I got in an accident a few weeks ago with Eloise, my beloved 2002 MINI Cooper. Thankfully, no one was in the car but me, and no one was injured. In fact, I barely felt it, and until I saw the car when it came home, I was totally convinced it was just a minor fender bender.

I was driving in the middle lane of a three-lane highway, going through a green-lighted intersection. The left lane was slowly creeping along, so the car in the left lane must have decided to stop and let someone try to cut across the intersection. Instead of slowly pulling through to see if there was anyone coming, the driver barraged across, and imagine my surprise when someone was perpendicular right in front of me! Fortunately, MINI are wonderful for swerving, and I was able to swerve right around him instantly to avoid a head-on collision with his passenger side. Unfortunately, there was a Suburban in the far-right lane, and I collided on the right side with him.

As for the driver who cut through the intersection? He drove off, unscathed. It was dark, and hard to see the complete damage, but the front bumper was on the ground. That looked like the only damage. Imagine my surprise when the insurance company told me it was a total loss! I pretty much started stuttering to the lady on the phone. I think I managed to tell her I would call her back when I was coherent.

When Eloise was finally towed home, I saw the full damage. The side panels on the passenger side were all bent in. The wheels were damaged, and the whole passenger side was pretty much toast. The interior and engine were completely perfect, though.

So the story does have a happy ending – I am safe, sound, and in a new MINI and Eloise was a true organ donor as many parts are already in the new car. But, that’s another post for another time. This is about some respect due to a little car that changed my life.

When I got the news about Eloise, I did go through the five stages of grief - it felt like I lost and betrayed my closest friend. I was in denial. There was lots of anger. Oh yes, there was most definitely bargaining!

It’s easy to feel like you are out of control of everything when this happens. I had nightmares of the insurance company coming and taking my car from wherever it was, with all my possessions inside of it. Fortunately, I was able to get her towed back to my house and take my time with it. My mechanic, who is also a very dear friend came over one Sunday and brought Eloise back to stock, taking out whatever parts I’d be able to put right back into the new car. The wheels were damaged, but hopefully a new paint job will make them right again. They area crucial to autocross performance - they each only weigh only 10 pounds each, and to have to replace them would be very costly (I got them used from my motoring club the first time around.)

But in the meantime, I thought it would be fun to go back and find my favorite Eloise pictures that showed how much this little tiny car changed my life completely. From meeting awesome new friends, to going to all sorts of places that I wouldn’t have gone to otherwise, and for finding a new hobby that I am now also enjoying with my daughter, this car is single-handedly responsible for giving me an outlet that I am doing for no other reason than it is FUN. I’m not getting graded on it, nor am I responsible for making a salary off of it. And that goes a long way.

Eloise was a special car; she was an early build, first-year production model of the new MINIs. She had a limited edition paint color, and all the bugs, rattles, and design flaws that come with being an early adopter of a new model. I loved all of it. I loved how she always seemed to have less power than her newer playmates. I loved it how she ruined the photos (and the peace!) on top of Mount Washington because she almost overheated and her hood was up and the internal fan was blasting. I loved it how she always broke down on me immediately when she was in eyesight of me driving another sports car (and that would be funny if it wasn’t true).

As my brother put it, she was my “Millennium Falcon”. Nothing EVER worked when I needed it to, and “she may not look like much kid, but she’s got it where it counts. I’ve made a lot of special modifications myself.”

I am, now, however, looking forward to a new future, and new adventures. You’ll meet my new girl in the next post. She doesn’t know it yet, but she’s got some BIG shoes to fill. Goodbye, my old friend Eloise. I’ll miss you dearly.

OctoberFAST autocross challenge - photo by Brian Lalor

Took home Fastest Time of the Day from that event!

Getting ready to head out on the course - photo by David Libbey

Mirrors, number and Pixie Posse Racing sticker all matched up

Drove another MINI that morning. Yes, that's the exhaust on the floor.

Getting ready to head up Mount Washington

This is an old shot, but even Reboot loved road tripping in Eloise.

This June at the summit - "This Car Climbed Mount Washington"

6,000 feet up - above the treeline from everything in the Northeast.

Getting ready to do touring laps on the New Hampshire International Speedway

Eloise the day I got her...

Eloise chromed with new dash/downtube/custom shift

Well, not so much ferocious, I guess. But definitely drooling.

Zoë is just about 15 months old now. She’s walking and playing hard, and seems to have a vivacious personality. It’s just a shame she inherited her parent’s shyness.

Though she seems to understand almost everything we tell her, her vocabulary at the moment is consistent with most 15-month olds (lots of grunting and finger pointing!). Let’s see, there’s ‘mama, dada, ball, book, hi, hello, bye-bye, woof, more, yay, juice, and mmmmmmmmm (of course, only reserved when something is REALLY tasty. And, she uses the vocal influx, so it’s actually mmmmmMMMMMMMMmmmmm.)

