My Dad died when he was 67, I was 19. Almost fifteen years ago. I wish I still had him, he would have loved to see my son.
My Dad died when he was 67, I was 19. Almost fifteen years ago. I wish I still had him, he would have loved to see my son.
Last year... when the Portland Art Museum was running the Allure of the Automobile... my dad flew out to visit.... we took him to the show... his comment, " ahh these are my contemporaries...."
Saw him yesterday. He is 65 and all he wants do is hang out at the beach house with the family. After his 1st car, a 69 Triumph Spitfire, he was never really into cars, but has supported me in my love for them.
Dad is 83 and does not get around very well. He's in AZ, I'm in Chicago so we don't see each other much. Usually once a year.
Last week I was in Milwaukee and stopped by his old Alma Matter, Milwaukee School of Engineering. He graduated from there in '56. I went by the student center and bought him an MSOE sweatshirt, coffee mug, and a pile of brochures showing the current activities of the school. There was one showing that it cost $31,000/year to attend.
He called me to thank me and told me it was $225/year when he went there. It was good to see where he started and know that he walked those corridors filled with his own dreams. I think he did a great job in fulfilling them.
It was good for both of us.
Scott
With my dad living in Texas, it's hard for me to see him but about once a year. I'm hoping soon, that I'll be able to take him to a few "must see" event here in the U.S. Places like Pikes Peak, Bonneville, Amelia Island... Things like that, before he gets to old (68 now). He has a '46 Ford Businessman Coupe that's being finished at a shop (very nice daily driver/show car), and just bought a '52 Chevy five window pick-up with a 283 and powerglide that he's working on himself for a nice local ride.
Hopefully I can get back over there soon permanantly, and work with him on those cars.
Took dad to an hpde at Sebring a few weeks back, sharing my miata. He had a blast! Having a lot of fun with him as an adult, pretending to be kids. We play wih his speed boat a few times a year also.
A year or so ago we had a great road trip from FL to NY to pick up his M Coupe. I think we were both in the doghouse over that one.
My dad passed away in 1997 from colon cancer. I find myself missing him a lot. I was 12 at the time of his passing.
We worked together a bit on restoring a 68 mustang, though the car went to an uncle upon his passing. I ended up learning most of what I know now on my own, though he provided the basis.
I wish I could share what I do with the car hobby today with him, he would have loved it.
mguar wrote: My dad died when I was 24, I'm now 64. 40 years without him and I still listen to his advice daily.. Last visited his grave about a month ago..
My dad died 40 years ago when I was 18. He was 46. I miss him as much today as the day he died.
He wasn't much of a car guy., but he was an extraordinary hunter and fisherman. It's how his family ate when he was a child. I would follow him through swamps while coon hunting when I was a young fellow that I won't walk through today. .
I'm 50 and my dad is 70. He lives 10 minutes away, and sometimes I don't see him for a few years at a time. My mom is nice and calls him a free spirit, but I'm honest and call him a flake. He's a 70 year old party animal who was still racing in his 60's. The rest of the family has a problem with his flakiness, but not me. That's who he is, and who he will always be. He was always there when I needed something at home or at the track. When I was a kid, if he thought a new pipe on my bike would buy me a few spots, I had it. We went to a lot of races and had a lot of good times, most of which I learned lessons from 
I called 3 weeks ago and offered to take him out to one of the dirt tracks he started on, and we were both excited to go. Come race night I couldn't find him, so I took my son. Maybe this weekend I'll take him out to the local flat track, if I can find him.
My Dad died in 1969, when he was 56 and I was 9. I was extraordinarily blessed to have two significantly older brothers to help take his place. I spent a great deal of time (even when dad was alive) with Richard, who is 17 years older than me. He ran the farm, I did most of the farm work, since he had a welding business as well. I'm not really sure exactly what trusting a 15 year old (with no licence) to haul a carload of grain (IIRC, thats about 3000 bushels, or 10 trips in a 63 GMC 3 ton) to the elevator would be thought of these days, but I loved it.
I've actually never done anything with my "father." He legally disowned me when I was two years old and never saw him again. I've never even saw a picture of him until last year to make it 40 years since I saw him last (again I was 2). Oh well, life goes on. And it has, wonderfully, for me without him.
My Father is in Florida taking care of my Grandmother (She is 95 this year) so it is hard to do much with him as I am in NJ...
last thing we did was gut and rebuild my kitchen when he came up for a couple of weeks.
Love the guy to death.. but I really wish he had not learn to text
spitfirebill wrote:mguar wrote: My dad died when I was 24, I'm now 64. 40 years without him and I still listen to his advice daily.. Last visited his grave about a month ago..My dad died 40 years ago when I was 18. He was 46. I miss him as much today as the day he died. He wasn't much of a car guy., but he was an extraordinary hunter and fisherman. It's how his family ate when he was a child. I would follow him through swamps while coon hunting when I was a young fellow that I won't walk through today. .
It seems that every day I can experience or remember something that my dad joked with me about or was serious about. I try to pass that along to my daughter; I hope the funny stories she hears now will help her later in life, the way my dad's helped me.
My new house is maybe 3 miles from my dad's grave and I pass it every day twice, I make it a point to say hi even if I can't stop.
My Dad was a car guy before imports were big. his first car was a 57 chevy with the 289 powerpack. 4 door hardtop. (not post which he bought new in 57). He went through 3 transmissions on that thing. He did some stock car racing too. just back marker stuff for a dealership where he got paid for the number of laps he ran per race. There's more but its late here and he supports my current car habit.
gunner wrote: My Dad was a car guy before imports were big. his first car was a 57 chevy with the 289 powerpack. 4 door hardtop. (not post which he bought new in 57). He went through 3 transmissions on that thing. He did some stock car racing too. just back marker stuff for a dealership where he got paid for the number of laps he ran per race. There's more but its late here and he supports my current car habit.
