JOHNDEEREVILLE, USA; GIL STYLE--
My friend Gil Thomas has a John Deere bedroom at his house--with an attached John Deere bath, of course. That’s Gil in his basement, mini-museum above.
John Deere--as in those green and yellow tractors seen all over US farm fields. And, his rooms are not only adorned with farm implements they glow in the corporate green and yellow colors on the bedspread, throw rugs, the toilet seat, the shower curtain, some dishware and a jillion other collectible products.
It started about 8 years ago when Gil received a “Precision” model tractor as a gift; which his wrench-twisting, good nature found quite attractive. You see, he is a very mechanically inclined and happily retired truck driver with 31 years of pavement pounding, over-the-road experience.
Today those two rooms bristle with well over 200 pieces of authentic and licensed JD paraphernalia.
And, there is more sprinkled elsewhere throughout the house. But the collection has grown and shrunk as it has matured over the years. Once it included more than 450 of those rubber tire ashtrays alone.
“Yes, I am downsizing,” he claimed. But, you just bought two new models I reminded him. His wife Sharon giggled mischievously at my gentle challenge to his questionable claim.
He figures his collection might have a value of several thousand dollars. He then admitted he also has four big and two little, real tractors out in the barn.
He’s downsizing there too. He once had seven of those real, grown up machines.
That downsizing began after one of the family matriarchs once asked him what he could do with seven tractors he couldn’t do with just one.
That produced a guilty smirk on his face as he turned his attention back to that first precision model.
“Look here” he smiled, “these chains are real and that is an actual wiring harness on the engine.”
Very valid observations of an experienced and fulfilled collector I noted.
My friend Gil Thomas has a John Deere bedroom at his house--with an attached John Deere bath, of course. That’s Gil in his basement, mini-museum above.
John Deere--as in those green and yellow tractors seen all over US farm fields. And, his rooms are not only adorned with farm implements they glow in the corporate green and yellow colors on the bedspread, throw rugs, the toilet seat, the shower curtain, some dishware and a jillion other collectible products.
It started about 8 years ago when Gil received a “Precision” model tractor as a gift; which his wrench-twisting, good nature found quite attractive. You see, he is a very mechanically inclined and happily retired truck driver with 31 years of pavement pounding, over-the-road experience.
Today those two rooms bristle with well over 200 pieces of authentic and licensed JD paraphernalia.
And, there is more sprinkled elsewhere throughout the house. But the collection has grown and shrunk as it has matured over the years. Once it included more than 450 of those rubber tire ashtrays alone.
“Yes, I am downsizing,” he claimed. But, you just bought two new models I reminded him. His wife Sharon giggled mischievously at my gentle challenge to his questionable claim.
He figures his collection might have a value of several thousand dollars. He then admitted he also has four big and two little, real tractors out in the barn.
He’s downsizing there too. He once had seven of those real, grown up machines.
That downsizing began after one of the family matriarchs once asked him what he could do with seven tractors he couldn’t do with just one.
That produced a guilty smirk on his face as he turned his attention back to that first precision model.
“Look here” he smiled, “these chains are real and that is an actual wiring harness on the engine.”
Very valid observations of an experienced and fulfilled collector I noted.
“Wanna’ see some of my knife collection,” he grinned.
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