Resolutions and Animals on a Cold Night Walk

It was just me,

And Sophie,     (The dog)

And Moe.        (The cat)

This is a Monday evening. December 23rd. It snowed about 3 inches two days ago. It's cold! Very cold. The Weatherbug app on my iPhone said it was 15 degrees (-10 C) outside. 

Didn't stop me,

Or Sophie,

Or Moe!

Moe

Yes, our silly Tomcat loves to go walking with us, believe it or not.

It used to piss me off if Moe went with us on our nightly walk. You see, it's like this:

Walking with Sophie is fun. Like all dogs, she loves to be with us. She'll do our pace, ie that pace determined by the human. Do it gladly, unquestionably. Frequently glancing up at you to see if she is making you happy. She rarely disappoints. That's just her nature.

Moe is totally different. He has his own pace to life. And like most cats, sometimes he doesn't care about your pace, your desires or your happiness, well, you get the idea. 

You sort of have to be a bit patient with Moe when you take him for a walk. He has his own agenda. He'll lag behind a bit, then catch up and "buzz" by you, showing off. He is, sometimes a bit aloof, but he's not ungrateful, he shows his affection frequently, but it's on his own terms.

Sophie likes to stop and smell interesting things. I don't always understand the why or the what of the smells she finds, but I let her indulge.  Moe, interestingly, stops to investigate things also. Maybe not smells, not sure what the heck it is, and he takes a bit longer sometimes. After all, he is a cat. And, well....

It used to infuriate me when Moe would lag behind and make everybody wait on him. It's like, "I'm supposed to be in charge here, you need to follow my direction, do what I want you to do. Quit screwing around and let's make some tracks".

But then, somewhere along the line, I decided that maybe, just maybe, Moe might have a better idea.

Maybe it's a Carpe Diem type of thing. Maybe it is Moe's way of seizing the moment. Stopping to smell the roses? Could that be?

Who knows.

But I was thinking as we walked, that there were 3 very distinct personalities on the trek, this cold and cloudy night. Me, the human, had the leash and a flashlight, supposedly in charge, Sophie with her eager smiling face constantly observing, smelling, sensing, exceedingly happy just to be outside doing something with the rest of us, and then Moe, also very alert and observant, but with a very different goal. Not that I had any kind of clue what Moe's goal was. But then, who am I to judge. I despise people that judge others, for whatever reason. I don't even feel like I should judge animals like Sophie or Moe. I don't know what it's really like to be a cat or a dog or a buffalo or ....

But I don't always end each post of this blog with the phrase "Carpe Diem" for no reason whatsoever. You see, I really feel like each day is a gift of some sort. If you live to be 70 years old then there should be 25,550 daily opportunities for Carpe Diem. I think we ought to seize as many as we can. I bet we've all missed a few.

And to me, Carpe Diem can take various forms. Tonight as we walked, and Moe made us wait up for him for a few minutes, Sophie and I "seized" the opportunity to look around, see the sights, really take the opportunity to observe. We looked at the tire tracks in the snow, saw many Christmas light decorations, smelled aromas from neighborhood fireplaces, heard the sounds of the wind in the trees, etc.

We stopped. We waited. Instead of exerting effort at enforcing our will upon others, we paused and let, in effect, others dictate upcoming events. I'm not necessarily some sort of control freak, but I'm very used to organizing my own life. I'm not always, personally, comfortable with just "going along for the ride".

But I'm convinced that there is something to just letting life happen. You get to experience lots of very interesting sights, sounds, smells, emotions, etc, that you just might otherwise miss if you are constantly busy organizing your own destiny.

So, my resolution for the new year is to let it happen. More and more.

An extra special Happy New Year and Carpe Diem, my good friends.

Maddening Moments, some Zen and a Self Challenge

I hereby swear that I am going to not drive the automobile to work as much as I have been recently. There are two "Motorcycle Only" parking areas within a block and a half of my office. I never have trouble finding a place to park when I ride the scooter to work. There is always (Repeat, Always!), a place for little old me and Max to park.

Same cannot be said about the friggin' automobile. There's lots of parking around my new office, but some days it seems like it takes an act of the divine to find a place 'close' to my office. A block away is no problem, and I do that often. But there have been days where I think I can park closer to the office only to be frustrated because there are no close places to park. And I am not really being anal about this. I do not mind the walk. What bugs me is the situation of having to change my plan and the resulting waste of time to go back to do something else. And it's really silly, because we're only talking about a few minutes at most. It seems that as I get older, I have lost a certain amount of patience with things that don't go as originally planned.

Maddening!

But I'm sure you don't really care about that....

But here's a Question:

If I say I'm going to do something and write about it in this here blog, Does that mean it will absolutely have to happen?

Let me explain:

Max is way overdue for some maintenance. I'm totally embarrassed about it. It is ridiculously overdue. Substantially Overdue. Criminally Overdue!

I've had good intentions. I bought some motor oil. I bought a new spark plug. I bought some gear oil. I checked and I already had enough engine coolant. Problem is, I bought all this this stuff 2 months ago, and still haven't even turned the screwdriver on Max.

Shame on Me!

I know very well how important the maintenance is for vehicles like this. The investment could easily be wasted by not doing the "little things". And it's not that I have to take Max in to a repair shop to get it done. I'm well capable of doing it all. I've done it before! It doesn't even really take a very long time. (with one possible exception, I'll explain in a moment)

But still, I haven't done it. And I'm usually not that bad about this kind of thing. Oh, I admit I'm not perfect, I may be a little late at times with certain maintenance, but usually I get it done relatively close to the recommended and appointed mileage intervals.

And I even have a pdf file that is the entire repair manual for Max. I can have my tablet computer available to me in the garage as I work to check on the location of a certain drain bolt, or verify the spark plug gap, etc, as needed. I probably won't even have to refer to it much. As I said, I've done this stuff before.

Actually, on a side note, the shop manual reads a little strange in spots. Of course, SYM is a company in Taiwan, and the manual has obviously been written originally in Chinese and then translated to English by somebody that apparently doesn't use English as their original language. The words don't always , shall we say, "flow" real well. But in the final analysis, it works, the pictures and drawings are not bad and I'm happy to say I didn't pay anything for the manual.

But one thing not really explained very well in the manual is how the plastic shroud and body parts fit together. For instance, there are some obvious seams where plastic parts come together, and there are some clip and insert tabs on the inside (not visible from the outside) of the panels that hold things together. These are not pictured well in the manual.

