Fathers Day

My parents came up for a visit and to once again go to the Back To The 50's car show. This year it coincided with Fathers Day. I'd say my dad had a great time this weekend, getting to see all the old cars and finding ones similar to his 1959 Chevy Impala coupe. This morning, Elizabeth and I treated my parents to breakfast at Original Pancake House. Dad even got to take Porter out for a spin before they left around noon.

This evening, we met Elizabeth's parents and her sister's family for dinner at the Freight House in Stillwater, MN. The kids (our niece and nephew) were great, especially Will - who insisted that I draw cars and trucks all over his place mat. It was also my father-in-law's birthday this weekend, so we celebrated that as well.

Strange & Funny Things

I work in downtown Minneapolis, which unfortunately isn't really all that green. Not many trees, grassy areas, wooded parks or anything like that. That's why I found it rather strange that I saw a deer walking around the other day. It was lost and wandered in from a neighboring residential area. The doe just walked around, causing traffic to stop and people to stare in disbelief.

Later in the week, I took the scooter out for a spin after work - and saw the funniest car accident ever! Someone was making a left-hand turn onto a side street and missed the street completely! Instead, the driver hit the corner, went up on the curb and somehow managed to hang their car up on a bracing cable for a telephone pole. All four wheels were off the ground! I tried to take a picture but the iPhone's camera isn't that great with far away items.

Porter's Revenge

It rained this weekend - a LOT! I'm not complaining one bit, though, because we're kind of in the middle of a drought so far this summer and we need the rain. Also, it gave me some time to work on Porter (my '81 Honda Passport C70...yes, I named it!). Porter has been a lot of fun so far this year, but I couldn't get him running right - ever. I vowed that I'd make him better - and I did just that!

A while back, I bought a carburetor rebuild kit as my first-ever purchase on eBay. I just never got time to put it in because the weather was always nice or I had something else to do. Yesterday, however, I took apart Porter's carb and rebuilt it with new needles, jets and gaskets. After resetting it to Honda specs, I put it back in the scooter - and it fired up instantly! It seemed to run okay but I wanted to test it out on the road.

The road test was today - and all I can say is what a difference it made! It idles smooth, runs without the choke pulled out and doesn't hesitate mid-throttle anymore. The scooter is even more fun to ride than it was before!

However, this enlightenment just furthers my frustration with the repair shop that had supposedly gone through everything and rebuilt the carb already. Why did I give you guys money, anyway?!