Date:         Tue, 31 May 2005 08:19:20 -0400
Reply-To:     Joy Hecht <jhecht@ALUM.MIT.EDU>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Joy Hecht <jhecht@ALUM.MIT.EDU>
Subject:      whether Joy is going to BusFusion,
              and lots of thanks! (was E: Message for Barb Cotton
Content-Type: multipart/mixed;

Hi Frank, Barb, and anyone else who's paid attention to my latest saga,

No, I'm not going to BusFusion, though someday I'll have to get there!

My van is almost fixed, thanks to the totally over-the-top help of many vanagonauts and their families:

Brien Dews for unquestioningly taking me in for almost two weeks now, putting me up in the handy apartment above his shop, towing me to Buses by the Beach, and with his friends taking out my old motor, putting in the new one, and then doing lots of debugging that they are still doing.

Sara Dews for good company, interesting conversation, discrete gossip, use of the washing machine and kitchen, lots of trips to the supermarket, going shopping for Birkenstocks (for those who wear them, try Tru-fit in Fremont, MI - very discounted birkies!), and on and on.

Elly and Keagan Dews for trying to help fix my van, lots of laughs, and generally being great kids (just wait till Keagan can read, he's going to be a dynamo on this list!)

Banjo Dews, my favorite dog in Michigan.  (Sorry, Madison, but I do really like you too!)

Billy Hirt for endless help fixing my van, and being lots of fun to spend time with, and taking pictures of me actually changing my own oil, and lots of other good things too mundane to list

Katie (don't know her last name, maybe Hirt?) for jambalaya, many trips to buy oil, and being a fun and interesting person to hang around with.

Roger whose last name I don't know, for helping put my van together and not minding when I followed Brien and Billy's lead and started teasing him even though I hardly know him.

Todd Olson for more good company, picking up coolant, and being part of making Buses by the Beach happen.  Plus Jen and James and Jenna, I'm really glad to have met you, and I really want to see what Jenna's like when she's older than three.

Budd Premack and his son Benjamin and their friend Tommy, for bringing my van from Boston Bob to Michigan, and for picking up parts at Bus Depot, and for being someone I could call on out of the blue and say "help!!!"

Bob Donalds, for getting my engine put together in record time and lots and lots of advice over the phone to Brien and Billy on a holiday weekend.  Someday I'll actually meet you!

You've all been wonderful!  I would have preferred not to blow my engine, but meeting all of you (except for someday Bob) has been a really major silver lining.  Thank you.


As for where next - we're still debugging stuff.  Matilda's transplant is running a tad rich, not quite enough power, a bit doggy (or is that spelled doggie?  what I would just call hesitating).  When I'm ready to head out, I'm heading west, to make good on long-standing plans to go to Yellowstone with a friend before the summer hordes hit (if it's not too late!).  Then to Tacoma for a conference (work), then to Burning Man.  With stops in between, of course.

I hope I'll meet more of you on the road!  At fun VW events, though, not because any more parts give out.  :-)



Joy


****************************************************************
Joy Hecht
and Matilda, 1989 Burgundy Vanagon

For musings about life and the vanadventures:
http://users.rcn.com/jhecht/gypsy

****************************************************************:::-----

Original Message-----
:::From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM] On Behalf
:::Of Frank Condelli
:::Sent: Tuesday, May 31, 2005 5:53 AM
:::To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
:::Subject: Message for Barb Cotton
:::
<snip>

:::trip.  Do you know if  Joy is coming ?  Not sure if she got her motor
:::fixed.
:::
:::Cheers,
:::
:::Frank  Condelli