The 90's were a time of luxury and excitement.

This body style premiered in 1991, ran through 1996 and this particular model has the Corvette V8 with towing package - that means it has 260 hp and can tow up to 5,000 pounds.  It's a beast and this one is all mine.  

When I was 12 years old the first gen of this model came out and I was obsessed with the re-release of the Roadmaster with its rear wheel drive V8 luxury presence.  I'd beg my mother to take me to the Buick dealer everyday to see if a wagon had popped up no the lot but we were always met with just the sedan.  I knew every inch of that car and it turns out I still do.  But, back to 1991.  Of course mom got tired of the same detour everyday and stopped shuttling me there for over a week.  One night I made up my mind to just go there myself.  I'd driven a truck on the back country roads and in the pasture behind the house so, I had this.  I tooled up to the dealership in my mom's vehicle on my quest but all I found were sedans.  Unfortunately one was a 1991 Chevy Caprice - black and white - the local fuzz.  He asked me what I was doing there and why I was out at 2am and I just stood there looking at him like a tree full of owls. "How did you get here, son?  Is this your vehicle?  Can I see your drivers license?"  After what seemed an eternity he asked for my home phone number and he had a call patched through dispatch and I heard it ring more than 20 times until finally there was a dramatic and low "hello".  Do you know where your son is?  "He's in his bed."  Would you mind checking?  .........."where is he?"  Mom woke up a neighbor to bring her up there and she drove me home.  The cop thought it was funny - so funny that he never stopped laughing at the reason why I was there and when mom showed up he said "Bring your son up here and save the trouble next time".  She was NOT amused.  This led to, even to present day, anyone in my family asking if I'd seen any good new cars lately.  I'll never live it down or that I wrecked my first car at 3 - I'll tell you about that some other time.

Here we are 30 years later and I have the wagon I dreamed about way back then.  She needs a little love but it's a rolling project that I'll replace and freshen up as I can.  I need a hauler and this one fits the bill - in aces!  I'd had this planned for months just waiting for the auction date, which was yesterday, but it's funny that it comes directly after the announcement that I booked a SAG commercial shooting this week.  It made me think of what Martha Stewart said about Kevin Hart at his Comedy Central Roast after he had his first movie role and the fact my debit card's chip wouldn't work to pay for the vehicle and I ended up having to use a credit card to pay for it made me laugh out loud.  

Let's hear it for the slab sided luxury sled.  Merry Christmas to me!

 I'm July 28, she's the 29th and according to Janice - I'm older.

In life we meet people that we have an instant connection with and that was Janice and I at a Halloween party about 8 years ago.  I'd eaten at her restaurant, Parigi, for years (when I could afford it) and seen her many times.  We had many of the same friends but the night she was Lucy and I was Maureen O'Hara, two redheads became instant friends.

I was a cater waiter for many years in my youth and I grew up in the restaurant business.  I knew that wasn't what I wanted to do as a career path but I do respect those who are immensely.  Janice has owned her restaurant for over 20 years and is one of the most celebrated local business owners in our city with countless connections and customers ranging from regulars with their usual seats to catering parties to private dinners.  I can say from experience that it's always perfect. 

Attending an "intimate family dinner" at her home, I brought a few desserts as a gift.  A few weeks later she came to my home to assess a little square of land to possibly put in a victory garden to grow fresh vegetables and herbs for the restaurant (that didn't work out because of the lack of morning sun and abundance of afternoon sun) but we started talking about her need for a consistent pie vendor.  We toiled over the fact that if a whole 9" pie was cut and not served completely in the same night - it was too compromised to last two or even three nights and that was a problem.  I reached in my cabinet and pulled out six 6" pyrex tart dishes and suggested that I make individual pies that she could market as "table desserts" or individual pies.  I took six buttermilk pies to the restaurant the next night and they all sold in that evening.  That was 6 years and 598 invoices ago.  We've both been written up individually for our accomplishments over previous years but articles since with both her business and my desserts in the same paragraph feels like a match made in heaven.  

Janice is a sincere and amazingly generous person.  She doesn't shower people with gifts or money but she encourages and provides opportunities to people she believes in.  I think she's an angel. This source of income has provided me with the bridge-gap I've needed over the past couple of years to stay afloat.  Also, recently I told her about a guy in my acting class that needed a better and more worldly job and she had an opening for new host - he got the job.  I'm proud to have connected she and Elijah Paul and I look forward to an abundance of opportunities that this will provide for him.

The best part about knowing good people is helping them when they need it and also accepting their help when I do.