thanks for all the responses. i have to say that i believe i'm to blame as i think i left the key on! the ignition switch is old and i don't think i had it turned enough to shut it off! duh.
anyway, i pulled the key out last night, hooked it back up, and this AM, cool as a cucumber.
on the other hand, i've heard the same from many, why not just go GM HEI. i just had the engine rebuilt using a mild cam, dual zeniths and fenton duals, etc. i've made some mistakes with choices during the rebuild, wish i would have went with a single carb set up and a few other things, maybe i need to rethink the distrubutor.
is tom's set up drop in? as you can guess, original is not what i'm going for. more of a old style hot rod look