Dear Friends,

Here's my two cents worth ...

My sense is  that G. Matthew has articulated the thoughts of many of us
most eloquently, and I add my thanks to those already expressed. (Note to
G. Matthew: What is your line of work again?) 

My only slight cavil with his compelling description of this group (and BTW
let us all pause to marvel at how a brand new technology has allowed us to
share information, opinions and, yes, news of blessed events from time to
time among like-minded citizens) is that I do not think there are many
techno-*phobes* hanging around here. There are those who seem to have a
dazzling grasp of the physics, electronics, and chemistry concepts that
explain why our beasts bray or balk; there are those who haven't studied
the engineering, but have a lot of practical experience and knowledge; and
there are the literary types like me who are clueless about the science,
but not fearful of getting our hands dirty and always anxious to learn. And
the more I pull things apart and examine them, the less hesitant I become
and the more respectful I am of those who know how to put it all together.

What keeps me checking the traffic every morning -- and deleting before
opening all the stuff that is not relevant to my plain vanilla gas
"powered" passenger van -- is the fact that so many list members more
knowledgable than I are so generous with their time and expertise. Where
else can you find people who have squirreled away the odd parts you might
need and who are even willing to *lend* something worth serious money to a
stranger with full confidence that he'll give it back? And where else can
you find a group of people just as odd and stubborn as you?!

Re babies: I think the Vanagon is the ultimate kids' car and I love hearing
about babies born and three-year olds dancing. When they get a little older
their Moms and Dads will be able to toss their bicycles in too, out of the
rain. And then teach them to drive on a machine they have some feeling for.

Yesterday, as I was grumbling about the fact that I will be spending big
bucks to replace the long metal coolant lines and repair the leak somewhere
in the fuel tank hook-up on my 83.5 stumbler, I took solace at the
excellent Chinese restaurant near my office. The little paper that came out
of my fortune cookie (a tradition which BTW is unknown in China) said
simply:

"NOTHING IS BEYOND ALL REPAIR"

Best wishes to all,

Woody