photo credit: Jen Buentello / Facebook

Tim Lambert and I have been friends for a really long time.  Like, from the time you're able to start meeting people outside of your tiny-everyone looks the same-enrollment of 200--high school and pick your own friends.  Tim says we "ran in the same circles in high school" and this translates to, we were always both out for a good time.  We were always "uptown" on the weekends and always at the same parties. And we were always laughing.  But, the longer I've known Tim, I realize we didn't need to be in high school, or at parties, or even drinking to be laughing.  Tim is one of the happiest people I know.  He's always smiling.  And you can't talk to him without smiling, too.  (This has not yet been tested on political conversations.  We differ greatly when it comes to politics, but we still respect each other.  And smile and laugh.)
Although Tim was born in St. Charles, he's a local guy--he grew up in Huntsville, Salisbury and Keytesville.  And he has stayed around here, which I think is cool now that I'm back in the area and have an old friend that I get to run into every once in awhile.
Tim is very artistic.  You can tell this immediately upon meeting him solely based on his fashion.  It's completely unique to Tim, and I always love it.  He is really into hats and shoes.  In fact, that's one thing I remember about the first time we met.  He was wearing a navy blue hat with "Cal" in yellow cursive.  No one around here wore anything but Mizzou, so I knew right off that Tim was one of a kind.
At one time Tim actually wanted to be an artist.  He's good at drawing, has played in several bands, skateboards...but, he's also mechanical and has a knack with custom cars, which has landed him as an entrepreneur.  He runs his own business restoring classic cars and 4x4 trucks and then selling them.  This is how he earned the nicknames Toolman Tim and Lambertghini.  (He's actually named after an uncle on his dad's side.) He's a real diy guy.  He bought and fixed up his house, too. 
The Toolman typically has about seven vehicles on hand. He loves getting to drive around different cars and trucks all the time.  He also loves the artistic side of customizing each one.  Not only is he a diy guy, he's also self-taught.  He started working on cars at the age of fifteen and just "jumped in the water head first with no lifeguard."  He laughs about that making for "an expensive learning curve" but says it definitely taught him what not to do. 
His dream car is a 1950 Buick Special, but when he turned sixteen he had to settle for a 1981 Dodge Challenger.  The first car he ever fixed up was a 1960 Bel Air, but the favorite car he's owned is his 1963 Impala.  When I accompany my brother to car shows with his racecar, I always see Tim winning trophies for his completely customized "dead sled."  And I can see that the trophies are totally well-deserved.

photo cred: Chariton County Journal / Facebook
(That's Trevor on the four-wheeler, leading the way for Tim.  Keep reading.)

photo cred: Chariton County Journal / Facebook

So Tim is a fashion icon, a diy tool guy, an entrepreneur, an artist, a self-taught mechanic, and he owns a cherry black Impala with hydraulics--and you don't even know the BEST thing about him yet.  He's a single dad to a teenage son who has been diagnosed with autism.  And he's better at it than I could ever imagine being.  His son Trevor is one of the coolest kids you will ever meet.  Tim loves being a dad and that's proven by the way it just oozes out of him.  As cheesy at is may sound, he just loves getting to spend every day with Trevor and watching him grow and turn into a man. 
Like Tim, Trevor already has his own keen fashion sense and is a great artist.  He is also really skilled at repairing electronics and has an excellent memory.  Trevor is talented in so many ways and never ceases to amaze Tim, or anyone he meets. 
Both Tim and Trevor love Halloween.  This past October, Trevor saved a ton of money to buy gobs and gobs of Halloween props and decorations.  He completely converted their house into a walk-through haunted house, then opened it up to the public for tours.  He and Tim both dressed up.  When I walked through the yard, I was totally impressed.  I've been to haunted houses in Kansas City with professionals and they weren't as cool as what Trevor had put together. 
For Christmas, he filled their yard with inflatable decorations, and even being in my mid-thirties, I had to drive by it every time I was in town. 
Being a parent to a kiddo on the autism spectrum isn't all fun and games though.  It's hard work, but Tim will tell you that all the hard work is worth the reward.  The biggest concern isn't Trevor, it's other people.  Tim says he has a constant worry about Trevor being judged or bullied when he isn't around.  This makes my heart hurt for any kid and parent, but especially for Trevor and Tim.  Because I'm not sure you'll ever meet two guys with bigger hearts.  Tim wants the best life possible for Trevor, and saying he's already accomplished that would be premature I suppose, albeit true.  So, I'll just say, he couldn't be off to a better start.

So, if you're looking to buy a custom car or truck, or have something for sale, remember Tim.  You can reach him at exclusivegoods@hotmail.com or through his facebook account.

photo credit: Jen Buentello / Facebook