and longhornmail (andy):
i camped out in my cab that night in the yard, and took off the next day at 11am. drove home, and slept for 6 hours straight. (which is another reason why i havent posted yet).
bottomline - we all had a fabulous time! we worked on trucks for more than 14 hours! it was great! i have now decided that this is my new favorite activity! who is next? huck? i heard you were having a meet? woohooo!!!
to answer all of your questions:
weasel - yes i learned how to read a gas pump
blue_71 - yes andy flirted with me -- what would you expect?

ohiodan - yes, my new nickname is Diesel Queen!
bigblue72 - i will bend over fenders and crawl under the hood for you anytime! you were great to meet!
jef5150 - yeah - is diesel always labeled with a green handle?!?

andy - thanks for all of the compliments on my truck - yes - i will be the first to point out all of the flaws in her to the next person
huck - yeah - i totally forgot about that! i put the engine mounts on the opposite sides because i thought the engine set too far back with the mounts in the proper place --- it looks interesting - check out the photos above!
mike, rhonda - thanks so much for the great time! it was a blast! we must have another meet next year! i'll come!
i walked away from this think with a brand new truck, and ten more projects (louvers to seal, an engine to chrome, a heater core to fix, a wingvent window to replace, and a door crank to replace).
thanks so much to everyone!
ciao! (and yes, thats italian for goodbye! )

jewels.