tell a Model A related story

[Fomoco998]

Merry Christmas to you Gary, family and friends. Wishing you a great 2023

[woofa.express]

BOB CALDWELL.
At this time each year I have republished a story which I have been pleased with. This was to be of my late friend Bob Caldwell but I haven’t been able to find that story in trying to review some 66 pages, so I will write it again. There has been some sadness in reviewing past stories when I see names of Model A owners with whom I have become friendly and who have now passed. Names many members will well recall. Bob too has passed, prostrate cancer and only 52. Here’s Bob’s story.
His dad, Byron Caldwell was one of the earliest cropdusters in America, located at Williams, Northern California. Byron and his wife, whose name I don’t recall, had two sons, the youngest killed in a cropduster and Bob, as I said died of cancer. Sadly both pre-deceased their parents. Bob flew two helicopter tours in Viet Nam and one always wonders if the dioxin in agent orange was a contributory factor to his cancer. I must defend the cropdusters and the farming industries and say in the 52 years I worked in that industry ( civil not military) I have never seen poisoning or cancer as a result of chemicals. It's an emotional subject. All claims I have know of are unfounded. Bob was also a passenger in the rear seat of an ag plane which stalled into the ground. He had no flight controls and had to wear it all the way down. One always wonders about that as well.
Bob’s ashes are in both California and Coleambally which is close here in by Tocumwal where I live. He was a well-mannered and popular fellow. Bob leaves a widow (Australian girl now living in Oregon ) three sons and many close friends.
In addition to his fine attributes he had an incident in Vietnam which is of notoriety. He had a bullet enter the right hand side of his flying helmet and exit the left side. I’ve seen that helmet; I have held that helmet. This story is ridgy didge. The bullet entered at the left audio piece then tracked left around the back of the helmet, been held in place until it exited via the left ear audio piece. Bob had exchanged it at stores in Danang for a new one and later this helmet was given back as a souvenir.
There was another sad deal. Bob had a 1930 Coupe parked in his oleanders that he had owned since a school kid. Bob never did restore it however it was given to a cousin ( I think ) in some deal. Hopefully it is looking smick now.
The picture is of Bob and his wife Lorraine on holiday in Hawaii.

[woofa.express]

As a result of the previous story my friend Hugh sent this story below. It speaks for itself. gary


Hi Gary
The account of the bullet in the helmet reminds me of a similar Vietnam war account. In the 1970s I worked as a laboratory assistant at UNWA. My boss was a former US medical officer deployed over there. A conscious but wounded soldier on a stretcher was brought to him and he asked him “what’s the problem?” The soldier replied “not sure doc but I’ve sure as shit got the mother of all migraine headaches.” The paramedic (John Ormond, my former boss) removed his helmet and discovered a bullet hole in the centre of his forehead. An X-ray revealed that the projectile had passed exactly between the left and right lobes of the brain, exiting from the back of his head. John watched him recover and saw him on a flight back to the US.

[woofa.express]

Some good news in this fatal road accident.

Our road toll climbs during Christmas and summer holidays and I find it sad and when kids are killed I get a bit teary.
Now to the story. Two young parents were killed in W.A. during the early hours of Christmas morning. The motorcar crashed and became inverted behind scrub and out of sight. It remained there for two days in high temperatures. The family conducted a search and a relative found it. A truckie stopped and comforted the finder who was emotionally broken down at the scene. This Good Samaritan remains unknown and the family have spoken of their gratitude of him.
But there is good news here. A 5 year old girl had extracted her 1 year old brother from the front seat and cared for him along with her 2 year old brother until they were found.
Two aspects are very sad. One, 2 have lost their lives and two, a family will grow up without parents. And of course one aspect is most pleasing and that is how the 3 kids survived due to a 5 year old girl being competent and resourceful during this ordeal. I found that most heartening. Of course.

[woofa.express]

Trashing our imagination, enterprise and minds.

I’m sure most will agree mobile phones are quite anti-social. Young ones and more and more mature and senior folk are joining this anti-social league. These people cannot go anywhere without a mobile phone and much of the time they are holding them in their hand and watching the screen with a continual hope that someone may call. One woman from a nearby town was skittled and died when she crossed the road because she didn’t look up to check for oncoming traffic.
What do these devises do for the users? As I said, it makes them quite anti-social. I checked the internet and the most common explanation is interesting. It is the release or stimulation by the brain of the hormone dopamine. This occurs when you are on a call or expecting or hoping for this pleasure. Dopamine is also released into the body on other such occasions as the smell of freshly baked bread, sex or shopping. Maybe it is because of our accustom to instant gratification or the need to be accepted by piers. The picture shows the isolation one can experience if they don’t fulfill the prerequisites of having a mobile phone.
What has Silicon Valley and it’s boffins done for society? They have not only created this syndrome but facilitated it to take opportunity and financial exploitation. Whilst I have no resentment to the commercial aspect, they are somewhat responsible for the trashing of people’s minds, kids in particular. Many are finishing school with poor inter-personal communication skills and many university likewise. It does seem like nothing much has changed because we have always seen many of them employed in government and their bureaucracies and even writing for newspapers.
So what holds for the future of our society? It worries me. In the past boys built trollies, go-carts and bush cubbies etc, girls had dolls, doll’s houses and pretend street stalls. Now it seems like entertainment created by imagination and effort has mostly finished. Almost no kid today has ever had turkey shit between their toes. That’s a pity.
The picture below is of 4 of my grandkids. Which one appears to be excluded and why?
Tell me what you think.
?

