Guilty! Yes, I stole the headline from a Bob Seger song … big deal. It’s way past midnight, I have to leave for the airport at 7:30 a.m. (we’re testing this week in Florida; I’ll update you on that soon) and my creativity appears to be inversely proportional to my hair length. You heard right, I ain’t gettin’ a haircut ... ever! (Until the season starts, at least). Jenna’s pissed, and I don’t blame her. But, I’m a man and that’s what men do (at least until the season starts). Hey, I’m 42, not yet grey, survived losing all of my hair during chemotherapy, and I’m already married. Give me one good reason why I need a haircut! (Besides that I look like crap; that’s not a valid argument).

I’ve stayed busy. I changed the oil and the 37 filters on the motorhome; I replaced the step-closer solenoid (whatever that is) and even adjusted it to function okay. I greased every zerk fitting on that beast, plus I put new front tires on it. Have you ever bought 22 ½-inch tires (the big ones)? I got mine from good friends Kenny and Sarah Kelso (of Tire Pro fame), who were the cheapest around, and it cost $1,290. That’s no typo, that’s nearly 1,300 samolians. Damn good thing I’m not spending money frivolously, like on haircuts (or charm school)!

I spoke at the Rotary Club of Monrovia. I never knew what they did. I just figured they all must drive Mazdas around or something like that (that’s actually pretty funny if you get it). Friend Andy Montgomery (of RV storage fame) asked me to speak about racing and life, and I think it went pretty well. Those Rotarians are pretty good folk, even if they prefer the Wankel engine to 4-cycle Otto power! (Two rotary jokes in one blog; I may be pushing my luck). I really like that they start their meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance. I don’t think that I’ve recited it since the sixth grade, and that was when Carter (Jimmy, not Nell) was in office!

I raced my car at Fontana. Yes, the Blackbird lives! Once I dusted it off, changed the Valvoline 20W50, checked the valves, and aired up the tires, she ran pretty well. I was the ONLY trailer in the parking lot on Friday night, as I wasn’t going to pay the track for the privilege of letting me pit and tech on Friday. It really gripes my you-know-what that some tracks do that to the racers, so my dumb butt was servicing the car, in the trailer, in the parking lot, in the cold, while everyone else was done inside. Second run (we only got two) I went .000 and 7.496 at 180. First run my .023 light lost my lunch bet with Rich Camou (of surfing fame), but my perfect light got me a dollar back. Not good odds; win a buck ... lose lunch.

First round I get paired with Thomas Bayer, but not THAT Thomas Bayer. This is Senior, “Old-School,”,“Paton” … that Tom Bayer. He whipped my ass! Perhaps my five-second reaction time had something to do with it. I never realized using a crossover delay box could be so humbling, but apparently one should NEVER bump their opponent’s dial-in button and add an extra nine seconds worth of delay -- it just doesn’t look good. I think maybe I got some hair in my eyes. The fun part was spending time with the Sportsman racers. Tom Bayer had all four of his cars running (all of his renters are former students of ours), and getting to hang out with Rich, Tim Takeshita, and Steve Young, as well as the Bayer clan, made for a fun weekend. Daddy Bayer, I’ll get even one day!

Do you know the four words that husbands are most afraid of? In my current situation, I’d have to say it would be, “Jenna has been house-hunting” (is that five words? I need a judge's ruling.) Yeah, she wants to move to Rancho Cucamonga (look it up on a map) to be closer to her mother, and for a newer, bigger house. I may never be able to afford a haircut now.

Jenna (of American Express card fame) and I went on a date! Yep, Cousin Jason and Stephanie came over on New Year’s Eve to babysit their favorite little man, and they all had a great time. Jenna and I went to see The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and really enjoyed it, although it was very emotional. It’s so odd how now that I am a parent I look so differently at things. The previous movie that we saw was Changeling with Angelina Jolie (wonder why I wanted to see that movie?). It’s about a kidnapping in the '20s in San Bernardino, and I wouldn’t recommend you go see it if you have kids. These two movies would have been great as a single guy, but I just look at things through a parent’s eyes now. Maybe the excess hair is making me too sensitive.

We got home in plenty of time to party hard with Stephanie, Jason, and Jason. We watched Dick Clark (I gotta tell you, I understand and have enormous respect for Dick going on TV, but I don’t think he has anything to prove since his stroke, and it’s painful listening to him talk. It may be time to retire, or at least take some time off). The photo of the three of us in front of the TV fortuitously captured Ms. Kelly Pickler (best known for three things: being on American Idol, and the other two are, shall we say, “aftermarket parts,” installed recently by a kind doctor.)

We set off some “poppers” outside once the clock struck 2009, and Jason looked great in his Spiderman slippers (my Jason, not big Jason). I kind of look a bit like Rain Man in one shot, if he had longer hair.

My mother died on January 24, 1994, so this time of year I always get those little “pangs” that you feel from losing someone. When they make a time machine, I am going to take Jason back so his grandmother can hold him, if only once. I would give anything for her to be able to spend time here with her grandson, she so would have wanted to do that.

