THE REATTA LOUNGE

[CameraGuyLou]

On 8/25/2021 at 1:13 PM, Ronnie said:

Does anyone know about the Corvair name being considered for the first model of Corvette? @Barney Eaton

 

Saw this prototype on facebook. Never heard about this before. I'm not sure if it might be a prototype or a modified Corvette.

 

Never heard of it, but that is quite a nice car.

[CameraGuyLou]

Not sure if anyone wants to see us picking up the Reatta and driving it home, but if you're curious it's now up on our YouTube channel:

 

 

We have more than a couple problems with this old girl.  Plus, I found out today that the last guy I bought this from hot glued a trim piece on the driver's side door, so now that's falling off.  My goal is to get her into near show room condition possibly.  But this poor girl has had quite a rough life.

Edited September 8, 2021 by CameraGuyLou

[Ronnie]

1 hour ago, CameraGuyLou said:

Thankfully he's doing much better.  Hopefully the rest of his recovery goes a lot faster.

Thanks.

[Ron Walker]

Biggest difference between 5" in Boston with flooding, etc. and 10" in Florida and quickly back to normal is the make up of the soil. Northeast is hard and clay with minimal absorption, more pooling and flooding versus Florida with sandy soil with much more absorption. 

[Padgett]

Is also hard to shake sand. re video: never thought of a Reatta as a hooptie before but for a grand and over 200k miles its got cold air.

[Ronnie]

A Memorial to 9/11 in Kingston, TN where I live,,, and the rest of the story.

 

You all may already be tired of being bombarded with all the stories on TV today about 9/11 but I'm going to tell you about a memorial made of a 9900 pound steel I-beam that came from the World Trade Center and how it came to be in our small town of 5000 people.

 

The memorial is in a small park across the lake from my house on TVA property.  I can see it when I sit on my front porch.  Every year on 9/11 a lot of people go to that park to look at the memorial and reflect on what happened on September 11, 2001.  Today when I went there I was lucky enough to be there at the same time as a gentleman who  helped erect that memorial.  He told me the story of how Kingston was able to get a piece of the World Trade Center steel shipped all the way here from New York and turned into a 9/11 memorial.

 

He told me Andrew Benson, the man who's picture is on the bronze plaque at the top of the memorial, worked at TVA's Kingston Power plant.  Mr. Benson's father was a fireman in New York and had died as a result of the 9/11 attack so Mr. Benson started talking with TVA and other government officials about establishing a 9/11 memorial at the park for our area.  Once TVA agreed to allow the memorial to be erected at the park on their property the ball started rolling to get the I-beam shipped here.  Shipping costs were covered by TVA employee donations.  He said our state representatives got on board with the project and made arrangements to obtain the I-beam from the World Trade Center.  East Tennessee had already donated a brand new fire truck to the city of New York so our officials already had contacts there.

 

He said the day the I-beam arrived on the flat bed truck, it and another I-beam just like it destined for another town in TN had been draped with huge American flags.  The truck was escorted through TN by about fifty members of a Veterans Motorcycle club.  All with American flags attached to their bikes. He said it brought tears to his eyes to see so many people there to honor a symbol of the tragedy our country had been through back on 9/11/2001.

 

TVA employees supplied the labor and materials to build a base the 9900 pound I-beam sits on and to pour the concrete in the shape of a star around it.  One man from each union craft took part in building the memorial.  TVA supplied the machinery to build it and set it in place.

 

Originally Mr. Benson's photo wasn't on the memorial.  Only the plaque in the center of the I-beam was intended to be there.  Sadly three weeks after this memorial was dedicated in a huge ceremony attended by fire departments from all over East TN, Mr. Benson was killed when he was working under his car.  The jack slipped and he was crushed.  The employees at TVA thought it was fitting to add a plaque with Mr. Benson's photo to honor him for all the hard work he had done to get the memorial erected.  I will think of this story every time I look across the lake at this memorial. 

 

The I-beam and memorial look small in my photos but it is huge.

The words on the bottom of the plaque says it all. "NEVER FORGET"

 

 

[Ron Walker]

I gave you a "thumbs up" and would have given you two "thumbs up" if the system would allow. I assume that the reflection in the plaque is you with camera in hand, but it really looks like you are giving a military salute. 

I live in Somerset County, PA about 15 miles from where flight 93 came down. I pray for all the innocent people who lost their lives on 9/11 at all three sites, and the lives lost after, as related to the terrorist attack on our country and democracy. However, the flight 93 passengers and crew have my heartfelt appreciation for their bravery and courage to do what they were destined to do. All of it is so sad.

