Not that there hasn't been drama around here--there has--I just don't feel like writing about it today. Fortunately the drama doesn't include me!
Steve's birthday is in October, and I'm planning a big gathering for it. I've got a guest list of about 50 people, and I'm sure they'll all show up. I've been putting together ideas for this since March, because it's his 50th and I want it to be special. Finally, I got the location dialed in, the menu, and the activities--so that gave me some time to work on his presents.
He's out of town a couple of days each week right now, because of work, and that's given me the freedom to work on his presents without him finding out. I wanted to get him one of those fancy pants Segway scooters but I just haven't had the opportunity to save up for it. The one I liked was $5,000. Ouch.
While I was in the auto parts store a couple of weeks ago, they had a 3-wheeled stand up scooter that was much like a Segway, but it was a LOT cheaper. It was their display model so it was marked waaaay down. I snatched it up (with the help of the cashier--that sucker was heavy!) and took it to a friend's house to hide it in their garage. When I got a moment to take a good look at it, I was bummed to find out that it was quite scratched and scuffed up and the stickers were ruined from people bumping into things with it. I got the idea to take it apart and have it painted to match Steve's race car. He has a 1970 Maverick that he takes to the drag strip in the winter. It's bright yellow, and says Yellow Fever on the sides. Since this scooter will go 12 mph, it would actually be a perfect toy to take with us racing. He could use it to go down to the different areas of the track (since he doesn't have a golf cart and he has a bit of a problem getting around on foot) and he could look pretty cool doing it!
While that's being painted, I got on the internet to find a book. "The Last Mile", it's about the last 3 years of Steve McQueen's life. It's written by Barbara McQueen, his widow. I sort of met her once, earlier this year. She was a model in the 70's and OH MY GOD she is still very stunning. I remember when I first saw her I couldn't take my eyes off her because she was so striking. She and her husband spend their winters in Lake Havasu. I found the book, got it in the mail, then started to ask people if they knew how I could find her to get her autograph for it.
Nobody knows where she is because she travels in the summer. So I emailed her publisher, explaining what I wanted.
Holy CATS, the publisher wrote me back immediately, says she forwarded my email to the writer who helped Barbara write the book! She says, "Marshall is in direct contact with Barbara quite often, so he'll track her down for you."
I'll have to keep you posted on that little project....
Oh yes, and Wyatt Earp called yesterday. He wants to know if we're coming to his next performance. It's actually Wyatt Earp's great-grand nephew, and he does a "Play" where he narrates the story about the original Wyatt Earp. Steve found this guy through the internet a month or two ago, and they talk periodically. What's really funny about it is how much Steve grew up emulating Wyatt Earp. His family lived just a few minutes from Tombstone, where the gunfight at the O.K. Corral happened, and he knows the details of that whole story inside and out. We visited Earp's home in Tombstone earlier this summer, and a few weeks ago we drove down to one of his homes he lived in after he retired. Too funny.
