If I were a crier I'd have tear stained cheeks. Please read!

Being a used car dealer and a landlord gives me an opportunity to affect peoples lives every day. For the most part it is what it is, people with problems are a chance for me to look good or bad depending on my decisions. I rarely feel emotional because of this and other things early on.

That said, I would like to share this with you my brothers and sisters of the BOC. Lat weekend we had a sinker molding party over at RamRods house. In the planning stages we called each other, planned rides etc... Well, my fishin partner 85% of the time is Netman Jack and he was to meet me over at the car lot where we would then go pick up Rollo.
Rollo, Jack and I cut up an awful lot on here but we are pretty tight.... I thought. Well around Christmas, I was walking through an old canal boat town (Roscoe Village), when I saw some hot relish type stuff. Netman likes hot things so I picked it up for him for Christmas. Well, we haven't seen each other since his flathead season ended, sometime in October and the sinker gathering was when we'd see each other and I posted that I would bring it. Jack said he had a surprise for me and Rollo asked if we wanted to drive alone.... You get the drift of that type of conversation.

Saturday morning rolls around and I meet Jack, get loaded up and head out. Just chatting away I handed Jack that little 6 oz bottle of condiment and asked what surprise he had for me. Jack pulled out a little photo envelope and said, well it wasn't dry yet so I took a picture of it.

When I opened it I was speechless, and that is saying something from the silver tongued devil. It was a picture of a painting. He painted me an 18x24 canvas of a flathead under a limb with a tire leaned against the tree all painted as an underwater scene. Folks, this is no Bob Ross painting, it is a fine piece of art that will hang in a prominent spot in my dealership. In the lower left corner is a dealer license plate that is fashioned after the Ohio tags from the 70's and it say #1 Dealer.
There is dual significance to that tag being as the Dealer 1 tag is always on whatever vehicle I drive.

I wasn't even aware that the man painted and from the picture I can tell you he wouldn't be a starving artist. He told me that I was the third person he'd ever painted a canvas for and, doggone it I am not an emotional type, but my eyes are kinda misty as I type this.... Slap Slap... ok get control boy.... Ok I'm back.

Anyway I just wanted to share with you all, newbie and old salt alike, the depth of some of the frienships forged on this very site.

Jack said some things about the whys and wherefors but it doesn't matter. The thought, the effort, the talent it took, is worth far more than I can ever convey.

So often the news we hear is negative, I just wanted to share something uplifting with all of you.

 

I can't post a pic but I bet Jack can. Let me see if I can raise him.