Home » Public Forums » GMCnet » [GMCnet] Just in from the GMC Bard
| [GMCnet] Just in from the GMC Bard [message #215436] |
Tue, 23 July 2013 10:46  |
Ken Henderson
Messages: 8726
Registered: March 2004
Location: Americus, GA
Karma: 9
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Senior Member |
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Trailers for Sale or Rent
I don’t really know why I insist on this motorhome “thing.” I have no
mechanical abilities, no excess of cash and really, nowhere to go. But for
some reason the lure of the road gets me every time and I find myself with
another coach with which I have no business.
Part of the attraction for me is that I like to drive something different
than the rest of the world. My 18 year old Cadillac is, to me, the
prettiest car in town. I wouldn’t swap it for a cookie-cut car of any
vintage. I will probably drive it for the rest of my life.
So it goes with my motorhome, a 1976 GMC Eleganza. Who wouldn’t buy
something called an “Eleganza”? It just sounds regal and elegant. I can
hear the BBC announcer now proclaiming that the “new heir apparent will be
transported from the hospital to Doololly Palace in a Bentley Eleganza.”
Oh well, maybe it was elegant in the 1970’s but it needs a little spiffing
up right now. I had a 1978 GMC but it proved way too new and modern to suit
my tastes. Really, the unceremonious loss of my job prompted me to sell
“White Trash” to a nice guy in Canada. From the moment it pulled away, I
missed it.
My new-to-me Eleganza is a nice coach. Owned for 30 years by the PO - that
is “previous owner” in motorhome lingo – it is mechanically sound. It just
needs some interior improvements, according to my DW. (Again, this is a
motorhome term that, around the grease pit, means “Dear Wife.”) I know it
would be nice to have everything modernized but I just hate to get started
almost as bad as I hate to spend money.
So, rather than jump right in with renovations, we took the advice of many
friends and have travelled a pretty good bit since purchasing the coach in
February. Most of the time, everything has been hunky-dory, but those
times don’t make for very good stories. Rather, I’ll tell you some of the
more interesting stuff that happened over the last couple of months.
Around the first of June, we visited old friends who had rented a beach
house. We took our good old GMC to Grayton Beach State Park and really had
a great time. About mid-week we had a real estate closing on a small piece
of property. We parked in a large lot next door to the attorney’s office
and all seemed well. As I stepped gracefully from the coach, my trademark
horn rimmed glasses fell to the pavement, the right lens detached and
rolled, almost in slow motion, into a sewer that it was full of black
water. I followed Elise to the closing with only one lens. I have no idea
what I signed, but I understand we now own another condo at the Redneck
Riviera. Also, I had fun freaking the lawyer out by scratching my eye
through the non-existent lens.
That trip to the Florida panhandle required a detour through Jekyll Island,
Georgia on the way home. For the second time, I was awarded a 1st Prize by
the Georgia Press Association for my humor column. Look at the map. It is
a long way from PC to Jekyll. On top of that, just outside of Panama City
the good old GMC developed a slight rumble that, in short order, turned in
to deafening roar. It sounded like we were standing at the north end of a
south bound Hell’s Angel convention. My right muffler had given up the
ghost.
As if the noise wasn’t enough, we were quite warm. Our on-board generator
that runs our roof-top air conditioners decided to take a little rest from
the 97 degree heat and died. We had no choice but to proceed with barely
enough time to make the Press Association dinner.
As we pulled into the campground, all eyes were upon us. Our muffler could
have been heard in Wyoming and darkness was approaching. We had 30 minutes
to park, shower, dress and drive to the Jekyll Island Club. The Griswolds
had arrived.
We got there just in time for the festivities. I was awarded the prize, but
was not given any time for an acceptance speech. I fumbled to return my
notes to my pocket without being noticed and graciously accepted my plaque
with one lens in my glasses and one still in the sewer. I scratched my eye
through the empty lens for laughs, but no one noticed. I now wonder if
maybe my pants were unzipped.
Next morning there was no sneaking out of the campground. I disguised
myself as much as possible and we headed home. The air conditioning worked
spasmodically. When it died, I had to pull over, get out and “jump” the
fuel pump on the generator to get it going again. That might not sound so
bad to some of you, but I rarely even pump my own gasoline, so “jumping” is
a real accomplishment for me.
When I rolled into Americus, the cockpit (that’s what us motorhome guys
call it) temperature measured 95.6 degrees. I pulled up in front of our
wonderful old house, jumped out and kissed the ground just barely missing a
fresh pile of dog poop.
I was glad to be home, and hopefully you’ll be glad to know that our
further adventures in the motorhome will be chronicled in a future column.
