brother's father-in-law by a week! I was able to buy one almost identical to it though. I wish I had let him teach me to play music!

I thought Pappaw would live forever,but he had an aneurysm in his stomach in August of '05. They rushed him to Little Rock in a helicopter,and they were able to save him. He came home a month later,but he never completely recovered. He said to my grandma one day after it happened "I wish they would've just let me go the first time." The next morning he had a stroke and a heart attack. I was able to make it to the hospital after it happened and tell him that I loved him and that I would never forget him. I don't know if he heard me,but I do have comfort that I got to say it one last time. He died two hours later in the room they put him in after they pulled the plug. He would've been 90 the following February. This still hurts deeply 3 years later. Sometimes you just have to let them go.

My grandmas were/are great too! My Dad's mom died two years ago on the first at the age of 86. She was able to live on her own until she was 82! She was a tough old gal!

My mom's mom will be 90 years old on Friday! She's a colon cancer survivor of 12 years! She kicked it's butt! That woman can still run circles around all of us! She is simply amazing with her energy and outlook on life. She's an incredible cook too. I will out anything she makes up against anyone especially her homemade yeast rolls,biscuits,and coconut cream pies!

Sorry for the book,but I just wanted to pay tribute to some great folks.

[mlcraven]

Re: Chadmouth: Grandpas Rule!

All boys need Grandpas like that. At the very least, even if they don't like cars, Grandpas who are just there to talk to.

[BangShiftChad]

Re: Chadmouth: Grandpas Rule!

Great story Chad but I think you left out the most important, we know the names of the two daughters and one must be your mom but how about the one your grandma was pregnant with,was it just another girl so that would give you three aunts or did you get lucky and have a stud UNCLE ,just one of those things that make you go HMMMMMMMMMMM

Okay, okay, so the kid Grandma was pregnant with was Earl. Not a junior, due to a different middle name. And known in the family as Butch, due to a "butch" haircut early in life. Uncle Butch, otherwise known as "Bunkle Utchie" by my father, and "Autodoc" on the forums, is the crazy, sometimes, okay often, sick but lovable third of my Mom's generation of Lanning. Yeah, Grandpa is Mom's dad.

I know some of you thought he had to be Dad's dad, but no. Dad's dad was Walter Reynolds, one of the coolest grandpas around. But he was a dentist, and his only car claim was his ability to drive all of them like he rented them, and then crash some along the way. He once had a Firebird that started making noise, and called Dad to check it out. I was probably 4. We went to check it out, and Dad had to pry the endura front bumper off the hood so he could open it to find there was no oil on the dipstick. 3+ quarts later, and no more noise. Ran mint after that. Grandpa Reynolds always drove with it on the wood. Hell, he let Dad drive at age 4 or 5, and that's when Dad wrecked his first car. A Morris Minor Wagon. Straight into a telephone pole. Oh well.

Anyway, back to Uncle Bitch, I mean Butch. We have had tons of good times, he always good for a laugh, and has raced in NHRA Stock Eliminator, just like Dad. In fact, my '69 Camaro Convertible was run by the two of them when I was a kid.