Collector’s Wife ‘Ding, Dings’ Idea of Storing Gas Station Pump in Bedroom

Matthew Ettinger, 49, of La Habra clearly remembers the testy bedroom scene.

“My wife said, ‘Either that goes, or I go.’ ” So he moved the gas station pump to his Santa Ana office. His wife is now pregnant with their second child.

But Ettinger’s other love--collecting Shell gas station memorabilia such as the gas pump, signs, oil bottles, gas cans, decals and even an entire station--is still his driving passion, so to speak.

He has the 10-foot-by-10-foot glass-and-sheet-metal Shell gas station stored in his garage.

“It’s really very simple,” Ettinger said. “I have a love affair with anything automotive.” The affair includes his Ferrari Boxer, a Porsche, a 1939 Ford two-door coupe and a 1937 Ford woodie he is restoring.

He may collect Shell items, but he has little love for the company, even though his first job was at a Shell station. “Shell doesn’t give a damn,” he said. “I called them for research help but never got a call back from anyone.”

Ettinger, who owns a hotel marketing firm, wants to put all of the nostalgia together on one site in Orange County “to let people walk around and through it to see where their grandfather used to drive his Model T for gas. I know how it feels just sitting here with all the stuff in my office. It’s great.”

He would like to see the gas station, which he bought in Vancouver for $800 and shipped to Orange County for restoration at a cost of another $1,000, displayed inside a building, preferably in an office to protect it from the elements.

Ettinger has personally reconditioned many of the old collectibles. But the 1936 Wayne gas pump that caused the bedroom tiff was restored by a friend called Gas Pump Ronnie (Ron Johnson).

Ettinger said it is his desire not to “lose contact with the past” that prompts him to travel the country collecting such gas station memorabilia. “I figure I have $40,000 tied up already,” said Ettinger. But he doesn’t see it as a losing proposition. “I think if I sold it piece by piece it would bring in $75,000.”

But he might find it tough to part with some of the memorabilia, such as the “ding, ding” gas station warning bell set off when anyone enters his office.

You know the U.S. Marines aren’t going to put on a sissy 10K run. For instance, they’re going to sponsor their seventh annual 10K Run at high noon on March 13--Friday the 13th--and race director Maj. Ted R. Gendron of El Toro said it has been labeled “Black Friday Run.”

And consider these pitfalls:

First, the race is a six-member team event, and five of the six teammates must cross the finish line together. (What becomes of the sixth?)

Second, no nylon shorts or running shoes are allowed, only combat boots and pants, and civilians must wear equivalent attire.

Third, the nightmare course at the Tustin Marine Corps Air Station includes a bizarre hose wash-down at the start line, a stream to wade, a hill to climb using ropes, and a quagmire to cross. The quagmire is called “Rambo Death Ditch.” Ugh!

Winning teams--if there are any--get trophies.

Would you believe there will be 3,000 runners in the race, which is open to servicemen and civilians at $55 a team? The proceeds are going to charity and sign-ups are being taken by Gendron at (714) 651-7686.

Mike Aikens, 31, of Garden Grove, is a good, caring son. Concerned about his 69-year-old father, George Aikens, who was driving 3,000 miles on a motorcycle from Pennsylvania to visit him, young Aikens, 31, got on his own motorcycle in Garden Grove and met his dad in Texas to accompany him on the trip to California.

The senior Aikens, a retired minister and member of the Christian Motorcycle Assn. for 30 years, didn’t see what the fuss was all about. “I just wanted to go on a motorcycle ride,” he said, on arrival.

When his stay ended, the senior Aikens flew home because of cold weather, but as soon as the weather warms up, he plans to fly back and drive his motorcycle home.

Acknowledgments--Santa Ana High School cross country runner Maria Mendoza, 17, invited to run in China for the International Sports exchange, finished fourth in the field of 3,000. The Santa Ana community held a fund-raiser to pay her expenses.