Boyce “Stick” Miller is an award-winning columnist living in Americus,
Georgia. Contact him at stickmiller@gmail.com
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Ken Henderson
Americus, GA
www.gmcwipersetc.com
Large Wiring Diagrams
76 X-Birchaven
76 X-Palm Beach
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| Re: [GMCnet] Just in from the GMC Bard [message #215437 is a reply to message #215436] |
Tue, 23 July 2013 11:00  |
 |
hnielsen2
Messages: 1434
Registered: February 2004
Location: Alpine CA
Karma: 0
|
Senior Member |
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Thank You
All is well with my Lord
On Jul 23, 2013, at 8:46 AM, Ken Henderson <hend4800@bellsouth.net> wrote:
> Trailers for Sale or Rent
> I don’t really know why I insist on this motorhome “thing.” I have no
> mechanical abilities, no excess of cash and really, nowhere to go. But for
> some reason the lure of the road gets me every time and I find myself with
> another coach with which I have no business.
>
> Part of the attraction for me is that I like to drive something different
> than the rest of the world. My 18 year old Cadillac is, to me, the
> prettiest car in town. I wouldn’t swap it for a cookie-cut car of any
> vintage. I will probably drive it for the rest of my life.
>
> So it goes with my motorhome, a 1976 GMC Eleganza. Who wouldn’t buy
> something called an “Eleganza”? It just sounds regal and elegant. I can
> hear the BBC announcer now proclaiming that the “new heir apparent will be
> transported from the hospital to Doololly Palace in a Bentley Eleganza.”
>
> Oh well, maybe it was elegant in the 1970’s but it needs a little spiffing
> up right now. I had a 1978 GMC but it proved way too new and modern to suit
> my tastes. Really, the unceremonious loss of my job prompted me to sell
> “White Trash” to a nice guy in Canada. From the moment it pulled away, I
> missed it.
>
> My new-to-me Eleganza is a nice coach. Owned for 30 years by the PO - that
> is “previous owner” in motorhome lingo – it is mechanically sound. It just
> needs some interior improvements, according to my DW. (Again, this is a
> motorhome term that, around the grease pit, means “Dear Wife.”) I know it
> would be nice to have everything modernized but I just hate to get started
> almost as bad as I hate to spend money.
>
> So, rather than jump right in with renovations, we took the advice of many
> friends and have travelled a pretty good bit since purchasing the coach in
> February. Most of the time, everything has been hunky-dory, but those
> times don’t make for very good stories. Rather, I’ll tell you some of the
> more interesting stuff that happened over the last couple of months.
>
> Around the first of June, we visited old friends who had rented a beach
> house. We took our good old GMC to Grayton Beach State Park and really had
> a great time. About mid-week we had a real estate closing on a small piece
> of property. We parked in a large lot next door to the attorney’s office
> and all seemed well. As I stepped gracefully from the coach, my trademark
> horn rimmed glasses fell to the pavement, the right lens detached and
> rolled, almost in slow motion, into a sewer that it was full of black
> water. I followed Elise to the closing with only one lens. I have no idea
> what I signed, but I understand we now own another condo at the Redneck
> Riviera. Also, I had fun freaking the lawyer out by scratching my eye
> through the non-existent lens.
>
> That trip to the Florida panhandle required a detour through Jekyll Island,
> Georgia on the way home. For the second time, I was awarded a 1st Prize by
> the Georgia Press Association for my humor column. Look at the map. It is
> a long way from PC to Jekyll. On top of that, just outside of Panama City
> the good old GMC developed a slight rumble that, in short order, turned in
> to deafening roar. It sounded like we were standing at the north end of a
> south bound Hell’s Angel convention. My right muffler had given up the
> ghost.
>
> As if the noise wasn’t enough, we were quite warm. Our on-board generator
> that runs our roof-top air conditioners decided to take a little rest from
> the 97 degree heat and died. We had no choice but to proceed with barely
> enough time to make the Press Association dinner.
>
> As we pulled into the campground, all eyes were upon us. Our muffler could
> have been heard in Wyoming and darkness was approaching. We had 30 minutes
> to park, shower, dress and drive to the Jekyll Island Club. The Griswolds
> had arrived.
>
> We got there just in time for the festivities. I was awarded the prize, but
> was not given any time for an acceptance speech. I fumbled to return my
> notes to my pocket without being noticed and graciously accepted my plaque
> with one lens in my glasses and one still in the sewer. I scratched my eye
> through the empty lens for laughs, but no one noticed. I now wonder if
> maybe my pants were unzipped.