So here's where the "Zen" comes in:

Pirsig talks about becoming "one" with the machine, or at least that's how I interpret it. I'll just have to sit there on the garage floor. Take my time. Play with the panels a bit. Detect how they are held together. (Believe me, it's not real obvious) The fluid changes aren't the problem. The drain and refill bolts are all accessible without taking any body panels off. It's the spark plug that will cause me some grief. The two main body panels will have to come off. And I have to take some other panels off to get to the ones I have to get off, etc. It's like a vicious never ending cycle. There will be a resulting pile of panels, screws and bolts on the floor.

Actually, it won't be all that bad probably. The problem is mostly my own personality and my own difficulty in dealing with things that don't go my way the first time around.

The problem is not the bike, or the panels or the damn spark plug.

The problem is me!

In self diagnosis, seemingly I have a mental block about getting this work done. There is no excuse. It has to be done. I am the only person to do it! Why the hell am I procrastinating?

So, my post today is an attempt to sort of "trick" myself into getting this work done! By the powers vested in me, I pledge that I am going to get this work done this weekend! I'm going to psyche myself up, similar to John Belushi in "Animal House". I'll rally around the house and then run into the garage and get on the floor and get started.

So, back to the original question, if I write about it in this here blog, Will it happen?

It friggin' better!

So here's the deal! If I don't have another post up by, say, next Wednesday, with maintenance pictures and the like, and a description of how it went, feel free to email me, comment me, and tell me what a goofball I am. I'll deserve any and all criticism.

Like John Belushi, I'm going to rally the forces this weekend and do this.

Let's Do It!
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Let's Do It!
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Let's Do It!
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Let's Do It!
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Ride On and Carpe Diem, my good friends!

Philosophy and the Cold Morning Wave

Weatherbug says it was 32 degrees farenheit.

Then, the Weatherbug said it "felt like" 32 degrees farenheit.  (obviously no wind chill)

But you and I know that on 2 wheels at 30 mph, even if it says it's 32 degrees farenheit, it will not feel like that when in motion. It feels much, much colder!

I was about 2 miles on my way (part of a 5 mile commute) and riding in fairly heavy traffic this morning. The sun was very low in the sky behind me as I traveled west. As I rode, I noticed up ahead, a few blocks away, another person on a motorcycle, turning east onto the street. Knowing we would pass each other, I identified an opportunity for a wave.

So I did my usual, left arm extended out just a bit, index finger slightly pointed to acknowledge the other rider. It was quick, just a couple of seconds, traffic was busy, other things to keep an eye on.

He responded with an almost identical quick wave (hardly a wave, just like me, a slight extension of the arm).

Whole incident, probably no longer than 2 or 3 seconds in length.

So, why was that brief little encounter meaningful?

Was it because it was cold outside, and we recognized each other to be adventuresome and hearty souls of some sort?

Was it because we both saw each other as crazies?

Was it because there was some sort of "connection" with each other in the vast realm of the cosmic universe?

All I know was that it was nice. I liked it. I have always liked the wave. Not everybody does it, but many do, and I just like it. It's fun!

I'm excited for this week. The weather looks fantastic for the rest of the week. Highs in the 70's later on this week. Lows in the 40's.

That's Real Good!

Zehr Gut!

Ride On and Carpe Diem, my friends!

Really Nothing to Prove

So why do I occasionally feel the urge to ride when it's cold outside. Stingy finger cold!

After all, it seems that most riders have put away their bikes for the winter, seldom making an appearance on the roads of the city. Last Saturday afternoon, the temperatures rose to about 60 F, and there were lots more riders out than I had seen in a long time. Even the sport bikers were out. But on Monday after it had turned colder again, none of those folks were to be seen.

And I admit that I haven't commuted to work as regularly on Max as I have in past years. That first year in particular saw me out there almost every day unless there was snow or ice on the roads. I rode in 10 F weather. I mean really brisk, stark days that your dog wouldn't even want to venture out in.

And do I have something to prove?

I'm not sure. Deep in my psyche maybe I want to prove that I can still do it after a heart attack and 2 cardiac arrests. It really is more dangerous for me to be out there when it's that cold. But I can tell when I am feeling up to it or not, and some days I know I am not ready for the cold, therefore I don't ride.

And then maybe I am just trying to puff up my chest and tell the world what a tough guy I am, out there riding in silly cold weather. Something "Tribal" to prove. Strutting the colors of my denim winter jacket like some peacock would display its feathers. Are we really that much different than the animals?

So today the Weatherbug App on the iPhone said it was 22 F when I left the house. I had to get some gas on the way in. I took a little different route downtown, a little slower and less traffic. I heard a flock of birds chirping at one intersection. The sun was bright. My visor and eyeglasses were fogging up regularly so I rode with the helmet visor partially open most of the way. (Are some of my helmet vents open?, Or closed?, need to experiment with that a little more)

I was actually quite warm, 5 layers on top, 3 layers on my legs, feet fine with boots and boot socks.

It was just my fingers that got cold and that's usually the way it is. Now many of you have suggested in the past and could again mention today that I should invest in some heated gloves or some other clever device with the goal of aiding the warmth in my fingers.

To that I say, Naaaahhh!

Its only a few minutes of discomfort. I suppose if I were going to be out there for a really long ride, then sure, I'll invest in some warmth farkle, but for a 15 minute ride?

After all, maybe I'm out to try and prove that I can endure some pain. At age 56, I'm still one of the baddest of the bad!

Yeah? A Badass?

Well I doubt that, too, but I know one thing. Pirsig alluded to the fact that when you were out there riding, you were actually living and part of the world, experiencing much that you would miss if you were looking out the window of a cage. Today I was living and experiencing and even if it was cold, it was well worth it!

The afternoon ride home should be even more fantastic!

Ride On and Carpe Diem, my friends!

Walking, Reading & Thinking (maybe not simultaneously)

It was a good day to walk. Maybe a bit chilly, but not bad. And you know what happens when I am walking. I usually do some thinking. And today I was even thinking about Reading (while walking).

The sun had just risen making for an extra long shadow.

Remember Pirsig?  Sure you do

Well I ran across a news article about him recently. Here's the link.

http://www.partiallyexaminedlife.com/2012/11/29/robert-pirsig-and-montana-state-university/


Seems that Pirsig (now 84 years old) is due to receive an honorary doctorate from Montana State University. I think that's pretty nice. Not sure what you might think of his famous book "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance", but it sure is an interesting read. To me, parts of the book are sort of strange, other parts absolutely fantastic.

