#during an event which took place in winter 1977 so I looked through this to see if there was anything matching what she described

[motelpearl]

1977 Sears Fall/Winter catalog

[goldencherriess]

Waterloo || Loki x Mortal! Fem! Reader

Pairing: Loki x Mortal! Fem! Reader

Word count: 2.7k

Summary: Loki finds her again and suddenly the skies turn blue.

Warnings: a sprinkle of angst that's basically insignificant because the whole chapter is fluffy and romantic

A/N: dropping an author's note here, before you start reading, just so I explain something. This chapter takes place during the silver jubilee of the queen, in the 70s. In no way did I do that on purpose, as she died recently. It's just pure coincidence. I needed a historical event that happened in the 70s in UK, and this one seemed to be perfect, as it could build up to a meet-cute. This is just a piece of fanfiction and it should be treated as such. Other than that, have fun reading xx

Previous part || Series masterlist

6 February 1977

London was a city of cloudy skies and rainy days. But the rare moments in which the sun decided to smile through them, brought sunshine into Y/N's heart.

She just let the sunrays kiss her face, as she took off her sunglasses and put them on her head. There were several United Kingdom flags fluttering in the wind that day. They were adorning the street lights and corners. The traffic was frozen, the boulevards letting open space to take over. People milled around her in groups, smiling excitedly and if she could pay close attention, she could hear the static sounds of the TVs and radios being carried by the breeze through the windows and balconies.

Today marks the Silver Jubilee of Her Highness, Queen Elizabeth II. Celebrations are held in front of the Buckingham Palace...

A cold wind picked up and she suddenly regretted for leaving the house without a jacket. Despite the sun shining through the clouds, the winter was still in full swing. She tightened the woolly, red scarf around her neck before she let her feet carry her forward to the crowd applauding in front of the Palace.

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

Loki hated crowds. It made him feel dizzy and breathless. Why did he ever come at all when all he got was a pounding in his head after some girl's way too sweet perfume tickled his nostrils when she passed by him? It twisted his stomach in notches.

But he knew why. He searched for her in every crowd, in every face. His heart broke a little bit more every time he couldn't seem to find her eyes, to see her sparkle in them. Sometimes, when he laid in bed at night, his mind would drift off to that fateful Christmas morning and he wondered if things were to be different if he was just awake. Aware. Present. But then, he scolded himself. It wasn't worth thinking about it. Because recalling that morning hurt like shards stuck in skin.

But she would always be worth the heartbreak.

The stomping of the horses' reached his ears and his gaze slipped towards a carriage. He recognized her from the magazines and the newspapers. The mortals called her a queen. She was waving towards the crowd, smiling. He breathed in, turning away from the scene when the wind blew, a red scarf hitting his face.

''Oh, that's mine, sorry!''

Music to his ears. Her voice. Loki could recognize her voice in sleep and in daydreams. It was at that moment that he started to believe in fate. There was no denying now. He could find her even at the end of time, but she still would be his. An underlying truth. A predestined moment.

He took away the scarf from his face and his eyes met hers. They were the same, even after all these years and he wondered if she was a beauty frozen in time. No matter how many times they'd meet, how many times her eyes would look into his, Loki would always feel mesmerized by her. As if he would saw for the very first time.

He handed her the scarf and she started smiling. ''Thank you.'' And then her eyebrows scrunched. ''Uh, pardon me, but do I know you from somewhere? You look familiar.''

Déjà vu.

''Maybe from another life.'' Loki replied, the corner of his eyes crinkling in a smile. She wore the sunrays around her head like a halo and it almost blinded him.

She laughed, shaking her head. ''Maybe.'' She then held her hand to shake his and Loki felt electricity flowing through them, pinching his skin. ''I'm Y/N.''

I know.

''Loki.''

''Would you like to get out of this crowd, Loki? Go somewhere nice?''

''Yes.''

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

The heels of her boots were clinking against the pavement, almost in a drum manner. Her steps reflected one of those songs he heard the other day in passing. A reckless serenade. Loki glanced at her from the corner of his eyes and saw her shivering. He took off his own jacket and put it on her shoulders gently. ''You looked cold.'' he shrugged when she looked up at him questionably.

''Then you should take this.'' She took off her scarf and wrapped it around his neck, standing on her tip toes. She was close enough for him to inhale her perfume. Sweet with a hint of musk. ''A trade.'' she added as she took a step back.

Loki touched the scarf, the wool biting him slightly. The red of it stood out to him, screaming at him to remember something. And then he did. She wore it the very first time he ever laid eyes on her, all those centuries ago. Funny how fate weaves life into a full circle. He lifted his head and locked eyes with her. Her nose was slightly red from the cold. ''Thank you.''

She threw him a soft smile before her gaze drifted off to a shop in the corner of the street. Her face lit up and she took him by the hand, dragging him across the road. ''Do you drink coke?''

Loki's eyebrows pinched together. The word didn't ring a bell. He stopped trying midgardian things as they didn't bring him any joy without her besides him. ''It would be the first time, actually.'' he said in a meek voice.

''Then, you totally should try it!''

The sliding doors of the shop opened and she excitedly ran to the fridges, still holding his hand in hers. She opened one fridge, the cold hitting her and Loki in one freezing wave. Her flushed face cooled off and she took out two bottles, but Loki's hand on hers stopped her in her tracks. ''Just take one.''

Confusion overtook her features. ''Why?''

''Maybe I won't like it. Better safe than sorry.''

Her eyes studied him, searching for an answer, before she let a smile bloom on her lips. ''Yeah, okay. It's cheaper.''

And she was off to the cash register, leaving a rather starstruck Loki near the freezing refrigerators.

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

The drink was bursting colours and aromas on his tongue. It exploded. The coke was fizzing, pinching on his tongue, and swirling around. It was a sweet drink, much different than anything he had ever drunk before. It reminded him of cold afternoons and afire sunsets.

Y/N's eyebrows were raised as she watched him for a reaction. ''Well? Do you like it?''

Loki chuckled. ''It's a fun drink, certainly.''

She put her hands on her hips, looking up at him. ''Is that a yes or a no, mister Loki?''

He laughed again, looking deeply in her eyes. ''It's a yes.''

She squealed in triumph, before snatching the bottle from him. She wrapped her lips around the rim, taking a sip, her gaze never wavering from his. ''Say, where are you from?''

Loki's smile dropped. ''What?''

''Well, I mean you're not from here, are you?''

He avoided her gaze, as he took a few steps forward. The clinking of her heels told him she wasn't too far behind. ''How'd you figure that one out?''

''It's the way you hold yourself. Almost royally like.''

He stopped walking, turning to her. Her familiar words struck him. Even after all this time, he would still be surprised at how things repeated themselves. As if they were a broken record. As if he was a character stuck in a movie and Y/N was just playing herself over and over again. Or maybe he was just a spectator and the movie would end soon. He gulped thickly. ''I'm from far away.''

She hummed, content with the answer. ''I'm not. Born and raised in London. At least that's what I know. I never met my real parents.''

''Who raised you, then?'' he inquired even though he already knew the answer.

Y/N suddenly became shy, putting one hand in Loki's jacket and taking another sip of Coca Cola. ''His name is Garwin. I call him father, though.'' She nervously laughed. ''And I don't really know why I'm telling you all this. It's just- I feel like I can, as if I know you. Does that make any sense?''

Loki's heart swelled up. ''It does.''

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

The sun was now slowly dipping down the horizon and Y/N was holding Loki's hand with a familiarity that warmed her soul. Every now and then, she would glance at him only to find him already looking at her. In that moment, blood coloured her cheeks in red and she had to avert her gaze just so she could remind herself how to breath again. She brought the drink to her lips, the rich aroma of it washing away some of her nerves.

''If you could, would you freeze time?'' Loki asked, taking his eyes off of her for the first time that day and looking at the sun setting through the buildings.

''No.'' she answered without hesitation.

''No?'' he turned his head towards her in surprise.

''No, why should I?''

''You'd get to live any moment forever. Wouldn't that be sweet?''

She shook her head, strands of hair falling into her eyes. ''It would lose its meaning. It's not a moment anymore. It's just... a tiresome eternity. Life's about living in the moment. Carpe diem, you know?''

Loki hummed, thinking, his thumb caressing the back of her hand. ''And if you had eternity?''

''I wouldn't want that either. It sounds lonely.''

Lonely.

A pang went through his chest. If she only knew how much he had missed her these past years, how he felt nights as heavy blankets crushing him and days like ovens burning his soul alive. If she only knew how she was the only remedy to all his misery, how with just a smile she soothed all his pain. How after all this time, he still chose her.

''I suppose you're right.'' he whispered into the evening.

''I'm always right.'' she joked, winking.

Then, a few musical notes travelled to them, through an open window and Y/N raised a finger to his lips, ears listening in. ''Wait, you hear that?''

Loki furrowed, slightly dazed by the feeling of her finger against his lips and he had to fight the urge to press a gentle kiss on it.

My, my

At Waterloo, Napoleon did surrender

Y/N gasped, eyes lighting up and grinning. ''ABBA! Oh, I love this song, Loki! Dance with me, please?''

Oh, yeah

And I have met my destiny in quite a similar way

Loki let out a chuckle escape his lips at her eagerness and took the bottle out of her hands, drinking from it one last time before throwing it away in a bin. Meeting her eyes, he gently clasped her left hand in his and lifted it to his lips, caressing it where a ring would be.

The history book on the shelf

Is always repeating itself

He twirled her around to the beat of the song, her laugh rising into the air.