>
> Next morning there was no sneaking out of the campground. I disguised
> myself as much as possible and we headed home. The air conditioning worked
> spasmodically. When it died, I had to pull over, get out and “jump” the
> fuel pump on the generator to get it going again. That might not sound so
> bad to some of you, but I rarely even pump my own gasoline, so “jumping” is
> a real accomplishment for me.
>
> When I rolled into Americus, the cockpit (that’s what us motorhome guys
> call it) temperature measured 95.6 degrees. I pulled up in front of our
> wonderful old house, jumped out and kissed the ground just barely missing a
> fresh pile of dog poop.
>
> I was glad to be home, and hopefully you’ll be glad to know that our
> further adventures in the motorhome will be chronicled in a future column.
>
> Boyce “Stick” Miller is an award-winning columnist living in Americus,
> Georgia. Contact him at stickmiller@gmail.com
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://temp.gmcnet.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gmclist
_______________________________________________
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Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
http://temp.gmcnet.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gmclist
All is well with my Lord
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| Re: [GMCnet] Just in from the GMC Bard [message #215441 is a reply to message #215436] |
Tue, 23 July 2013 11:52 |
Sandra Price
Messages: 709
Registered: May 2006
Karma: 1
|
Senior Member |
|
|
Great story Ken and Stick. It gave us some good laughs while we're waiting
for Bob's weekly chemo treatment. The stories we tell just aren't as
entertaining as Sticks'.
Sandra
On Jul 23, 2013 10:46 AM, "Ken Henderson" <hend4800@bellsouth.net> wrote:
> Trailers for Sale or Rent
> I dont really know why I insist on this motorhome thing. I have no
> mechanical abilities, no excess of cash and really, nowhere to go. But for
> some reason the lure of the road gets me every time and I find myself with
> another coach with which I have no business.
>
> Part of the attraction for me is that I like to drive something different
> than the rest of the world. My 18 year old Cadillac is, to me, the
> prettiest car in town. I wouldnt swap it for a cookie-cut car of any
> vintage. I will probably drive it for the rest of my life.
>
> So it goes with my motorhome, a 1976 GMC Eleganza. Who wouldnt buy
> something called an Eleganza? It just sounds regal and elegant. I can
> hear the BBC announcer now proclaiming that the new heir apparent will be
> transported from the hospital to Doololly Palace in a Bentley Eleganza.
>
> Oh well, maybe it was elegant in the 1970s but it needs a little spiffing
> up right now. I had a 1978 GMC but it proved way too new and modern to suit
> my tastes. Really, the unceremonious loss of my job prompted me to sell
> White Trash to a nice guy in Canada. From the moment it pulled away, I
> missed it.
>
> My new-to-me Eleganza is a nice coach. Owned for 30 years by the PO - that
> is previous owner in motorhome lingo it is mechanically sound. It just
> needs some interior improvements, according to my DW. (Again, this is a
> motorhome term that, around the grease pit, means Dear Wife.) I know it
> would be nice to have everything modernized but I just hate to get started
> almost as bad as I hate to spend money.
>
> So, rather than jump right in with renovations, we took the advice of many
> friends and have travelled a pretty good bit since purchasing the coach in
> February. Most of the time, everything has been hunky-dory, but those
> times dont make for very good stories. Rather, Ill tell you some of the
> more interesting stuff that happened over the last couple of months.
>
> Around the first of June, we visited old friends who had rented a beach
> house. We took our good old GMC to Grayton Beach State Park and really had
> a great time. About mid-week we had a real estate closing on a small piece
> of property. We parked in a large lot next door to the attorneys office
> and all seemed well. As I stepped gracefully from the coach, my trademark
> horn rimmed glasses fell to the pavement, the right lens detached and
> rolled, almost in slow motion, into a sewer that it was full of black
> water. I followed Elise to the closing with only one lens. I have no idea
> what I signed, but I understand we now own another condo at the Redneck
> Riviera. Also, I had fun freaking the lawyer out by scratching my eye
> through the non-existent lens.
>
> That trip to the Florida panhandle required a detour through Jekyll Island,
> Georgia on the way home. For the second time, I was awarded a 1st Prize by
> the Georgia Press Association for my humor column. Look at the map. It is
> a long way from PC to Jekyll. On top of that, just outside of Panama City
> the good old GMC developed a slight rumble that, in short order, turned in
> to deafening roar. It sounded like we were standing at the north end of a
> south bound Hells Angel convention. My right muffler had given up the
> ghost.
>
> As if the noise wasnt enough, we were quite warm. Our on-board generator
> that runs our roof-top air conditioners decided to take a little rest from
> the 97 degree heat and died. We had no choice but to proceed with barely
> enough time to make the Press Association dinner.