It has been a couple of years since I have read the book. I know many people that say they read it every couple of years or so, just to remind themselves of .....  well, whatever important ideas they see in the book, which seems to vary from person to person. (Thinking I might need to pull it off the shelf and re-read it)

I've been reading a lot this year. Lots of longer books also. I re-read "The Hobbitt" and Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. I had looked at a BBC top 100 list and picked out a few books from that list including Pullman's "His Dark Materials" (also a trilogy) and some others. I also looked at a Sci-Fi top 100 list and am currently reading "Ender's Game" by Orson Scott Card.

But a new reading task has presented itself to me, that being Jack Riepe's new Book "Conversations With a Motorcycle"

Picture borrowed (stolen)  from the "Twisted Roads" website. Think Jack will mind?

I feel a book report coming on soon. I received my copy over the last weekend and have read just a few pages so far. But, so far,  I like what I see very much and am anxious to read more. So look for a review to come up in this blog soon.

Ahhh, Technology. I used to have  a "Nook", that Barnes and Noble E-Reader. But it died a painful death a while back, so I have resorted to downloading the Barnes and Noble App to my iPhone and been reading some of my books on the iPhone. It's a little small, but very doable. I also recently received a Kindle book as a gift, so I downloaded the Kindle App to the iPhone and been reading from that App also.

Remember when books were books? Well, I haven't totally abandoned the print version. My copy of Tolkien is on paper. And Jack's new book is in paper form. I don't mind an actual book as opposed to an E-Reader. There's another book I have been wanting to read, but haven't yet simply because it doesn't come in an E-book format. I guess I will have to just buy the paper copy, or get it from the local library, but I doubt they will have it. Sometimes getting the book in E-book format is just really very easy. I probably haven't physically stepped into the local Barnes and Noble store in almost a year.

So anyway, that is some of what I was thinking about this morning as I walked. Last week I rode Max to work on 3 of the 5 days. This week, I'll get some riding in as well, but today I felt the urge to walk.
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Ride On and Carpe Diem, my friends.
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A Cold Ride, The Edge of The Fiscal Cliff and a Right Wing Prius

Okay, so I put in all the liners in my jacket and pants this morning. I had been putting this off and with the recent relatively warm weather (Hell, it is almost December), I had been able to survive on the bike without all that extra gear. But this week has been colder, in fact the overnight lows had been in the 20's (wind chills in the teens) and I admit to having wimped out a couple of days on riding to work.

Now I have often thought of myself as a "Rounder" (a year round rider) and unless it is really cold (by my definition, single digits and below), the cold weather doesn't usually stop me from riding.  This morning the temperature was below freezing, but just barely and  it was sunny with almost no wind. Very nice! But I did take more precautions against the cold. I got out the fleece glove liners and even the nylon balaclava. Both liners in my pants and the fleece liner in my jacket. Max started right up like it was any other day. I think he actually likes the cold weather.

The winter gloves with the liners next to my Ride To Work bandana.

And I took out onto the street fighting a bit of fog in my visor, not bad, just a bit annoying. But I had this nagging feeling that I had forgotten something. With all the extra stuff I did this morning to get ready for the ride I knew it was likely that I would forget something, but at that moment I couldn't figure out what it was, and maybe it was nothing anyway.

At one of the first stop light intersections I pulled up behind this little Dodge something or other with a frosty back window. I thought to myself, Fantastic, Not only do I have to watch out for and fight people trying to talk and text on their cell phones, but now I have to watch out for people who are too damn lazy to even scrape off their windows. Oh well, I try a zen moment to calm myself, after all this is is supposed to be fun, and it really is.

And just next to the Dodge was a Prius. And the only reason I noticed it was because of the bumper stickers on it, one of which I couldn't read very well (small print), but the other was a "Fair Tax" sticker. Now it is never safe to generalize about anything and people will always surprise me but I was struck by what appeared to me to be a sort of incongruity between the concept of a Prius and the concept of the "Fair Tax". What I was thinking was that it might be more common for a Prius to be driven by a quote "liberal" person, you know, someone that believes in global warming, wants to save the planet by not using too much in the way of fossil fuels, etc. And then to see a "Fair Tax" sticker which I would associate to someone with more of a right wing sort of conservative bend to their political beliefs. Well it just seemed a bit odd. Probably just me.

Then, as it were, the Prius and I seemed to kind of parallel each other down the street on the way downtown. At some stop lights I would arrive first, at others the Prius would get there first. It was a woman driving the car, but I could never seem to get her to look over at me, she always faced away. (Bitch!?) Then I was thinking, "Okay, who is really trying to save the environment here today?" You in that Prius, at times traveling silently, but probably getting maybe 45 mpg as you move along toward your destination. Or me! Having a blast on my Taiwanese scooter, in cold weather to boot, but probably doing about 75 mpg.

Huh?!   Who's the Environmentalist Now?!

Then I take another deep breath. (Ommmm)

I remembered listening to NPR as I shaved this morning and they were interviewing various people talking about the upcoming "Fiscal Cliff". Now I remind you that I am a tax accountant. I am very aware of the changes that will or will not happen at the end of the year this year. I even spoke at about 15 little mini-seminars about this very subject. And you know what? In my humble opinion, all the politicians are crazy and don't have a clue. Most of them have no business calling themselves statesmen and I really would not be surprised that we just end up careening off the end of the cliff because the silly bastards won't have the guts to do anything about it. And you know what else?!

The world will not end!
Generalissimo Francisco Franco will still be dead!
The Kansas City Chiefs will still Suck!
And I will still try and ride to work on a mostly year round basis.

So There!

Whew!

Oh, the things I think about as I ride to work some days.

And as I arrived at the parking garage this morning and was taking off my helmet and gloves, one of the people who work for the parking lot company saw me and yelled at me about it being "Pretty cold to ride a scooter on a day like today".

I said, "Naah! It's a great day to Ride!"

And it was! And it will be this afternoon when the temperatures are expected to be in the 50's. I might even get hot with all those liners being used.

And then I remembered that nagging thought that I had forgotten this morning. And I realized it was my office keys that I had forgotten. Oh well.....
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Ride On and Carpe Diem, my friends.
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A Much Needed Mental Health Ride

I had lunch with a friend yesterday who used to ride a lot, but doesn't anymore. He has a very fine old BMW  motorcycle (1970's vintage) just sitting in his garage gathering dust. I've coveted that bike a bit, but it would be a "project".

