Baby Steps

I’m sitting in my office, laughing…at myself.  Why?  Because I just twirled around in the parking lot upon bursting through the back door of the dealerships parts department.  I’m fairly certain that one or more of the people who caught the Route 309 red light saw me resembling something along the lines of a baby giraffe just learning to walk as I “danced” my way back to the showroom.  You may be wondering why I am sharing this embarrassing moment on my blog.  It’s simple… I just ordered a shifter tunnel.  Nope, I didn’t win the lottery.  Nope, I didn’t get engaged.  Nope, I didn’t discover world peace.  My very public self-shared celebration was because I ordered a shifter tunnel.  Some may call me crazy, but I call me a car girl that never ceases to dream. 

Well, maybe I’m a little crazy too…

So, why did I just perform a celebratory dance after spending a fair amount of money on some sheet metal?  The last three years, I’ve dedicated all of my time to restoring Mopars for someone else.  It’s been an experience and I’m thankful for it…but it didn’t yield me the thing my heart truly desires- another Mopar of my own.  As the D150 restoration concludes, and space begins to reappear in our little two bay garage, I can start to plan for a very special restoration… My 1971 Plymouth RoadRunner.  This resto has been years in the making.  I’ve dreamed of restoring the RoadRunner well before the existence of The Little Black Dress even crossed my mind.  The shifter tunnel prompted such a joyous response because it is the first part I purchased for the RoadRunner restoration.  A baby step, of sorts.

My 1971 Plymouth RoadRunner 340 4speed

What’s funny is that the shifter tunnel isn’t even for the RoadRunner I’m restoring.  It’s for my Surrogate Satellite.  You may remember that I picked up a Satellite last year at Carlisle after chasing the poor guy down, during a hellacious thunderstorm, as he arrived at the fairgrounds from Michigan.  My plan is to use the shifter tunnel in the Satellite so that I can swap the drivetrain from the RoadRunner temporarily into the Satellite making it drivable while we restore the RoadRunner body.

My humor has subsided, now I sit here delighted by my little purchase.  My heart is full of suspense and excitement as I imagine what the future holds. Life is short, and now it is time to breathe life into a fresh Mopar dream.  Here’s to the baby steps that every restoration requires, for it is likely in those moments that we are most reminded why we love this hobby so much!

BEEP BEEP! 

My "Surrogate Satellite" on the day I made it mine!