>
> As we pulled into the campground, all eyes were upon us. Our muffler could
> have been heard in Wyoming and darkness was approaching. We had 30 minutes
> to park, shower, dress and drive to the Jekyll Island Club. The Griswolds
> had arrived.
>
> We got there just in time for the festivities. I was awarded the prize, but
> was not given any time for an acceptance speech. I fumbled to return my
> notes to my pocket without being noticed and graciously accepted my plaque
> with one lens in my glasses and one still in the sewer. I scratched my eye
> through the empty lens for laughs, but no one noticed. I now wonder if
> maybe my pants were unzipped.
>
> Next morning there was no sneaking out of the campground. I disguised
> myself as much as possible and we headed home. The air conditioning worked
> spasmodically. When it died, I had to pull over, get out and jump the
> fuel pump on the generator to get it going again. That might not sound so
> bad to some of you, but I rarely even pump my own gasoline, so jumping is
> a real accomplishment for me.
>
> When I rolled into Americus, the cockpit (thats what us motorhome guys
> call it) temperature measured 95.6 degrees. I pulled up in front of our
> wonderful old house, jumped out and kissed the ground just barely missing a
> fresh pile of dog poop.
>
> I was glad to be home, and hopefully youll be glad to know that our
> further adventures in the motorhome will be chronicled in a future column.
>
> Boyce Stick Miller is an award-winning columnist living in Americus,
> Georgia. Contact him at stickmiller@gmail.com
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://temp.gmcnet.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gmclist
>
_______________________________________________
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| Re: [GMCnet] Just in from the GMC Bard [message #215449 is a reply to message #215441] |
Tue, 23 July 2013 12:24 |
jhbridges
Messages: 8412
Registered: May 2011
Location: Braselton ga
Karma: -74
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Senior Member |
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Yeah - scared the hell outa me until I realized this was before he and I spent most of a day healing his Onan. I hope the thing is still workiong for him.
--johnny
--------------------------------------------
On Tue, 7/23/13, Sandra Price <bsprice9359@gmail.com> wrote:
Subject: Re: [GMCnet] Just in from the GMC Bard
To: gmclist@temp.gmcnet.org
Date: Tuesday, July 23, 2013, 4:52 PM
Great story Ken and Stick. It
gave us some good laughs while we're waiting
for Bob's weekly chemo treatment. The stories we tell
just aren't as
entertaining as Sticks'.
Sandra
On Jul 23, 2013 10:46 AM, "Ken Henderson" <hend4800@bellsouth.net>
wrote:
>
Trailers for Sale or Rent
> I don’t really know why I insist on this motorhome
“thing.” I have no
> mechanical abilities, no excess of cash and really,
nowhere to go. But for
> some reason the lure of the road gets me every time and
I find myself with
> another coach with which I have no business.
>
> Part of the attraction for me is that I like to drive
something different
> than the rest of the world. My 18 year old Cadillac is,
to me, the
> prettiest car in town. I wouldn’t swap it for a
cookie-cut car of any
> vintage. I will probably drive it for the rest of my
life.
>
> So it goes with my motorhome, a 1976 GMC
Eleganza. Who wouldn’t buy
> something called an “Eleganza”? It just sounds
regal and elegant. I can
> hear the BBC announcer now proclaiming that the “new
heir apparent will be
> transported from the hospital to Doololly Palace in a
Bentley Eleganza.”
>
> Oh well, maybe it was elegant in the 1970’s but it
needs a little spiffing
> up right now. I had a 1978 GMC but it proved way too
new and modern to suit
> my tastes. Really, the unceremonious loss of my job
prompted me to sell
> “White Trash” to a nice guy in Canada. From the
moment it pulled away, I
> missed it.
>
> My new-to-me Eleganza is a nice coach. Owned for 30
years by the PO - that
> is “previous owner” in motorhome lingo – it is
mechanically sound. It just
> needs some interior improvements, according to my DW.
(Again, this is a
> motorhome term that, around the grease pit, means
“Dear Wife.”) I know it
> would be nice to have everything modernized but I just
hate to get started
> almost as bad as I hate to spend money.
>
> So, rather than jump right in with renovations, we took
the advice of many
> friends and have travelled a pretty good bit since
purchasing the coach in
> February. Most of the time, everything has been
hunky-dory, but those
> times don’t make for very good stories. Rather,
I’ll tell you some of the
> more interesting stuff that happened over the last
couple of months.
>
> Around the first of June, we visited old friends who
had rented a beach
> house. We took our good old GMC to Grayton Beach State
Park and really had
> a great time. About mid-week we had a real estate
closing on a small piece
> of property. We parked in a large lot next door
to the attorney’s office
> and all seemed well. As I stepped gracefully from
the coach, my trademark
> horn rimmed glasses fell to the pavement, the right
lens detached and
> rolled, almost in slow motion, into a sewer that it was
full of black
> water. I followed Elise to the closing with only
one lens. I have no idea
> what I signed, but I understand we now own another
condo at the Redneck
> Riviera. Also, I had fun freaking the lawyer out by
scratching my eye
> through the non-existent lens.
>
> That trip to the Florida panhandle required a detour
through Jekyll Island,
> Georgia on the way home. For the second time, I was
awarded a 1st Prize by
> the Georgia Press Association for my humor
column. Look at the map. It is
> a long way from PC to Jekyll. On top of that, just
outside of Panama City
> the good old GMC developed a slight rumble that, in
short order, turned in
> to deafening roar. It sounded like we were standing at
the north end of a
> south bound Hell’s Angel convention. My right
muffler had given up the
> ghost.
>
> As if the noise wasn’t enough, we were quite warm.
Our on-board generator
> that runs our roof-top air conditioners decided to take
a little rest from
> the 97 degree heat and died. We had no choice but to
proceed with barely
> enough time to make the Press Association dinner.
>
> As we pulled into the campground, all eyes were upon
us. Our muffler could
> have been heard in Wyoming and darkness was
approaching. We had 30 minutes
> to park, shower, dress and drive to the Jekyll Island
Club. The Griswolds
> had arrived.
>
> We got there just in time for the festivities. I was
awarded the prize, but
> was not given any time for an acceptance speech. I
fumbled to return my
> notes to my pocket without being noticed and graciously
accepted my plaque
> with one lens in my glasses and one still in the
sewer. I scratched my eye
> through the empty lens for laughs, but no one noticed.
I now wonder if
> maybe my pants were unzipped.
>
> Next morning there was no sneaking out of the
campground. I disguised
> myself as much as possible and we headed home. The air
conditioning worked
> spasmodically. When it died, I had to pull over, get
out and “jump” the
> fuel pump on the generator to get it going
again. That might not sound so
> bad to some of you, but I rarely even pump my own
gasoline, so “jumping” is
> a real accomplishment for me.
>
> When I rolled into Americus, the cockpit (that’s what
us motorhome guys
> call it) temperature measured 95.6 degrees. I pulled up
in front of our
> wonderful old house, jumped out and kissed the ground
just barely missing a
> fresh pile of dog poop.
>
> I was glad to be home, and hopefully you’ll be glad
to know that our
> further adventures in the motorhome will be chronicled
in a future column.
>
> Boyce “Stick” Miller is an award-winning columnist
living in Americus,
> Georgia. Contact him at stickmiller@gmail.com
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://temp.gmcnet.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gmclist
>
_______________________________________________
GMCnet mailing list
Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
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Foolish Carriage, 76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
Braselton, Ga.
I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to me in hell
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| Re: [GMCnet] Just in from the GMC Bard [message #215489 is a reply to message #215453] |
Tue, 23 July 2013 18:42 |
stick miller
Messages: 1036
Registered: March 2010
Location: Americus, Georgia
Karma: 0
|
Senior Member |
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Don't sell yourself short. I have no talent with the video camera. I just make stuff up and hope people enjoy it. More truth than fiction, but always "embellished".
Varnishing the truth, as they say down south.
Stick Miller
'78 Royale - "White Trash" - she left me for another man
'76 Eleganza - "Cousin Eddie" Sold
'84 Bluebird Wanderlodge - "Past Tents"
Americus, GA
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| Re: [GMCnet] Just in from the GMC Bard [message #215496 is a reply to message #215489] |
Tue, 23 July 2013 20:05 |
Robin Hood
Messages: 1078
Registered: April 2011
Karma: 3
|
Senior Member |
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Truth is stranger than fiction. Fiction has to make sense! :-)
On Tuesday, July 23, 2013, Stick Miller wrote:
>
>
> Don't sell yourself short. I have no talent with the video camera. I just
> make stuff up and hope people enjoy it. More truth than fiction, but always
> "embellished".
>
> Varnishing the truth, as they say down south.
> --
> Stick Miller
> '78 Royale - she left me for another man
> '76 Eleganza
> Americus, Georgia
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://temp.gmcnet.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gmclist
>
--
Robin Hood
Jackson, MS
2013 Subaru Outback "Top Flight"
1968 Pontiac Catalina "The Cheshire Cat"
1978 GMC Royale motorhome "Pinto Bean"
1977 GMC Palm Beach motorhome "Barn Queen"
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