Date:         Fri, 18 Jul 2003 09:03:17 -0700
Reply-To:     Jeffrey Earl <jefferrata@YAHOO.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Jeffrey Earl <jefferrata@YAHOO.COM>
Subject:      A red letter day for Westy sightings in Madison/Wisconsin
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

Owning and driving a Westy, or even a Vanagon, can
often be a lonely enterprise. Hence my pleasant
surprise yesterday morning when, embarking upon my
daily 25-mile commute to work in my ivory '83 diesel
camper, I spotted a silver-gray 80-85 Westy waiting
across the intersection from me. When I got the green
arrow I turned in front of him and waved in a friendly
fashion, but there was no response beyond a dazed and
distant stare. Despite the sheer joy of driving the
most ingenious vehicle ever made, this fellow seemed
to have lost all zest for life. Or perhaps he simply
needed his morning coffee.

A few minutes later, outbound on East Washington Ave.
near Hwy 30, I met a white 80-85 Westy and this guy
more than made up for the last sluggard, waving
enthusiastically and grinning like a fool. He may even
have been wagging his tail in excitement, like an
anxious Labrador retriever going on a car ride.

A half-hour later, down the road a piece in Lake
Mills, I met a brown 86-91 Vanagon. Knowing that many
Vanagon drivers do not feel the cultish kinship often
shared by we Westy owners, and seeing it was driven by
a woman, many of whom seem to be sadly lacking in the
maniacal obsessive-compulsive Vanagon behavior
exhibited by those of us with a Y-chromosome, I
decided to forego the obligatory wave. So imagine my
astonished delight when the pretty gal smiled and
sheepishly waved!

Finally, at lunchtime, there was a biege Type 2 Westy
parked in the lot of the Lake Mills McDonald's, just
off I-94. The engine-access lid was propped open, so
thinking they may need roadside assistance, I tootled
over there but no one was around. I did see a very
large Vice-Grips pliers holding something onto the
engine, but in retrospect I suppose there is nothing
particularly unusual about that.

Outside of a VW show, I don't think I've ever seen so
many Westies and Vanagons in one day, not even during
cross-country roadtrips thru several national parks.
Did other list members experience similar sightings,
or was it just my lucky day? Was there some larger
cosmic alignment yesterday? If any of these fellow
travellers was you, let me know!

Jeffrey Earl
1983 diesel Westfalia "Vanasazi"



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