At any rate, he asked me if I had been riding much. He knew I hadn't ridden much for a year or so after my heart problems developed last year. I said I had been riding some, but not much, and not near as much as I would like to, but...

We've been really friggin' busy lately, both at work and at home. I hadn't even been commuting on Max to work very often. Last week the weather didn't cooperate on some days, but there were other days I just needed the car for one reason or another.

But the point is, I needed to ride. Bad! And today was the day. Ne need for the car. No big appointments with clients. Hell. I might even take the afternoon off! And go for a ride! No fixed destination! Just Ride! Go ahead and burn some gasoline!

I tell friends that riding is a form of mental therapy for me. It renews me. It makes me forget about problems. It is hugely meaningful to me. And when I don't get enough of it, well, things just sometimes don't go right. I get cranky! Bitchy! I throw things! I curse!

But when I turn the key and hear that engine come to life, well, you know, you get a little smile on your face, and you start thinking about more fun things. Things like just noticing the weather a little bit. 47 degrees this morning. Thought about switching to a heavier glove, but just thought about it and didn't pull the heavier ones out from storage. (Now just where did I put them?).

The vents were still open on my helmet. At 40 mph the breeze on portions of my chin and head were noticeably "cool". The denim jacket was plenty warm, no problem there. Feet and hands just fine. But I really like riding in this kind of temperature. It is just cool enough to be invigorating and keep you awake. But you don't sweat.

But best of all....
I didn't think about the tasks that awaited me at work,
I didn't think about the do it yourself projects we have going on at the house,
I didn't think about changes in tax laws,
I didn't think about the problems with my heart, (even though I'm doing much better, physically),
I didn't think about the upcoming elections (One of those silly dudes is going to win, unfortunately!?),
I didn't think about global warming (One of my neighbors thinks it is some sort of commie plot),
I didn't think about the fact that my neighbor is a moron (Okay, maybe I did),

I just rode!
And I watched the traffic!
And I followed a dude on a Vespa for a mile or so!
And I pulled up to a stoplight next to another dude on a Harley (Did his motor have to be so friggin' loud),
And I had to make a rather quick stop at another light when it turned yellow on me rather abruptly,
And I had to keep an eye on what was behind me when I made that quick stop,
And I heard some birds,
And I noticed some kids on a school bus,
And I noticed the sunlight reflecting on some of the downtown buildings,
And I noticed a building being remodeled and wondered what the new purpose of the building was,

You get the drift!

And you know what else?

There'll be more mental health benefits this afternoon!

Ride On, and Carpe Diem, my friends!
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Just One of Many Little Commutes

The Sometimes Frustrating Left Turn

As soon as I leave the driveway I need to make a left turn onto a fairly busy street. Some mornings the traffic seems to just form a big hole, like the parting of the Red Sea in the bible story, allowing me to quickly enter the flow of traffic. Other days? Not so much. Today? One of those Not So Much days.

Seemed like I was there forever. Don't want to get impatient. Can't afford to make a mistake. The collision of a motorcycle with a car or truck is a simple exercise in physics, the vehicle with more mass will always win. So I wait.
And I wait some more.
Okay, the right side of the street is opening up, maybe I can make a move. I look back left..... Well, Crap!
Wait some more.
To pass the time I adjust the mirrors a bit, even though they really didn't need it.
Geez, now it looks like just a slow steady stream of cars in both directions.
And I wait,, (thinking, what am I going to do today at work)
Okay, now it looks a little better, there's a hole in traffic developing to my left
And a hole developing to my right,
But then i  realize that the holes will not get here to my street at the same time.
Don't the traffic engineers of this city know I am trying to make this little left turn on a lot of mornings? Can't they somehow re-program the street lights a half mile away in either direction to make my life easier?
Come On? It's most every day just before or maybe a little after 8:00 am. Why? Why? Why?

Oh you get the drift

I err on the side of caution usually. I try not to be in a hurry.

As usual, eventually, I am able to enter the street and start making my way downtown.

Whew!

The Frequently Annoying Foggy Visor

We had a touch of rain overnight last night. Just a touch. Officially 2/10 of an inch. Big Damn deal. I'm not complaining. We badly need the rain. And it will still be a good day to ride to work today. No rain predicted during the day today.

But the upshot was that it was pretty muggy this morning. Every time I breathed into the helmet, yeah, you guessed it, Foggy Visor. In fact a good part of the time I was waiting to make that left turn previously mentioned, I had to leave my visor partially opened. Not all the way open, but partially. And as soon as I would close it, the fog would return. At just about every intersection I encountered today where I had to stop, I had to open up the visor a bit. Not bad, just a bit annoying. Oh well, there are worse things in life.

The Surprising Water Puddle

There was a lot of traffic today. Some days are like that. I left the house this morning a little after 8:00 am. Lots of cars. I had to wait a little bit just to make a right turn at Central and Woodlawn. Usually I get right through there. At this time of year, the sun is low in the morning sky. Not a problem for me, I ride westerly in the morning, but I am cautious about drivers going the other way being able to see me sometimes. Don't take everything for granted, you know. But people seemed to be careful this morning, just lots of people.

At one intersection there was a pretty good size puddle of water from last night's rain. The streets were otherwise dry as a bone, but this one puddle was creating splashes as cars went through it. This also cause the pavement to be wet for awhile after the puddle as the cars dropped the splashes back on to the street. There was enough traffic this morning that I wasn't able to see the water puddle until just before I encountered it. No real problem, just sort of a surprise. As I rode past I wondered how long it had been since Max's tires had been wet. It's been awhile, I'm sure. Just not sure how long. But, long it had to be.

The Aggressive(?) Lane Change

The ride downtown was largely uneventful, just lots of traffic this morning. I usually just maintain my space in the flow, keeping an eye out for what is around me, front, back, left or right of me. As I approach the downtown area, it is necessary to make another left turn and ride south a few blocks to get to where I park. I can make this turn at about 3 different intersections, just depending on my whim, but I do have a favorite place to make the turn.

But this morning there was a steady stream of cars in the lane left of me and I could tell I was going to have a little difficulty just changing lanes in order to be able to make the left turn. Now this has happened before, and on rare occasions, I just let the flow of traffic take me along even if I go past my favorite street to turn on. It's no problem to go back a bit. But I could see that it was pretty tight in the lane next to me and I didn't want to move into too small of a space and freak out the other drivers, much less me.

