As y’all know, we’re building a house (it’s almost done - we move in in two weeks).

And we added a third car garage specifically for Jolene! My wife and kids got me this custom made sign for Father’s Day!

On Saturday, it was a foundation and a pile of lumber. This is today.

The Amish dudes don’t mess around. Still looking at an early July move-in.

Got some great news about Ginger from the vet today.

Her lungs are completely clear now and the irritation around her heart is gone. She had pretty bad bronchitis which was causing the fluid buildup in her lungs and strain on her heart. We just have to finish our antibiotics. No heart disease signs and no heart medicine needed. ️

Tonight’s cruise-in was one of the ones where most people were rude and laughed at my car. And yes, I mean literally laughed out loud. And pointed. It seems as though every other show I go to is like that, and then the others have nice people that are genuinely interested in the car and how it survived in this condition for 31 years. I’m not phased, though. I will keep going. Jolene is special to me, even if not to most others. I’m proud regardless.

P.S. If you’re ever at a car show and unimpressed by a car, just be a decent human being and keep your nasty comments/opinions to yourself - especially if the car’s owner is sitting right there. It’s called manners and basic human decency.

I get that my car isn’t a conventional show car, so there’s no need to remind me of that. But I’m gonna keep going. Just because.

Here are some of my other favorites from the show (tonight’s theme was trucks):

Full price offer. Closing times and possession times line up with exactly what we need. $50k more than we paid for the house in 2015 and all we did was clean it, paint, and put down some new carpet.

Wow.

The housing market is nuts right now.

Happy 13th (or 14th) Birthday to my first baby girl.

She came to us on June 29, 2012 when she was estimated to be 4-5 years old. She’s a punk but we love her anyway. It’s such a blessing to have a dog that I don’t have to worry about taking on walks and having kids want to pet her. She loves little ones! Well, really, she loves everyone! She’s cute but not very cuddly (too independent). She likes to kill birds and chase rabbits (she used to be able to catch them but not as much anymore).

She barks her silly head off anytime a dog walks past the house. And, she loves going to visit Meemaw and Papaw when mom and dad go out of town. She’s incredibly healthy and active for her age, and for that, we are thankful.

^^Two pictures right after we brought her home in 2012.

^^More recent pictures.

Just missed Jolene’s 31st birthday! We are the same age now (until November). She was invoiced and shipped to the dealership on 6/14/1990. I was born 11/13/1989.

She’ll be turning over 60,000 miles soon.

Some guy in one of the Facebook groups asked if I “bought it brand new.” Lol no sir, I was seven months old when this car hit the dealership’s lot.

We closed today.

Remind me to never move again. I’m staying put until I’m too old to walk up these stairs.

As you all saw, I took my 6 about 50 miles to my friend’s house last night for his assistance in installing my fog lights.

On the way back, I marveled at how much I really do enjoy this car.

It has just over 53,000 miles on it, it’s a 2016, and it is paid off. Those three things together are blessings. But it is also quiet, smooth, plenty quick enough for a daily driver, economical, and spacious. And reliable.

I drove home with the sunroof open and the Bose stereo playing some classic country at a decent volume. It sounded great. The Highwaymen were as clear as could be (classic country music reference).

As much as I talk about getting a different or newer vehicle, I really do enjoy my 6 and I enjoy having a solid, new-ish car with no payment. It helps that the 6 has by and large behaved extremely well during the 5+ years I have owned it. A belt tensioner and two belts and a brake job (and tires) are all I’ve done to it mechanically.

Back when it was newer, the dealer reupholstered the seat bottom due to some odd flaking and repaired a piece of chrome trim on the trunk under warranty. But, that has been it. Both very minor issues that most people wouldn’t have even noticed, but I have OCD and spotted them quickly.

Overall, this has just been a wonderful car and it continues to be. It is a hoot to drive on fun backroads but also competent and smooth as a commuter. It’a an IIHS Top Safety Pick for 2016, and has enough room for both of my kids and their assorted items. I’m blessed to have it.

It didn’t come with a few features that I really wanted. However, slowly but surely, I’ve added everything aftermarket. Mod list is as follows:

• AVS vent visors
• Tinted windows
• Chrome mirror trim
• Remote start
• Heated seats
• Trailer hitch/bike rack
• Rear Spoiler
• Mazda valve stem caps (lol)
• OEM Navigation
• Husky Liners floor mats
• OEM Mazda trunk liner
• OEM Mazda rear bumper guard
• Apple CarPlay/Android Auto update
• Custom Puddle Lights
• Fog lights

So, TL;DR, I love my car.

Fixed Jolene’s broken/screwed in console trim! After nearly three years of owning the car. I was lucky to find a non-broken set from a convertible that was going to the scrapyard.

