Thoughts on Motorcycling

I spent a little time at U- Tube the other night enjoying Harley Davidson commercials and rider stories. Apparently we who ride (yes even newbies get to call themselves riders) have reasons for doing so. From what I gathered we do it to express individuality, to escape oppression, to stick it to the man (whatever that means?!). We straddle our iron steeds and seek out the open road for spiritual reasons, for political reasons and for the sake of charities. We're all about brotherhood and good times even if we have to be bad to enjoy ourselves. WELL... all that sounds pretty complicated to me, and much like the 60's era hippies these individuals who are all about being nonconforming look and sound quite alike! Yet there is no doubt that you must have some compelling reason to go out and play in traffic on one of these things. I pondered this question at length while out riding the other day and I came up with a little bit simpler idea of why I ride...try on FUN for size. Fits in one syllable, does not require tattoos or a rap sheet, can be had legally in all fifty states at any age. Will not cause divorce if your wife finds out and can be had while she's along no less! Yes sir I believe that is the hidden dark side of me that requires a motorcycle to be expressed. A little boy who just never could get enough of playing with machines. I can play with this one without a clearing and grading permit, I don't have to haul it to an ORV park, it fits in a spare corner of the garage and you can have fun getting groceries (with in reason of course). When I was blasting through sweepers on hwy 9 in the bright morning sun or grinding the paint off the bottom of my forward controls at dusk in the back corner of the ROSS parking lot trying to perfect 18 foot U turns there was little doubt that I was experiencing FUN. Yeah you can blame riding one of these things on all that other stuff but I for one am happy to admit that really there is just that one principal motivator.
Oh and why a Harley Davidson?...
Well I could say because they hold their value, I prefer buying American, or come up with some other logical sounding reasons but while I'm being honest;
Has atleast twice the horsepower it needs
Is really loud
Gets truly awful gas mileage (for a motorcycle that is)
Made out metal (most of it chromed)
Not that any of that stuff is a reflection on me...

Hope

I know I'm way behind. March then April came and went with no posts but between the weather and the political climate I doubt anybody wanted to hear from me anyway!
I saw a sticker in the window of a car the other day which has prompted a lot of thought on my part. An artsy portrait of one Barack Hussein Obama with the bold letters HOPE below. Once I got back in my lane and called for an ambulance (I'm not heartless you know!) I began to consider if Barack Obama might mean HOPE to me to. I was surprised to find that in fact I could enter in to this popular movement. For instance, I hope Barack can produce a birth certificate at some point. It would be nice to know that he had atleast one qualification to be President! I hope the paperwork I filled out when I legally purchased my firearms has been lost. I hope Democrats particularly those in politics learn how to pay taxes because those of us who still do are really feeling the extra weight. I hope terrorists decide Barack's on their side and leave us alone. I hope Al Gore gets hit by a truck (actually that is just one name on a very long list). I hope Nancy Pelosi gets to go on trial right beside the people she's condemning over water boarding (after all she was sitting beside them at the briefing it's only fair right?!) I hope Alan Specter gets slaughtered in the next election even if the candidate is a democrat. In fact I hope that the American people wake up to what our constitution really says about the REPUBLIC (democracies are famous for their suicidal tendencies) that we live in and recall the original penalties for what's being done to us. I hope people figure out that this leftist movement is an elitist movement and it is about oppression of opposing ideas and ideals not about freedom. I hope everybody pauses when they hear about "change" and consider if it really is for the better. I hope the people in Europe were temporarily deaf when our own President had his little anti American tirade. I hope we don't need to defend this country against foreign super powers in the next decade because the damage this administration is already doing to our military (the only thing we really needed a Federal government for in the first place) will take at least that long to fix. I hope we can all learn to live on a lot less as the bill for the financial bailouts is going to be a whole lot more expensive than the crisis ever dreamed of being. I hope Americans will have removed their heads from the sand by the time these four years are up. I hope that in twenty years when people look back and say "What were we thinking?!", that we can all still do it as Americans with our freedoms in tact. I hope that people realize that hope never did a single solitary thing but there has been great forward strides made by those who got off their dead rear and did something! I hope that I never get sick because when the government gets done fixing health care sick is not going to be a good option. I could go on all night but to the person in the car with the sticker, I hope your doctor can adjust that medication and get your head squared away!