Waterloo

Promise to love you forever more

Y/N then brought him closer, their chests touching. She smiled up at him before twirling him, standing on her tip toes as he was much taller than her, even when wearing heels.

Waterloo

Knowing my fate is to be with you

The street was spinning and his heart almost beat out of his chest. Loki met her gaze as she took a few steps forward and two steps back, hips moving and he tried to meet her moves, the cold air getting to his head.

So how could I ever refuse

I feel like I win when I lose

If he could close his eyes and listen in, he could hear the beating of both their hearts, hands holding, skin on skin. She glided towards him, hugging his waist with her free hand. He opened his eyes and looked down at Y/N. The sunset was casting orange hues over her face. She was glowing.

Finally facing my Waterloo

She tilted her head slightly towards him, noses touching. Their chests rose up and down, breathless and her eyelashes tickled his cheeks. ''Let me walk you home.'' he whispered against her lips.

''Alright.''

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

The stars were twinkling in the sky, emitting a silver lining against the dark streets. Y/N was humming under her breath a song, swinging Loki's hand in hers back and forth, eyes fluttering shut in exhaustion.

He turned to look at her, admiring the way her hair bathed in the low silvery light of the stars. He thought she was only missing a pair of angel wings. A ghost of a smile was painting her lips and Loki felt his own lips curling up.

Her giggle broke through the silence, eyes opening. ''I just realized something.''

''What did you realize, darling?'' replied Loki softly.

''Out of everyone who could have caught my scarf, you did. It could had been anyone, really. But it wasn't.

''It must had been fate, then.''

Her eyes crinkled happily, the shadow of a smile. Silence settled over them both, the moon high in the sky. They passed by a tailor shop and Y/N abruptly stopped, looking through the windows. Loki turned to look at her, but didn't dare to break the tranquility. Her eyebrows were scrunched up, a look of longing in her eyes. ''I want to buy a sewing machine.'' she eventually said, not taking her eyes off of the mannequins and fabrics. ''I want to learn how to make dresses, and pants and those beautiful blouses that only rich people seem to afford, but it's only the fabric's quality giving that illusion.''

''You'd be great at it.'' said Loki, sure of his words. Because she had done it before, her hands were made to convert textiles into exquisite clothing, to play them into shimmering dreams.

''You really think so?'' Y/N asked, meeting his eyes, emotions swirling in them.

Loki nodded. ''I know so.'' He really did. How could he not when he saw her doing it before? Les petites mains. Her hands worked magic with a sewing machine and a few velvety fabrics.

She smiled. ''When's your birthday, Loki?''

''Why do you ask?''

Y/N shyly shrugged. ''So, maybe I can make you something. A green scarf. It would suit you.''

''That's very sweet of you, darling, but I'd rather much prefer you spending time with me.''

A pink dusted her cheeks. ''I'll still make you something.''

''As you wish.'' he smiled.

She skipped a few steps, before stopping in front of him. ''My birthday is on 25th of December.''

Loki froze. 25th of December. ''That's-''

''On Christmas, I know.''

On Christmas.

''What year?'' he asked shakily.

''1950. Why?''

1950. 25th of December 1950. The same day she died, hitting her head on an icy street. The same day he lost his heart again, only to somehow find it twenty seven years later. An ironic laugh threatened to escape his lips. Time and fate. Fate and time.

''No reason at all, darling. Just happy to find you.'' he replied, taking her hand.

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

Her house was one covered in ivy vines. A few cracks broke through the smooth surface of it and Loki realized it was an old one. A house that saw many centuries, perhaps. He quickly came to the conclusion that it was the same house her father's banquet was held in all those centuries ago.

She stopped walking in front of the door, turning her whole body towards him. ''You can't come in, my father's home.''

Loki swore he saw a hint of a blush on her cheeks. ''That's alright. Wasn't expecting to get invited in, anyway.''

Suddenly remembering his jacket draped over her, she hastily tried taking it off, only for Loki's cold hands to stop her. ''No, please, keep it. It's yours now.''

She lifted her head to meet his gaze, before her eyes slid over to her scarf around his neck. ''Then, you keep the scarf.'' She stood on her tip toes, planting a kiss on his cheek. ''A trade.'' she whispered.

Smiling ever so lightly, she opened the door. ''Good night, Loki.''

''Good night., darling''

And then, he was left alone on the porch, cheeks red and eyes sparkling.

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

A/N: And so they meet again... Dancing definitely became their thing, as I wrote a dancing scene in every chapter so far. Also, can you imagine Loki wearing one of those high waisted and flared, 70s pants? Cause I can't lmao.

Thank you so much for reading! I hope you liked this chapter. Any kind of feedback is greatly appreciated. If you want to be added to my main tag list or the series tag list, comment under this post or send me an ask!

Main tag list: @bohemianrhapsody86 @andreead

Series tag list: @mischief2sarawr @mochie85 @strrvnge @salempoe @xorpsbane @huntress-artemiss @123forgottherest @glitterylokislut @lokidbadguy

[aion-rsa]

What If…? Episode 1: MCU Easter Eggs, Marvel Comics Inspirations, and More

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

This article contains Marvel’s What If…? Episode 1 spoilers.

Marvel’s What If…? episode 1 is here, and it’s a fascinating glimpse at a version of the MCU we never expected to see. “What If…Captain Carter Were the First Avenger?” is an action-packed riff on the events of Captain America: The First Avenger, showcasing a world where Peggy Carter, not Steve Rogers, was the recipient of the super soldier serum, and took on Nazi forces and the hordes of Hydra.

Want to delve deeper into this version of the MCU? Or just looking for Marvel references you might have missed? Well, we’ve got you covered…

WHAT IF…? COMICS INSPIRATION

While there have been a handful of What If issues that center around Captain America’s origin, they mostly deal with Erskine surviving to make more soldiers or complications involving Cap’s suspended animation. They never outright did an issue about someone else undergoing the super soldier experiment in Rogers’ place. 

For those of you looking for some Captain America-specific issues of the comics version of What If to check out, allow us to recommend…

What If Captain America Had Not Vanished During World War II? (v.1 #5)

What If Captain America Were Revived Today? (v.1 #44)

What If Captain America Had Led an Army of Super Soldiers in World War II? (v.2 #28-29)

What If Captain America Was Revived in 1994? (v.2 #67-68)

What If… Starring Captain America: The Unknown Soldier (v.2 #103)

What If: Age of Ultron #4

That said, What If…? episode 1 episode seems to borrow a few elements from the 2007 miniseries Bullet Points by J. Michael Straczynski and Tommy Lee Edwards.

In this reality, on his way to the experiment, Erskine and a couple of soldiers are shot by a German spy (interestingly, one of the soldiers was Peter Parker’s Uncle Ben as a young man). Howard Stark goes to plan B, which is making an early Iron Man armor for Steve Rogers. Things spiral into characters taking up different mantles as Reed Richards becomes Director of SHIELD, Bruce Banner becomes Spider-Man, and Peter Parker (strongly affected due to the lack of Ben’s guidance) becomes the Hulk. Sadly, Rogers dies trying to subdue the Hulk, though Parker does eventually redeem himself in the end.

CAPTAIN CARTER

The idea of Peggy Carter as the World War II super soldier was introduced in 2016 as a special character in the mobile game Marvel Puzzle Quest. Rather than being just a super soldier, Carter took up the mantle of Captain America despite her nationality. The announcement trailer showed Steve Rogers’ tombstone, showing that he died in 1941. The same version of Carter would appear in Lego Marvel Super Heroes 2.

The third volume of the reality-hopping series Exiles by Saladin Ahmed and David Marquez depicted a world where Peggy Carter became Captain America, although it didn’t offer too much context beyond that. Apparently, Red Skull was responsible for Steve Rogers’ death. Carter, joined by her sidekick Becky, killed Red Skull to prevent him from dropping an atomic bomb, but the bomb ultimately went off later on, killing the hero.

Also, those Captain Carter fight sequences are *chef’s kiss* perfection. This is the kind of Captain America fighting style that has long been described in the comics, but would have been impossible to realize in live action.

UATU THE WATCHER

Uatu the Watcher was introduced way back in 1963 in Jack Kirby and Stan Lee’s Fantastic Four #13. The cosmic being appeared in hopes of preventing the Silver Surfer and Galactus from noticing and invading Earth. While Uatu would not physically interfere with their plot, he still aided the Fantastic Four with knowledge and advice.

Uatu comes from a race of beings who are tasked with watching civilizations throughout the cosmos. It is imperative that they not interfere (a rule put in place due to Uatu’s father inadvertently causing a world’s destruction) and only watch, but Uatu has a soft spot for humanity and will occasionally give them a heads up on major galactic threats.

Since What If’s inception in 1977, Uatu has been the comics’ regular host. His ability to see through various timelines and refrain from interfering makes him the perfect narrator.

The Watcher race has previously made an MCU appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, listening to the ramblings of Stan Lee. This was meant to confirm the fan theory that Stan Lee’s cameos were all the same character and that he himself was a Watcher.

SHUMA-GORATH

The tentacled creature Red Skull summons near episode’s end appears to be Shuma-Gorath, a chaotic, Lovecraftian entity introduced in Marvel Premiere #10 back in 1972. Shuma-Gorath is primarily a Doctor Strange foe and, if given the opportunity, a threat to reality itself.

Shuma-Gorath is mainly known for being part of Capcom’s Marvel Super Heroes video game and appearances in the different Marvel vs. Capcom sequels. While several game endings have Shuma-Gorath devouring the universe, he also shows up as a dinner guest in one of Dhalsim’s endings and at one point becomes so popular from defeating Galactus that he gets his own Japanese game show. Go figure.

