Frieze Update - Planning Stage

"Before anything else, preparation is the key to success"

                                                                             -Alexander Graham Bell

 

 

Finally. After months of work, I've finally entered the planning stage of the actual design of the Frieze.

 

 

 

Way back when my thought was I would cut a pattern drawn onto plywood. Hmmm...no. That's not going to work.

 

 

 

For several reasons. First and foremost, after this much work on expansion of the work bench, I think I can do better than that. Not guaranteed, but I think so. Usually, if I think I can, then I can. And gosh darn it, it usually comes out better than I even thought it could.

 

 

 

The plan now is to use a combination of pre cut moulding pieces, PVC trim and custom cut stock to assemble each piece of the Frieze individually.

 

 

Just like the original stadium's Frieze. This is a picture from a Life Magazine article in 1955.



 

Frieze Update - Outta The Park!

 

 

 

We're rapidly approaching a year since I first blogged that I would attempt to build a Yankee Stadium inspired "Frieze" at the top of my work bench. Time flies when you're having fun. And busy making mistakes.

 

 

Much had to be done before I could get to this stage where I can finally start seriously planning the Frieze itself. First, I expanded my existing workbench by more than four times it's original size. That expansion also included a complete electrical overhaul and lastly, the lovely paint job you see here.  

 

 

Delays began shortly after I first blogged about the Frieze. First things first. A time sucking and soul crushing bathroom remodel took up nearly all of my time last fall.  



 

Then, the expansion. I'm not a carpenter and my time is blissfully limited. So this took me a very long time to complete. Expanding the original structure, construction of an entirely new "wing" and the construction  of decking under the entire thing took three months. Some weekends were a complete loss because of my mistakes. Did I tell you that I'm not a carpenter?

 

 

 

Work began during a freakishly warm day last January. Inspired by the lovely weather, I thought I could get this thing built in a Sunday afternoon. Hardy. Har. Har.

 

 

 

Warm days in the dead of winter are funny. This day it might have been 60 degrees. More like mid '50s. That's short sleeve weather in January, hoodie weather in August. Y'know, though, temperature not withstanding, any day is a good day to get your hand stuck in a vise.

 

 

Three months of building, rebuilding, tearing apart and rebuilding later and I finally finished it. Just in time. I was sick and tired of this thing.

 

Low and behold, I do have other interests. An impulsive project for our basement man cave around July 4th gave me the impetuous to buy a gallon of what I call, "Yankee Blue". It's actually more like Penn State blue but who's counting. With 99.9 % of the paint left after I finished this Yankees logo, I had no other choice than to dive into painting the work bench.

 

My wife was not happy with my painting of it. She let me know that she was a fan of the "wood look". Stay calm and carry on.  

 

Two Sunday mornings of Bob Kingsley and I was able to knock this thing out. Of the ball park. I think it handsome as all get out.

The blue against the white make a perfect Yankee Stadium like contrast.

I even added supports to the "upper deck" shelving that will anchor the Frieze when it turns at "home plate". It also lends symmetry to the entire structure.

We are ready for the Frieze. At last. Stay tuned.

 

 

Frieze Update - What the Hell is That?

Sunday morning, my wife and I walked through our garage on the way out to our Sunday jog. My not even half painted work bench caught her roving eye.

 

"What the hell is that?" she blasted. It wasn't a question as much as a white hot, should say blue hot, damnation of what I had spent most of the early morning doing. "Wait until I finish it", I replied, "Then you can hate it completely."

 

It's been a while since I've done anything with my work bench and the ongoing, "Frieze Project".  You may recall my whimsical plan...to construct a Yankee Stadium inspired Frieze atop my work bench. Why? Exactly. First things first, though. I had to expand my work bench by three if not four times its original size.

 

The expansion took forever. I'm not a carpenter. After weeks months of soul crushing mistakes construction last winter, I finally finished it in March. After four months off, I've gotten my mojo back to finish it. Just as the Yanks attempt a dash to make the playoffs. Timing, as they say, is everything.

First, paint. I typically hate painting but this is fun because with a few brush strokes I'm able to see  dramatic results. Full disclosure; this is not Yankee blue. It's Penn State blue. It's surprisingly similar to Bomber Blue. Lowes wouldn't make me a gallon of Yankee blue but they would make this Penn State knock off. Whaaat? Whatever. I like it and it's close enough for Mickey Mantle and Don Mattingly. When I'm done, my work bench will be blue with white trim. Yankee logos, both white and blue, will adorn it. The Frieze, at the top here, will of course be white. Although, it should be noted, the original Frieze was actually green. It was made of copper.

Onward. And as they say, upward.

 

1966 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham - The Final Crusher Awaits Us All

What is a luxury car? Given that any car today can perform at the levels of luxury cars of just 10 years ago or so takes "performance" out of the running for what defines a luxury automobile. Let alone answers the question of why people spend so much extra for them in the first place. Is it their styling? That's subjective. Features? Again, many cars today offer features found on "luxury" cars from the past decade. Whether that be nav systems or heated seats. Now, air cooled seats? That's something you don't find on Chevrolets today. Tomorrow? Bet on it.
 