[Ronnie]

Yeah, that's me holding a camera. I tried get a shot without me showing up and get still get the writing so you might be able to read it but I couldn't.  Those people who gave their lives on flight 93 may have saved our Whitehouse or Capital building through their bravery and courage. They truly were heros that stepped up to the plate when it counted.

[Ron Walker]

All, I copied the following from a post made by someone in the SSR Forum I follow. I've copied and pasted below. Ron Walker

 

Have you seen the transcript of the call Todd Beamer made from Flight 93? It contains information about the turn over Cleveland. It's a very important read.

This copied from FaceBook post:

 

Todd: Hello… Operator…listen to me…I can’t speak very loud. – This is an emergency. I’m a passenger on a United flight to San Francisco.. We have a situation here….Our plane has been hijacked…..can you understand me?

Lisa: (exhaling a deep breath to herself) I understand… Can the hijackers see you talking on the phone?

Todd: No

Lisa: Can you tell me how many hijackers are on the plane?

Todd: There are three that we know of.

Lisa: Can you see any weapons? What kind of weapons do they have?

Todd: Yes…. they don’t have guns….they have knives – they took over the plane with knives.

Lisa: Do you mean…like steak knives?

Todd: No, these are razor knives…like box cutters.

Lisa: Can you tell what country these people are from?

Todd: No…..I don’t know. They sound like they’re from the mid-east.

Lisa: Have they said what they want?

Todd: Someone announced from the cockpit that there was a bomb on board. He said he was the captain and to stay in our seats and stay quiet.
He said that they were meeting these men’s demands and returning to the airport… It was very broken English, and… I’m telling you…it sounded fake!

Lisa: Ok sir, please give me your name.

Todd: My name is Todd Beamer.

Lisa: Ok Todd….my name is Lisa…Do you know your flight number? If you can’t remember, it’s on your ticket.

Todd: It’s United Flight 93.

Lisa: Now Todd, can you try to tell me exactly what happened?

Todd: Two of the hijackers were sitting in first class near the cockpit. A third one was sitting near the back of the coach section. The two up. front got into the cockpit somehow; there was shouting. The third hijacker said he had a bomb. It looks like a bomb. He’s got it tied to his waist with a red belt of some kind.

Lisa: So is the door to the cockpit open?

Todd: No, the hijackers shut it behind them.

Lisa: Has anyone been injured?

Todd: Yes, ..they…they killed one passenger sitting in first class. There’s been lots of shouting. We don’t know if the pilots are dead or alive. A flight attendant told me that the pilot and copilot had been forced from the cockpit and may have been wounded.

Lisa: Where is the 3rd hijacker now Todd?

Todd: He’s near the back of the plane. They forced most of the passengers into first class. There are fourteen of us here in the back. Five are flight attendants. He hasn’t noticed that I slipped into this pantry to get the phone. The guy with the bomb ordered us to sit on the floor in the rear of the plane……….oh Jesus.. Help!

Lisa: Todd….are you ok? Tell me what’s happening!

Todd: Hello…..We’re going down….I think we’re going to crash……Wait – wait a minute. No, we’re leveling off….we’re ok. I think we may be turning around…..That’s it – we changed directions. Do you hear me….we’re flying east again.

Lisa: Ok Todd…. What’s going on with the other passengers?

Todd: Everyone is… really scared. A few passengers with cell phones have made calls to relatives. A guy, Jeremy, was talking to his wife just before the hijacking started. She told him that hijackers had crashed two planes into the World Trade Center……Lisa is that true??

Lisa: Todd…..I have to tell you the truth…..it’s very bad. The World Trade Center is gone. Both of the towers have been destroyed.

Todd: Oh God —help us!

Lisa: A third plane was taken over by terrorists. It crashed into the Pentagon in Washington DC. Our country is under attack….and I’m afraid that your plane may be part of their plan.

Todd: Oh dear God. Dear God…….Lisa, will you do something for me?

Lisa: I’ll try….if I can….Yes.

Todd: I want you to call my wife and my kids for me and tell them what’s happened. Promise me you’ll call..

Lisa: I promise – I’ll call.

Todd: Our home number is 201 353-1073…….You have the same name as my wife…Lisa….We’ve been married for 10 years. She’s pregnant with our 3rd child. Tell her that I love her…….(choking up)..I’ll always love her..(clearing throat) We have two boys.. David, he’s 3 and Andrew, he’s 1…..Tell them……(choking) tell them that their daddy loves them and that he is so proud of them. (clearing throat again) Our baby is due January 12th…..I saw an ultra sound…..it was great….we still don’t know if it’s a girl or a boy………Lisa?

Lisa: (barely able to speak) I’ll tell them, I promise Todd.