BRADLEY WHITFORD AND THE VOICE CAST

Almost every voice you hear in this is someone reprising their MCU live action roles. That is, of course, Hayley Atwell as Peggy Carter, joined by Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes, Dominic Cooper (giving a joyful performance) as Howard Stark, Stanley Tucci as Dr. Abraham Erskine, Toby Jones as Arnim Zola, Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton/Hawkeye, and Neal McDonough as Dum Dum Dugan. That’s Josh Keaton doing an excellent job of stepping in for Chris Evans as Steve Rogers, too.

You’ll also note Bradley Whitford reprising his role as the voice of Colonel John Flynn, the same guy who gave Peggy a hard time in the Marvel One-Shot: Agent Carter short film.

MOVIE REFERENCES

After rescuing Bucky and the rest, Captain Carter is shown leading them while bursting through a door and shooting at enemy soldiers. This replaces Steve Rogers’ version of the iconic shot from Captain America: The First Avenger.

When Peggy goes through the super soldier process, Howard Stark excitedly coos “I call this an absolute success!” That’s a similar sentiment to Bruce Banner/Professor Hulk exclaiming “I see this as an absolute win!”  with his time travel experiments. 

When we first see Peggy training/blowing off some steam after undergoing the process, it’s similar to the teaser for The Avengers with Steve wailing on a punching bag.

Unlike supersoldier serum-ified Steve Rogers in Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain Carter doesn’t have to endure any USO shows here.

There’s more than enough references to the promised “dance” between Peggy and Steve here. We don’t need to explain that.

One of the upshots of this timeline is that Bucky doesn’t become the Winter Soldier. Note how he jokes about how Peggy almost ripped his arm off.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

Despite the Red Skull stuff happening during the point in the timeline that we know from Captain America: The First Avenger, that isn’t Hugo Weaving as the Skull, but Ross Marquand, reprising his role from Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.

Spot anything we missed? Let us know in the comments!

The post What If…? Episode 1: MCU Easter Eggs, Marvel Comics Inspirations, and More appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3AyiTzD

[starsandmaple]

Dances and Drafts, Chapter 12 - The Yule Ball

Synopsis:

It is 1977 and the Triwizard Tournament has come to Hogwarts. As the school prepares for its first Yule Ball in two-hundred years, Lily Evans finds herself completely put off going thanks to a certain toerag, and Severus Snape too shy to even consider attending. Can a cunning plan change that?

Notes:

I do not own these characters or anything deriving from the Harry Potter universe. All of that comes from the lovely J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros. Insert obligatory joke about being broke.

The Yule Ball

The ball lived up to the excitement. Well, visually at least.

As soon as they stepped into the Great Hall, Lily’s jaw dropped in absolute awe. The room had been transformed into a winter wonderland; icicles trickled down from the bewitched ceiling which had been enchanted to look like snow fall. The silver statues which lined the walls seemed to sparkle as they reflected the white lights of the hundreds of enchanted candles floating around the room. Round tables, upon which stood incredible ice sculptures of various magical creatures, were scattered throughout the hall, only leaving space for the dance floor in the centre of the room where the champions and their partners stood in pairs. Three large Christmas trees, each covered in a delicate dusting of snow, had been placed at the end of the hall where a small stage stood in front of them. On this stage, a string quartet was just beginning to play the next song.

Lily and Severus were stood at the back of the crowd of students, some of whom seemed impatient to join in the dancing now that the champions had finished their waltz. Lily looked up at Severus, who was looking nervously at his feet. Lily felt butterflies in her stomach as she regarded him. He looked very handsome in his robes, something which Lily wondered why she hadn’t expected. His usually messy, ungroomed hair looked to have been tamed a little too, giving him an air of something ‘not-quite-Sev’ about him. He usually could not care less about his appearance, but he’d clearly made an effort tonight.

Finally, the bulk of the crowd in front of them had managed to make their way onto the dance floor for the next dance, another waltz. A few groups of students hung back; most of them were witches and wizards who had appeared to have come alone, and some were couples who, like Lily and Severus, hadn’t quite brought themselves to join in with the couples dancing.

“Would you…” Severus spoke suddenly, causing Lily to look up in surprise. He wasn’t looking at her, purely because he thought that if he did all of the courage he had would be sucked out of him at the sight of her.

Severus cleared his throat and tried again.

“Would you like to dance, Lily?” he finally took the chance to carefully gaze at her from the corner of his eye. Lily blushed and looked away just as their eyes met.

“Um, y-yes!” she tried to seem confident, but failed miserably as she stuttered. Severus hesitated before leading her through the last few students to the edge of the crowd of dancing couples, hoping that she couldn’t feel his pulse which was thumping in his chest.

They turned to face each other, they were stood very close together neither taking initiative to lead. Severus quickly looked around, a slight panic striking him as he realized he had no idea how the dance went.

“I-“ he quickly looked back at her, “I didn’t pay much attention in the dancing lessons we had,” he confessed as they stood there, a little awkwardly.

Lily gave a nervous giggle. She wasn’t used to feeling like this; she was usually so confident and couldn’t help but feel frustrated with herself that she should get nervous over something so simple.

This is Sev, she reminded herself, trying to mentally slow down her own heartbeat.

“That’s okay, I don’t think many people did,” she got to work at arranging their arms into the correct position, trying to remain very methodical about it to avoid, unsuccessfully, any feelings of embarrassment as she placed one of Severus’s hands in her own, and his other on her waist. Finally, she placed her own hand on his shoulder and waited for the beginning of the next bar in the music.

“Ready?” she looked Severus in the eye. He was visibly a little red in the cheeks, obviously not quite sure what to do with himself as he shifted his weight onto each foot in an obvious sign of nerves. He managed to keep her gaze and gave a small nod.

Lily smiled up at him and took the lead, stepping back on her left foot to join in the dance. Severus was visibly tense as he followed her, stepping forward on his right foot. As Lily led him through the motions, Severus couldn’t help but keep his eyes fixed on his own feet, terrified that one wrong step would cause him to trod on Lily. As the steps began to repeat themselves, however, he started to get the hang of it and relaxed little by little, even managing to look up at Lily every once in a while, who he realized was also looking at his feet. She looked up slightly and caught his eye, smiling a small, sweet smile.

Severus’s world became focused on just her and oh, was it enchanting. The feeling of her hand in his, his arm around her, being closer to her than he could have ever hoped for. His heart was absolutely pounding and his stomach was tying itself into knots as it usually did when he was around her. But this was different. They were together, dancing together, actually doing something romantic together. If this moment could have played out for the rest of his life, Severus would have died in bliss.

They were so focused on each other they may as well have been the only ones there. Both of them finally feeling confident in the steps, their eyes remained fixed on each other. They had managed to become even closer together with the movements of the dance; there was no longer space between their bodies as they glided across the floor, Lily no longer completely leading Severus through the steps.

Severus returned Lily's smile, her brilliant green eyes were sparkling at up at him, reflecting the candlelight which glittered around the room.

Severus barely noticed that his face was moving closer towards hers until he began to feel her breath against his cheek. Lily’s eyelids fluttered and Severus could almost feel her eyelashes tickle him. His heart raced. His breath quickened. His own eyes began to close as their noses nearly touched and then…

The sound of applause snapped them both out of their trance. The dance had ended.

Lily’s eyes widened and she slowly joined in the applause.

What was… Did he almost just – No, we almost just… Lily’s thoughts were swimming. The haze that had clouded her mind throughout the dance had not completely cleared and if she were not mistaken her vision had become slightly blurry. She dared looked up at Severus, who was very clearly avoiding eye contact, having also put a little distance between them since being jolted out of their embrace.

Lily shook her head a little in attempt to clear her mind, trying to fight the wave of confusion and, if she would dare admit it to herself, slight disappointment that had resulted from what had just been interrupted.

Hogwarts’ headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, had made his way onto the stage as the string band cleared. He was met with increased applause from the crowd below. As the applause died down, he held his wand up to his neck and spoke in a clear, bombing voice.

“Welcome, students and faculty, to the 1977 Yule Ball,” Dumbledore’s eyes sparkled as he spoke, a hint of pride gracing his features, “now I know you are all keen to continue with the festivities so I will keep this brief, as we celebrate the first Triwizard Tournament held in centuries with an evening of feast and dancing, I encourage you all to put aside the competition for a brief period and enjoy the company of friends, old and new,” he smiled warmly, “now, if you would each find a seat, we can let the feast begin!” with a clap of his hands, food filled the tables and soft music began to play throughout the hall, covered by the sudden waves of conversation from the students who were all finding their places.

Lily suddenly realized she didn’t know where they would sit. Would they sit with her friends or his? Luckily, Severus seemed to be one step ahead of her.

“We should find your friends,” he said, still not ready to look at her yet.

“Oh,” Lily said, mildly surprised “I-if you’re sure?” she regarded him carefully. He nodded.

“Not many of my friends are here anyway,” he grinned slightly to himself.

Lily surveyed the room and quickly spotted Dayana who was waving at her. She was stood next to a dashing Durmstrang boy with short blonde hair and a broad stature. This caught Lily off guard a little, Dayana hadn’t mentioned a date to her in the many many conversations they’d had about the ball. As Lily and Severus approached them, Dayana motioned to him.

“Lily,” she said, a hint of smugness in her voice, “this is Nicolai, Nicolai,” she gestured towards Lily and Severus, “this is my friend Lily and her date, Severus,”

“Nice to meet you Nicolai,” Lily smiled at him and he returned it, “shall we find somewhere to sit down?”

