NOT AS YOUNG, SLIGHTLY OLDER THAN BEFORE

May 2, 2024May 3, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

In the late 1970s, at one of the Christmas gatherings, when delicious super tender, hot and spicy beef rendang (1) was served, I thought that it would go well with chocolate. As it was the Christmas season, with lots of chocolate going around, I decided to try the combination of eating chocolate with beef rendang. Unusual combination of food – yes. I thought it was out of this world. It literally was! However, I don’t believe I went for that combination of a chocolatey, hot spicy beef rendang again. I wonder why…💭🤔Maybe, at that time I was slightly younger. Now, I am slightly older.

Many (you can’t use the word “multiple” here…it doesn’t sound like it will gel in this sentence) may ask me, “Why is being younger better than being older?” Good question. The perception could be is that when you are younger, you dare to do more things, that is walk the journey and then “connect the dots; not connect the dots first, then move along the connected dots”.

Maybe so. It could be because the young are brash and do things without giving it much thought. Like they would dare go bungee jumping, even though the other end of the cable he or she is attached to, is not secured to anything. I don’t know.

When my wife, Jeannie and I, first went to the U.S., yes United States of America, not the local U.S. (Ulu Selangor) (2); we had to do the touristy thing: We visited Disneyland at Anaheim. We stayed in Hollywood, at a hotel behind Holiday Inn. It kind of looked that we were staying at the Holiday Inn at that time, but we weren’t 😀. We caught a hotel shuttle that took us to Disneyland, Anaheim. I remember passing Knott’s Berry Farm, which was another theme park, that was close by Disneyland.

As we passed the theme park to get to Disneyland; I thought the name of the theme park was “GUTS”. If it wasn’t, it should have been named that. It was actually the Knott’s (for knotted guts after you’ve been on one or more [if you can take on more than just one ride. you have to be stark-raving mad!]) Berry Farm (a misleading name. You ain’t gonna find or pick berries there). Their rides definitely were not meant for the weak hearts a.k.a. normal people. And the people that went on these rides – they definitely got their thrills (terkejut [3]) and spills. We’ve got to give them credit.

From the road as we passed “the farm”, we could see the “Supreme Scream” ride I think, which had just opened a couple of days earlier. We could also see the Boomerang. Jeannie and I must have been way too young (underage, perhaps?) because we were not going to take one of those rides; not on your nellie. That meant that we were normal people.

What do normal people do? They go to Disneyland. Our first “ride” as we got inside Disneyland, was when we hopped (not literally, you know what I mean) on an open bus that that took us around the theme park. We had a barber shop quartet, dressed in colourful outfits, wearing perfectly round panama-style hats, stand on the steps at the back of the bus; and sing and entertain us, the passengers all along the route. We used Disneyland money to pay for things. We smiled and laughed a lot. We went back home smiling and happy, not scared out of our wits.

Now, that we are not as young as we used to be, which is slightly older than before; we tend to think or map all our moves out, leaving nothing to chance unless its Magnum, Toto or 1+3D (4) (for some people. The thrilling anticipation as the results come out…). I wonder why? All our moves are calculated, more or less. More more than less.

However….however, the younger will act on instinct…with the help of Google and the “in-thing” of today, Artificial Intelligence or ChatGBT. They are faster off the mark… they want quicker results…and get them. If the results aren’t up to their mark, them make adjustments and keep going. They seem to have topography of their ideas.

In the meantime, us that are slightly, just slightly older than the younger…we will go for coffee and scones.😋😉😁

result of veering off…

NOTES:
1. Beef Rendang is a Malaysian curry. It is the curry of all curries, mouth-watering delicious, all the time. It is a dry curry which means it is with very little or no gravy. The beef is ridiculously tender.
2. Ulu Selangor is a district in the state of Selangor, Malaysia.
3. Terkejut is a Bahasa Malaysia word for “shocked”
4. These are “games of chance”.

He found his thrills… The great Fats Domino, “Blueberry Hill”

WHAT’S LIFE GOT TO DO WITH IT?

March 26, 2024March 26, 2024 / Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

LIFE DOESN’T GIVE US A PURPOSE. WE GIVE LIFE A PURPOSE.

MY GOAL IS NO LONGER TO GET MORE DONE BUT RATHER TO DO LESS WITH AN EMPHASIS ON QUALITY.

MAY YOU HAVE THE COURAGE TO BREAK THE PATTERNS IN YOUR LIFE THAT ARE NO LONGER SERVING YOU, CONTINUE TO IMPROVE ON THOSE THAT ARE, AND ADOPT NEW ONES .

