Things Took a Bit of a Turn

My plans for the car this winter were relatively simple, just do maintenance to parts of the car that were holding me back from passing emissions so I can register the car again, get new suspension, install a gauge set up for monitoring the motor, and a new front lip. But a situation came up that I couldn’t pass on, and now the interior is going to go through a pretty drastic change for 2021.

My friend Sam gave me quite a deal on this Recaro Pro Racer, and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

I moved the memory fab over to the passenger side, and with it being a replica of a Recaro SPG, it looks right at home next to the Pro Racer. Colors and materials are a little different, but not so drastically different that I dislike it. And eventually I would like to put a real SPG or even a Pole Position on this side.

Next will be some rear interior removal, an autopower roll bar, and a couple of red Sabelt harnesses, and I will be content.

I’m super excited about how this is coming together, the interior already feels much more together than it used to with a stock seat in the right side.

I’m super excited for the what this winter will produce as an “end product” for this car. It feels great to be able to allocate time and resources to this old car again. I’m most excited to drive though.

It’s The Little Things

Sometimes you’ve gotta do things that make you happy.

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I decided to do a little dress up in my engine bay. I made this bracket to hold a BOSS coffee bottle for coolant overflow.

These pictures show a little bit of the trial and error I went through while putting fittings on the bottle. The last picture is how the final product sits in the car.

The OEM coolant overflow works just fine, but I wanted to over engineer something relatively simple that looks cool.

I’ve found a lot of joy lately creating things.

I also made this sheath for a knife I recently bought. Doing things like this is what I’ve missed so much during nursing school. I can’t wait to create some more.

It Feels GOOD

A while ago I got together with my old friend Zandro to do a photoshoot he did for me as a graduation gift.

I was planning on just a few shots of me in my cap and gown standing around, being awkward (which was a part of it). But he made sure we brought the civic to be a part of it, and for that I’m super grateful.

Outside of my family of course, my civic has been the one constant in my life that’s been there since the beginning of my journey to becoming an “adult”. Zandro knows this about me, and he knows how important this car is to me, and that’s why he insisted on it being a part of this shoot.

Though this car is one of the biggest reasons I took so long to get into and finish nursing school, it offered me so many opportunities and experiences that I never could have imagined. And it has put me on a path to make friends like Zandro, and the Ramblers. Friends who I now consider my family. So my path may not have been so straight and narrow to get where I am now, but I wouldn’t change a damn thing. Because at this exact moment in time, I am truly happy.

HAVE FUN!

A Few Announcements

IM A NURSE!

Like officially, I’m a licensed registered nurse now. I passed my board exam, and I’m ready for practice. Now on to other news.

I added a 1977 Suzuki GS750 to the lineup!

I received this motorcycle from my uncle as a graduation gift. I will be restoring it and it will be my main rider next season.

Size comparison to the Grom

I’m excited to finally have a regular sized motorcycle and one in such good condition considering the age. I’ll post updates here as regularly as I can. But there is other big news!

The car is “red” again! After 5 years, I removed the livery in preparation for some restoration. The vinyl pulled up a lot of clear coat, but it this gives me an opportunity to give this old machine a refresh.

I can’t stand seeing this rust, but I wanted to get to it before it got any worse. Also, it’s about time I treated the car nice. After all, it’s given me so much joy over the past 13 years. I’m planning on getting the paint work done early spring time.

There are more plans for some general upkeep and upgrades in the works, but I don’t want to talk about it until they are a little more concrete.

It’s Been a Long Time Coming

After chasing this degree for 11 years, I’ve finally completed nursing school. One last step and I’m in it to win it. NCLEX is the last thing in my way.

Stern Aguzze S07

It feels good to be on Japanese wheels again. And WHITE ones at that!

2020

What a fucking start….

At least there’s still this.

A Thought to Welcome the Year

There’s a real moment of tranquility when you’re on track. It’s hard to explain, but when you’re in it, you’re in deep. You’re so focused on the task at hand that literally nothing else exists, and for how loud, hot and possibly uncomfortable it is, you feel peaceful. Maybe peaceful isn’t the word, but it seems to fit the best. Everything else is quiet, and I love that feeling.

Of course it can be stressful. But even when things doing go perfectly, those moments of tranquility make it all worth it. It’s what keeps me coming back for more, a large reason I’m still so attached to this car and continue efforts to keep it alive and running. It demands so much of your attention while you’re in it, and it involves so much of your physical, mental, even spiritual capacity. I get a similar feeling while training, when everything in a workout clicks and my focus is spot on, but it’s so inconsistent, and at the end of the day, it’s still not the same. That’s why after all these years, driving is still my favorite thing.

I suppose people that have a similar level of passion as I do for things other than cars and driving can understand what I’m talking about. And I really hope they do, because it’s fucking great.

I want more of this feeling this year.

Happy new year friends. Let’s drive together.

Checking In

It’s been a while. Nursing school has been keeping me super busy, but I got to drive this summer for the first time since I started school. It was refreshing, and the current state of the car is telling me that all this school mumbo jumbo is all gonna be worth it in the end. The car is in rough shape, it’s gotten tired, and it’s showing, but once I finish school, it will be time for a long overdue overhaul.

Since my last check in, not much has changed with the car. Just a new Memoryfab seat/PCI seatrails and a new Personal Grinta 330mm to update the cockpit. And a small chargespeed facelift for 2019. I’m sure I’ll check back in soon.

Limitless Pursuit

We opened up shop! Mykee from Scrape Artist started a new business late last year focusing on large format printing, apparel production, vehicle wrap, and graphic design. I’m incredibly excited to be a part of this, as having our own shop space has been something we’ve talked about for almost a decade now.

So with the new resources made available to me by Full Frontal Graphics, I’ve found myself able to produce some items I’ve had on my mind for a while now. I’ve always liked the idea of making shirts and new stickers for Geeky LURV, I’ve actually had designs lined up for print for years now, but I’ve grown as a person, and as a designer. My tastes have changed and I’m not as happy with the stuff I’ve made lately.

So I’ve decided to start a new project. I’m not looking to rebrand, or ditch the blog. I’m just looking for a change of pace artistically while being able to bring business to the shop.

I’m also not looking to build an empire or anything. I just want to make stuff I would like to wear and see, and would hope that enough others would also like to wear and see. Something that’s a little more obvious about being about cars and the spirit of competition.

Last night we were able to print a test shirt for the new brand, and it feels exciting to know that I get to have my hand in every step of production of my merchandise.

This is Pursuit: produced by GeekyLURV