It was during the 1986 Classic Chevy convention in Bloomington, Minnesota
     that I first saw our Neptune green over Seamist green convertible.  I had
     never seen a two-tone green convertible before and I immediately liked the
     way this car stood out in the bright Minnesota sun.

    After two years of negotiation and several trips to Iowa I made an agreement
    with the owner and in May, 1988 Bev and I drove our "Green Dream" to it's
    new home in Canada.  Little did we know then that this was only the first
    chapter of what promised to be a very long story.

    Even though our convertible had undergone a complete ground-up restoration
    several years earlier I purchased the car knowing that I would try to enhance
    it's overall appearance and make it a truly show worthy classic.  The
    improvements however, would not occur until we had the opportunity to
    enjoy driving the car for a year or so.  At least that's what we believed would
    happen.

    Following our first Sunday drive I began to remove various trim items etc. and
    before I knew it we were totally involved with the restoration of our third
    Classic Chevy.

    After spending countless hours on the car's undercarriage we arranged for all
    of the engine components, stainless, chrome, etc. to be stripped, dipped,
    painted and polished.  Then, in September 1988 we delivered what was little
    more then a bare shell to Winter's Auto Body in Winnipeg, Manitoba where it
    underwent major cosmetic surgery.  Little did we know that chapter two was
    about to unfold .

    Life is full of surprises and in February, 1989 I was offered and accepted my
    fifth company transfer.  This was a pleasant surprise because on this occassion
    I would be returning to my home town in beautiful British Columbia.  We
    moved in early June and took with us two of our three Classic Chevys.  Our
    '55 convertible remained unfinished in Winnipeg.

    Trying to complete or even oversee a quality restoration from fifteen hundred
    miles away could have and would have been a near impossible task had it not
    been for the dedicated effort of Winter's Auto Body and several very good
    friends.  I was also fortunate that my work schedule includedd frequent trips
    to Winnipeg.

    They say "Patience is a virtue" and I believe that I have proved beyond any
    doubt that this is true.  Finally, after more than 5 years of waiting, I was
    informed that our car was ready.  I contacted United Van Lines who had
    moved our cars on three previous occassions and arranged for pick-up on
    January 11, 1994.  Bev and I flew to Winnipeg and were on hand  to witness
    the loading and departure of our "Green Dream" to Vancouver.  It was not
    until  some time later that I realized our car had been in the body shop for
    1,955 days.

    Chapter three occurred in 1995 when our "Green Dream" appeared in the
    "Bow Tie" Chevys National convention here in Vancouver.  Board Chairman
    and long time friend Danny Howell was on hand to present us with a Silver
    Certificate for our 2nd place finish in the Original Restored classification.  We
    missed a gold certificate by 1 point so needless to say I blamed Bev for not
    wiping behind the hubcaps.

    So, to anyone who is currently thinking of restoring one of America's most
    prized possessions, may I remind you that "Success does come to those who
    are patient".  "Have a nice Chevy Day".
 

    Bud.