I haven't been doing a very good job of keeping up lately. With my son's wedding now in the final countdown it seems there is always something else to do.

I did want to mention though that at the Huronia Wire Wheel Chapter meeting this week we had a wonderful and informative presentation of the Player Piano by Jim C. It was fascinating to see how the player piano evolved, the inner workings and most interesting for me to see how the rolls were made and how the artists of the time made the most of this new technology.

New technology - HA HA. As I sat there and listened and saw all the craftsmanship and new fangled technology that went into these large pieces of furniture I thought of our current generation who has iPods that fit into their pocket loaded with 1000's of songs downloaded from the internet. That number of player piano rolls would take up a good sized closet. Amazing to look back where we were and compare to today. I can't say for sure if I think one is better than the other, however, I certainly feel that people appreciated their "things" more back then that they do now.

Just my humble opinion.

Ramblings on the Era

Listen to the music, look at the photo’s, read the history. The 1930’s were supposed to be terrible times. The great depression, affected everyone, rich and poor, in almost every nation. Rations, job losses, factory closings, followed by war and massive loss of lives with more rations, disease, bombings, and hard work like you and I could never imagine – dark and gloomy days by most people’s account.



Yet people looked and acted much happier than they do today. My interest in the Model A Ford has led to learning more about the era in general and I can’t help but compare it to the life we live today. Being from England most of my history was either ancient or wartime, there was such a fine line in Europe between the depression and the war and they become blurred.



Although people look back on those times with sadness, they have fond memories and consider them the “Good Ole Days” Why? Family and knowing what is important to them? Having someone to come home to? singing? dancing? good old fashioned morals and values? Friendships, neighbours looking out for each other and helping each other out. People worked hard and were happy to do so, unlike today when people consider having a job an entitlement rather than a privilege.


Now we have conveniences beyond belief, we have communication skills that allow us to speak to and even see friends and family on the other side of the world while lying in our backyard or in bed. We have instant messaging, instant food, instant coffee, instant money, we complain if we have to wait 25 seconds for a energy efficient light bulb to glow – yet walk around and people look miserable! They are afraid to eat eggs and butter, yet think nothing of popping a meal in the microwave, we can watch 900 + channels of TV only to watch other families and couples laugh and be happy but rarely sit down around a table and eat together, tell a joke or even just talk. Everyone is in a hurry to get to somewhere, or buy something yet nobody appreciates where they are going or what they have. Through the miracle of science and research we have all but extinguished diseases that killed people in the past, yet now parents do not want to vaccinate their kids but will kill them with processed food and obesity. None of it makes any sense.


In my opinion something, somewhere down the line has made us completely lose touch with the reason for living.


Oh don’t get me wrong I love many aspects of modern technology. I love staying in touch with friends and family over the border and overseas, but I miss those hand written letters that are kept in a rubber band to read and remember when I am old and tired (tomorrow .. laugh . I love the fact that if I forget to take something out the freezer for diner in the morning, I can pop it in the microwave to defrost in 3 minutes, but I miss family time in the kitchen where everyone helped out and talked and laughed. I love that woman have “equal rights” but I miss the fact that woman were treated as woman and that the line has become so blurred between the sexes and the special aspects that make us different.


I love the Model A because you cannot take it on the highway (OK I know some of you do) and can’t go 100. You have to take the back roads, take it slow and enjoy the scenery and the company and discover little treasures along the way. I love the music, it’s happy, nobody is swearing or yelling, I love the fashions, although probably not my favourite era in fashion the woman looked like woman, they wore dresses, the men wore hats, ties and jackets. People had character and did not walk around with “pods” in their ears and their heads down. People sang happy songs, families gathered for a good time, not out of obligation; people knew their neighbours and danced “cheek to cheek”


I guess I truly am an old fashioned girl, but could it be true, as little as many people had, as scary as the future was .... they were the “good ole days”?

Thoughts and opinions either for or against are welcome. Just hit the comment tab and have your say :-)

What’s a Model Eh? I mean A.

We’ll start this blog with the basics for those of you who are not familiar with the Ford Model A. For a more detailed history you can visit http://huroniawirewheel.homestead.com/History.html.

The Model A was built by the Ford Motor Company from 1928 – 1931. The Model A came in a wide variety of styles: Coupe (Standard and Deluxe), Business Coupe, Sport Coupe, Roadster Coupe (Standard and Deluxe[1] ), Convertible Cabriolet, Convertible Sedan, Phaeton (Standard and Deluxe), Tudor (Standard and Deluxe [2]), Town Car, Fordor (2-window) (Standard and Deluxe), Fordor (3-window) (Standard and Deluxe), Victoria, Station Wagon, Taxicab, Truck, and Commercial.

The Model A was the first Ford to use the standard set of driver controls, with conventional clutch and brake pedals, throttle and gearshift; previous Ford models used controls that had become out of date and uncommon to drivers of other makes. The Model A's fuel tank was located in the cowl, between the engine compartment's fire wall and the dash panel. It had an optic fuel gauge and the fuel was distributed to the carburetor by gravity. In cooler climates, owners could purchase an aftermarket cast iron unit to place over the engine's exhaust manifold to bring heated air into the cab. A small door could be opened or closed to adjust the amount of hot air entering the cab. Model A was the first car to have safety glass in the windshield.
(taken from Wikipedia)

The Model A Ford was manufactured in the USA and Canada with slight variations in styles and colours, I am certainly not a historian or a technical expert, but it is interesting to learn over time the subtle differences between the American built and the Canadian built.
There are many Model A clubs throughout the world that are dedicated to the restoration and preservation of the Model A Ford. All enjoying tours, meets, shows and fellowship.