At a glacial pace, the Garage Style Magazine Headquarters Garage moves forward. The main problem has been that it’s loaded with ‘stuff,’ causing me to possibly rename the publication Garage Stuff Magazine. But we’re getting there. When we moved here, I took on the hobby of restoring furniture – I found a nice dresser someone left at the curb, so I took it in. I still have the desk set I inherited from my Dad, which dates back to maybe the 1940s, no one seems to know, and I’d like to refresh that set. Then somewhere there’s another dresser awaiting a refinishing, and of course, it’s all interspersed among boxes of things – valve covers, hubcaps, dashboards, neons, porcelains, tins, and my gardener just told me about a coworker who’s looking to sell off a Ford 289 and C4 from a ’65 Mustang. Since I have a ’65 Mustang, it makes perfect sense to acquire another engine and transmission just to have it, right? Of course it does. Just ask me, I’ll tell ya. But – no matter the plans or hopes or dreams, that engine, plus so many other things are amounting to stuff packing the garage. Be proud, I didn’t mention the posters filling the trunks of three cars, one being a Chevy Caprice Classic – do you know how big that trunk is? Lotta posters. Anyway… to the part where the garage took a step forward…
Long before my career in publishing, I was a detailer. I love cleaning up cars. Always have, especially since I can’t do much else with them. Turning a wrench terrifies me. That said, I wanted to set this garage up for socializing and medium-duty cleaning enjoyment. It’s not a big garage – despite the notion and catchphrase, not everything is bigger in Texas. One major hurdle in that goal was the hose. There was one in the backyard and one in the front yard, but not near the driveway, so to wash a car, the hose had to be dragged and stretched around the side of the house. Kind of a nuisance. So, I asked a friend of mine who’s shockingly handy if he could install a hose for me – no problem. He cut into the detail wall, which is shared on the other side with the laundry, ported into the water supply, and installed a spigot outside right next to the driveway. Incredible. Water at the driveway. Forget wealth, I want a hose at the driveway. Then, he installed three electrical outlets. Prior to this, extension cords stretched from the back wall to the driveway, again, kind of a nuisance. But, nuisance no more. I’ll be hanging a wall-mounted garage vacuum and a few buffer holders along with some shelves and lighting and the detail wall will be given a look the likes of which I’ve never seen before in a garage. I’m hoping it works out, because it is a very different look, completely off the grid, so I’m a bit nervous and hoping it’ll come together nicely. If it does, the look should be surprising, maybe even refreshing, very unique, and hopefully a little elegant, all playing into not only the functional side of the whole garage, but also that social side I’m looking for. Stay tuned.
