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The title of this entry isn’t all that unique, nor is it all that profound or attention-grabbing. Old Cars, Strong Hearts is not altering; the direction change refers mostly to my life (back in IL after 7.5 months in OR), tho I’m not sure which fork in the road to take next. I’ve no return date in mind yet for the jump start back to the full OCSH schedule, but when I visit Facebook next, I may create some OC,SH NETWORK-related posts.  Be sure to visit all OC,SH NETWORK members in THIS LINK HERE.

Speaking of FB, I have not checked social media recently, so if you’ve sent me a message, probably best to call or text. My cell phone # is on my resume page (seen via THIS LINK HERE) & the OC,SH CRUISE NIGHTS page (seen via THIS LINK HERE). BTW, I’ve updated a few other pages, including “Vehicles, CHDs & Me” (seen via THIS LINK HERE).

Given the length of this entry [1st in over a month; the last, sparked by a vintage TV show featuring stories from Medford OR, was posted 07/16/2018 & can be seen via THIS LINK HERE], I’m labeling sections. Hope that makes it easier for you to follow. I’ll explain the reason for this entry’s pic near the end of my ramblings.

CONNECTING & MEMORIES

Staying in touch with family & friends (visiting in person, eMailing, calling, texting, communicating on message boards & social media, etc.) isn’t as easy as it used to be, given how busy we all are & life is in general. Years keep flying by with time becoming more of a premium in many ways. I’ve been reminiscing a lot lately given how much has (& not) happened over the years, particularly the last year & months.

For instance, recently, we passed the 30th anniversary of the 1st scheduled night game at Chicago’s Wrigley Field (08/08/1988). That very evening, I was at Pittsburgh’s 3 Rivers Stadium with family, watching my Dad’s Pirates beat the NY Mets 1-0; the jumbo screen showed scenes from the rain delay in Chicago. The 2nd attempt at the 1st game under the lights was a success, 08/09/1988, complete with a Cubs 6-4 victory over the Mets, shown on network television with the now-retired Vin Scully (long-time Dodgers voice) describing the action.

ATTEMPT AT CHANGE

Meanwhile, my 3rd try at moving out of IL is now an embarrassing failure, leaving me so out of sorts financially (including bills I wasn’t expecting to pay myself), physically, health- & other-wise, feeling defeated, nerve-wracked & pulled in all sorts of directions. Frustrating to finally get an apartment & have to leave just as it was feeling like ‘home’. Irony rocks. I may be tired of fighting, but I’m not giving up, staying as positive as possible despite the fast-moving freight train. Would be nice if, sometimes, things went undiscovered. I seem to keep finding new bottoms to hit, but it will go up at some point.

HEALTH & ROAD TRIPS

Been good to drive my best-ever car, the 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis LS (originally introduced in the 10/24/2016 “From The Heart” entry, seen via THIS LINK HERE) again & see family, particularly Nephew & The 2 Nieces. I had an appointment with & basic labs done at the new PCP office from the newest Medicaid plan (Blue Cross/Blue Shield Community), but thus far have been unimpressed. To-be-scheduled appointments include much-needed dental work (cleaning, X-rays & capping/crowning a tooth that cracked while I was in OR) & checkups with my specialists (cardiologist, nephrologist, etc.).

Still not sure about where I will “land”, but the pull-lure-desire to be on the road regularly-continuously is increasing exponentially. I’m hoping to soon go ‘home’ to visit people & explore places, since I continue to work remotely for the home appraiser based in Elgin IL. I’ve found that each town is unique, yet the same, & you tend to find more in common than you think when you actually take the time to chat with new & old acquaintances. I just need to find way(s) to make road tripping close to 24/7/365 financially viable (like staying with family & friends) while I still can travel health-wise! Any suggestions?

AV LICENSE PLATES

I took this post’s creative OCSH original photo 10/01/2012, just over 2 months after selling the bulk of my then-automotive family. The hood emblem belongs to my 1981 Monte Carlo SC, the only car remaining from that aforementioned family; at the time of the pic, I also still had the 1st car I bought, but that was sold in late 2013. This “last car standing”, originally owned by my parents, connects me to all the cars I’ve ever known or owned, including the car that started my automotive love affair (parents’ “my” 1976 MC) & my 2 former Caprice Classics, 1979 “winter warrior” & 1989 “summer cruiser”.