My dads first car was a 63 Bel-Air, 4-door Post sedan. The only option was a heater. He always told me about it, but it probably took me until I was 13 or 14 to actually understand the difference in a post vs. hardtop.
My dad was here today visiting his new grand-daughter. He had quadruple-bypass surgery a few months ago, but is back to his old self already. We left the girls and went for a couple drives, with dad first driving my GT6 (which was bought new by him before I was born and given to me 15 years ago) and remarking how much better it is now, lol. Then he drove the rallycross e30 to get a feel for what a well-built old car with no a/c or power accessories feels like, lol.
qdseeker wrote: I've actually never done anything with my "father." He legally disowned me when I was two years old and never saw him again. I've never even saw a picture of him until last year to make it 40 years since I saw him last (again I was 2). Oh well, life goes on. And it has, wonderfully, for me without him.
I feel your pain man. My father was "around" untill I hit my teens, but it wasn't until I was in my mid twenties that I realized that "around" was all he ever was.
I haven't seen or spoken to him in more than ten years. The last time that I saw him was at his fathers funeral ;a he called me by the wrong name. 
I spend as much time with my boy as I can.
There was a lot more that I was planning to write in this post, but I'm getting choked up and teary now...
Fathers take good care of your children.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztVaqZajq-I
HappyAndy wrote:qdseeker wrote: I've actually never done anything with my "father." He legally disowned me when I was two years old and never saw him again. I've never even saw a picture of him until last year to make it 40 years since I saw him last (again I was 2). Oh well, life goes on. And it has, wonderfully, for me without him.I feel your pain man. My father was "around" untill I hit my teens, but it wasn't until I was in my mid twenties that I realized that "around" was all he ever was. I haven't seen or spoken to him in more than ten years. The last time that I saw him was at his fathers funeral ;a he called me by the wrong name.
Sad stuff, man. Even if I wanted to salvage a relationship or "meet" him now, I couldn't. He died in the mid 1980s. I wasn't sad by any means and I didn't care enough to be happy. My Mom might as well have told me that Jane Doe from across the world had died. I do remember, though, never wishing anything different than what I had. My childhood is filled with wonderful growing up memories. Not a regret one.
I just realized that I am two years older than my dad's age when he died. I had just turned 20, we were just getting over being bitter enemies when I was a teen. We were just starting to patch it up when he died. Every time I hear TPoH's "I'm an Adult Now", I can't help but think of him.
"I got my own reasons to drink now. I think I'll call my dad up and invite him."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSDF8VvU13M
I feel cheated, everyone in the family says we would have ruled the world once our differences were behind us.
FCG I feel some of your pain. I had a great relationship with my father. I watched the poisoned relationship my dad had with my older brother and decided I didn't want that. I feel taht a lot of my dad's drinking problem was due to problems my brother caused. Unfortunately, my son and I have somewhat of the same relationship they (and it sounds like you) had. My son was a good kid until mid teens and then his brain putrified. Alcohol and weed will do that. He is 33 YO, still in college (not at this exact moment), living in a house his mother (still my wife) bought for him 7 years ago. He only had two years left to finish school at that time.
In reply to spitfirebill:
Yeah, leaving home and having to work for my own living (my choice) straightened me out really quick. I finally understood where he was coming from, and he finally understood that liking sports cars & soccer didn't mean I "hated America". The first time I swallowed my pride and asked him for advice about something, he shocked me by asking me to go looking for a Japanese mini-pickup with him (from him, if that wasn't an olive branch, olive trees don't exist). We went looking, but he got sick before we found one. Another two or three years, and we'd have been hunting together again.
Sorry to hear about the situation with your son. I hope he wakes up soon. Need me to go over there and read him the Riot Act?
EDIT: Hunting wild game "together again", not trucks. It's a Southern/rural thing. Besides, I had him damn near sold on the Nissan 720.
dad died in 1990, before i began the seventh (and final) year of my undergraduate studies. no doubt i'm an engineer because of his teaching me how stuff worked when i was a kid. after he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, i began making an effort to spend time with him, and i'm certainly glad i did. we went to a lot of car shows together, had a couple of beers together, and i got to know him like none of my older siblings ever did. he hit me with some intense wisdom in those couple of years, and i'm writing a book called "Like My Dad Used To Say..." to capture and pass on as much of it as i can.
Still live with my dad. He invited me to come home when Sallie Mae came calling for loans and now I'm able to earn my master's. He let me build a turbocharged D16Z6 in his garage and let me keep the Civic in one of the bays for the past 4 months while I built it up for Street Modified F. Finally pushed it out last night to be towed up to a Honda shop so they can tune it. I ran out of money to finish the car. Guess who offered to help finish it. He's a great man and all of the stuff I've learned has been because of him. I helped him restore a '65 Mustang. It was my idea to put a 347 stroker and a T5 in it. I'll never forget the look of satisfaction on his face when we bolted it in. I always make sure to tell the man I love him.
Its funny, a lot of us seem to have a similar situation to a certain extent. My dad and I got along well through my 8th grade year. By the middle of high school, when we weren't playing guitar or talking cars (a BIG part of the reason that any girlfriend must realize I ain't budging on my cars or guitars), we were fighting. It was never as bad as some here have described, but it was certainly pretty tense with the two of us in the room together.
By the second time I came home from my Freshman year of college, we were getting along pretty well. By the end of that following summer, we were just about best friends. I now consider him my best friend, outside of my girlfriend.
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