October 1, 2007: It's a question of rust: I know it's not time to
put the Beetle to bed for the season, but I am in a bit of a dilemma.
I want to fix the two small rust spots on my Beetle but I don't know
what to do. To repair them they might have to remove the back glass
and the right quarter window. Then there's the chance that the paint
will not match the rest of the car. And now I'm thinking that since
the car will be going into the garage by November, I might as well wait
and see if any more rust develops over the winter. I would hate to repair
it now and find out that the other side was rusting and have it come
out in the spring. What to do?
October 15, 2007: Lloyd and the Beetle: It's funny how almost everyone you run into has either owned a Beetle or been driven in one as a child. That statement rang true once again. Marg, whom I work with, brought me in something special today. It was a 1949-1971 Chilton's Repair & Tune-up Guide. It turns out that her brother Lloyd's first car was a Beetle and this manual was what he used when he worked on it. Lloyd sadly passed away a few years ago and I thought it was so nice of Marg to give me one of her brothers special books. She has been a great friend to me for years and I really think of her more as the sister that I never had rather than a coworker. The book is dog-eared, filled with greasy fingerprints, it still has the $42.50 price tag on the back, and Lloyd's name and address written in pen inside the front cover. Who knows all the nights that Lloyd must have spent working on his Beetle with this trusty manual at his side. I am going to read this book every day during my lunch. I think that it deserves that much and it will help continue the memory of a Beetle owner that is no longer with us. Rest in peace our VW brother.
October 21, 2007: 23:
It has been pretty miserable up here in Toronto for the past week. Lots
of cloudy skies, rain almost every day, and just generally gloomy. But
today is another story. The sun is shining and the temperature is set
to hit a record high today, 23 degrees Celsius! For those of you using
the old Fahrenheit scale, that's pretty warm. So it's going to be crusing
time in the 1303, even if it's only a trip to Starbucks and the grocery
store. 
October 22, 2007: End
of October: So it's the end of October and my body shop still hasn't
gotten back to me about when I can bring my Beetle in to get that rust
repaired. I should be upset but now I'm thinking that this is a sign
to leave it until the spring. I could force the issue but if they repaired
it and new rust started over the winter I'd be back to square one again.
So I think that I'm just going to let it sit and see what both areas
look like n the spring. At that point I'll fix everything and be back
on the road "sans the rust" and ready to cruise.