But then a red light appeared ahead. I was going to be first in line (in the right lane), and all those other cars were in a long line in the left lane. So I decided to gun it a little when the light turned green, hopefully get far enough ahead  of the car to the left of me to enable the lane change. Now, I knew this wouldn't work if the guy to the left of me at the light was going to also take out a little fast from the red light. But he didn't. And I easily got well in front and was able to change lanes. I hope I impressed the hell out of them! Oh, not really, but it worked out safely and fine.

The Smelly Parking Garage

Last week Max and I went together almost every day to work. On Thursday last week though, we arrived at the parking garage to a strong and distinct smell of a skunk. Yeah, you know what I'm talking about. Well, with the Labor Day weekend just past, I was hoping that the smell would have abated to just a distant memory, but alas, a faint smell of skunk still lingers in the garage. We narrowed the smell down to a pickup truck that we think is the culprit, but given the nature of the smell, our investigation didn't last long. We just wanted to get out of there and away from the smell. We have considered leaving a note on the windshield, but didn't think it would do any good, and we're not completely sure it was that truck.

In Summary

So today's ride was 1) Sometimes Frustrating, 2) Frequently Annoying, 3) Surprising, 4) Aggressive (?), and 5) Smelly.

Oh and I forgot to mention that the temperature was about 68F, sunny skies, almost no wind, and with clean crisp air after last night's rain. Just about perfect conditions with the possible exception of numbers 1 thru 5 above.

In short, it was a great ride!
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Ride On and Carpe Diem, my Friends,

Jimbo
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There's a Poem Here Today

Here's a poem I ran across that has some special significance for me. I first read it at a time in my life when I was recovering from critical illness and having doubts about my health and longevity. I take a lot less for granted these days. This poem is a good reminder to me that each day is special. 

Look to this day;

For it is life, the very life of life.

In its brief course

Lie all the verities and realities of your existence.

The bliss of growth,

The glory of action

The splendour of achievement

Are but experiences of time.

For yesterday is but a dream

And tomorrow is only a vision;

And today well-lived, makes

Yesterday a dream of happiness

And every tomorrow a vision of hope.

Look well therefore to this day;

Such is the salutation to the ever-new dawn.

Kalidasa

For extra credit you can look up the author in Wikipedia here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K%C4%81lid%C4%81sa

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Ride On and Carpe Diem my friends.

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A New "Gut" Feeling

I have this little rule that hopefully might "save" me when I am on the road someday with a mechanical problem. When I am working on the bike, I try to only use tools that I keep on the bike. That way I should always have a needed tool with me for most minor repairs. Oh, and in true Jack Riepe fashion, I always have my MagLite flashlight with me, and I used it today.

Most of the tools stored on the bike. I mostly use the screwdriver and the nut driver.

Today's mission is to investigate the wiring of the starter circuit on Max. I checked certain things such as the connection of the negative battery terminal to the grounding wire on the scooter frame. It looked okay. I thought it would.

 Max's seat can be easily removed. Easy to do.

Undoing six bolts with a 10mm nut driver is all it takes to remove the seat.

Once the seat is removed I can see the starter relay (left) and the fuses (center) on the inside wall of the scooter. I am now suspecting that the starter relay is the source of my starting problem. I don't want to replace it yet, but I wanted to see how hard it might be to swap it out if I desire to do so.

With the seat removed, there's lots of goodies inside.

In just a few minutes I was able to remove the starter relay. I temporarily violated my own rule as it became apparent that I could not get at the bolts on the relay from on top, but had to get at from the side. So I pulled out a small socket wrench to do the job. (Shame on me)

The infamous starter relay or solenoid from Max. Don't see anything wrong with it, it's all sealed.

The purpose of this "gizmo" is to provide a mechanism whereby the electricity going through the actual starter switch on the handlebar is much less than the electricity required to power the actual starter motor. I have replaced this on a car before, many years ago.

If you want to, note the small wires leading from the relay are the same color as the wires going through the starter switch on the handlebar as seen in the next picture. The bigger screw on posts on the relay are attached to bigger wires from the battery and then to the starter motor. I briefly looked at all these wires to see if they might be damaged. They all appeared to be okay.

Looking inside the handlebar at the wires leading to the starter switch.

Okay, to ease my guilt about using a tool not stored on Max, I steal a 10mm open end wrench from my tool cabinet and keep it with Max's tools.

Theft of a 10mm wrench

I then use that 10m wrench to out the relay back in the bike. I get the battery back tomorrow after an extended testing. Then I can start testing the relay and see if it is the culprit.

My "gut" feel now is that this relay is the problem to starting Max

Lets hope that it is the relay. It will be easy to replace. I might have to wait for shipment of the part since there is no dealer here in Wichita anymore, but should be easy to find the part.

Oh, and by the way, I cut myself shaving the other day.

There and Back Again

"It is good to have an end to journey toward;

but it is the journey that matters, in the end"

Ursula K. LeGuin

I find it amazing how consumed I can be with preparations for a trip. First you get the idea for the trip. Then you look at Google Maps and a road atlas for possible routes. No interstates for me and I prefer county roads and state highways to US highways. You may even need to revise those route plans when circumstances change. You need to decide what clothes and baggage to take. Because of hot weather, maybe a small cooler would be a good idea, for water, gatorade and munchies. I have been planning a little trip with Max. It will be the longest trek I have ever undertaken by myself on two wheels. Okay, so it's not a monumental amount of mileage to many readers. And it's not a great deal longer than the trip I took up to the Topeka area last fall. But since most of my riding is in the form of commuting with some occasional weekend excursions, it will be very significant to me. When planning you might consider tools to have along. I keep screwdrivers, wrenches, fuses, and many other things (like rain gear) on Max anyway. But one item I didn't have was a flat tire repair kit, so I purchased one this morning. Will probably never use it, but just in case...... (Jack Riepe is partially to blame for this added cost after he recently posted an excellent article about fixing a flat.) I need to change the oil before I go. I am only a little over halfway between scheduled oil changes, but the trip will put me way over, so just to be a bit anal, I will change it before I go. I'll be sure to check other fluid levels as well maybe tighten a few bolts. Max also needs a bath. A few days before I go you can see me constantly checking the long range weather forecasts. If it looks really crappy, I might cancel out. But this time of year I can almost guarantee that it will be hot and sunny with little chance of anything else. That's okay with me. And then, what accessories do I take? Make sure to have the cell phone. I downloaded the GPS program to the phone thinking it might be handy. Must not forget the cell phone charger either. I could listen to music from my phone while I ride to pass the time, but that can run down the battery. Should I get another cell phone battery? Ahhh, I like to hear the world around me anyway and don't want the potential distraction of the music. I can always hum a song if I want to. Done that before. Then there is that old nemesis for me, camera batteries. I seem to always find a way to have them run out of juice on me. I have already purchased a new supply. The trip I took last fall was pretty leisurely. I stopped a lot and took many pictures. This time I need to be a bit more determined about rollin' down the highway, so picture stops may be a bit less frequent. But pictures will be taken. Part of the excitement to a trip is the unknown. Places I haven't been to before. Will the people be nice? Will the food be good? What's the scenery like? Will I, like Sarah Palin, be able to see Russia from my destination? The circumstances are that I don't even know the exact date of departure, or for that matter, the exact destination. There are various possible scenarios and I have routes and contingencies planned for each possible outcome. There is a particular need to be flexible with the plans. It is a bit challenging and exciting at the same time. And I am okay with all of that. I think the reward will be worth it. It's just a two day trip, there and back again. I will cross a state line and it's not the closest one. And there is a very definite goal and purpose to the trip. It will be exciting. It will also be freakin' hot! But as you can probably tell, I am getting more than a little excited.