[Fomoco998]

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Society today is all about phones and technology, whether in a restaurant, grocery store, at home, or while driving it seems to end personal interaction. Sad but true.

[woofa.express]

I like people who say “I don’t know”.

I’ve worked a lot in Asia and it didn’t take me long to see through a habit Asians have which is awful frustrating. If they are asked a question and don’t know how to answer they will still give you an answer. Sometimes it may be correct and that can be of pure coincidence. For example you may ask which way is north and they will point. But when you find you are going in the wrong direction and return and challenge them they will reply “well I didn’t know”.
With my Asian work mates I trained them and that took much persistence. Each morning I say to them, “if Mr Gary asks a question and you don’t know you must say I don’t know”.
I find back home that people will try to give an answer because they are trying to be helpful. They are just as useless as the fellows in the first paragraph. When they say “I don’t know” I tell them “that was a great answer and I’m pleased”. Some look slightly puzzled, some think I’m being sarcastic and if that is so I give a brief explanation. Well they did give me a correct answer. They don't know

[Gary loves Fords]

Originally Posted by pete

my last drive.

While out driving around in my model a, i swerved to avoid hitting a deer, lost control and landed in a ditch, severely banging my head.
Dazed and confused i crawled out of the ditch to the edge of the road when a shinny new convertible pulled up with a very beautiful woman who asked, "are you okay?"
as i looked up, i noticed she was wearing a low cut blouse with cleavage to die for...
"i'm okay i think," i replied as i pulled myself up to the side of the car to get a closer look.
She said, “get in and i’ll take you home so i can clean and bandage that nasty scrape on your head.”
"that's nice of you," i answered, but i don't think my wife will like me doing that!
"oh, come now, i’m a nurse," she insisted. "i need to see if you have any more scrapes and then treat them properly."
well, she was really pretty and very persuasive. Being sort of shaken and weak, i agreed, but repeated, "i'm sure my wife won't like this."
we arrived at her place which was just few miles away and, after a couple of cold beers and the bandaging, i thanked her and said, "i feel a lot better but i know my wife is going to be really upset so i'd better go now."
"don't be silly!" she said with a smile, while unbuttoning her blouse exposing the most beautiful set of boobs i’ve ever seen. "stay for a while. She won't know anything. By the way, where is she?"
"still in the ditch with my model a, i guess."

now that is the best model a story i ever heard1

[woofa.express]

Originally Posted by Gary loves Fords

now that is the best model a story i ever heard1

Good story. Keep them coming. Good name too.
Gary

[woofa.express]

You will have never ever seen this many Model A's and Model T's before. You will be amazed.
https://youtu.be/AjLVC_Kznc8

[Gunmetal blue2]

In 1970 I was 15 got my first Model A 1929 town sedan. A 16 got a 1929 ccpu, at 17 got a 1929 tudor, and 1930 tudor. In 2010 got my first 1929 AA ccpu.423207_163941483716330_1489525214_n.jpg in restoration in pieces lol

[MBL30TownSedanMurray]

71 years ago, through careful observations.... I learned how and was able to start our 1930 Town Sedan. I was five.

That next summer August, whenever my parents attended their social gatherings, I would telI my grandmother I was going to take the car the mile to the end of the road & return. I did just that too.

I did that drive for the ten ensuing years until I could get my driver's license.

Looking back, here in 2023, I am sure my dear grandmother never told my parents of this.....

Freedom!

M

[Chuck Dempsey]

Great story , T S Murray. Thanks for sharing!

[woofa.express]

I am repeating this post in the event anyone may have missed it. It is really a worth a look. Don't miss it. gary.

https://youtu.be/AjLVC_Kznc8

[Jim Brierley]

Hey woofa, don't be picking on us modern guys that have cell phones! I have one, it is called a flip phone. It is normally off and sitting on the table or lost somewhere in space. It does all that I need, I can make AND receive calls, text and it will talk to me thru blue tooth while I'm in my truck. It can also take pictures, but I haven't figured how to get them back out or send them anywhere, wish I had grandkids to help me do that!

[woofa.express]

Good on you Jim. I enjoy the solitude of not having a mobile phone and I'm not that important that people need to contact me at any time. I also enjoyed the peace when I was working but did carry one when fire bombing. Below is a picture of a mobile phone user.

I much prefer to listen to the birds. When I returned home each day I was always greeted by my dog which wagged it's tail and not it's tongue.