Lily quickly grabbed Dayana by the arm and led her towards a table with a few other Gryffindor student, leaving Severus and Nicolai following behind them.

“Who is he?!” Lily whispered excitedly into Dayana’s ear. Dayana giggled a bit.

“He asked me to dance during the second song, isn’t he lovely?” Lily nodded enthusiastically. She could feel herself being swept up in the excitement of it all, the ball, the music, the almost ki-

She mentally cut herself off and took a seat at one of the tables. Severus took the seat next to her, looking more than a little uncomfortable, and Dayana sat on her other side looking elated. They could not have been more opposite.

As Dayana talked Lily through all of the events of her evening so far, Lily realized, much to her relief, that Dayana seemed to have been so caught up dancing with Nicolai that she hadn’t noticed Severus and Lily together during the waltz. She wasn’t in the mood to be quizzed on something she didn’t really understand herself.

“He actually cleaned up pretty well didn’t he?” Dayana said, shooting her eyes towards Severus momentarily.

Lily smiled and nodded, picking up some turkey from the big plate in front of her and placing it on her own, along with some extra stuffing and cranberry sauce.

“You know whatever you decide to do I’ll be happy for you right?” Dayana’s comment caught Lily off guard.

“What do you-“

“I just mean that if you’re worried about what people think you shouldn’t be,” Dayana said clearly.

But Lily wasn’t worried what people thought of her. She had always found it so strange that people, particularly Gryffindors, treated Slytherins like they had the plague, that people treated Severus like he was weird and different. They were just people who valued different things, shouldn’t that be celebrated?

Lily frowned a little to herself as she stole a quick glance towards Severus at her side; he was clearly still very uncomfortable. She wanted nothing more than to make him feel welcome anywhere that she was, especially among her Gryffindor friends. Deep down, however, she knew that the simple fact of him being in Slytherin would make this near impossible in the company of members from her own house, not to mention the fact that he personally was the target of bullying by the Marauders.

“Hey Sev?” Lily turned towards him, finally causing him to look at her for the first time since their dance.

“L-lily?” he stuttered a little but didn’t look away. She smiled at him.

“I’m really glad I’m here with you,”

“Lily, I’m-“

“Well well,” Severus was cut off by the icy voice of someone approaching them, “how’s it going Snivellus?”

Lily froze, her eyes widened at Severus, not wanting to look at who was slowly walking towards them, though she knew that voice perfectly well.

“What do you want Potter?” Lily could not believe he was doing this now, what more could he possibly have to say? It was over, Lily was here with Severus, he had nothing to gain from causing a scene here.

“Oh, Evans, I just thought there might be something you’d like to know before you let a Death Eater try and snog you again is all,” he smirked. Severus was frozen, wide eyes staring at the floor between himself and Lily, who turned in her seat to face James. Of course he had been watching her and Severus together.

“What on Earth are you talking about?”

James twirled his wand casually in his hand, putting it on display obviously in case anyone tried to get in his way.

“Oh, didn’t you know? I thought you two were so close that Snivelly would have mentioned that tiny detail,” Lily glared at him.

“I don’t care what rubbish you make up about Sev, I will never be your girlfriend James,” anger was boiling within her now. She was perched on the edge of her seat, ready to stand up to him if needs be. She hoped it wouldn’t come to that though, the whole table had already gone silent and others around them were beginning to listen in too; she did not want this to get out of hand. Not tonight.

“It’s not rubbish, I had the pleasure of hearing it from Severus’s old friend Malfoy that he was being recruited after he graduates. Ask dear old Sevyourself if you don’t believe me,” James placed an arm on the back of Severus’s chair, who had visibly blanched and looked like he wanted nothing more than to apparate into thin air.

“That’s not true,” Lily spoke defiantly, “everyone knows Malfoy is an eccentric, and even if he was trying to recruit Sev he probably tries to recruit everybody in Slytherin!”

James grinned slyly.

“We thought you might say something like that,”

Lily frowned.

“What do you mean-“

“Peter!” James called over his shoulder. The small, bumbling Peter Pettigrew scurried to James’s side, “Would you show Evans what you uncovered on your trip to the Slytherin dorms?”

Lily’s eyes widened.

“How did you…”

Peter reached into his robes and pulled out a shiny, silver object which he handed over to James, who held it in front of Severus.

“Snivellus, would you care to explain to Evans what this is?”

If it was possible for Severus to go any paler, he did.

“That is not mine,” he spoke in a small voice, not looking up at anyone.

“I’m sorry Snivelly, that wasn’t quite what I asked,” James said in a contemptuous tone.

Severus had had enough. He stood up quickly and faced James, a sudden look of venom in his eyes.

“It is a mask and it is not mine,” Severus spat.

“It isn’t just a mask though is it,” James turned it over and placed it in front of Lily on the table, “this is a Death Eaters’ mask,”

Lily glared at James from her seat.

“You thought this would convince me that my best friend is a Death Eater? You could have gotten this from anyone!”

“But you see Lily, I didn’t,” James held Severus’s gaze, “look.”

Lily rolled her eyes and picked up the mask, turning it over in her hands. It was incredibly ornate and heavier than it looked. She narrowed her eyes at it, failing to see what James was trying to get at until.

“The inside, Evans,” Lily spotted it just as James spoke. Her eyes widened.

Engraved in clear, decorative writing on the inside of the mask were the words:

A lifetime of service or death.

S. Snape

“Y-you did this,” Lily’s hands shook slightly and she looked up at James with timid eyes.

“Is there anything you have to say for yourself, Snivellus?” James did not look at her.

As he spoke, Severus’s right hand twitched at his side, he was one little push away from drawing his wand.

“Severus, don’t…” Lily said in a small voice.

“No, Snivellus, go ahead,” James said, stepping forward even closer to Severus, “Wouldn’t your Dark Lord praise you for it?”

At that, Severus couldn't stand there a second longer. Without looking towards Lily, he stormed out of the hall, attracting countless gazes from nosey on lookers who had witnessed the scene.

Lily stood up and went to follow him.

“Good luck with that one Evans,” James called towards her, “He’s a real keeper!” Lily turned on her heels, her eyes pooling with the beginnings of tears which threatened to fall in anger at any moment.

“Don’t you dare Potter!” she pointed at him, furiously, “Don’t you dare,” and with that she ran out of the hall.

[gettingagriponthings]

Reading Through 2019 (Part 1)

As always, I had a lot of fun with reading this year. I found a couple of new used bookstores that I love, I made good use of libraries, I discovered new authors and doubled down on some favorites, I created a #Bookstagram account, and maybe most importantly...I got really good at reading on airplanes!

Heading into 2019 I knew that with a new work commitment (I took a job that had me travelling about 75% of each month) I had to be realistic with my reading goals. I cut my goal down to 25 after reading 40 books last year. This turned out to be a wise move and I comfortably hit my mark. I got in a good mix of Fiction, History, Biography, and Memoir.

Here’s what I read this year (in chronological order):

The Bridge: The Life and Rise of Barack Obama, by David Remnick (2011, 704 pages) This is the best book on Barack Obama (not including his memoir, Dreams from My Father) that I’ve come across. Remnick is a talented writer and successfully combines compelling prose and detailed research with a tremendous number of interviews of folks close to the 44th president from the different parts of his life. I took my time reading this one, usually in 20-30 page chunks in bed before sleeping.

Leadership: In Turbulent Times, by Doris Kearns Goodwin (2018, 473 pages) I read this entire book on a long day of travel between Des Moines, Iowa and Newark, New Jersey. An important endorser gave this book to my boss and I got to read it. I saw DKG speak about Leadership at the 2018 National Book Festival and was completely taken by her. This is a good book with a relatively unique format, to be coming from a historian, that works well to instill some solid lessons from the individuals profiled in the book: Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, and LBJ.

One L: The Turbulent True Story of a First Year at Harvard Law School, by Scott Turow (1977, 288 pages) A fun book to read, though maybe not the most original. I don’t think I got much substance from this that I didn’t get from the book The Paper Chase, which was published six years earlier.

Liar’s Poker, by Michael Lewis (1989, 310 pages) I’m a big Michael Lewis fan so I was excited to tear into his first book about his time at the legendary investment bank, Solomon Brothers. Lewis’ characteristic mixture of accurate, educational factoids and history, hilarius details, and masterful storytelling were all mostly in place in this book. This is a great book for anyone interested in finance, but will definitely keep you entertained even if that’s not exactly your forte.

The House of God, by Samuel Shem (1978, 416 pages) Hilarious. Disgusting. True. These are the overwhelming reactions I got from this book. Shem (real name, Dr. Joseph Bergman) got a lot of flack from the professional medical community when he released this satire depicting the hell that is the intern year at a top hospital just after graduating from a top medical school. This book is not for the faint of heart, but seems to give some genuine insight into the old, elite, and maybe a bit self-important profession of medicine.

“LAWS OF THE HOUSE OF GOD I Gomers don’t die. II Gomers go to ground. III At a cardiac arrest, the first procedure is to take your own pulse. IV The patient is the one with the disease. V Placement comes first. VI There is no body cavity that cannot be reached with a #14 needle and a good strong arm. VII Age + BUN = Lasix dose. VIII They can always hurt you more. IX The only good admission is a dead admission. X If you don’t take a temperature, you can’t find a fever. XI Show me a BMS who only triples my work and I will kiss his feet. XII If the radiology resident and the BMS both see a lesion on the chest X ray, there can be no lesion there. XIII The delivery of medical care is to do as much nothing as possible.”