Feb. 2009 Notes and Details Sheet

So what am I down to here anyway? Just days hours and minutes until a New Years resolution bit the dust. O ye scoffers!!! Maybe it'll happen next month...
I begin this year of hope and change a little... well confused. If reckless spending and living above our means put all of us in this economic mess then why does our government feel that them doing it will get us out? When Chinese leaders and Putin of Russia are in no uncertain terms warning our new President that Socialism is flawed and will destroy our nation why are our leaders seemingly embracing it? When even the liberal news outlets are calling this new deal the ultimate pork barrel why does our federal government hail it as salvation through deficit spending? Why is the federal government getting into the auto business, the mortgage business the construction business? Do we really want these people in charge of this stuff? They can't procure a toilet seat at a reasonable price why should they be allowed to manage anything? A federal government, any government is a necessary evil brought on because people just can't seem to behave properly on their own. But this!! The only thing that should frighten us more than the idea that this administrations plan won't work is the outside chance that it will. America will on that day end as we know it. History tells us that no free society has ever remained free past the point where the citizens realized they could vote themselves in a meal ticket. We have already beat the odds by remaining as long as we have a free, capitalist society. Thankfully it will most likely fail and good old American drive and ingenuity will prevail after an adjustment period that could well bring conditions that those living today can scarcely imagine. I know I can't and am just going to do the best I can. Now it would easily consume a person to try and wrap ones head around all this but there is this one thought which occurs to me over and over again. For those that view this life as a pilgrimage, when it drives us to our knees as the future may well do, be thankful. I for one need all the help I can get in arriving there.
On an entirely different note I did something right this month. I added to the guitar collection a fair student level classical guitar. This was the right thing to do as I have played little except classical music on my guitar for several years. May I from my newly enlightened position say you cannot play classical guitar without one. Seems obvious I know but having tried... well it's true. That being true I am about three levels below beginner but have begun again at the basics and have at last seen how I may some day make gratifying progress. This means of course doing a few things I have found uncomfortable. For instance the nails of the right index, middle, and ring finger as well as thumb must be properly shaped to play the finger style guitar. Having nails that protrude beyond the end of the finger may well lead to the belief that I could potentially be comfortable on either side of home plate but beware! I ride a Harley Davidson and own assault rifles! I can weather the occasional loss of man points. So while my time in a concert orchestra is probably over for good I find it very gratifying to be again studying the finest music ever played on a string instrument.
So that about does it for February the month of my least favorite commercial holiday, I intended to blatantly rip off one of Shaun's ideas and post up a counter with the current miles ridden in '09 but I'm to tired and I need to get to bed.

A New Years Resolution

The middle brother had the Boss and I over for a birthday dinner yesterday (YUMMY, thanks guys!). Also in attendance where Shaun Durkee, who shall now be known for all time as Red Beard the Road Retard (ask him), and Emily who is properly introduced at Red Beard's blog. The point of all this is that Shaun's well put together page was (is) my inspiration for trying to publish something of a blog. When last I visited Shaun's blog I noted that there is in '08 an entry or more every month. Thus the reolution I make to try and keep up a little better! So happy New Year everybody and I promise to try and find SOMETHING news worthy in my mundane existence monthly. If not maybe I'll just post pictures of cool motorcycles or whatever!
A brief synopsis of what has transpired since the August post just to return everybody to the present;
WORK:
The first week of September the company started a big job Bremerton which incidentally is a two and a half to three hour commute each way from home.
Any questions?
OTHER:
Not much to talk about (see above) just did some riding whenever possible and tried to keep the lawn mowed until it got covered in eighteen inches of snow for three weeks where upon I sat at home reading WEB Griffen by the box load and playing guitar till my fingers went numb.
HOLIDAYS:
The Boss and I went to the Sun Mountain Lodge for three nights starting on Xmas night and enjoyed a relaxing time.
NEW YEAR PLAN:
Not much to report here as of yet. No classes scheduled although I expect to get in a few at FAS and would like to take the motor officers riding course this summer. The Penninsula property really needs my attention but I've been saying that since the late 90's...
The boss would like to fly back east and tour the coast on an Electra GLide but nothing is really firming up on that front either at the moment. (Can you believe I blamed the motorcycle part of that on her?! I'm so bad...)
Other than that we'll just have to be surprised (me first obviously and then you but only if I stick to my resolution).
In the mean time how's about a cool motorcycle picture to sign off with?
PS Motorcycle is cool picture is actually lame but I didn't take it so OH WELL