I went out surfing with Rich. It was a solid day, and lots of fun. Except the a-hole that thought I cut him off. This young man probably has a thing or two to learn about civility, and he nearly got a lesson right there in the Pacific. Rich is a nice guy, but he sometimes has that “switch” go off (don’t tell his mom he cracked his helmet in Vegas), and it probably didn’t help that said youngster made a comment to us about how many buddies he had there that day. Yeah, I want Rich on my side in a brawl, and for a moment it looked like us “older guys” were going to have to paddle in.

I went to work at Pomona ... for the day. I hadn’t sent cars down the track since March of last year, and I was flattered that the AARWBA (American Auto Racing Writers and Broadcasters Association) invited me to come out and coach their members while they raced the ’09 Pontiac G8s. Those cars are quick, and Justin Humphreys (of Pro Stock fame) and I got to pair up, as we were the “hosts.” I got to take Kay Presto (of writing fame) with me, and we dusted Justin big time! I think he had too much wheelspin from that 415-horse motor, or maybe my lane was just a bit better. The winner of the race was Ron Lewis (of photo fame), who then had to get HIS picture taken in the impromptu winner’s circle. Good job, Ron. The other chaps were the runner-up (author Harold Osmer) and quickest reaction time (that certainly wouldn’t have been me in the first round at Fontana). It was a fun day, but that was only half of the event;

That evening the AARWBA (please don’t make me spell it out again) hosted a black-tie dinner and awards presentation. I was asked by Susan Wade (of journalistic fame) if I would lead the Pledge of Allegiance. Heck yeah, I even practiced it two weeks earlier with my piston-less friends (that’s very clever if you’re following closely and know your engines!) My PR lady, Judy Stropus (of road-racing fame), won the very prestigious award for PR excellence, the Jim Chapman award. Judy is so good at what she does, and I was so proud to see her go up and give her acceptance speech. She was also funny as hell, a side I don’t get to see very often due to her unwavering professionalism. Tony Schumacher received the Jerry Titus award, akin to “Driver of the Year,” and my great friend Dave McClelland received the Pioneer award (I never even knew he had a covered wagon; wonder if it was rotary-powered), so it was a great honor to see my friends get such deserved recognition. I felt awkward onstage, so Tony let me hold his trophy. I wonder if Kelly Pickler would be that nice? It also was nice to see some of my friends from the NHRA museum. Barry, Sheri, and Julie even talked to me long enough to get a picture taken. I used to see everyone over there quite often, but since I no longer work around the corner it’s very tough to stay in touch.

We had dinner with Jessica and Paul Mitsos (yep, Pro Stock fame, baby!), and Jenna showed some true raw talent on the drums. Not real drums, but the Wii kind for the Rockstar game. She wasn’t too shabby, but she’ll have to grow her hair out if she really wants to look the part. Like me.

We had dinner with Eric and Terri Maass (of Super Comp fame) and just got to hang out and chat about everything … and nothing.

We went and hung out at National DRAGSTER (of drag racing fame). They filmed us for the membership segments that will show on the big screen at the races. I refused a haircut, so no “hippie” jokes when you see the ad. Jason looked so cute, I hope they will use his footage. Kelly Pickler will not be in any of these spots.

That’s about all that’s been happening, unless you count my physical as exciting. Dr. Spencer and I now know each other in a much more intimate way, and I shall send him flowers and call him by his first name from now on.

And we now are the proud owners of FIOS (no idea what it means.....Fiber Optic Something). While under the house installing the cable, tech Randy informed us that we had a nice water leak in the sprinkler feed line. Yeah, the one done by the company that hosed us on the landscaping. Cool. Why, I’d be willing to bet that with one phone call (on our new, faster connection) and a mere $245, we can get that fixed.

Don’t bet on that haircut anytime soon.

I really am looking forward to testing, and especially getting back into that Mail Terminal Services/Valvoline car. I can’t tell you how exciting it is that the Winternationals is just around the corner. I would have to think I attended Pomona for the first time around 1975 or 1976. My first distinct memory would be my dad waking my brother and I at about 4 a.m. so we could go deliver our newspaper routes and then head out to Parker Ave. The drive seemed like it took forever, and it’s ironic that it later became my daily commute. I just remember that when we saw the Wynn’s sign on the side of their building adjacent to the freeway that we were getting pretty close. In later years, when I started driving myself to the races, I would always stop and buy extra rolls of 35mm film, because I knew there would be all kinds of new paint jobs and cars rolling out for the first race of the season. My first national event win, ever, took place there in 1998, in a borrowed race car. My first national event win in my own car, the Blackbird, came at the Winters in 2003. That race helped propel me towards the world championship that year. Indy may be the “Big Go,” but being born and raised on the West Coast, the Winternationals was always the biggest race to me, and you can go witness cars run down the same track that has hosted this race since 1961. Though the economy seems to be in a very dubious position for the foreseeable future, I couldn’t imagine skipping this race, whether I was actually competing or just spectating. Pomona is the place!

Stay tuned.