NATCHEZ &045; When most retirees want to reminisce about their work days, they have to drive across town &045; or revisit the site in their memories. But for Moses Woods, a trip down memory lane is as easy as walking out the door of his home.

Out his back door lies the spot where his first mechanic’s shop used to sit, the one he started in the late 1940s.

And across Phillip’s Lane, the street where his house is located, lies the shop he built in 1957, expanding his space to accommodate his growing business.

You might say oil is in Woods’ blood. His father, who lived on Sedgefield Road, made his living as a mechanic in addition to being a carpenter, building houses and taking on several other types of work. So when Woods left the Navy after World War II, it was only natural that he work for James Bernard at his mechanic’s shop the next block over, on John’s Lane. He stayed there for about a year before opening his own shop.

Going back to the site where his first shop stood, Woods looks over a 1971 Ford 350 truck he, with a lot of welding skill, transforming into a wrecker for his business. A testament to his skill: the truck still runs quite well.

But these days, that wrecker is used only to help family members out of a jam and haul firewood &uot;to and from the country,&uot; Woods said. After experiencing heart problems, Woods transferred the shop to his son and retired in 1984. Now, his days are taken up with hunting, fishing and piddling in his home shop.

&uot;Now,&uot; he said, &uot;I’m able to do anything I want to do, as long as I feel like it.&uot;