That’s all. Back to your regularly scheduled browsing of Oppo.

Only took a few photos of what I found interesting.

The Cadillac is a ‘77 with 23,000 miles. With a CB radio. I swear Jolene would fit in its trunk.

It’s entirely unfair that dogs don’t live longer. I’m sorry, man.

@e90m3 Totally understand that. It’s tough. I think now, the pandemic has screwed with everyone’s mental health so badly that mental health services are needed more than ever and there just, quite frankly, aren’t enough to go around!

@e90m3 I see a therapist on an as needed basis but she has a waiting list now so I couldn’t get in to see her currently even if I tried.

I’m on two different medications right now, actually. And they work. They help me manage it enough to be a functioning member of society. Without them, I’d just be a ball in the corner having constant panic attacks. But they don’t make it go away entirely.

Just posting this here because I don't know where else to say it, really.

A bit of a backstory. I have always been a nervous person and a "worrier." I was diagnosed with GAD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder), OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder), and depression when I was 14. This was right after my grandmother got custody of me and rescued me from an emotionally/mentally and sometimes physically abusive childhood home.

Anyway, I'm used to the anxiety/depression/OCD struggles. I've been in and out of counseling and I am on several different medications that do help to manage the issues but don't make them go away entirely.

Lately, though, I have encountered something new. I'm thinking it may be a result of the pandemic and the subsequent turmoil of today's world plus the fact that I have two young kids.

Basically, I have this nostalgic depression. That's a real term, by the way. I looked it up. I am sad about the state of today's world. I am scared for the uncertain future, particularly for my kiddos, and I often retreat (mentally) to the past where it is more known, comfortable, and just overall easier to deal with - even though my past (childhood) wasn't always the greatest.

This is why I'm enthusiastic about humdrum/mundane things of the '80s and the '90s. It's why I have Jolene the Sunbird, why I love classic sitcoms (my favorite TV show is of course The Golden Girls), and why I love classic country music and '80s pop/rock music. I even follow several social media personalities that devote their feeds to discoveries and trivia of times gone by and decades past.

The future and even the present times nowadays just seem to SUCK. Everything is falling apart at an accelerated pace. Global warming/climate change. Political rivalries. Covid. Famine. War. Etc. It just never seems to end and there is no good news in sight, or so it seems. It scares me on a deep level - as weak as that may make me seem.

I worry about the future for my kids, and I worry about the future for myself as well. This ol' world is going to hell in a hand basket and I just wish I could visit the past and curl up under it like a big blanket. Even if just for a little while.

On top of all of that, I worry constantly about my grandmother and her health and what life will be like when she is gone. She has been a big part of my life for all of my 31 years. She's 89 now, and I know my time with her is running short even though she is in exemplary health for an 89-year-old. She stepped in and took care of me when I was a kid and my parents were too busy fighting. She got custody of me when I was 14 and put me through college, and she was also there for me when my mom died when I was 11. We're very close and life without her seems odd to even think about.

All of this just weighs on me as I make my way through each day. I tend to hide it all and not talk about it, as I'm a man and that's what society tells men to do. So, apologies that you all have to hear/read my whining/ranting. In addition, thanks to Covid, I'm second guessing every decision I am making as a father. My son starts preschool in two weeks and he is playing t-ball and loving it so far. I'm nervous about both of those now that my state and county are back into the "red zone" with Covid. My wife and I both permanently work from home and are vaccinated, but my kids are 4 and 1 and aren't vaccinated due to their ages. So, Covid is always weighing on my mind as well.

It just seems to be one thing after another these days!

@houstonrunner Excellent that you got it working again! Makes the vehicle a lot more enjoyable during the summer if you spend any time at all in traffic. When the A/C went out on my old S10, I pretty much parked it. Thank God my Sunbird has an all-new A/C system.

Have a Golden Girls themed birthday greeting from me.

Not much but this fat guy got out there in the heat and did it. That counts for something, right?

Check out my water bottle!

Workout summary:

Don’t mind the high heart rate. I have already talked it over with my doctor and had an EKG. I’m just that fat and out of shape. Maybe someday it’ll be better? It’s just such an impossible mountain to try and climb.

@britsnswedes-was-minigti Echo! They were/are such unique designs from Toyota.

@shop-teacher said in Spotted at Meijer tonight.:

@mazda616 said in Spotted at Meijer tonight.:

It’s so funny how this once-common car stuck out like a sore thumb in the parking lot

I get much more excited about seeing old econo-boxes in great shape, than any super car.

Me too! She chuckled when I told her I liked her car but I was honest! Its paint was faded but it was otherwise in great shape.