Thumper
01-06-2016, 11:31 AM
You've heard me mention my buddy ... "my" Toyota mechanic. I have so much faith in him, he's the ONLY one who ever services my vehicles. I've known him for many years, helped him work on obtaining citizenship, watched his kids grow up, shared a pot of blood soup with his father (before his death) ... anyway we're very close friends. He's worked at Toyota for something like 25 years now and is one of the best mechanics I know. His dream has always been to own his own shop.
He was a refugee from Laos after we pulled out of ... well, I forgot, "we" weren't in Laos (Ha!) ... but, put it this way, he fled the Pathet Lao with his parents when the U.S. pulled out of S.E. Asia in the 70's and they ended up in Los Angeles, so we have a bit of a connection. During some of my recent trips to Laos, I've tracked down family members for him and brought back photos ... even left money for them. He's personally afraid to return for a visit as there's a chance they would retain him (long story, but his dad was on "our" side), so I was a go-between during a few trips. But that's not the subject of this post.
He's a refugee who made something of himself. One of his proudest moments is when his son entered the U.S. Marine Corps.
6370
He recently reached another milestone and opened his own auto repair shop ... his life-long dream. Man, I'm as proud of him as if he were my own son! I wish him all the luck in the world, although it sucks that I'll have to break in another mechanic at the Toyota dealer to service my vehicles now. :(
Here are a few pics:
His new shop and his Tacoma. (a wild turkey even meandered in to check the place out!)
6371
Here's my buddy and his shop! Cool, a far cry from the days of the Laotian Civil War.
6373
6374
Congrats buddy! Owning your own business is quite a challenge and I wish you the best of luck. You own your own home, a very large piece of property and now own your own business. Welcome to the American dream! :thumbsup
He was a refugee from Laos after we pulled out of ... well, I forgot, "we" weren't in Laos (Ha!) ... but, put it this way, he fled the Pathet Lao with his parents when the U.S. pulled out of S.E. Asia in the 70's and they ended up in Los Angeles, so we have a bit of a connection. During some of my recent trips to Laos, I've tracked down family members for him and brought back photos ... even left money for them. He's personally afraid to return for a visit as there's a chance they would retain him (long story, but his dad was on "our" side), so I was a go-between during a few trips. But that's not the subject of this post.
He's a refugee who made something of himself. One of his proudest moments is when his son entered the U.S. Marine Corps.
6370
He recently reached another milestone and opened his own auto repair shop ... his life-long dream. Man, I'm as proud of him as if he were my own son! I wish him all the luck in the world, although it sucks that I'll have to break in another mechanic at the Toyota dealer to service my vehicles now. :(
Here are a few pics:
His new shop and his Tacoma. (a wild turkey even meandered in to check the place out!)
6371
Here's my buddy and his shop! Cool, a far cry from the days of the Laotian Civil War.
6373
6374
Congrats buddy! Owning your own business is quite a challenge and I wish you the best of luck. You own your own home, a very large piece of property and now own your own business. Welcome to the American dream! :thumbsup