Beneath a Scarlet Sky, by Mark T. Sullivan (2017, 513 pages) Another book that I read entirely on a series of airplanes. This time I was travelling between DC, Indianapolis, El Paso, and Las Vegas, before heading to Wisconsin to return it to my girlfriend’s mother who lent it to me. We both agreed that this historical fiction piece was a little light on beautiful writing, but more than made up for it with compelling prose and historical detail. Recommended for history buffs who might want a unique look at a subject (the Italian experience in WWII) that doesn’t get as much artistic coverage as some others.

Spy Master, by Brad Thor (2019, 402 pages) I picked this one up to pass the time in a Wisconsin airport during a long weather delay back to DC. I’m a casual fan of paperback espionage/military/government thrillers and hadn’t read a Thor book before. Not my favorite practitioner of the genre, but I wasn’t disappointed.

When Life Gives You Lululemons, by Lauren Weisberger (2019, 352 pages) Another airport bookstore special - I loved reading this book. I had a short break from work when I got this and was looking for something to totally get me out of my headspace. Emily Charlton (the protagonist from Devil Wears Prada), and her world of celebrity sex scandals, coverups, and adult irresponsibility did the trick.

Losing Earth: A Recent History, by Nathaniel Rich (2018, 224 pages) A compelling and heartbreaking quick read history of when the US government almost preemptively tackled climate change. Picked this one up from the new releases section of my local library.

Sag Harbor, by Colson Whitehead (2009, 273 pages) An interestingly constructed recounting of childhood from a super talented writer. Recommended for Black people, for a summer read, or for those looking to escape to the summer in their mind in the middle of an urban winter.

The Fifth Risk, by Michael Lewis (2018, 219 pages) The second of three Michael Lewis books for me this year. Fascinating dive into parts of the federal government that most people don’t understand at all. I saw Lewis speak about this one at the 2017 National Book Festival when he was still in the writing process.

On the Brink: Inside the Race to Stop the Collapse of the Global Financial System, by Henry M. Paulson, Jr. (2010, 528 pages) The 2008 financial crisis is one of my very favorite historical (weird to say as we all lived through it) events to read and study about, and Hank Paulson, then the Secretary of the Treasury is my favorite character within the all encompassing drama. This book is FULL of technical details that you’ll savor if you love federal government of finance. The lack of personal anecdotes was a bit disappointing (though totally in character for Paulson) and might make this a tough read for those who aren’t active nerds for the topic.

The Right Stuff, by Tom Wolfe (1983, 369 pages) A candidate for favorite book of the year. I’ve read other Tom Wolfe material before and loved it, and this one did not disappoint. Wolfe was a standard bearer for a style of writing called “New Journalism” that aimed to communicate real stories that read like a novel. He nailed it with this book detailing the creation of NASA’s successful Mercury effort to reach the moon ahead of the Sovient Union. High octane and drama, comedy, historical accuracy - this book’s got it all.

“After all, the right stuff was not bravery in the simple sense of being willing to risk your life (by riding on top of a Redstone or Atlas rocket). Any fool could do that (and many fools would no doubt volunteer, given the opportunity), just as any fool could throw his life away in the process. No, the idea (as all pilots understood) was that a man should have the ability to go up in a hurtling piece of machinery and put his hide on the line and have the moxie, the reflexes, the experience, the coolness, to pull it back at the last yawning moment—but how in the name of God could you either hang it out or haul it back if you were a lab animal sealed in a pod?”

[mylistlife]

The Man with Bogart’s Face (1980) [New Beverly Cinema / January 15]

Robert Sacchi plays--get this--a man who makes himself look just like Bogie, gives himself the name Sam Marlowe, and then opens his own PI agency. And that’s before it gets weird. 

Heat (1987) + Malone (1986) [New Beverly Cinema / February 26]

Burt Reynolds, whose work I devoured this year, plays two troubled figures in these pugilistic treats. In one, he kicks out a hanging light in order to set a baddie on fire (Heat), but in the other (Malone) he does genuinely over-the-top stuff. 

Trapped (1949) + The File on Thelma Jordon (1950) [Egyptian Theater / March 29] 

Opening night of Noir City is always a delight----hell, they serve Bogart’s estate’s booze at intermission. And it’s for that reason, and a few too many finger sandwiches and whiskey sours, that I can’t fully tell you what I enjoyed about these films beyond, you know, their noir-ness. 

Sudden Fear (1952) [Egyptian Theater / March 31]

Every year at Noir City, there’s one I-didn’t-see-it-coming highlight, and this was it. Joan Crawford plays a maniacal actress placed in serious peril by her deadly lover, the even more maniacal Jack Palance. This is a Cinema of Hysteria par excellence, where it feels like Palance had his mug sculpted for extra-meanness. 

Playgirl (1954) [Egyptian Theater / April 2]

If there’s a runner-up for my previous proviso, it’s this stunning firecracker that features Shelley Winters playing the ultimate woman scorned. I still think of the scene where she trashes her apartment in a drunken rage about once a week. 

Eagle’s Claw (1978) + The Hot, The Cool, and the Vicious (1977) + Fists of Fury 2 (1977) [New Beverly Cinema / April 23]

A trio of martial arts films by Lee Tso-Nam, this triple sported varying styles (drunken master, battle royales, mortal combat, etc.), and, as importantly, a high quota of stunning fight sequences to relative runtime. 

After the Fox (1966) + The Heartbreak Kid (1972) [New Beverly Cinema / April 28]

A duo of Neil Simon-penned films, I went 1) to see Peter Sellers in anything, and 2) to finally see The Heartbreak Kid (this shouldn’t be as difficult as it’s become). The big reveal here is that THK left me cool--in fairness, the protagonist is meant to be unpleasant, and I'm cautious about the mushrooming cult around Elaine May--while ATF, which I found to be a kind of semi-lame Italian farce, has continually grown in my estimation in retrospect. See that movie. 

The Driller Killer (1979) [Egyptian Theater / May 17]

This was actually a triple feature, but as I’d seen the other two before--The New York Ripper (1982) + Nightmare (1981)--only this one fits on this list. Strange enough, it’s also the only one that deserves to! It’s supreme grime from Abel Ferrara that gives you the gross (eating a hamburger and chugging milk) and the grosser (eviscerating a rabbit corpse with an electric drill). 

The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (1972) [New Beverly Cinema / June 6]

This was an especially bleak movie on an especially sad day for me. A remarkably human--in the worst ways (angry; callow; bitter)--film that is also a major work of art. (Added bonus, Obama’s daughter, Malia, was allegedly at our screening.) 

 Your Vice is a Locked Room and Only I Have the Key (1972) [USC School of Cinema / August 21] 

Mean-spirited but not as vulgar or thoughtlessly cruel as many giallos. Big plus for Edwige Fenech being Edwige Fenech. 

Killer Crocodile (1989) [Egyptian Theater / September 27] 

I appreciate any killer animal film that is not bashful about showing off that killer beast. And I'm a sucker for Italians playing Americans (in front of and behind the camera). 

Jennifer’s Body (2009) [Egyptian Theater / September 29] 

Yes, it was misrepresented during its inaugural run. But, as importantly, it’s a wickedly funny and gnarly horror film. 

Mooch (Goes to Hollywood) (1971) [Egyptian Theater / October  2] 

It’s not every day you get to see the long-overdue theatrical premiere of a made-for-TV lark featuring the dog from Benji mixing it up with Vincent Price and Zsa Zsa Gabor’s voiceover. (Unless you live in L.A.)

Asylum (1972) [Dynasty Typewriter / October 12]

This was actually one of my least favorite horror anthologies in what proved to be a joyously fun night of them--except The Twilight Zone (1983), which I hate for reasons that are mine (and many others). Asylum gets the nod, however, because it’s the only one I hadn’t seen, and it’s a night worth remembering. Plus, I did love the little wind-up dolls packed with blood and guts because of course I did. 

Ruby (1977) [Aero Theater / October 26] 

Love me some Horrorthon, and the lineup this year was tremendous. Butcher, Baker, and Nightmare Maker (1982) was the gonzo highlight, but (like most of the lineup) I'd seen it before. Therefore, by default, the inferior Ruby gets the nod from me. (The other feature I’d never seen, Demonoid: Messenger of Death, 1981, I slept through too much to consider--that and the fact that what I saw was excruciatingly bad.) I also mostly slept through this one, but it had Uncle Leo (Seinfeld) as a gangster and a drive-in that only plays Attack of the 50 Foot Woman so it gets my cautiously emphatic (yes, that) recommendation. 

Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985) + The Uninvited (1988) [New Beverly Cinema / October 30]

This celebration of the actor Clu Gulager at the New Beverly felt like old home week; he’s been a fixture at the theater for years. Yet on this particular night I found out that all the rumors of NES2 are true (it deserves its cult!) and that The Uninvited makes for just about the best neo-schlock horror film you can watch with an avid crowd. 

Walking the Edge (1983) [New Beverly Cinema / November 12]

Robert Forster--another actor whose oeuvre I took a deep dive into this year--got his fair shake at the New Beverly last month, and this film may have been the (feature film) highlight. It was part of a triple with Stunts (1977), a great film I’d already seen, and  Kinky Coaches and the Pom Pom Pussycats (1981), a film that features a wonderfully bonkers Forster sex scene and just about nothing else. This Bronson-esque exploitation vehicle for Forster and Nancy Kwan (!!!), however, was engrossing and quirky in all the best ways.  

