> Here�s the question.  What was going through his head when he saw my van?
> I�d like to think it was some underlying passion for old VW�s that he
> missed but I fear his thoughts may have been �Glad I don�t have to work on
> that piece of crap  anymore.�
>
> Thoughts?
>
> Bryan
>

  I'd bet he was thinking along the lines of the second choice you offer.
Many people claim to *Love* their work...but it is (was) work, and work is
something you only do for others who give you money to do it.  You don't
work for free, and if you have time to do exactly what you want, you don't
choose to work (if you do it free,  it is not "work", it becomes a hobby,
or for some, a habit.)   When you do the same *job* for 40yrs, you probably
thank your lucky stars that you are no longer required to trade your time
for money doing that same task any more.

  He probably thought..."That thing needs a headgasket and one of the
lifters is flat....P.O.S!  Boy,  glad I can just take my paper and go
inside rather than get coolant in my eyes again today while dealing with
that cold rusty lump of iron......"

   Hard to know for certain, however.   Some significant percentage of
people have no real life outside their work and when they retire, (should
they be so lucky)  they continue to talk about what they 'did'...they
relate everything to their old job...They act totally lost when it comes to
occupying their time.  Many define their lives by "what they did for
money"...  Does the Old German Mechanic drive a VW?