"The Journey is the Destination"

I recalled this quote while composing this post. I wasn't even sure where it came from or who said it first. Turns out, after I Googled it, there are a lot of quotes like it attributable to various people. In this case the destination, even as yet not exactly determined, will be a blast. The company I will keep will be first rate. But the journey itself will be just as important and fun no matter which route is taken. Many people may not understand that. The more I think about it, the more I believe and understand the quote. Other people have had it figured out for a long time.

Brisket

One of our cats, "Mo", looked up at me from his sleeping place on a couch with an expression on his face that said, "What the heck are you doing? It's not 6:30 yet!" All the animals in our "pack" know that 6:30 am is the appointed feeding time. It is hard coded into their psyche to wake up at this time and expect food from their "human" providers. Alarm clocks are not generally needed in our house. Today, though my cell phone notified me it was time to get up and start "smokin'".

At 4:30 I was tested by my photographic ability to take a picture in almost no light. I used the flash. It was easier, and I wasn't real awake yet.

In fact it was 4:30 am and still very dark outside. I was captivated by the smells of the air on a lazy Sunday morning: The meat was drunk after spending a night bathing in a copious amount of Jack Daniels. The aroma of the alcohol was present as I put on a rub of fresh grown herbs (from our garden), salts and sugars. The smell of the oak and mulberry starting to burn in the firebox of the smoker was somehow sort of sensual.

The drunk meat is placed on the cooker after a generous application of a rub.

Then there were the sounds. The birds were starting to chirp. I wonder what they actually say to each other at this early time. The neighbor's outdoor fountain was making its usual sounds. They have a tall privacy fence. We can't see the fountain, but can hear it. An occasional car would go by on Woodlawn Ave just a couple of houses away. The neighbor's yippy dogs were asleep. No complaint about that. It was very quiet.

There is something very primitive or tribal in nature to the process of burning wood. A charcoal base is used just to get things started. All wood fuel thereafter

The sky was just barely starting to turn lighter as the sun neared the horizon. It would still be awhile before the sun made a blazing appearance. The full moon bathed the yard in a soft light as only the moon can.

Crappy attempt to get a shot of the barely light sky, but you get the idea.

Eventually, as time marched on, the dogs let me know what time it was. I had just put new wood on the fire and went back into the house to feed them. Later today it would get hot, maybe with some thunderstorms, but this morning I was enjoying the cool air and being outside in it. It could only have been better if I was out riding on this absolutely beautiful morning.

A shot toward part of the garden as the light continues to slowly invade the back yard

I went back outside. I got out the laptop and finished up a couple of scheduled posts to the blog. The sun eventually made its appearance and the newspaper arrived. I picked up a few "dog bombs" from the yard knowing that other humans were coming by today and wanted to be sure that there were no "hazards" in the yard.

Sorry Bobskoot, it's all in farenheit, but this is the ideal temperature goal for about 7 hours of cooking

The other humans were coming over today to sample some brisket that I was "cookin'". I had not done a brisket in the smoker for awhile. It is not a lot of work, but to do it right, takes a long time (at least 6 hours) at a low (225-275 F) heat. So most of the effort is just keeping the fire going and watching the temperature gauge occasionally.

The cooker in its glory. It's starting to get a bit lighter out.

About every 45 minutes or so I put a few more chunks of wood on the fire and check the temperature. Other than that, there is not much to it. There is much time available to enjoy being outside and enjoy the sights , smells and sounds of the early morning.

It bocomes time to create a "mop" for the meat to cook in after wrapping in foil. We actually didn't use the tequila in the mop. (The tequila was for later) I threw in a few spices in the mop as well, but not much, mostly pepper.

I was amazed to discover the origin of the lime juice. Conch, do you know Nellie and Joe? .

The sun started to warm the air as the smoke from the fire continued to bellow from the vent atop the smoker. I turned the meat over at about 7:30am and although it had a long way to go, it was starting to brown a bit and looked good.

The ceremonial wrapping of the brisket. A double layer of heavy duty foil with lots of the mop inside.

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To barbecue experts, the creation of a "smoke ring" in the brisket is a desired goal. A faint discoloration just inside the surface of the meat from the smoke is recognized in smoking competitions as a sign of quality cooking. It is not as easy to do as it sounds. I have had success at times, but not every time. The meat we bought came from a mennonite farm near here, not a huge industrial packing plant. No growth hormones were used and the cattle are raised on farms using time honored traditions. It is much more expensive than what would be in a grocery store, but amazingly well worth it.

A shot of the garden. Tomato plants on the right, some Anaheim peppers on the left, Cilantro, Lettuce and Spinach. We have had some awesome salads already this summer.

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I had to ask for a cut of the meat with the fat still on it, and the guy at the meat counter of the local butcher shop we like, seemed to sense immediately why I wanted it that way. They had some "in the back" he said. We smiled at each other as he put it on the scale (close to 9 lbs). He knew instinctively that I was going to smoke it and the fat would almost melt and disintegrate into the meat and provide the flavors desired by those familiar with the concept.

A shot of the herb garden. Basil, thyme, rosemary, oregano and lavender all fight for space in this little barrel. The oregano and basil are winning so far.