Banyon (1971) [New Beverly Cinema / November 25]

Since I cheated with Mooch, I'll cheat here with another made-for-TV night out at the theaters. (And how great is it that L.A. allows you to have multiple nights out watching made-for-TV movies on actual celluloid?) The pilot movie of Forster’s short-lived PI TV series was screened at the front of a celebration of Forster’s life. It was a magical night with an electric room, as the event was invite-only for his friends, family, and colleagues...and any of us who attended other Forster features that month. Banyon earned its place on this list because it was quite good for a no-fuss gumshoe movie mystery.

Nightfall (1956) [New Beverly Cinema / December 4]

Aldo Ray as the ultimate lug-sap, in a moody Tourneur grinder with a gruesome--even by our jaded modern standards--denouement. Yes. 

[blackpjensen]

Randy Strait: The Equipment King of Chicago

Chicago-area Arctic Snow and Ice Control is one of the largest snow management companies in the country and also a major manufacturer of snow pushers. We caught up with founder Randy Strait for insights on the biggest issues facing snow contractors and the impact changes in Illinois law might have on them.

PLOW: Even though Arctic may be known best for inventing its Sectional Sno-Pusher, would you say your expertise as a major contractor is the true foundation of your business?

STRAIT: I have been plowing snow for 40 years and run one of the largest private snow removal fleets in the country. I own the property of a former local airport and park my 450 pieces of equipment on the runway during off-season. It stretches a full mile, and I am proud of what I have built.

PLOW: What made you want to be in this business?

STRAIT: When I was growing up, I was that kid who shoveled all the driveways. I always loved snow. I always loved making money shoveling snow, and even when I was 12 years old, I was hoping to own a Jeep with a plow someday. I bought my first truck in 1977 at the age of 21, mostly just to get through the bad winters. In 1978, I put a plow on it to make some extra money. The winter of 1978-79 was the worst in Chicago history, with 96 inches of snow, a record that still stands. Experiencing that winter changed me forever in terms of how I wanted to spend my life.

PLOW: When did you realize this would be a profitable business that could grow into a livelihood?

STRAIT: I recognized early on this was a business that rewarded the guy who worked the hardest and went the extra mile. That has always been me, and I saw this as an industry where I could make a difference. Seeing others in the business who did not share my passion and work ethic only made me more optimistic and motivated.

PLOW: You’re probably most recognized for inventing the Arctic Sectional Sno-Pusher; It Allows The utilization of large-scale equipment, reduces salt requirements, and eliminating re-plowing; What inspired it?

STRAIT: I was plowing in front of a shopping center and the store manager would not let me use salt in front of his store even though we couldn’t scrape up all the snow. I first plowed with the 10-foot plow on my dump truck, but the plow teetered on the crown of the parking lot and could not get in the depression next to the curb. I then plowed it with my 8-foot plow and was able to scrape a little more but still not enough. The front of the store dipped and there were sewers in the middle, so I could not get down into those low areas with a standard plow. However, the narrower the plow, the more I could dip into those low areas. The store manager stopped me and went into his store and came out with six employees equipped with 30-inch snow shovels. He blew a whistle and the six guys moved in unison across the front drive of the store. He blew the whistle again and had them move down and repeat the process. After they were done I could salt the lot. They were only scraping a half-inch of snow so it was very simple, but I couldn’t get that snow off the lot with my equipment. Wow, I thought, if I could just put six 30-inch sections on the front of my truck, I could do the same thing he’s doing with six shovels and six guys. Coming up with such a contraption consumed my every thought until, after five prototypes, the Sectional Sno-Pusher was born. This year, 10 years later, I introduced the same technology in a power-angled plow.

PLOW: Is inventing the Sno-Pusher the reason you got into manufacturing?

STRAIT: That certainly affected the timing, but it takes a lot of motivation to go that far from your comfort zone. In reality, I designed the Sectional for my use only. It took a while before I was pushed enough to pursue the manufacturing business.

PLOW: What do you think the future holds for you in manufacturing?

STRAIT: I think what we did this year answers that. We hadn’t introduced a new product in 10 years but this year we rolled out four: Two new pushers, the Raptor and Raptor Plus; the power-angled Sectional Sno-Plow; and the DoubleDown Salt Bucket.

PLOW: Why get into the salt business? The DoubleDown seems like a pretty big departure.

STRAIT: Actually, we had been kicking this idea around for a while, but last year’s winter made it clear we needed this so we moved our timetable up a year. There were two major reasons we built the DoubleDown. For one, salt trucks are designed for open roads, not parking lots; they favor the driver side 70 percent. They cast their salt, rather than aim it, from a height that cannot get under parked cars. As a result, they leave salt stripes on the ground, and are only effective when parking lots are empty. Also, because they are quite expensive, they must be assigned to a full prearranged route, making them unavailable if a store manager requests a repeat salting. The DoubleDown attaches to any manufacturer’s skid steer or wheel loader like my pushers, so it can be switched out easily without leaving the cab. It simply scoops up the salt and spreads it, and it’s designed specifically for crowded parking lots, so daytime salting is easy. It also never leaves the customer’s parking lot, just like my plows and equipment, allowing a store manager to have an additional salting during the day if needed.

The DoubleDown Salt Bucket. Photo: Arctic Snow & Ice Control

PLOW: The DoubleDown Salt Bucket has some operational benefits; are there additional ones?

STRAIT: Yes, retaining our equipment operators in a low-snow winter. Last year, we had three major plowings, with a big gap between December and March. When the March storm hit, a number of our operators had taken other jobs. We also had about 30 salting events, but those are different drivers and easier to replace. If we had been able to keep the equipment operators busy salting with the DoubleDown, we would have expected to retain almost all of them.

PLOW: The industry is changing in regard to liability. Illinois recently passed SB2138, a law limiting the amount of liability that can be placed on snow and ice management companies. What does this mean to snow contractors?

STRAIT: The industry has been in trouble for a while and the liability situation is behind all of its problems. Before the law passed, all of the liability in Illinois fell on contractors for slip-and-falls, whether or not they had any control of the situation. Ice could have formed from a leaking fire hydrant or clogged gutters and they were still responsible. Insurance carriers were getting killed and many were getting out of the business. Had this continued, retail stores would have been forced to self-insure, with the cost of that virtually assuring their demise. They simply couldn’t afford to compete with online marketing, and we would all be out of business.

Photo: Arctic Snow & Ice Products

PLOW: When you look at the top contractors in the country, Arctic might well be No. 1 in that it owns its own equipment and doesn’t use subcontractors. How have national snow management companies affected regional snow contractors like Arctic?

STRAIT: Their rise is a direct result of the whole liability mess. They are now the largest contractors in the business, and they bring in obscene sales revenues. They have little to no equipment, only phones and salespeople who are most likely based out-of-state, and they bid irresponsibly low prices to get as much work as possible. Then they look to hire subcontractors with a truck or maybe a skid steer for pennies on the dollar to plow huge properties they have no business even attempting. No qualified contractor is willing to take their work. Essentially, if you have a shovel, a snow blower, and a bag of salt in your garage at home, you are better equipped than these companies. Slip-and-fall claims have gone through the roof simply because lots are not as safe. Furthermore, the desperate subcontractor is forced to sign a hold- harmless agreement, which puts all the liability on him. I know of individuals who have been ruined and lost their homes due to this. To add insult to injury, these same companies hold back monies from the sub if there are any complaints. They all operate the same way and they are ruining the industry while also making everything less safe, so I won’t be giving any of them a pat on the back anytime soon.

PLOW: How will the new law change things?

STRAIT: Change will not come overnight, but it was important that the liabilities be shared 50-50. The work has to be performed well, or the slip-and-fall claims will stay high and the insurance companies will pull out. This way the contractors have to be properly vetted and store managers have to realize they need to hire qualified operators. Provided other states follow suit, such a law will eliminate the national firms’ ability to pass along all of their liabilities to local subcontractors. Some have noticed that the cost of litigation, not including claims, is much higher than the cost of snow removal. Recently, a national chain acknowledged to me that my higher-priced services were a far better deal for them overall when considering safety records.

PLOW: How does a store or property know which contractor to pick?

STRAIT: For starters, check out the site, not the website. While there are some honest firms, the majority will deceive with their websites and brochures. I had to point out to one customer that a contractor from our area had a brochure showing his equipment with the Rocky Mountains in the background. He checked it out further and found the company had no equipment, just a pickup and a plow. Others list their plows, sidewalk machines, blowers, even shovels, as equipment, whereas I refer only to the number of wheel loaders, skid steers, melters and trucks. The other thing property owners should look for is ISO certification. We went through the ISO 9001 process last year, and it assures every customer that we have auditable processes that guarantee we will do exactly what we say we will.

PLOW: What will happen to the level of service?

STRAIT: I believe it will only improve because property managers will have to take a more serious look at how they hire.

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[sarahburness]

Overcoming Defensive Thinking: If You Try to Avoid Criticism, Read On

“We are used to thinking of thinking as a good thing, as that which makes us human. It can be quite a revelation to discover that so much of our thinking appears to be boring, repetitive, and pointless while keeping us isolated and cut off from the feelings of connection that we most value.” ~Mark Epstein I grew up with parents who seemed to love me until I was eight but then turned on me inexplicably.

Suddenly, my father would hit me, two knuckles on top of my head, yelling, “Why don’t you listen?”

My parents gave me grudging credit for my large vocabulary, remarkable memory, and precocious reading, so I invested everything in my mind, but it didn’t make much of a difference. I had no real approval, escape, or safety. As a result, I became trapped in my head, always looking for ways to gain their validation and protect myself from the pain of their disapproval.