Why, it's me!

Although it IS nice to be able to see!

I'm drooling but still cute!

Oh my God, it's headed for the bedrooms!

Playing hard

With Grandma and Nana (dear family friend)

You can see the rest of her current album on Flickr by clicking here!

If you live in Connecticut, southern Massachusetts or Rhode Island, we could sure use your help in distributing flyers for our SHO Road Rally fund raiser.

In case you missed the first post, join us on a one-hour scenic fall foliage tour through the windy, ocean-lined streets of Wakefield and Matunuck, RI. Along the way you’ll make five stops at local tourist attractions, and get a raffle ticket at each stop. At the last stop, The Farmer’s Daughter garden shop in Kingston, RI, we’ll draw tickets for great raffle prizes.

The event: Sunday, October 5th
Starting Time/Gate: 11-12 noon at the Narragansett Town Beach, North Lot
Raffle drawings: 2PM
The cost: $25 per car (no matter how many passengers!)

You’ll meet at the gate to register and get your route map.

SHO Volunteers is a local non-profit in Wakefield, RI serving the entire state. Last year, SHO volunteers donated over one hundred thousand hours of volunteering, delivering meals on wheels, driving elderly people to their local doctors appointments, and staffing various non-profits around the state. Your money will go directly to the programs SHO serves. The federal goverment put a value of nearly 2 million dollars on the work done by SHO volunteers.

It’s time to get all Sally Struthers on you. If you live in the area, won’t you take a few minutes to download a flyer and tack it up in your office, local library, or grocery store?

Download flyer here (FLYER 2008.doc)

In case you wonder what my relationship with SHO is, I assist in a few ways. I run and support their computer network, along with planning their yearly fund raising events, in this case, the Road Rally!

If you’d like to become a SHO volunteer, or for more information, visit www.southernrivol.org. SHO will match your interests with a suitable volunteer opportunity. We are also looking for members to help join our fund raising event committee - as this is done on a volunteer basis, we tend to get pressed for time and more numbers can strengthen our efforts and help make SHO events even better than they already are!

In the first episode of the 1352 Report podcast (a fun commentary/discussion about various Lotus issues with Bruce, Sean, Carl and myself), I introduced myself and explained how I volunteer about 20 hours a month for a local community non-profit called SHO. This used to stand for Seniors Helping Others, as the organization runs the local meals on wheels and elderly visit services. The name was recently changed to stand for Serving Communities, Helping Others, and Opportunities for All as we are now the single largest volunteer placement service in RI. Think of a temp agency, except we match volunteers to organizations that rely on volunteers. I keep their small five-computer, one-server network running, as well as assist in planning their yearly fund-raiser events.

This has been a disasterous year to be a non-profit, as the weakening economy has cancelled most grants that were once readily available for them, and more than once SHO has appealed to the community for help so their doors can stay open.

This year, we decided that SHO needed some new, fresh events and thought a fall road rally would be a great one. So for all my RI/CT/MA readers, I’m proud to announce SHO’s Autumn Fun Road Run 2008!

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

Starting gate: 11am-12 Noon at Narragansett pier ? north lot

Final Destination:
The Farmer’s Daughter for Prizes and fun! Raffles will be drawn at 2 pm.

Registration: $25 per car/driver
This is a fully tax deductible event!
Receipt for taxes for gas provided.

Pre-Register at SHO by calling 789-2362 through October 3, 2008 or at the event.

Enjoy a one-hour leisurely Sunday autumn drive along a planned scenic route, making five pit stops to receive goodies, a raffle ticket, and community happenings information. Your map and instructions will be waiting for you at the starting gate. At our last stop, the Farmer’s Daughter on Rt. 138, Mooresfield Road, South Kingstown, we will draw the winning raffle tickets for some great prizes including the much sought after GAS CARDS!

You will be helping to make a difference in the lives of elders living independently with transportation assistance, meals on wheels delivery, and companionship/respite support from SHO (Seniors Helping Others).

Visit the website www.southernrivol.org for more information.

I hope to see you there! I will be at the starting gate the day of the event handing out route maps (though I’m sure I’ll sneak off to go do the drive!)

Today was Zo?’s first birthday. I can’t believe my little girl has turned one!

The day couldn’t have been more magical. The weather was fantastic, the food was great, the company was excellent, and the birthday girl was a trooper all day long (even we were surprised at that!)

Matt’s father was smart enough to set up the back yard for us, and it turned out great. I never would have thought to put the backyard furniture where he put it, and it ended up being a great flow to the yard. Sometimes you just have to have someone else organize things for you to see them in a new way!

Here’s some pics, I’ll have more on Flickr soon!

A birthday breakfast:

With Grandma Spinosa, Grandma Stratton, and Uncle Jay:

With neighbors Brogan (thick as thieves, those two!) and neighbor Jack:

Mommy and daddy:

Finally all changed to open prezzies with Daddy: