Vacation

So next Monday I start my 10-day vacation in S. Carolina. I fly out at 6am & should get there about noon.

Dad's birthday is on March 5th & I've already bought his gift. He has a 1965 Pontiac GTO Post Coupe (Burgundy/Black, 467 V8, 4BBL) that's in great shape. Given all the work he's done to it, this beauty isn't really short on that classic feel. In fact, it's really missing only one thing: a working radio.

Oh sure, it probably "works" in some capacity, but that's like saying someone who votes democrat understands the real world.

Here's the plan: Dad has an old AM/FM/CD radio from another car. I'm thinking we can mount that in the trunk of the car (so as to keep the interior original - no chance I want to mess up a classic muscle car). Now, my uncle gave Dad a CD changer with remote that he can put in the trunk as well. Unfortunately, the remote has limited range & I don't think a 6-CD changer is the way to go. What, then, is the best option?

Well, I decided a decent-sized MP3 player would work best for this. The only thing is the player needed a simple interface so you wouldn't have to fumble with it while driving. Mine works well for my car but seeing as I have a 2006 Kia, we're talking a whole different game here.

Dad won't need a huge 30GB MP3 to serve his purpose - he's not going to listen to the thing outside his car anyway. I settled on a Samsung 4GB model that has FM, recording, video, etc. But the BEST feature is that it's touch screen! That's right, he just touches what he wants to play & BAM! - like Emeril Lagasse spicing up a dish - he's good to go.

I also grabbed a car kit with FM transmitter so we can hot wire the radio to the car, mount it in the trunk & then plug the transmitter into the cigarette lighter (or install an alternate to keep hidden). Then, all we need to do is fabricate a mount for the MP3 player (perfect rectangle about 1/2 inch thick) so he can use it without taking away from the classic look of the car. I'm not sure how we're going to make that last one happen but Dad's brilliant with that sort of creative solution & I'm sure we'll come up with something.

OK, as for the rest of vacation, I'm not sure what we're doing. It'll be nice to see my family again after about a year. I really do want to get moved down there but I'm not up & leaving my job without a backup plan. I have a car payment (not a big one) that I can't chance missing on even though I've got money in the bank.

Wish me a safe trip & I'll say "Hi" to the folks for y'all!