The Willow Pond Kitchen
I used to eat at a great roadhouse restaurant just outside of Concord Center, here in Massachusetts, known as the Willow Pond Kitchen. The Willow Pond Kitchen was one of those throw-backs to the pre-superhighway, pre-franchise era when little mom and pop eateries could make a good living on the side of the road. Willow Pond's big wooden booths were always full of happy folks eating the restaurant's trademark Ipswich steamers, lobsters and fried scallops. Its dirt parking lot was always full and there were usually a few Harleys parked right by the squeaky front door. On a typical afternoon you could take a late lunch, sit in a booth by a sunny window and while away the day with a friend, a bucket of clams, some bread and a few beers.
The Willow Pond Kitchen is long gone, like many roadside stops, lost to a faster, busier world that can't find the time to sit back and relax. But, I got to thinking about the old place recently, not because of the food but because of what had graced its dark wood walls. Virtually every wall in the place, and a few shelves, too, displayed the stuffed heads and bodies of numerous wild animals. There were the usual deer and moose, but also badgers, beavers, hawks and even a weasel or two. Of course, someone had to have shot or caught all of those hapless beasts and then had them stuffed. It was quite a unique collection!
The funny thing about us humans is that we all like to collect something... stamps, coins, Elvis memorabilia, sports souvenirs, and yes... even cars. I guess that once you get to the point where you can spend money on stuff that you don't really need to survive... that's when you start spending it on stuff you really, really want... like that mint 1955 Ford Crown Victoria, just like the one you and your first love, what's her name, would cruise to the drive-in in. Or the '62 Corvette you always wanted but never got... until now.
Well, I am proud to say that I probably have one of the largest collections of car... videos in the world! And, I collected all of these cool cars on video over the past twenty years, while getting ready to launch WheelsTV! I've got one-off BAT cars from Bertoni, the GT40 in which Shelby and Gurney won LeMans, Shel's second small block Cobra, Marilyn Monroe's 1961 Dodge convertible, (complete with on-board record player,) the Marmon Wasp in which Ray Harroun won the very first Indy 500, the first Dino Ferrari... and on and on.
Now, aside from the fact that this vast collection did not cost a fortune to assemble, one of the wonderful things about it is that although many of the cars are now in private collections and not viewable by the public, I can enjoy my collection just about any time I want!
But here is the best part... when WheelsTV hits the air waves, you too, will be able to enjoy this collection. And, unlike the real thing, you'll be able to make exact copies of my rare collectibles with your VCR or DVR... for FREE! And, while our car video collections may never fetch big bucks at a Bonham's auction, we'll be able to enjoy them, grow them and pass them on to our kids. And best of all, we'll all be able to sleep well knowing that we didn't have to kill anything to build our collection! Now, I wish I had just one more bucket of clams and a sunny window in which to enjoy them at the Willow Pond... Hey, is that badger staring at me?
I hope that you enjoy this month's newsletter. Please be sure to let the writers know what you think of their stories. We all love what we do and love to hear from you, too!
Thanks for your interest and please drive safely.
Jim Barisano
The Willow Pond Kitchen is long gone, like many roadside stops, lost to a faster, busier world that can't find the time to sit back and relax. But, I got to thinking about the old place recently, not because of the food but because of what had graced its dark wood walls. Virtually every wall in the place, and a few shelves, too, displayed the stuffed heads and bodies of numerous wild animals. There were the usual deer and moose, but also badgers, beavers, hawks and even a weasel or two. Of course, someone had to have shot or caught all of those hapless beasts and then had them stuffed. It was quite a unique collection!
The funny thing about us humans is that we all like to collect something... stamps, coins, Elvis memorabilia, sports souvenirs, and yes... even cars. I guess that once you get to the point where you can spend money on stuff that you don't really need to survive... that's when you start spending it on stuff you really, really want... like that mint 1955 Ford Crown Victoria, just like the one you and your first love, what's her name, would cruise to the drive-in in. Or the '62 Corvette you always wanted but never got... until now.
Well, I am proud to say that I probably have one of the largest collections of car... videos in the world! And, I collected all of these cool cars on video over the past twenty years, while getting ready to launch WheelsTV! I've got one-off BAT cars from Bertoni, the GT40 in which Shelby and Gurney won LeMans, Shel's second small block Cobra, Marilyn Monroe's 1961 Dodge convertible, (complete with on-board record player,) the Marmon Wasp in which Ray Harroun won the very first Indy 500, the first Dino Ferrari... and on and on.
Now, aside from the fact that this vast collection did not cost a fortune to assemble, one of the wonderful things about it is that although many of the cars are now in private collections and not viewable by the public, I can enjoy my collection just about any time I want!
But here is the best part... when WheelsTV hits the air waves, you too, will be able to enjoy this collection. And, unlike the real thing, you'll be able to make exact copies of my rare collectibles with your VCR or DVR... for FREE! And, while our car video collections may never fetch big bucks at a Bonham's auction, we'll be able to enjoy them, grow them and pass them on to our kids. And best of all, we'll all be able to sleep well knowing that we didn't have to kill anything to build our collection! Now, I wish I had just one more bucket of clams and a sunny window in which to enjoy them at the Willow Pond... Hey, is that badger staring at me?
I hope that you enjoy this month's newsletter. Please be sure to let the writers know what you think of their stories. We all love what we do and love to hear from you, too!
Thanks for your interest and please drive safely.
Jim Barisano
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