A few weeks ago, I shared a bit about John's first car, a Ford Anglia. Debbie from Our Old Homestead asked if we still had the car, and I told her no, but that I wanted to be able to surprise John with another Ford Anglia someday. Well, it wasn't really a surprise, but I actually found one last week!
Craigslist had a promising listing for a 1961 Ford Anglia, located only 90 miles from our house. The ad said that along with the car, the buyer would receive additional parts--including 2 extra engines and a transmission. The car needed gas, a battery, and front seats.
I showed John the listing, and he decided to call the seller. We all agreed to meet. After seeing the car, John knew it was the car for him. We now have an Anglia project car sitting in our garage. We still need to figure out how to get the extra engines and transmission here, but we have boxes and boxes of other spare parts--including about 7 or 8 speedometers! (Whether or not any of them works remains to be seen.) Most of the parts are meticulously labeled, which presumably will make the project much easier.
Excited as we were about finding the car, John and I spent most of the ride home replaying the conversations we had with the seller. He is definitely an interesting, unique guy. While we did talk a lot about cars, and this Anglia in particular, we also answered out-of-the-blue questions:
"What do you think about global warming?"
"Are you Catholic?"
"Did you vote for Mitt Romney?"
"What kind of music do you like?"
"Do any of your kids have red hair?"
After he determined (how, I'm not quite sure) that the car would be in good hands, he took our word that we would be back when we had arranged transport for the vehicle. He left us with a handshake and a copy of his latest CD.
When the transport truck came, we met again with the seller, and this time we learned of his battle with a brain tumor as a teen, and a stroke as an adult. He told us that his marriage didn't last, and about some of his business ventures. And he told us that this was the first car he has ever sold. He took lots of photos, and told us to call anytime if we need help in the restoration.
Though I'm still shaking my head, wondering how in the world we hit on so many "taboo" topics in the course of purchasing a car, the overall impression I have of the seller is that he is a good man. It's hard for someone to ask the kind of questions he asked without coming across as confrontational, and yet he pulled it off.
We wish him the best, and we promise to take good care of the car!
Thanks for new adventures.
You might find my posts on these blog hops:
Sew Darn Crafty Party, Find a Friend Friday, Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop, Show Your Stuff, The Wildly Original Link Party, Wow Us Wednesdays, Down Home Blog Hop, Tuesday Archive Link Up, Linky Tuesday at Freemotion by the River, Grandparents Say It Saturday
The Creative Home Acre Hop, Best Blog Post Ever, Grand Social,
Crafty Garden Mama,
Let's Get Social Sundays
Freedom Fridays
 |
| a photo from the craigslist ad |
Craigslist had a promising listing for a 1961 Ford Anglia, located only 90 miles from our house. The ad said that along with the car, the buyer would receive additional parts--including 2 extra engines and a transmission. The car needed gas, a battery, and front seats.
I showed John the listing, and he decided to call the seller. We all agreed to meet. After seeing the car, John knew it was the car for him. We now have an Anglia project car sitting in our garage. We still need to figure out how to get the extra engines and transmission here, but we have boxes and boxes of other spare parts--including about 7 or 8 speedometers! (Whether or not any of them works remains to be seen.) Most of the parts are meticulously labeled, which presumably will make the project much easier.
Excited as we were about finding the car, John and I spent most of the ride home replaying the conversations we had with the seller. He is definitely an interesting, unique guy. While we did talk a lot about cars, and this Anglia in particular, we also answered out-of-the-blue questions:
"What do you think about global warming?"
"Are you Catholic?"
"Did you vote for Mitt Romney?"
"What kind of music do you like?"
"Do any of your kids have red hair?"
After he determined (how, I'm not quite sure) that the car would be in good hands, he took our word that we would be back when we had arranged transport for the vehicle. He left us with a handshake and a copy of his latest CD.
When the transport truck came, we met again with the seller, and this time we learned of his battle with a brain tumor as a teen, and a stroke as an adult. He told us that his marriage didn't last, and about some of his business ventures. And he told us that this was the first car he has ever sold. He took lots of photos, and told us to call anytime if we need help in the restoration.
Though I'm still shaking my head, wondering how in the world we hit on so many "taboo" topics in the course of purchasing a car, the overall impression I have of the seller is that he is a good man. It's hard for someone to ask the kind of questions he asked without coming across as confrontational, and yet he pulled it off.
We wish him the best, and we promise to take good care of the car!
Thanks for new adventures.You might find my posts on these blog hops:
Sew Darn Crafty Party, Find a Friend Friday, Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop, Show Your Stuff, The Wildly Original Link Party, Wow Us Wednesdays, Down Home Blog Hop, Tuesday Archive Link Up, Linky Tuesday at Freemotion by the River, Grandparents Say It Saturday
The Creative Home Acre Hop, Best Blog Post Ever, Grand Social,
Crafty Garden Mama,
Let's Get Social Sundays
Freedom Fridays
I have never heard of a Ford Anglia! It is cool you guys found one. The seller certainly sounds interesting. He seems fond of the car, especially if he offered to help with restoration. Are you going to show him the car when you are finished with it?
ReplyDeleteThe Anglia is an English Ford, and is best known now as the "Harry Potter car."
DeleteRestoration will take a while, I imagine, but it would be nice to show the seller the car when it is all fixed up.
That is just WONDERFUL that you found another one Kristi!!! I bet John is just so excited. The gentleman certainly sounds interesting. LOL Brain tumors do funny things to a person's line of thinking. I hope John enjoys the adventure once again and I do hope the gentleman gets a chance to see the finished restoration!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Debbie. It's hard to believe that I found one only a couple of weeks after writing that blog post, after having looked for one for decades!
DeleteOooo Wow!! Henk is going to be very envious... We love old cars too and we would love to have an old american car to restore ourselfs.
ReplyDeleteSpareparts are always great to have and once the car is ready and you have stuff left, you can make someone else happy with them too. Or just hold on, just in case....
Good luck on the restoration and am looking forward to the result!
I never heard of a Ford Anglia but it looks like a neat and fun project. It's funny how unexpecting yet welcoming it is to meet interesting ppl along our journey.
ReplyDeleteKristi, That is a neat Anglia never heard of it, but I like it.. Cant wait to see what he does with it.. I see... A shiny teal or red finish...
ReplyDeleteI hope you answered yes to Mitt...LOL
I am sure the correct answer to the red headed child question was the one that made him convinced to sell you the car.
ReplyDeleteHow fun is that! I hope you will show John's progress with the restoration.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of this either! It will be fun getting it all back into shape.
ReplyDeleteYou are a good wife.
ReplyDelete