- Tue Apr 26, 2016 4:51 am
#358980
So sorry for the long absence again. Had a lot going on, and none of it was good. There were some complications with the pregnancy, and long emotionally wrenching story short, not going to be a father this year. Basically fell into like a really bad depression. On top of that, the turbo impreza is turning out to be a terrible daily. Not in terms of reliability, that's been great, but comfort and efficiency are put the window. I average anywhere from 15-19mpgs, and I have to drive 30-100 miles daily for work. So after some serious evaluation, the coupe is for sale. I'll miss it, but I'm just not emotionally invested in it like my civic. As far as daily driver duties are concerned, I still have the outback wagon that smacked a deer, and the one that the headgasket blew on. Together their powers combine to firm one completely normal and entirely unassuming wagon.
My lovely lady in an attempt to get us out of our funk, surprised me with a trip to honda day in etown. It was like me eyes opened, and I went back to that first weekend I ever wrenched on my car. In short, I am fired up about this civic and my vision for it has evolved. There won't be any of this breaking necks or "killing the game" crap that the stance kids play. 4 figure "real" wheels and vinyl wraps are not where my mind is at. I reached back and drew inspiration from many of the car cultures in the us and Japan throughout the years. Kaido, shakotan, donk, gasser, hotrod, ratrod, and from the current Japanese craftsmen like Nakai-San, who makes all his cuts by hand, and eyeballs each and every one. And Miura-San drawing inspiration from the Japanese classics and creating a modern analogue, that invokes that classic feel, while still being decidedly modern.
I'm going for a feel that is handcrafted, slightly crude yet refined by personal emotions and effort. I'm not trying to get insta famous or build it for the internet. What I want people to take away when they look at this work, is that it means something to me. Enough so, that I would invest in it, not just money or time, but the emotion, effort, and will required to turn a mass produced run of the mill hunk of metal into a personal work of art. Not just my Mona Lisa, but my Sistene Chapel, my Madonna on the rocks, and my purgatorio, inferno, and my tempest. A grand cration in my eyes, and if it so happens that someone else looks at it, and sees even a fraction of what I do, and takes away just the slightest bit of motivation, then that is good too.
On a more practical side of things, I've started taking measurements and gather price information. If I have a chance this weekend I'll hash out some rough sketches, and give you guys an idea of just how far off the deep end I plan on taking this.
This is gonna be a wild and not entirely smooth ride. Buckle the fuck up.