cellist amoral: On the Road Again? 3M Auto Bootcamp

Today, I am flying out to Minnesota to participate in 3M?s Auto Bootcamp!? Many of you probably don?t know this about me, but I am a car fanatic!? In fact, Eric and I both are!? The only problem? he?s a Chevy guy and I?m a Ford girl.? Ya, we try to meet in the middle, but sometimes, it?s just plain hard!

Cars

In the past five years that Eric and I have been together, working on cars has never really factored into the equation, except for brief tune-ups on the C-J Jeep at his family?s cabin.? This really seems odd to us since we both spent so much time with cars prior to meeting each other.? Probably due to my age and affordability, I mostly drove imports.? I attended both import and classic car shows and car club ?meet-ups? and cruises several times per year.? I also used to work on cars with friends, mostly doing body work and adding/building audio systems.? My dad has a ?69 Mustang 351, while my mom has a ?65 coupe Mustang- and those are just the two classics in my immediate family.? Little known secret? the ?69 was my dad?s first car and he used to actually take my mom on dates in it!? Cool, right?!? As for Eric, he grew up a major Nascar fan!? I had no idea why people would watch Nascar prior to meeting Eric- now, I get it.? He and his brother both had dirt-track stock cars that they raced, and American muscle that they worked on.? Eric?s first car was a Camaro (not an awesome year or anything, but cool none-the-less).? As you can imagine, for both of us, countless nights were spent under the hood of something with an engine.? We both miss it greatly, and it makes us sad that we?ve never really had a auto-component to our relationship.? Like, More. Than. You, Know.? As soon as I?m done with law school, we?re thinking some classic car restoration is in our future!? So, needless to say, this trip was an amazing gift!!!

HOW THIS CAME ABOUT?

Well, when I was at the Haven Conference in Atlanta, I was lucky enough to get to know some of the girls who work for 3M.? When they found out how much Eric and I love cars, and that both of us spent many of our younger days working on them, they thought it would be a great deal of fun for us to come out and participate in an event they were hosting? Auto Bootcamp!!!? Say, what?!?!?? I was stoked!? I immediately called Eric to let him know about the unbelievable invitation, set it on my calendar, and eagerly awaited the trip!?

Unfortunately, Eric did everything in his power to clear his trial schedule and it simply didn?t happen in time.? As an attorney, this happens.? The real bummer though is that the calendaring issue he had, cleared up Friday.? Yes, like Friday, two days ago.? But, that was simply too late.? We were both so dissappointed, and 3M was so great about trying to accommodate him, even down to the last minute.? Bummer for him (and me too, of course).

Even though Eric isn?t joining me for the trip, I couldn?t be more excited about the opportunity to join 3M and learn tons of awesome information and techniques for using their products!? (What?s even better is that my little bro is going to be restoring an old Bronco that?s been in the family forever as a hunting vehicle, and he plans to fix it up to make it his daily driver- so I?m hoping that I?ll bring home some awesome know-how and Eric and I will be able to lend a hand, and our RV parking, to get the project done!)

WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT TO LEARN?

At this event, I?m planning to learn a LOT!? 3M?s got some amazing sessions lined up for us, including:

How to Be Your Own Weekend Mechanic (Performance Chemicals)
See and Be Seen ? Simple Steps to Makeover Your Car (Paint Restoration, Scratch Removal, Headlight Restoration)
Garage Essentials ? The Top 20 Items Ever Savvy Car owner Should Keep on Hand (Appearance Chemical, Adhesives/Tapes)
10 Ways the Bondo Brand Can Take Your DIY Project to the Next Level (Body Repair)
How to Transform Your Car for $300 or Less (Full Portfolio of Products)
Easy Ways to Protect Your Car (Paint Protection Film, Window Film, Scotchgard Chemicals)
Customize Your Ride (Scotchprint Vehicle Wraps, Custom Image Kits)

Whew? that?s a lot!? I know our Jeep is needing a little TLC right now!? How about your car?

HOW DOES THIS RELATE TO A DIY BLOG?

Well, there?s more to DIY than just your home!? You can save tons of cash on automotive repairs if you have a little know-how.? Also, did you know that tons of automotive care products can be used in your home and for projects for your home?? Case in point? Bondo!? If you haven?t heard of it, I will be ?filling? you in on all of the amazing uses for it and other awesome automotive products, when I return!? If you have heard of it, then be prepared for me to broaden your Bondo use!

SHOULD I COUNT THE 3M PRODUCTS IN OUR HOME?

Honestly, prior to attending Haven, I had no idea how many 3M products I had in our home.? With my eyes peeled a bit wider, I noticed that 3M products are used in almost all of my projects!? From hanging hardware, command strips, and sand paper, 3M rules my ?project? roost apparently!? Cheers to you 3M for happening to produce some of my favorite project products!!!