Some mechanical sanity

As a recruiter I spend my days on the phone, in an office in downtown San Francisco. Sure, I have colleagues, but the majority of my time is spent between research and phone calls. It's the nature of the beast; I hardly ever get to meet candidates in person, unless I attend a trade show or they're in town for other business.

Throughout my life I have harbored an almost unhealthy obsession with cars (some might say it's the epitome of health... those are my kind of people!) Even at a pre-toddler age I was drawn in by sleek lines, loud noise and high speed. Now that I've reached a point where I can indulge a little more in this obsession I find that it really balances out a lot of the cerebral, virtual work I do. The current inanimate object of my affection is my 1970 BMW 2002:



I picked this thing up in Tucson, AZ almost two years ago, and have since rebuilt the entire front end, replaced the suspension, tore out the entire interior, stripped out all the old carpeting and sound deadening, replaced it with modern materials and a new carpet, installed modern seat belts instead of the old lap belts, and have generally tried to make it a more reliable car. However, with a passtime like this, there's always more to do... So during the week I will let my mind wander for a few minutes about a project to undertake on the '02. Yesterday I replaced the rear subframe mounts, and took it for a test drive in the Oakland Hills... This summer I will be building a new engine for it with parts and help received (much of it free!) from the awesome '02 community. I have completely overcome any fear of tearing something apart, and no project seems too big anymore.

Why do I ramble on about this? Because I'm trying to remind myself of an important point: don't get lost in a non-tangible world. There is nothing like using your hands to physically feel, explore and FIX something. Yes, you'll skin a few knuckles here and there, and you'll be sore from contorting to get at certain areas of the car, but dammit, it makes you remember that you're alive!