I later learned that I was engaging in “defensive thinking”—attaching to favorable situations and trying to avoid anything that might bring criticism.

“But Dad, what about—“, I’d gulp, hoping he wouldn’t yell or hit me. I’d inevitably fail to get a favorable response, and my inner critic would yell at me, too, “You idiot! Why did you say that?”

So, before the next time, I’d tell the critic, “This is what I’m going to say,” and he’d respond, “You better hope you don’t make a mistake, like last time, you dope! You’re supposed to be so smart, but you’re stupid!”

My father’s alcoholism, with its predictable unpredictability, made my ego’s maneuvering useless. No matter how feverishly my mind worked to protect me, the abuse continued.

In college, for the first time in years, I experienced a healthy emotional life, as my wonderful friends accepted me for who I was, not who I tried to be.

But when I came home after graduating in July 1977, with time between college and graduate school, I regressed from age twenty-two to age eight.

I anticipated my father’s rages and insults and struggled to hold on for three months.

I’d talk with wonder and excitement about Nietzsche and Hume, and my father would sneer at me, “The problem with people like that is that they didn’t do enough dishes.”

I knew this was a thinly veiled criticism of me, since I’d invested so much in my own mind.

Worst of all, I knew the sneer compensated for the fact that I was now taller and bigger than he was. He couldn’t reach the top of my head to hit me anymore.

But words hurt, and those did. The inevitable conclusion: Maybe I was worthless.

I’d wondered that at age eight. In the same house, I wondered it again at age twenty-two.

My mind would literally race to stay safe, losing the present, blaming myself for the past, and anticipating the future, with dread. in a futile attempt to escape abuse.

One night, after returning from a trip I’d taken without my father’s approval, my mind simply stopped its chatter. Perhaps it happened because I realized how little power I had to change my situation. It was the first time I could ever remember feeling safe, despite my environment.

I was totally absorbed in the present moment.

At first I thought it was depression. I only realized later it was something else.

Authenticity.

Although my mind eventually resumed its chatter, I realized that, even in the most insecure of places, I could feel the emptiness of peace.

Protection

We start engaging in defensive thinking because our inner critic works like a prison guard to provide a minimum of safety against some exterior threat.

If you couldn’t explain the intimate betrayal of your parents, you had to find an explanation for it in your own behavior. The mental alternative, the absolute randomness of the event, was too awful to contemplate.

Let’s say I was working on my father’s most obsessive pastime, his yearlong quest to ready enough wood to heat the house all winter. I’d cut the wood badly; insecure, I’d hesitate and I’d fumble. I wouldn’t know how to operate tools (I’d become frightened of them, thinking them extensions of his explosive anger).

For years, my father grabbed tools out of my hands in frustration, insisting on doing tasks himself; so my hesitation, and his impatience, simply got worse. He thought I was lazy. He’d grown up in a tough environment but was unaware that he’d made my environment just as bad.

Maybe if I criticized myself first, I thought, I’d head off his criticism. The tragic part of this type of behavior is that it creates a lifelong pattern of self-abuse. If you do that often enough, over a long enough period of time, even after the original critic’s death, your inner critic will be only too happy to continue.

I tried desperately to escape his negativity, as one tries unsuccessfully to escape a wave. I didn’t ride it gently or dive below it, but tried to jump above it. I knew that the inevitable end of such futile jumping was to be dashed against the hard ocean floor, powerless.

Enforced habits die hard when there’s no escape.

My own internal critic was, if anything, more savage than my father. Since I couldn’t understand why a loving father could change so completely out of the blue, the problem had to be me.

I lost too many days to “defensive” chatter, particularly during high external stress. I’d spend hours talking to my ego, trying to justify my likes, such as reading and music, and to avoid dislikes, like physical labor and mechanical challenges, since I knew, from experience, these would always produce father-disapproving results.

How did I overcome this internal situation that threatened to ruin my life daily?

1. Seek help.

My healthier mind became possible through therapy.

Mentally healthy individuals have an inner parent that talks their internal child through difficult times. Sometimes, due to long-term trauma or a one-time event, that stronger part, that inner parent, becomes unavailable.

I took on a partner who simply “stood in” for the stronger part of me until I could get control of defensive thinking. My therapist became the nourishing external parent until I could connect again with the nourishing parent inside.

I was always an extremely gifted advisor to other people, yet I couldn’t provide the same service to myself. Now I can.

2. Look carefully at the defensive mind and its chatter.

My first therapist suggested a Buddhist approach and vocabulary to our work together.

Suddenly, I discovered meditation and slowed down my experiences to review both my reactive and automatic thought patterns. I realized that the mind can uncouple itself from the false self of the ego entirely, observe, and step into core, silent authenticity.

At that time, I discovered a life-saving book, Joan Borysenko’s Minding the Body, Mending the Mind. I would begin to relax as I’d read her descriptions of how the mind functions, what the mind was made for, and what is was not intended for.

I’d follow her advice to close my eyes, breathe, and simply watch with inner eyes as my mind became empty; and finally, best of all, I’d remember to slip into the pose of the “witness,” the observer behind my “chatter.” In fact, Borysenko brought home to me the fact that the internal “observer” is the greatest servant of the nourishing inner parent.

The book also characterized the ego as “the Judge” with its negative protectiveness, and so I began to review how I mediated my thoughts, experience, and existence.

3. Get in touch with attachment and aversion.

A book I discovered later, Mark Epstein’s Going to Pieces Without Falling Apart reaffirmed and further explored what Borysenko had introduced me to, the dynamic of “attachment” and “aversion”—the two-headed monster of self-induced delusion and pain.

Our ego wants to “attach” to external praise, while it wants to “avert” criticism.

It’s unhealthy to be dependent on outside approval in this way, and it’s also not conducive to healthy relationships. Defensive thinking cuts us off from the present and prevents us from dealing with others authentically, since we’re focused on getting a certain reaction from them, not simply engaging with them.

It’s fruitless to try to avert criticism, since it’s inevitable. And we can’t always be sure someone’s actually criticizing us. As I dug deeper, I discovered that, all too often, I projected my trauma-induced inner critic into the actions or words of people around me.

I attributed random talk and actions to some larger rejection of me, when the only person consistently rejecting and criticizing me was in fact, myself.

“Even-mindedness,” as Borysenko calls it, is the sure way to peace, since it enables us to disinvest from both external praise and blame.

4. Re-experience the pain behind the inner critic.

After decades of therapy, extraordinary persistence, hard work, and courage, I finally re-experienced the dislocation of my father’s rejection of me. I sat in a room with someone I trusted watching me in silent sympathy and support, as my body convulsed with racking sobs.

I could now be eight again so that I could re-experience the trauma, sympathize with myself, reintegrate, and move on.

In those therapy sessions I learned that my thinking was a defense mechanism. It was a flimsy barrier against the overwhelming pain in my gut, a life-affirming yet almost intolerable pain I could not approach for decades.

Suddenly, after violent re-immersion in that eight-year old’s world, I developed the inner holding tank for feelings that healthy people have so they don’t bounce from emotional gut pain into defensive mind-trapped thinking.

But I could never have reached that place of direct and terrible re-experience without slowly peeling away the layers of defensive thinking.

Allowing myself the direct pain experience without any attempt to rationalize it freed me from the internal critic, the involuntary product of trauma.

I could accept the awful truth: I didn’t have an explanation for my father’s changed behavior, and it wasn’t my fault.

My critic was the tragic misuse of a fine mind never meant to substitute for authentic feeling, whether joy or pain.

—

When both my sons were born, despite the overpowering stress that my inner critic subjected me to (I thought I’d be a terrible father due to my own father’s behavior), I felt this incredible peace.

It was like gentle submersion into a quiet, clear pool.

The water was warm, the solitude womb-like, and the entire experience felt like perfect peace.

Only emptiness allows such an experience.

Everyone suffers from self-criticism, but the healthiest people temper and compensate for their inner critic with a nourishing inner parent. If you can peel back the layers of your defensive thinking gently and compassionately, then do so.

If, as was my case, your inner chamber of emotion is so unreachable due to the terrors that lurk there, then bring in a trusted external partner, a therapist, who can be the surrogate you need in order to patiently rediscover the nourishing inner parent who is your birthright.

Observation and mindfulness can be keys to unlock the doors of practiced defensive thinking.

Consistently open the channel to that inner nurturing presence, stay present as you experience life, and get behind the critic’s reason for being.

As a result, you can liberate yourself from a defensive life.

Live free, and find a safe and healthy way to feel the joy of fertile emptiness.

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Lars Nielsen has decades of experience helping individuals and businesses discover and share their core message. Whatever your message or audience, grab his Make YOUR Message Matter Cheat Sheet and put his time-tested techniques to work immediately.

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[itsworn]

Hot Rods, Customs & More Make the Scene at the 2016 Mooneyes Xmas Party

We should all give the Mooneyes team credit for organizing two major events in December, certainly not the most popular month with car show promoters. Festivities began on the first weekend in Japan with the 25th Yokohama Hot Rod Custom Show, followed only six days later by the Mooneyes Xmas Party at Irwindale Speedway, California.

The Santa Fe Springs outlet has been associated with this winter meet since 1977, at a time when folks still called it Rat Fink Reunion. More akin to an artist get-together than a car show, it mostly revolved around the spirited Ed “Big Daddy” Roth. The event moved several times over the years, taking place around Mooneyes’ headquarters from 1992 until 2001.