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My smoker is almost perfect for this purpose. There are many more revered types of smokers out there on the market but this one does just fine for us. The firebox sits to the side of the cooking area providing indirect heat and smoke to the cooking area.

After 7 hours I check the temperature with a meat thermoneter. I was aimimg for 160F. Turned out to be 190F. Very nicely done and very moist with the use of the mop.

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After close to 3 hours, with my hope for a smoke ring firmly in place, I wrap the brisket in foil and pour a mop of various fluids on top. Some experts don't wrap the brisket, but wrapping helps speed up an already very slow cooking process. After all, I don't have all day to do this. Humans are coming by between 12:00 and 1:00 pm and like the dogs at the 6:30 am feeding, they will demand to eat what by then will smell fantastic.

The first couple of slices are made. I am ecstatic. The smoke ring is almost perfect.

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We had a brief rainshower at about 10:30 am. It managed to make the air very humid. With a high temperature today expected to be in the upper 80's and a possibility for thunderstorms, this was bound to be a very sticky day. The sun came out with a vengeance after the rain making the air feel very heavy compared to what it was like at 4:30am.

Madeline, our Shepherd/Husky is always curious as to the droppings of liquids as they come out of the cooker. The little coffee can is supposed to catch them all, but a few drops were found to the benefit of the dog.

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I placed the last bits of wood on the fire at about 12:15pm. Except for a brief period of time during the rain when the cooking temperature dropped a little below 200, I was able today to keep the temperature between 225 and 275 most of the time. Aiming for a prescribed temperature with a wood smoker isn't always successful. Some woods burn hotter than others. It takes some experience with your equipment. I was happy just to stay close today.

More slicing ensues. It's hard not to eat it all right there, but others will be angry if we ate it all.

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I hadn't even opened up the oven portion of the cooker since I wrapped up the brisket at about 8:30am. You have to fight the curiosity to open it up and look at it. Opening it up can drop the temperature quite a bit and cause more cooking time. I placed my faith in the Barbecue Gods that all would turn out well in the end and a special nirvana would be created within the confines of the foil surrounding the beef.

Let the feast begin.

Ockham's Razor

If two hypotheses are equally accurate and neither appears more probable than the other, the simple one is to be preferred over the complicated one, because simplicity is practical. Where the hell am I going with this? Let me explain. Just soon after some warranty work was performed on my scooter recently, I began experiencing a starting problem. Not enough juice from the battery to engage the starter even though the lights and accessories all seemed to work properly (and yes, no blown fuses). I was so mad at the repair shop that did the warranty work that I began to suspect that maybe they did something wrong. Was there still some sort of short somewhere? Did they cause this? My early suspicion was the wiring to the horn which was the subject of a maintenance bulletin. It had caused a blown fuse about a year ago.

The horn next to the coolant overflow reservoir. The wires to the horn originally ran underneath the radiator, sometimes causing a short. They have been moved now.

It was also suggested by a good friend that maybe I just had a bad battery. I took the battery out and took it to a local battery store. They said it was pretty dead, but at no charge they said they would attempt to charge it up, test it and see if it was good or not. They did charge it up and test the battery and pronounced the battery to be healthy. Two days later, the scooter didn't start again. Hmmmmm I had been working with my good friend who helped me do some of the maintenance work I needed to get done on Max. The morning after we had worked on Max I noticed this box by my garage. A new battery was in there along with a trickle charger. A note said to try this battery out and see if that fixed the starting problem. If it didn't, then we would have to look further into some sort of electrical problem.

A box containing a battery, a charger and some extra coolant. A good friend is invaluable.

In trying to diagnose what my problem was, there seemed to be two possibilities: 1) I had a weak battery, pretty simple to fix. Or 2) There was a short somewhere causing a drain to the system. Would be potentially hard to track down and difficult to isolate. The timing of the starting problem closely coincided with the time that my scooter was in the repair shop. I didn't like those guys anyway. And the battery store said the battery was good and should maybe last 5 years or so (it was only 2 years old). So it was easy to assume I had a problem that might be tricky to solve.

The SYM has a 4 valve engine. Intake valves on top, exhaust below. There are 2 valve covers (the top shown here) held on the engine by 3 bolts. Two bolts are easily accessible, the third is under the bracket that holds the seat. Had to get that one from the other side. Oh well, if it was easy everybody would do it.

But, as you can maybe surmise by now, the simple solution turned out to be right and I made the whole affair seem more complicated and difficult than it really turned out to be. The new battery did the trick and the starting problem went away.

The exposed valve tappets on the bottom of the engine. We thought we might have to disassemble all of the body panels off the scooter to get at them, but turned out it wasn't that bad. Just a little inconvenient. We did have to take part of the floor off. A repair stand would help at this point but a little garage floor dust never hurt anybody.

Why is it that we sometimes assume the worst? Is it human nature? Is it because I had such a bad experience at that repair shop? But anyway, Max is now back to being his old dependable self. All is well with the universe. I have now learned a lot about Max with the help of my good friend. I have changed the engine oil, changed the gear oil, flushed and refilled the coolant, changed the spark plug, replaced an air filter and even inspected the valve clearances. The valves were all spot on and didn't need adjusting. I know how to do all these tasks now. And I replaced the battery.

The old and new air filters.

I still haven't re-set the clock though.

Maybe someday I'll tackle that too.

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Many thanks to my friend for kindly "showing me the ropes".

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Common Sense in Kansas

From a dictionary: Sage One venerated for experience, judgment, and wisdom. adj. sag·er, sag·est 1. Having or exhibiting wisdom and calm judgment. 2. Proceeding from or marked by wisdom and calm judgment: sag From a thesaurus: Sage - a mentor in spiritual and philosophical topics who is renowned for profound wisdom Hakham - a Hebrew title of respect for a wise and highly educated man mahatma - (Hinduism) term of respect for a brahmin sage mentor, wise man - a wise and trusted guide and advisor From Conchscooter: dear cpa : Spring in Kansas must mean there will soon be lots of people out protesting aginst common sense. Photos please. One day, quite innocently, I had left a comment on Conchscooter's fine blog, The Key West Diary. In my comment I had merely stated that it was just beginning to feel like spring here on the plains after a cold winter. What you just read above was part of his response. Little did I know how omniscient Conch was. That same day I received this notice. By E-Mail.

Yup! Spring is almost here!

. And Sarah is coming to town!

. Will she have notes on her hand?

Will she bring her rifle with her?

Will she sell out our new arena?

. Will parking be a problem?