Todd: I’m going back to the group—if I can get back I will…

Lisa: Todd, leave this line open…are you still there?……

Lisa: (dials the phone..) Hello, FBI, my name is Lisa Jefferson, I’m a telephone supervisor for GTE. I need to report a terrorist hijacking of a United Airlines Flight 93….Yes I’ll hold.

Goodwin: Hello, this is Agent Goodwin.. I understand you have a hijacking situation?

Lisa: Yes sir, I’ve been talking with a passenger, a Todd Beamer, on Flight 93 who managed to get to an air phone unnoticed.

Goodwin: Where did this flight originate, and what was its destination?

Lisa: The flight left Newark New Jersey at 8 A.M. departing for San Francisco. The hijackers took over the plane shortly after takeoff, and several minutes later the plane changed course – it is now flying east.

Goodwin: Ms. Jefferson…I need to talk to someone aboard that plane. Can you get me thru to the planes phone?

Lisa: I still have that line open sir, I can patch you through on a conference call…hold a mo…..

Todd: Hello Lisa, Lisa are you there?

Lisa: Yes, I’m here. Todd, I made a call to the FBI, Agent Goodwin is on the line and will be talking to you as well.

Todd: The others all know that this isn’t your normal hijacking. Jeremy called his wife again on his cell phone. She told him more about the World Trade Center and all.

Goodwin: Hello Todd. This is Agent Goodwin with the FBI. We have been monitoring your flight. Your plane is on a course for Washington, DC. These terrorists sent two planes into the World Trade Center and one plane into the Pentagon. Our best guess is that they plan to fly your plane into either the White House or the United States Capital Building.

Todd: I understand…hold on……I’ll…….I’ll be back..

Lisa: Mr. Goodwin, how much time do they have before they get to Washington?

Goodwin: Not long ma’am. They changed course over Cleveland; they’re approaching Pittsburgh now. Washington may be twenty minutes away.

Todd: (breathing a little heavier) The plane seems to be changing directions just a little. It’s getting pretty rough up here. The plane is flying real erratic….We’re not going to make it out of here. Listen to me….I want you to hear this….I have talked with the others….we have decided we would not be pawns in these hijackers suicidal plot.

Lisa: Todd, what are you going to do?

Todd: We’ve hatched a plan. Four of us are going to rush the hijacker with the bomb. After we take him out, we’ll break into the cockpit. A stewardess is getting some boiling water to throw on the hijackers at the controls. We’ll get them….and we’ll take them out. Lisa, …..will you do one last thing for me?

Lisa: Yes…What is it?

Todd: Would you pray with me?

They pray: Our father which art in Heaven

Hallowed be thy name,

Thy kingdom come, thy will be done

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

And forgive us our trespasses

As we forgive our trespassers,

And lead us not into temptation

But deliver us from evil

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory

Forever…..Amen

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want…

He makes me to lie down in green pastures

He leads me beside the still waters

He restores my soul

He leads me in paths of righteousness

for His name’s sake

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death

I will fear no evil, for thou art with me…..

Todd: (softer) God help me…Jesus help me….(clears throat and louder)

Are you guys ready?……..

Let’s Roll……………………
 

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[DAVES89]

Ron Thanks so much for the complete transcript. I had heard some of it over the years but never all of it. Thank you

[Philbo]

I was living in DC when the plane hit the pentagon. My dad was in the air force and we lived on Bolling AF Base which is right accross the river from the Regan National Air Port. You can see the pentagon accross the river from the base. I heard the plane crash into the pentagon as I was watching the coverage of the attack of the Twin Towers on TV and not long after you could see the smoke on the horizon. It was very frightening. Very quickly there were fighter jets that scambled out of Andrews Air Force base in MD flying overhead. I suspect that had the passengers of United Airlines flight 93 not overtaken the hijackers, those fighters would have been forced to shoot them down.

 

I remember in the days after the attack things on the base changed dramatically. Macine gun towers along with other barriers and such were set up at the gates. MPs with M16s were patrolling the path that ran along the potomac river where we would go roller blading or walk the dogs. Everything on the base went to high security. It was crazy.

 

I also remember our nation uniting in a way that I hadn't seen before or since.

[CameraGuyLou]

On 9/10/2021 at 11:28 PM, Padgett said:

Is also hard to shake sand. re video: never thought of a Reatta as a hooptie before but for a grand and over 200k miles its got cold air.

Yeah, we honestly could enter it into the 24 hour lemons.  Not going to (I can't hurt my girl like that) but we could.

