Glimpses of South Pasadena: Time Machine

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Time Machine

"Can't repeat the past?" cried Gatsby incredulously. "Why, of course you can."

(Well, maybe not everything. But certainly old cars in South Pasadena.)

21 comments:

dbdubya said...: This might be your best old car yet! Beautiful car in near perfect condition parked in a suitable neighborhood. Another good find, Laurie.; May 6, 2009 at 12:26 AM
Susan C said...: And I love the color of the home in the background. I think Crayola called that Thistle.; May 6, 2009 at 12:43 AM
Dixie Jane said...: How do these vintage cars find you, Laurie? You knowledgable car people out there, tell us about this car. And how does one find parts, tires, in case something needs replacing?; May 6, 2009 at 4:28 AM
Virginia said...: Bonnie and Clyde must have stopped by for a drink.
W. will be all over this one. I can hear squeals of delight!!!; May 6, 2009 at 4:42 AM
Hilda said...: There she goes again! It's simply amazing how many vintage cars seem to be in South Pasadena! This one is so elegant and I really like it, whatever it is. I like the lavender house too — adorable!; May 6, 2009 at 6:21 AM
Yakpate said...: WOW! Thanks for this shot of the world through lavender colored glasses! I love the way the asphalt soaked up that lavender house hue, and also the marvelous juxtaposition of the parallel vertical and horizontal lines.

I missed my daily visits to your posts while I was on vacation... now I feel that I am truly back home again!; May 6, 2009 at 6:59 AM
Anonymous said...: quote gatsby and i'll follow you anywhere. Good shot.; May 6, 2009 at 7:15 AM
Judy Williams said...: You truly are the classic car magnet. How fabulous. Without that center metal pole and new fence, you could do a sepia treatment and we'd be immersed in another time. I can't wait to visit. We'll go on a car hunt. :~); May 6, 2009 at 7:36 AM
Double "D" said...: Awesome!

California does have great old cars in mint condition. When I worked out there I was always looking for car shows. We have a few here in Michigan, but not like CA. Lousy winters and salt on the roads leaves lots of rusting hulks sitting at the end of there last trip.; May 6, 2009 at 8:17 AM
Jean Spitzer said...: There's purple all through this, even in the leaves of the trees. Quite beautiful.
While admiring it enlarged, I noticed the electric wiring in the trees. Pasadena is engaged in a very long term and expensive project to move all such wiring underground. Photos like this really demonstrate why such a move is unneeded, if all you consider is beauty.; May 6, 2009 at 8:49 AM
TheChieftess said...: Love the car!!!! and the Lavendar house!!! California is a mecca for old cars, and So Pas seems to be at the hub!!!; May 6, 2009 at 9:14 AM
Margaret said...: Even the new fence looks old.; May 6, 2009 at 9:36 AM
Ashley said...: One of my brother's favorite pastimes is taking F. Scott Fitzgerald-esque photos and pairing them with commentary in the writing style of the author. Ask James about his so-called "well-ironed facade" that suddenly wrinkles!

Great post.; May 6, 2009 at 2:48 PM
Mister Earl said...: SD Farmgirl: Was Neal Cassady there?

Ashley: Does he have a photo of Judy Jones?

Karin: "It was one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced--or seemed to face--the whole external world for an instant, and then concentrated on you with an irresistible prejudice in your favor. It understood you just as far as you wanted to be understood, believed in you as you would like to believe in yourself."; May 6, 2009 at 5:14 PM
San Diego Farmgirl said...: Mister Earl: Actually, that was the same night Burroughs killed him. ;o)

My dad has a Model T. He has to make the parts himself, and had to modify a newer motor to put in it. I suppose you could purchase the parts somewhere, but it would cost you! He's driven it almost every day as his pickup since I can remember. Still does to this day. I bet he's turned a million heads.; May 6, 2009 at 5:23 PM
Ashley said...: Mister Earl: I hear him talking about "Miss J. Jones" all the time; I should ask him.; May 6, 2009 at 7:42 PM
Anonymous said...: Now I'm following Earl anywhere.

Trizerla: as in, I can't help it.; May 6, 2009 at 8:08 PM
Mister Earl said...: A few words from F. Scott about Judy Jones: "He was, as he found before the summer ended, one of a varying dozen who circulated about her. Each of them had at one time been favored above all others -- about half of them still basked in the solace of occasional sentimental revivals. Whenever one showed signs of dropping out through long neglect, she granted him a brief honeyed hour, which encouraged him to tag along for a year or so longer. Judy made these forays upon the helpless and defeated without malice, indeed half unconscious that there was anything mischievous in what she did."

- Winter Dreams; May 6, 2009 at 9:19 PM
Cafe Pasadena said...: Can we really believe a picture anymore?; May 6, 2009 at 11:52 PM
Laurie Allee said...: Thank you, everyone. Isn't this car a vision?

Ashley, I'm so charmed by the idea of your brother's Fitzgerald photo/text compilations!

Like Altadenahiker, I'll follow anyone who quotes Gatsby. It remains my very favorite novel of the gazillions of novels I have read. Whenever I reread it, I have the same goose-flesh thrill I had the first time, back in high school, when I couldn't believe anyone could actually write like that. Yeah, some of the language now feels a little stilted here and there, but the overall poetry of it is luscious. Then there's the story. Sigh. I can still quote the last few paragraphs of the novel from memory!

I loved the way John Irving's book Hotel New Hampshire had a character who got depressed because Gatsby was so well written and felt incapable of writing because of it. I think a lot of writers feel that way.

DBdubya, I think this is my new favorite of all the old cars in my series.

Thanks for so many nice words -- as well as all those divine passages! Until tomorrow...; May 7, 2009 at 12:41 AM
Anonymous said...: Oh sigh, Winter Dreams, another favorite.

Then there's a line from another of his short stories: There are all kinds of love in the world, but never the same love twice.

I had no idea how true that would prove to be.; May 7, 2009 at 6:57 AM