. Will she be treated like a Rockstar?

Will she try to answer questions that she is not prepared for?

. Will she say "You Betcha"?

. Will she call for Jihad against all she finds offensive in the world? .

Will she come out swinging?

And finally;

. And the most important question;

. Will the "all knowing" Conchscooter, the Sage of The Key West Diary, suddenly emerge as the Messiah that the civilized world has been waiting for?

. How did Conch know that there would be a total abandonment of common sense in Kansas this spring? Makes me wonder!

. So many questions.

. I may miss the Sarah Palin event.

. I am going to go for a ride on Max!

. Your thoughts?

New Year's Resolutions

I never do this. Never actually make a list. I may think about a lot of things that I would like to change for the new year. In the past, some of those changes may have occured. Others didn't. But this year, What the Hell! Here goes! 1. Be a better husband She knows what a piece of crap I can be at times. 2. Be a better father Room for some improvement there too. 3. Stop a couple of bad habits Not going to get specific here, but I know what they are. 4. Ride More And safely , too, I might add. 5. Remember to stop and smell the roses Way too easy to get bogged down with worries about responsibilities. It doesn't take that long to take a small break and look around a bit. 6. Take good care of Max He has taken pretty good care of me. 7. Listen to people People feel better about themselves when they know someone is actually hearing them. 8. The Dalai Lama said: If you want other people to be happy; practice compassion. If you want to be happy; practice compassion. 9. Did I say Ride More? If I did, sorry, but it deserves mentioning twice. It makes me feel alive and I am convinced that it helps make me a better person. So there!

Soulcraft (Sort of a Book Report)

One of my hobbies is woodworking and home remodeling. I fondly remember my 7th grade Wood Shop class. Our teacher was Mr. Pauls, who was an older man. Very patient and gentlemanly and perfect for the class he taught.

Our first assignment was to make a sanding block out of a small piece of pine. It was supposed to be about 1 1/2 inches wide by about 3 inches long and, of course, as square as possible on all corners.

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The piece of pine given to us was a bit larger than the supposed eventual dimensions. We were given as tools a block plane, a handsaw and the vice on the shop bench. That was it. .

Mine ended up far from perfect. It was a bit short on one side, not very square in every respect and the ends were a bit rough because I had a little trouble mastering the plane on the side of the wood where the wood grains were exposed. Using a block plane can be a little trickier to use than at first glance. .

I learned a lot from Mr. Pauls in that class.

I never did take the Metal Shop class although in retrospect, I wish I had.

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I have a couple of clients that run a machine shop and make aircraft parts for some of the airplane manufacturers here in Wichita. It is a small shop, about 10 employees, and these guys can do almost anything with any kind of metal. Their handiwork and precision is really amazing.

I wish now that I had taken that Metal Shop class because I would have maybe learned a few tricks of the trade that might have helped me later on in life.

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Like the time I overtightened a screw on the points inside the distributor of my old '69 VW bus and ended up ruining the distributor. Oh well, it gave me the opportunity to buy a new Porsche distributor which added maybe 2 hp.

Whoopee!!

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I thought it was very cool to successfully install a Porsche distributor on a VW engine.

. But working with wood or metal was not to be my calling in life. As I think back on how I ended up doing what I do for a living, I recall a song by Supertramp. The song is entitled "The Logical Song" and some of the lyrics are as follows.

. Then they sent me away to teach me how to be sensible, logical, responsible, practical And they showed me a world where I could be so dependable, clinical, intellectual, cynical

(and later on in the song)

. They said watch what you say or they'll be calling you a radical, a liberal, fanatical, criminal Won't you sign up your name, we'd like to feel you're acceptable, respectable, presentable, a vegetable

. I sometimes find it a bit ironic how I ended up doing what I do for a living. I am not sure I fit the mold. I am not sure anybody really does.

. But I am not really complaining. I like what I do. But I also like being a bit ornery and trying not to conform to what I am maybe supposed to do (or be) all the time.

Sharon had recently suggested that I read Shopcraft as Soulcraft by Matthew B Crawford. In part it is about the fact that he had been educated and trained to be someone or something, very intellectual, that he discovered that he didn't really like as much as he liked working with his hands. He ended up starting a motorcycle repair shop.

. There is an old adage that says:

. "Do what you love, the money will follow."

. Not really sure how true that is. If I might, I could rephrase it as:

. "Do what you love, the satisfaction will follow."

. The book Sharon recommended is full of this kind of insight and reflection. I recommend it.

. The author is no dummy. He has a doctorate degree and I am sure he is successful in life being the person he was educated to be.

. But one of the themes in his book is that making and fixing things with our hands has lost much importance in today's society. Even though I don't do this for a living, I have always enjoyed working with my hands and one point that Crawford makes is that it can be quite noble to work with your hands.

. He compares being a mechanical repairman with being a doctor in that both professions involve the repair of something that the repairman did not design originally. This can make it much more difficult, because the overall picture and theory of the design is not always readily apparent. It can require some careful thought and analysis.

. Crawford also says that part of the enjoyment to being a repairman is the opportunity to get completely mentally involved in the activity. I can do that sometimes, even with my regular profession. But doing it while fixing something with your hands can be very enjoyable also. There can be a really enjoyable sense of accomplishment when the job is done.

In doing some electrical work on my home awhile back, I was trying to diagnose a problem we were having with some light switches. It involved some 3 way switches. The use of 3 way switches was to enable you to turn off or on some lights either at the top or bottom of a stairway in our home. I spent a lot of time just trying to figure out why the wiring had been done originally in the manner it was. I finally determined that the electrician had just screwed up and had connected some wires incorrectly.

. But as I was working on it I realized that I had been concentrating very hard and my mind really got into a zone of extreme concentration. Then when I eventually figured out the problem and repaired it correctly, there was a really nice feeling of satisfaction.

. Crawford has written the book in a very scholarly manner. He quotes Aristotle and Pirsig frequently throughout the book. He includes many anecdotes from his experiences repairing motorcycles and because of that, the book is enjoyable and meaningful.

. At least is was to me.

Many of the readers of this are well acquainted with the joy and frustrations related to working on mechanical vehicles such as motorcycles and scooters. I specifically mention Domingo Chang and Stacy, who have indirectly encouraged me to take on more of my own maintenance chores with my scooter. I am sure that I may never become a full blooded mechanic. But their examples give us all an insight into their world of maintenance and repair.

It is something to be appreciated and encouraged.

. Crawford's book is highly recommended by me.