~ ALAN IAN ATKINSON
Writer, Author, Storyteller

THE FLYING BRICK

November 3, 2021November 3, 2021 / Alan Atkinson / Leave a comment

I have always loved cars for as long as I can remember. I remember one day when I was six years old and in Standard (Today’s equivalent of “year”) 1 at La Salle primary school, Petaling Jaya, it was during recess (break) time. I walked out of school to the shops nearby on Jalan Gasing and came across a newspaper vendor displaying little cars for sale. They could have been Dinky and Corgi brands. I saw an Austin Cambridge or Morris Oxford model that caught my eye.

I asked the shop guy to let me see the car. It had a little knob (reminded me of the little round pencil sharpener) on the roof of the car. By turning the knob left or right; it ingeniously turned the front wheels of the car in the direction the knob was turned. This car reminded me of my father’s real Austin Cambridge that he had at that time.

Fast forward today and my interest for cars has not diminished, even a little bit.

My friend, DD; has an interest in cars and motorcycles. It is more than just an interest, DD is an avid enthusiast in restoring vehicles of yesteryear. He has “brought back to life” several vehicles including a Volvo 123.

He recently brought an old Volvo, the 240GLE; to pristine, showroom condition – literally. It’s colour “angelic white”. Everything about the car is worthy of a premium executive vehicle.

DD wanted a Volvo 242 next. It is 2 doors (hence the number denominator: 24(2). After searching many parts of Malaysia; he managed to find one which was in reasonably good condition, without the need for major restoration. It was in one of Volvo’s traditional stock-standard colours: light blue.

This 242 was going to see a different remake. Instead of just restoring it to showroom condition; DD’s plan was to fashion it after Volvo’s BTCC model – “The Flying Brick”. – He bought a model kit of the Flying Brick… yes, you read right… a model kit car. His brother-in-law helped build the car, complete with full decals. The Volvo was fondly nicknamed “The Flying Brick” because of its squarish shape.

One of the first things he did with the car was to have it repainted white, as per the model display unit he has. Then, get this: he replicated the decals which are on the model car and custom made them to scale to fit the real thing. Pictures of the model are below, too:

*The Volvo 242 in front. The Volvo 240 in the back.*

*The model kit of which the real car above is being based on.* *Photo by DD*

More plans for this car include removing the rear seat and adding a roll cage. With an eye for detail, DD will bring this car up to specifications as close to the original racer as possible. Yet, this vehicle will still meet all requirements to be a street car. Keep a lookout for it.

*The original 242 driven by Strom and Codocco. Pinterest.*

VOLVO 242 (1974-1984)

In August 1974, Volvo presented a new generation of cars called the 240 and 260 Series.

These new models had been developed from the 140 series and were very similar to their predecessors, and with influences from the VESC safety concept car. The changes included a new protruding front, large bumpers and a further-developed chassis, featuring McPherson front-wheel suspension. At the same time, a new 4-cylinder engine series with single overhead camshaft was introduced. The previous B20 4-cylinder was still offered in basic versions for some time.

Two-door cars were still very much in demand, particularly on the Nordic markets, and it was therefore only natural to include a 2-door in the programme. However, as the trend was moving towards 4-door cars, the 242 was taken out of production long before the 244 and 245.

Over the years, the Volvo 242 was produced with many different engines and gearboxes.

The most interesting versions were the 242GT of the late 1970s and the 240 Turbo of the 1980s marketed in North America. Both cars offered spectacular performance and answering in full to the classical proverb ‘a wolf in sheep’s clothing’. The same goes for the 242 racing car which won the European Touring Car Championship in 1985.

For model year 1983, the emblem at the rear of all 240 models was changed. No longer did it say 242, 244 or 245. The badge just said 240, as part of a new designation strategy. In reality, however, most people continued to refer to their cars as a 244 or 245. Nevertheless, this change did not mean any large-scale modification to the cars.

MODEL SPECIFICATIONS

Model: 242

Variants: 242 GT

Produced: 242,621

Body: 2-door saloon

Engine: 4-cylinder, in-line OHV, 4-cylinder, in-line SOHC, 4-cylinder, in-line SOHC with turbocharging.

Transmission: 4-speed manual or 4-speed with el. overdrive, with floor-mounted gear lever. 3-speed automatic.

Brakes: Hydraulic, disc brakes on all four wheels.

Dimensions: Overall length 490 cm, wheelbase 264 cm.

Misc: In 1985, the Volvo 242 won the European Touring Car Championship. (1)