[woofa.express]

DDT

DDT was removed from registration in 1987. Crop farmers were most pissed off. It was cheap and most effective. New chemicals to the market were much more expensive and it was believed that the manufactures didn’t defend DDT because they wanted to move their newer and more expensive alternates. It was a most controversial decision at the time but we now we have a new generation of farmers and it has not being an issue to them.
Here in the Riverina amongst the crops we applied DDT was rice for the water creature known as blood worm. Only 10 minutes after application they were all dead floating on the top of the water. It was replaced by only one registered chemical called temephos and whilst the blood worm lost its appetite and caused no more damage but death for them wasn’t instant; it took 3 days. That’s not what farmers wanted nor did they like the higher cost.
One aerial operator west of Finley continued to use DDT and this was reported to the chemical officer of the ag dept. I had heard of this and when I next spoke to this officer I asked what the consequences were. He said he hadn’t submitted these samples but dropped them in a rubbish bin as he departed town. He figured just making an appearance and taking swab samples will have ended the operator using it. It wasn’t necessary to take the offender to court.
Wouldn’t it be great if all public servants had initiative like this bloke? That was nearly 40 years ago and I have retained a friendship with thinking fellow.

[woofa.express]

This is an article I wrote for our local aero club newsletter. I will include a copy of such in future postings as I feel they might be of interest to many readers.

Safety.
Greed has its downfall.
In 1977 we had yet another drought in Queensland were I was living and working and my employer asked myself and others to try for a temporary job until we had rain and a return to a normal season. I took a job in Sedan, North Africa. Spraying cotton grown in an extended irrigation area along the Nile (Blue Nile). We were paid by the month, a sum of 2,000 USD. Unfortunately the exchange rate was not in my favour and gave me only 1,400AUD. Regardless of this a pilots productivity wasn’t rewarded which meant good performance wasn’t renumerated. However that did have one advantage for the operator, no one worked in unfavourable conditions, mainly weather. We had no accidents, whilst I was working there anyway.
Between ’96 and 2000 I worked (casual) in Malaysia and Borneo (East Malaysia) spreading fertilizer on their extensive palm plantations. We were paid on productivity. This had a renumerical reward and encouraged a bloke to get out of bed early. For the operator this did have a disadvantage. Greed. Some pilots worked in what was unfavourable conditions, mostly wet airstrips and personal tiredness. For this story I’ll make tiredness the topic. Although this incident was, at the time of writing, 28 years back I won’t name the pilot but elect to call him Charlie.
On the day in question it had been raining and the strip was still damp. Mud was being flicked up on Charlies aeroplane tail. His loader fellow pointed this out to him and commented he should quit for the day. He did not. The aeroplane became heavy and the aeroplane became out of balance until he could not control it; he crashed. Back in Australia he was spreading what CASA described as powdery fertilizer, which was probably lime or gypsum. This was in light rain. The driver spilt part of the bucket full on the left wing which didn’t wash off or blow off on takeoff. After takeoff the aeroplane turned uncontrollably to the heavy and airflow interrupted wing and he crashed. He didn’t quit because he was to end his employment with the operator that day, so what he didn’t do he was to miss that productivity pay. In both these accidents (aeroplane write offs) it was greed that had in continue in unfavourable conditions.


In the next story (next newsletter) I will bring you another case where greed caused a write off. I suspect his next accidents were caused by greed. The pilots next accident was again caused by greed. That’s where it ended; his life that is.

[woofa.express]

Greed has its downfall.

In 1977 we had yet another drought in Queensland were I was living and working and my employer asked myself and others to try for a temporary job until we had rain and a return to a normal season. I took a job in Sedan, North Africa. Spraying cotton grown in an extended irrigation area along the Nile (Blue Nile). We were paid by the month, a sum of 2,000 USD. Unfortunately the exchange rate was not in my favour and gave me only 1,400AUD. Regardless of this a pilots productivity wasn’t rewarded which meant good performance wasn’t renumerated. However that did have one advantage for the operator, no one worked in unfavourable conditions, mainly weather. We had no accidents, whilst I was working there anyway.
Between ’96 and 2000 I worked (casual) in Malaysia and Borneo (East Malaysia) spreading fertilizer on their extensive palm plantations. We were paid on productivity. This had a renumerical reward and encouraged a bloke to get out of bed early. For the operator this did have a disadvantage. Greed. Some pilots worked in what was unfavourable conditions, mostly wet airstrips and personal tiredness. This resulted in wrecked aeroplanes.

The greed story is to continue.

[woofa.express]

Sorry people I repeated the previous story.



I won’t name this pilot but elect to call him Charlie.

On the day in question it had been raining and the strip was still damp. Mud was being flicked up on Charlies aeroplane tail. His loader fellow pointed this out to him and commented he should quit for the day. He did not. The aeroplane became heavy in the aft and out of balance until he could not control it; he crashed.
Back in Australia he was spreading what CASA described as powdery fertiliser, which was probably lime or gypsum. In light rain. The driver spilt part of the bucket full on the left wing which didn’t wash off or blow off on takeoff. The aeroplane turned uncontrollably to the heavy side plus the airflow was interrupted across that wing losing lift and he crashed. He was to finish working for that operator that day so what he didn’t do he was to miss that productivity pay. In both these accidents (aeroplane write offs) it was greed that had in continue in unfavourable conditions.