The Mooneyes Xmas Party finally adopted Irwindale Speedway in 2006, which proved large enough to welcome the ever-growing affair. A decade later, it drew close to 15,000 visitors and an impressive 1,500 vehicles, with more being turned away by the track’s staff after 8:30 a.m. due to the venue being full. Today’s meet is much more than an artist’s reunion, although pinstripers, painters, and tiki sculptors still show up en masse. But this pre-Christmas gig celebrates other facets of the hot rod hobby, too, with vendors displaying and selling vintage hi-perf parts, T-shirts, and so on.

Another interesting aspect of the extravaganza lies in the eclectic assortment of vehicles put on exhibit. American metal from the 1950s and 1960s represents the bulk of the entries, complemented by a nice showing of earlier hot rods and customs. But the lineup also includes many lowriders, along with vans, choppers, and even air-cooled VWs. Clubs give a tailgate party atmosphere to the event, though other attributes ensure its success: a pinup contest, five bands playing almost nonstop, and drag racing. The eighth-mile strip mixes all sorts of pre-’69 vehicles, with the A/FX Challenge remaining a crowd favorite.

Since 2015, word has been that Irwindale Speedway will “soon” close its doors due to land development. It hasn’t happened yet. Even better, Mooneyes has confirmed that its party will take place in December 2017, fantastic news for this beloved Californian staple.

The event would not have been possible without these two heroes. Shige Suganuma (left) has been at the helm of Mooneyes’ Japanese branch since 1986 and purchased Mooneyes USA (then simply known as “Moon”) in 1992, five years after Dean Moon passed away. While Shige spends most of the time in Japan, his longtime friend Chico Kodama (right) handles the logistics of the U.S. headquarters as the president of Mooneyes USA.

Mooneyes had several vehicles on exhibit, starting with its famous yellow dragster, a replica of the rail campaigned by the company circa 1963. Behind it sits the real-steel ’32 coupe owned by prominent car collector Tom Malloy. Pinstriped by the talented Hiro “The Wildman” Ishii, the big-block-Chevy-powered Deuce has been a Bonneville record chaser for years, running 178 mph with Tom behind the wheel.

Quarter Midgets were huge during the 1950s and 1960s, and HOT ROD put a bunch of them on its February 1958 cover. Even Frank Kurtis, better known for his Indy 500 exploits, built QM kits. James “Smitty” Smith vividly remembers these days, leading to a lifelong passion and an impressive collection of memorabilia and cars, including fully restored models.

With lines such as “Peel out, I just love it when guys peel out,” and “Is that tuck and roll?” Candy Clark has been the dream girl of many hot rodders since 1973, the year Universal Pictures released American Graffiti. Candy is a regular car show guest, happily signing pictures and chatting with enthusiasts. She took a moment to pose for HRD in front of The Race of Gentlemen booth.

United Pacific, producers of replica sheetmetal for hot rodders, recently added new 1932 bumpers to its line, along with various components for ’32-’34 Ford trucks (doors, fenders, one-piece pickup grille), seen here on its well-preserved R&D test vehicle.

One of the oldest car clubs in SoCal and the subject of Brian Darwas’ movie This is Long Beach, the Cavaliers CC has had a colorful history going as far back as 1948. That topless roadster belongs to current club associate Aladdin. Hard to believe, but his small-block-Chevy-motivated project began as a ’29 Chevy four-door sedan.

Louis Stands did his homework when building his traditional ’27 Ford roadster at Hot Head Speed Shop. It runs a ’63 Corvette 327ci V8 bolted to a GM Saginaw four-speed box, while ’48 Ford drums handle the braking duties. The Orange, California, resident did both the paint and upholstery. Note the rare supercharged ’32 Studebaker parked next to it, the property of Eric Simonson.

Did you guess what it is? Experts might recognize the diminutive hot rod as a rare ’30 American Austin. It combines a custom-built tubular frame stretched to 100 inches and a ’39 Ford front axle, resulting in more aggressive proportions. The stock, tiny, four-cylinder motor is long gone, now replaced with a ’51 239ci Ford flathead V8 dressed with Offenhauser goodies.

A four-door ’33 Plymouth might not seem like an obvious choice for a hot rod, but TJ Russell got it right. Its low attitude comes courtesy of a 6-inch channel (no, it wasn’t chopped) with matching shortened grille, in addition to airbag suspension in the back. For motivation, the car relies on a ’56 354ci Hemi engine that delivers about 400 hp.

The roots of the lowriding scene can be traced back to these “bombs,” typically ’37 to ’54 Chevys. Models of choice include four-doors, and the majority today feature period-correct accessories. The beautifully penned ’47 Chevy Fleetline lends itself particularly well to the treatment, as demonstrated by this example.

In 1949, GM’s Head of Design Harley Earl developed a range of brand-new cars with smooth bodies and lower beltlines and rooflines that overnight made the ’48 models look antique. Pontiac offered a variety of body styles, including a fastback known as the Streamliner. It looks fantastic in stock form, although David Villarruel still elected to slice a few inches from the roof of his great coupe.

The van scene really took off when HRM plastered its cover with the “West Coast Vans” blurb in August 1971. Decades later, vintage vans are back, and they even have their own publication called Rolling Heavy. The Mooneyes show typically gathers a bunch of them, thanks to the support of various clubs, including California Street Vans, Vandoleros, and Wheels of Confusion.

Creighton Hunter managed to get a small sponsorship from Moon for his C/Modified roadster, thus explaining the twin-eyed logo on its flanks—arguably the first racing vehicle to ever carry this iconic symbol. The HRD cover car (July 2012 issue) changed hands in 1953 and has since been part of the Alcala family. Both Hunter and Hildardo Alcala managed to amass more than 200 racing trophies back in the day, the fastest e.t. being 10.30 at 133 mph.

A handful of vehicles joined the Cacklefest, including the Ewald Motorsports Mastercar, an AA/FD built in Texas for Don Cook in 1968. John Ewald purchased the completely original rail (sans engine) more than a dozen years ago, before restoring it to 1969 Top Fuel configuration. Brightly painted orange, this Cacklefest regular features a beautifully painted logo stating “392 – 6.48/250,” which says it all.

Fiat Topolinos have been a crowd favorite at drag races since the 1950s, with one of the most prominent examples being campaigned by the team of Ratican, Jackson & Stearns (R-J-S) starting 1958. It posted a best e.t. of 9.54/157 mph before being sold in 1961, but it returned to the R-J-S crew in 1995. Spectators could hear the growl of its supercharged 430ci Olds V8 during the Cacklefest.

Our friend Dale Snoke has been instrumental in reviving the West Coast’s gasser scene. He also helps Shige and Chico with the A/FX and B/FX classes during the Xmas Party. Dale’s ride of choice is this ’64 Mercury Comet, incidentally a Special Guest at Mooneyes’ 2012 Yokohama Hot Rod Custom Show. Notice the front and rear ends moved forward, 4-1/2 and 6 inches, respectively.

Pontiac LeMans in the vein of Glenn Gibbons’ ’64 example make great A/FX or B/FX racers. The Arizona resident found the coupe in a salvage yard and went on to morph it into the stout Pouncin’ Poncho. Through the hood, you can see the stacks of the Hilborn injection that tops the 455ci Olds V8, punched to 462ci.

Based in Ventura, California, the Spirits Car Club showed up with several vehicles, a couple of them even trying their luck on the dragstrip. Linda Ryno was one of the many ladies having fun at Mooneyes’ shindig, driving her 9-3/4 Hogwarts Express. Harry Potter geeks will get the name and the Potters Speed Shop script. Look closely: This isn’t a Ford product but a rare ’31 Studebaker five-window coupe.

The short-lived Henry J company (1951-1954) produced small automobiles that can morph into interesting gasser material, though handling might be challenging due to their short wheelbase. They also weigh about 2,300 pounds in stock form, a big plus for any drag car, as Tim Herron will confirm. The resident of Covina, just a few miles away from Irwindale, runs this ’51 model with “just right patina,” as he puts it.

Stan Chersky regularly races his ’55 Chevy during Irwindale’s Thursday night weekly Test-N-Tune sessions. The straight-axle B/GS Quicksilver relies on a healthy 496ci big-block V8. Some might be familiar with Stan’s name for another reason: He has a collection of more than 13,000 car club plaques!

Front wheels up in the air, that’s Bruce Bordman driving Bad Obsession, one of the many 1955 Chevys that entered the racing field. The coupe is equipped with a 331ci small-block Chevy topped with a tunnel ram, while ponies travel through a Powerglide ’box.

The grandstands were packed to the brim to witness the antics of such racers as Pete Wrieden from San Diego. He has owned his ’57 Bel Air since the early 1980s, when he was still a high school student. Under the hood lurks a 416ci small-block Chevy, complemented with a Turbo 400 transmission and Ford 9-inch rearend. This combo allows Pete to run in the 10-second bracket over the quarter-mile.

This ’63 Chevy II was built as a race car only two years after it came out of the factory! Owned by Jon Hoisington of Orange County, California, Humble II makes a ton of power courtesy of a supercharged 496ci big-block Chevy motor hooked to a TH400 trans. This burnout photo also divulges the ’37 Chevy front end.

The design of the Dodge A100 and the longer A108 van did not change much during its 1964 to 1970 production run. With its wild paint job, Keystone wheels, and nerf bars, this example has a cool 1960s custom vibe, though it happens to be a 1970 model.

Gasser-style vehicles represented a sizeable chunk of the 100-plus track entries. Among them was the 1955 Chevy of Ryan Brown, which pleased the crowd with its hard launches.

The post Hot Rods, Customs & More Make the Scene at the 2016 Mooneyes Xmas Party appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

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