I have known him since I was about 8 he was one of my dad's students at PTEC (back then it was Pinellas Vocational Technical Institute or PVTI) learning auto mechanics. Him and his friends a motley crew if I had ever seen one used to come to our house. I don't think my dad was a normal teacher and this was no normal class. These guys became part of our lives. They were all in their teens and we were just little kids. We all looked up to dad so we had that in common.
Richie, Kenny and Bill. I feel like there was another but his name escapes me. We stayed in touch over the years after dad stopped teaching and we moved to the beach these guys would still come over. I remember Bill telling about how he was never going to own a car until he had a Rolls Royce. He spoke of the craftsmanship and the details. I to learned to appreciate the Rolls Royce. A fine car. I remember one year saying I wanted to have a Rolls Royce and in 1979 my mom bought me one
So I am not writing about Matchbox cars or holding on to things forever but how it is that I am who I am because of the people I am surrounded by. My mechanic friend is Bill. He has worked on all my cars and he has saved me many times when I locked myself out of my car or stuck on the side of the road. My favorite Bill story is when I had trouble starting my car one day and he said bring it by tonight after work. I said to him, "are you sure it is going to start for me?" He said, "when you start your car think of me and it will start." I walked out the office door that evening and laughed as I pulled my keys out thinking that all I had to do was think of him and my car would start. Well of course it started. Just yesterday as Brian and I were driving back from Tampa my check engine light came on and immediately the car started to sputter as though it was going to stall and I stopped because those lights are not called idiot lights for nothing. The car wasn't over heating it wasn't low on water or oil. I had now exceeded my mechanical knowledge. So I called Bill if he says that I am good I trust him. No answer. Well, I considered my surroundings and there was a mechanic shop right next to the place we stopped. I walked over and asked if they would check what the light was. And they did the guy even called and ordered the part that was bad before telling me what was wrong. I hate having to put all my trust in someone I don't know but feeling like I had to because there is nothing worse than getting stuck on the side of the road on a hot summer day. So for $100 bucks I can be out the door in less than an hour. Brian did ask to see the part he was replacing. After wards the guy asked how many miles on my car and I told him. He said it runs really good for it's age and said I must take good care of it. I smiled and thought it isn't all me.
You might be thinking well your mechanic friend he wasn't there for you when you needed him but here is where you are wrong. At 9:30 last night when he got the message he didn't plop down and watch tv and say I will call her tomorrow. He called to make sure I had got home and was ok. Now if anyone else has a mechanic that will do that let me know. After he said that we weren't ripped off it made me feel even better. I may not know a lot about cars but I do know that people that do well in life surround themselves with people that are really good at what they do and Bill is really good at what he does.
The point of all this is to say Thanks Bill. I try to tell you sometimes how much your help has meant and maybe that is too much for you but I wanted you to know that even if I owned a Rolls Royce you would still be my go to mechanic. Thanks for years of helping this girl out when she needed it.
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