 

The kid that I bought it from treated the old girl pretty rough.  She's got a new glove box latch now and the rear latch has been replaced.  The air filter was never changed or cleaned (they put in a K & N thing and left it for God knows how long) and we cleaned the MAF sensor.  We still gotta clean more sensora, fix the hood, fix the front bumper, fix the...well you get the idea.  We got a ways to go.

Edited September 14, 2021 by CameraGuyLou
Update reatta progress info.

[Padgett]

Strange thing is was on a telecon when the first plane hit and some one said to turn (think it was CNN, might have been Fox) TV on & saw second plane hit. Was in the same house, same room, same chair, and same workstation (upgraded a bit) & had Reatta in garage.

Edited September 14, 2021 by Padgett

[Ronnie]

When I saw the second plane hit I had just walked into the house with my brother-in-law from being on the back porch drinking coffee and shooting the bull. We were still standing up when I grabbed the remote and turned on the TV just as the plane hit. I turned to him a said "I'm going to watch that when it comes out." I thought I was watching a trailer for a movie that was going to come out in the movie theaters.

 

Once I realized what I was seeing was happening in real time I could hardly believe it. I was shocked that a plane could get through all of our defenses and hit buildings in the middle of New York. Little did I know that what I was watching was an attack on our country by terrorist using American planes.

[2seater]

I have alluded to my on and off search for an electric car and I thought this might be a good place to post about this non serious issue as mentioned. I looked at my first Tesla yesterday, a 2021 model 3 with 13k miles on it at a used car lot of a local Ford/Hyundai dealership of all things. I did ask how it came to be on the used car lot and I was told a young woman had traded it in on a Hyundai hybrid of some kind. Apparently payments became a burden. This was the first one I found on a lot and for sale. Really not what I am looking for, but I felt I had to look as they are sort of the standard others are judged by. Seats were very comfortable, and the typical blind spots from the A pillars is pretty bad but in fairness, it has decent visibility out the sides and toward the rear. This was the first electric sedan I sat in and I found the floor to be uncomfortably high causing a legs forward sort of position. I am a short guy and much prefer a more chair like seating position, plus my vision issues make the blind spots more apparent. Too much money too, $48k, but I just had to look. Since this was a Ford dealership I asked about a Mustang Mach E, and found that they had one some time ago but it was sold and no others were available. Looking online found just one at less than 100 miles away, all with a large markup over list price.🤨

 

So far I have looked at anything available with roughly a 250mi range or more which includes the two Chevies, the Tesla, the Volkswagen ID4 and a Kia Niro. No others have been found within convenient distance. No Nissan Leaf, no Mustang Mach E, no Hyundai Kona or Kia Soul. These are what might be affordable in my retired world. The last one, the new Soul EV is available in Canada but not the U.S., the Kona is available on the coasts but not the interior of the country. I did ask at two places if they could get a car from available areas but both told me they were forbidden to do such a thing. Not adding to the political manure that seems to be going on but it sure seems to me that the view from inside the beltway only sees the densely populated areas and is blind to more open spaces in between, and I though I had vision issues🙄  I know Wisconsin is not an urban hotspot by any stretch but there are 1.2million of us in a fifty mile radius circle. Oh well, sometimes it IS good to be overlooked😎

 

I do remember where I was when the towers fell. I was at work in the office cubeville and I heard about the first plane hit and I figured it must be an accident and the Empire State building had been hit by planes in the past, so bad, but not what was to come. 

 

Edited September 14, 2021 by 2seater

[Padgett]

Nice idea but for me do not want anything made after 2014. Too much nanny.

BTW thought starting in 2018 cars were required to have rear cameras. Have two now and very handy to have camera in back when alongside a behemouth crew cab +.

[Ronnie]

I came close to buying a Toyota Prius and passed on it. My next door neighbor at the time was selling everything she had, cars, house and everything in the house to move to a country in South America. She asked if I was interested in the Prius for $9000 which was less than the book price but there was a catch. She was honest with me and told me the Toyota dealership had told her the battery(s) were at about 70% of what they were when new and would need to be replaced soon. Cost of the battery was $1800 plus installation. I don't like to buy things I know little about so I passed but I did give it a lot of consideration. I liked the idea of getting about 50 mpg.

[Padgett]

$1800 buys a lot of gas.

[2seater]

Everyone I know with a Prius loves the car. I saw a quote on one of the performance forums I visit "a Prius is a wonderful transportation module for people who don't like real cars". Maybe I have too much of the Amazon experience warp my perspective: expect to order what you want and have it at the front door in two days or less?

[Padgett]

I could say the same thing. Don't know anyone with a Prius. Seems decent enough just think the gas engine should be less than a liter, more of a Smart Car with batteries.