[Leica] Yankee bashing??? And an attempt to change the subject...

[doubs43 at cox.net (Walker Smith)]

>
>
>Dad hated to spend money on
>anything, so a Leica was way, way out of the question.
>
Jeffrey, my father managed to do more with less money than almost anyone 
else I've ever known. He graduated high school in 1929 and was a true 
product of Depression-era thinking. Nothing went to waste and his 
interests either cost little or nothing (library books such as Gibbon's 
"Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire" and similar topics of an historical 
nature) or photography which earned money through weddings and copying 
and such. Long story short: My father worked an average of 55 hours a 
week for 40 straight years without one single vacation! He built a 
two-story all-brick home with full basement in two years with his own 
hands in evening and weekend hours AFTER working his normal job in 
milling. Self-reliant and self-sufficient. No drinking or smoking either.

When Pop bought a piece of camera gear, he had a definite need and 
purpose for it and it paid for itself. His IIIa Leica went everywhere 
with him....... in the mill truck or his car, he always had it and he 
recorded nearly 60 years of life in our area which is what the 
Smithsonian was interested in preserving. His three lens - 35, 50 & 90mm 
- were all pre-war and uncoated but he knew how to make the most of 
them. The IIIa was quite literally worn out over the years. I have it 
now with some pieces missing because rather than pay to have it 
repaired, he tried to fix it himself. Someday I'll find another IIIa 
that I can take some parts from and return it to useable condition. I've 
already CLA'd his Exakta IIa. I also have his Model A Leica and need to 
find someone who is able to do a decent CLA on it. It works OK now but 
I'd like to have it cleaned and lubed.

Anyway, the Terps are back on the field now. Gotta go.

Walker