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78’s been GRATE…so I’m staying on the BUS for Number 70…9…9…9

Writer: Thomas Tittmann
Thomas Tittmann
3 hours ago
4 min read

My Gratitude List


  • "Love my neighbor AS I love myself" (my basic spiritual practice - condenses all the other pages of the books...very ecological)

  • My partner for life - Eileen - still my helpmate, Muse, and evening movie companion 

  • Our son John who embodies CSN&Y’s “teach your parents well…”

  • “More parts work than don’t” (when I remember this, it helps me keep a positive attitude about my health - which benefits me and those around me)

  • “Are you experienced…?” (Thanks, Jimi! Experience animates theory...)

  • My joy in discovering what some call “G-d” or “Higher Power” in lots of new places than the one I was raised in…

  • Hanging out with people where I can both be myself and be helped to go further…Furthur…

  • —one of these is Garden City’s Center for Spiritual Imagination…and their 3 month course “12 Steps for Contemplatives”…

  • AND Music 🎶🎼🎤🎧🎸🥁🎹🎺🎻🪊🪉🪗🪈🪇🪕🪘

    

Now for some birthday music…


Hey, Hey, it's my Birthday too!!!






"You’re either on the bus or off the bus..."



Helpful reading material in my 20's...




The Bus Ride...


"Escaping through the lily fields, I came across an empty space

It trembled and exploded, left a bus stop in its place

The bus came by and I got on, that's when it all began

There was Cowboy Neal at the wheel of the bus to never ever land"

--The Other One: Grateful Dead



Passengers include these famous Merry Pranksters...









Pausing in rest areas...


...also helpful is knowing when it's time to pause...and find a rest area...







Bus to Nowhere...


Here’s a bus the captures those times we’re trying to figure out where’s next…what’s next…




And another that shows up when we need help finding our way...



The Bus to Nowhere is an urban legend originating in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This mysterious bus, also known as ‘Zero,’ ‘The Wandering Bus,’ or simply ‘The Bus,’ is said to appear when individuals are at their lowest points, feeling hopeless and lost. The bus operates without a schedule, route, or any information displayed on its electronic reader board. It is not listed on the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority (SEPTA) website or maps. Tale continues here...


A tune for the ride...


[from the video's description] "Midnight Bus to Nowhere" is an original blues song about the moment you finally walk away — no destination, no plan, just a one-way ticket out of a life that stopped fitting. Written and produced as an independent blues release, this track lives in the urban Chicago blues tradition, built around a steady, rolling rhythm, weary vocal delivery, and electric guitar work that mirrors the hum of a city at night and the loneliness of leaving it behind. It's a song for anyone who has ever needed to disappear for a while, even if they didn't know where they were headed.




Eventually...hopefully with the help of our Muses we gotta…









I worked for this NYC school bus outfit...







Here's one of the Buses I drove:


1965 VW Bus

Since my Dad never drove. I taught him after he retired. So, I had to buy my first ride. A fellow surfer and friend accompanied me to a VW dealer and I bought a 1965 VW Bus that I drove home with a friend and my learner’s permit. Another friend drove me to my road test that I passed with flying colors - 4-speed manual trans and all... 


In 1973, I relocated to California. You can read about it here:



Dad rode shotgun and took lots of photos...Mom sat in back writing poetry...


Below, first cousins Bill and Margie sending us off. They are 2 of Uncle Bob and Aunt Midge's 3 children (see next ride). Oldest brother Bob rounds out the trio of Davis's. We stopped at their home on our way to Niagara Falls.



Here's the rest of the story:



Fix it shop...


I started my automotive repair career fixing VW's...my '65 Bus, my brother and fellow surfer Mike's 1961 Bus, my sister Cathy's Karmann Ghia, Eileen's Beetle and others. As I remember it, when I first met Eileen in the 10 Downing Street bar and heard she had a Beetle, I put on my Groucho act and said to her, "Can I give you a tune up?"


Here's my first automotive Bible:








Author...author...




ALL ABOARD...for the roads ahead...






Original...




Original...Take 2...


Notice who's listening...






 
 
 

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