The Steering Column Left Hand Drive from our President

Greetings from the sunny Southwest. I feel sorry for those of you who are enduring the weather up there.  However I paid my dues working outside in all kinds of weather and worrying that the  houses I had under construction were protected from the weather. Now I can complain that the temperatures are in the 60's and it may rain on a car show I will be taking part in this Saturday. It's the show where I got acquainted with the Tucson British Car Register last year.  I'm hoping they might be able to put me in touch with an affordable MG driver to keep down here.
My old car here at present is a 1983 Toyota Land Cruiser which I've owned for many years.  My stepson used it some in '09 and decided the AC had to be made operable (not essential to me), tires should be replaced (over 10 years old and very hard), and the faded paint buffed out.  It now looks so good that even Judi is impressed.  It's always drawn attention and offers to buy, but never looked good enough to show, so now is the time.  It's not show quality but a very presentable original that is fun to own. 
  Speaking of not show quality, on the way out here we pulled in beside a chrome bumper GT at a rest stop in West Texas.  It had  weathered green paint and was either lowered or sagging from being packed very full. It had a raspy exhaust note that meant either wear or modification.  It was leaving as we arrived but I thought our brief stop would let me get another look when we passed it.  Even though we stayed at or slightly over the 75 mph limit we didn't pass the GT.  Quite a while later I heard that raspy exhaust passing me and quickly heading for the horizon. Apparently he'd made another stop and was trucking again. That had to be one solid L.B.C.!
  Another less than show quality MG I encountered recently was a true barn find.  I was helping my son-in-law back his boat into winter storage in a farm west of Batavia.  The owner had asked him to leave the boat out so she could enjoy the last of the driving season in her '57 Chevy.  The '57 was there as well as a solid early '50's Chevy pickup, a dust caked Buick Riviera, and a blue tarp covering a smaller car.  I couldn't resist a peak which revealed a white MGB with side stripes and wire wheels.  I didn't get a very good look since I was reluctant  to be too snoopy, but if this is a member's I'd like to know more about it.  If anyone wants to know more about it I can get a phone number that might give access to more info.
  I got wheel bearings for the GT from Fred Dornback and hoped to have the hubs and rotors installed before I left. However when installing the oil seal or the first hub I

could see something was missing.  Checking the catalog shows me there should be an oil seal collar that somehow disappeared during disassembly, therefore overlooked in ordering parts.  I thought I had been careful to save and identify parts as they came off but missed these.  So I know where my work starts when I get home.
I hope you all fare well in the winter weather.
-- Dave Peterson 

The Steering Column Right Hand Drive from our Vice - President

Hello MG Members.  Thank you for nominating me for the Vice-President position.  What a great year we had with one mishap; our thoughts and prayers for the loss of Caroline Twist.  Please take a moment of silence for one of our MG family members… Thank you.
  Well, I had my first speech with the gavel while I temporarily filled in for Dave Peterson while he was dealing with his arrangements in Arizona.  The meeting started off with a joke for me to please stand up.  Since I am only 5’3” it was pretty funny nonetheless.  But when it rains, I’m the one that gets wet last, ‘ha ‘ha ‘ha.
  I’d like to thank Jim and Reinout and the rest of the staff members for all of their hard work (and continued hard work as we move forward).  I have been with the club since the late ‘80’s.  As we move forward I hope to share some of my knowledge of the Prince of Darkness and help with electrical issues.
  I currently have one unfinished MG project that needs some attention.  My MGRV8 clone project will continue in next month’s column.
Thanks, -- Dino Perez