I chose to use this image because, for the 1st time in all the years I’ve owned older vehicles, I’ve finally obtained IL Antique Vehicle plates. I got them for this car because I don’t drive it much anymore (it is currently in a barn at the Dieterich IL home of friends Jay & Beth, whom I’ve known since 1997) & the cost savings. I never had AV plates for my other older cars because I drove them everywhere, albeit on sunny days only. The multiple-tan plates [81 M CJS] should look nice on this car; I plan to put them on when I visit Jay & Beth sometime in the next few weeks.

ENDING THE OR EXPERIENCE

The ride from southern OR (left ~10a Wednesday, 07/25/2018) to northern IL (arrived ~1p Friday, 07/27/2018) was nice & sparked memories of my prior road trips along I-80:
October 2004, Golden CO to Salt Lake City UT
September 2009, returning from my Route 66 journey via parts of the Lincoln Highway
July 2011, SLC UT to Elko NV to Sacramento CA & then along I-5 N into southern OR

No, I didn’t take any pictures during the ~3-day drive; it wasn’t a vacation for me. Maybe I should have (plenty of awesome scenery to capture), but I didn’t feel like it. I still have a few photos from my time in OR to publish. Who knows? Maybe I’ll make a new page for my time in OR under “About Cort” or “Photo Galleries”!

Meantime, during a difficult situation, several friends (& OCSHers!) reminded me this small world still has good people:

* Heather (lives in VA) flew to help return items & prepare to vacate the apartment. She arrived late afternoon, Monday, 07/16/2018 & left Monday AM 07/23/2018. We hadn’t seen each other since my Nor’Eastern Trek road trip, summer 2010. We had a great week together, despite the circumstances, & watched a few movies & vintage TV shows.

* Gary (lives in IL) generously offered to drive his truck to take me & my stuff back to IL. I enjoyed swapping road trip stories along the way. Seems we both hear a similar call of the open road, exploring roads less traveled & meeting different people along the way.

* Ben (lives in IL; cousin, without whom this website would not be possible) repaired my 2003 Mercury Grand Marquis LS, which I drove for the 1st time in over 7 months the same night I arrived in IL.

* Chris (lives in NJ; OC,SH NETWORK members Schwarz Racing website, Schwarz Racing Lil Red FB page, Schwarz Racing FB group, Scrapping by Trevor FB page & Shanon “Cookie” Schwarz FB page) made me burst out laughing with a FB Messenger conversation about fighting fax machines that refused to work together, wanting to trade my body in for a hotter model, & hearing my sister, Joylyn (who runs OC,SH NETWORK member Young Living Essential Oils FB Page), say “use your words” to Nephew & the 2 Nieces each time Chris sends a thumbs-up emoji as a reply.

* Angela (Medford OR) took me off-roading along some awesome (yet scary!) paths in the mountains & gave me an awesome desk with 2 very comfortable chairs. I’d met Angela, the creator of the EPIC thread mentioned in the 06/14/2016 “Tuesday Trip” entry seen via THIS LINK HERE, during my 2011 “Coast-to-Coast” road trip at a restaurant near the hotel I stayed March-June 2018.

* Allen (Talent OR) & Steve (Talent OR) who I met along the section of Bear Creek Greenway I frequented when I had the rental car, mentioned in the “Cobweb Dusting” entry seen via THIS LINK HERE.

* Rodney (Medford OR) who works at the hotel I spent most of my time March-June.

* Kimberly (Medford OR) who was also a long-term resident at that same hotel.

* John (Phoenix OR) who I know through an antique auto club, but never got a chance to meet in person while I was in OR.

* Uncle Dennis (Grants Pass OR) & Jackie [died recently during open heart surgery to replace 2 valves & open 3 blockages after a urinary tract infection had spread to her kidneys & heart … another reason I’m looking forward to checkups with my specialists to make sure my UTI while in OR didn’t have more complications] who let us stay in the small studio-like apartment above 1 of their garages for nearly 2 months (January & February).

I’m thankful for all of these & all of you! Appreciate you taking time to read this & frequent OCSH. What is new &/or going on in YOUR life?