 

Truth is, all of the creature comforts commonplace on today's cars were "luxury" items first found on luxury cars years ago. Automatic transmissions, power steering and brakes? All items we take for granted today were "luxury" items years ago. Air conditioning? Only the richest of rich could afford that decadent feature. So, what gives? Why do people splurge for a "luxury car" (these days never more deserving of the quotes btw) when they could buy, literally the same car for all intents and purposes, for two to three times less?

 

 

Clench your jaw and in your best Thurston Howell impression utter, "Exclusivity, lovey. Exclusivity". That, today more than ever before, is what defines a luxury car. Personally, I think that's chasing a big heap of nuttin' but that's just little ole me. Many people, though, won't even think of driving anything less than what they perceive to be the best of the best. Doing that would  mean risking being seen as something other than what they want to be seen as.

 

 

 

My two cents, again; that's a waste of money. Then again, I'm that guy who's always looking for the world's best $3,000 used car. Luckily, a lot of people don't live their lives the way I do. If they did then we wouldn't have grand old wrecks like this awesome, 429 cubic inch, 340 horsepower, 1966 Cadillac Fleetwood Brougham to fawn all over.

 

 

Ok. Let's fawn, shall we? Look at this interior. That's real wood. The highest quality, butter soft glove leather. I wish I could eat it because it looks delicious. That's real chrome on the dash too not the fake, plastic junk that's plagued American cars since the late sixties. Looks wonderful. Not so wonderful if your face and head hit it in an accident but it looks marvelous just the same.

 

 

This interior, albeit a tad musty, has the aroma of a cigar smoke drenched library with a dash of Royal Copenhagen dabbled in. This cabin is so old school fabulous I want to live in it and hopefully by osmosis, become as sophisticated as the people who originally bought it.

 

 

Ok. Back to reality. Even back in 1966, when this still magnificent Old Lion was a young cub, the question of what made a luxury car a luxury car did not have a straight forward answer. For certain, a '66 Chevrolet Impala or Ford Galaxie had a certain amount of "luxury" features available that were exclusive to Cadillac and Lincoln just years before. Even a Plymouth Fury was relatively well equipped.

 

 

Today even the most affordable Kia or Chevy has leather seating available. That and infotainment systems. Power windows and locks? Almost a given. Same with air conditioning. Air conditioned seats? We may have to wait for that one but from a features content perspective, most cars today would be "luxury" cars years ago.

 

 

 

So, what's with this top of the line Cadillac? It oozes cool. That's what. And that's what I love about it even if it is a four door. I have to imagine that, when purchased new in 1966, the owner didn't drop the equivalent of $75,000 today (adjusted) on a car that he or she thought was "cool". No, sir. They were making a statement. A statement of, "hey, we're freaking loaded! Make way, loser. I'm coming through 'cause I got it. And you don't." I have a question. What's the point of that? Slippery slope if you ask me. This is a depreciating asset. Gas. Oil. Rubber. Just like any other car.

 

 

Towards the end of his life, my father had an extended stay at a nursing home back on Long Island.  He was, if anything, a proud man. A proud man who was easily embarrassed. Navigating through the land mines of those two emotions made our relationship tenuous at best. Many of the things he was forced to have done for him by both the staff of the nursing home and by my brother's and I were emotionally painful for him to endure. He had a roommate who was experiencing a similar illness with the same grim diagnosis. That roommate, coincidentally, was a gentleman who also happened to live in our neighborhood. The man was very wealthy. Or at least, in our humble neck of the woods, gave all the illusion of wealth.

 

 

Both of them accepted their fate. Part of their ability to accept what was going on was that all of the patients around them were going through the same thing. Bed pants, open smocks. The faint stench of urine, the moans and groans of a nursing home. The misery. The unknown. The fear mongering abyss. It was all there and all the patients were going through it. No escape from it whether you were rich or poor. A Cadillac or a Chevrolet. 

 

 

Just like this Grand Old Cadillac. Built to impress, this car will look much the same as any other once it meets the final crusher. 

 

 

2013 Maserati Gran Turismo Sport

In her wonderful new song, "Red", Taylor Swift compares driving a new Maserati to loving, "him". While some may wonder about who she's referring to, I, of course, am more interested in the "new" Maserati she's singing about.

Maybe she's singing about a 2013 Maserati Gran Turismo Sport. My wife and I came across this one while on a stroll around Crocker Park last Saturday night. This...is a good looking car. Good looking enough for me to want one for my real or make believe garage? Good question. Let's just say it's good looking enough for me to want to drive one down a dead-end street myself.

Actually, car guy talking now, I fall short on wanting it because it's super expensive, doesn't have a manual transmission available and, most importantly, I'm mixed on its styling. Maybe its the color on this one. This is periwinkle, right? Finally, for this kind of money, (this one is on sale...window sticker is $133,000+), there are better performing cars out there. Actually, there are better performing cars out there for a lot less money. Like the new Corvette.

Loving him is like driving a new Maserati down a dead-end street

Faster than the wind, passionate as sin ending so suddenly
Loving him is like trying to change your mind once you're already flying through the free fall
Like the colors in autumn, so bright just before they lose it all