Random Thoughts

I’m kind of jacked up about it. Looking forward to a little time in the saddle.

I had meant to go today, but I pushed it back a day. Yesterday morning I went out on the back patio to enjoy a cup of coffee, and ended up pissed off. The impomptu lawn we’d planted 2 weeks earlier just wasn’t working. I’m no farmer, and noone would ever accuse me of having a green thumb . What I saw wasn’t working. I had sprouted more weeds than lawn, and my excavating background quite honestly didn’t like the final grade of it all. We needed to make a change. Missus Zip is a sport, she got out of bed early and we rented a tiller, and plowed the whole thing up by 7 AM. I then raked that thing out properly, with a 2% grade going to the back end of the yard to account for drainage. We planted seed, and spread manure over the whole thing to hold in water for the seeds to sprout. The kids are now in charge of weed control. I think we got things on the right track now.

It looks like I’m now working from home for the foreseeable future. I just couldn’t look at a lawn with bad grading and weed sprouts, and no lawn. If this is my office now, I want to make it the way I want it.

That has absolutely nothing to do with motorcycle riding. Sorry, I’ll get back to the point.

I think I’ll head out early. It’s gonna be hot AF in the valley, and I’d like to get to Lake Havasu and up into Oatman by noon. From there, the trip should be great.

I gotta say, I love having a nav on this bike. Dammit, I’ve fought technology in riding, but its nice to pre-plan a route. I stare a lot at maps anyway, and before I had a nav I’ve rubbernecked past what I thought would be a good one as I passed it, but now I can plan them out and send them to my bike. Thats kind of cool to me. This trip, I’m going to ride some old route 66 alignments that I haven’t ever been on. I’m not afraid of a dirt road or two, so some of that has gone into the planning. I can handle an 800 pound bike on dirt.

A decent day tomorrow: 400 miles and another 350 the next day. It should give me some time to kick the feet up on a footpeg, make some miles and enjoy everything in between.

Got any good night riding stories? The best thing about riding at night in the desert, is the lack of sizable critters. It always has freaked me out at night riding up north at dark. The worst thing I can hit at night down here is a ground squirrel at best, or at worst a Javalina. Up north, a deer or an elk would have ruined my ride. Let alone, a moose. I was always a bit freaked out and conscious of that.

I had a German Sheppard charge me once, in Utah. He came out of nowhere, and I saw him coming. I sped up just enough for him to hit my engine guard (instead of my front tire, where i’d have rolled), and bounce off. The dog ran off, and I spend the next few hours trying to find the owner, but I never found him. Damn dog bent my engine guard.

I had a buddy once hit a shitzhu dog, out in the middle of nowhere Nevada. That one was weird. He just….”poofed”… and we rode on.

This last Easy Rider tour I had a deer cross right in front of me, out in the Texas Panhandle. It happened so quick, I only had a chance to drop my clutch but nothing more. I wasn’t paying attention, and to be honest I can’t spot deer for shit. It was about a 90 pound Doe, at It was the closest I’ve had to going down. My timing was good. Or the Doe’s was.

I’ve been lucky, thataway. The riding gods have always been with me, it seems.

Any stories out there?

It’s become ridiculous.

I find it funny that I have to wait in tight line at home depot, to get in a wide open store (where I’m now safe).

I find it funny that everyone is wearing masks, when they haven’t been proven to actually work.

I find it funny that I can’t go to a local sit down restaurant I like, but I can go to the liquor store (because its essential, somehow).

I find it funny that the people who have been preaching “support local” have been also preaching “stay at home, wear a mask and don’t go out”. While, the big box stores that they somehow hate, are thriving, because their local competition can’t take customers and are going out of business.

I find it funny that the people who are liberal are preaching safety while the people who actually have something to lose are preaching opening up.

I find the whole thing funny. This virus, somehow only transfers to things deemed “not essential”

I’m fucking done playing the game. Common sense, is the actual problem here.

I have 70+ year old inlaws that I truly love. I’m concerned about their safety.

Me? I’m not afraid of this shit at all.

I’m smart enough to keep the 2 apart. I can make that decision myself. If I get the covid, I’ll keep my in-laws safe. If they get it, I like the percentages enough I’ll still be safe enough, to take care of them.

Numbers are my worst subject, but I can add up these numbers. Fuck, Ray Charles could see this:

In 1968, a million people were killed by the hong Kong Flu. Nobody really noticed. Certainly, noone shut down everything.

In 1956, the Asian flu killed 2 million. No-one wore masks, and no one shut down private enterprise.

Hell, in 2018 — the flu killed 20-50 million. Show me proof that anyone noticed in the US, let alone shut the whole fucking thing down.

This isn’t the bubonic Plague. Yes, its more contagious than the normal flu, but it’s not nearly as deadly as society is making it out to be. I’m not dumb. I’ll take my chances, and the chances of those around me.

Something is seriously wrong here. I’m not playing the game anymore. Yes, I’m more conscious of washing my hands, but i’m more conscious of local business I love that arent going to survive the fear and end up shutting down, and then I’ll end up taking my wife to breakfast in the morning at wal-mart.

If you’re frightened of the Coronavirus, then stay home. If you’re not, let freedom ring. Everything in-between, you’re smart enough to figure out. We all know the rules by now.

Yeah, I’m done playing.

Ok, I’ve kinda accepted the world is going along with this Covid thing. I almost feel like I’m taking crazy pills — I mean, how can you not see some of this shit for what it is?

Yet, its a Friday. Maybe, just go enjoy a thing and get the hell out of the house. Making a playlist for my ride, and just glad I have a week off for R&R. I’m gonna make the most of it.

Remember this gem from the early 80s? It’s still a favorite, and going on that playlist.

Enjoy your memorial day, Ride like a motherfucker, take care of your own and remember what the actual day is all about.

I’ve been about as domesticated as I think I’m ever going to be this last month. Home? It’s great. Love my wife and kids, I love my house. But hell, you can only spend so much time in the garage, do yardwork, and stare at the walls in my bedroom slash Covid-19 office. The highlight of my month was killing that fucking gopher in the backyard, and buying a propane weed burner so I could start small fires in the backyard in the name of weed control.

I am proud of taking the jump to play around with making something out of wood. It’s pretty satisfying taking something raw as wood and making something out of it, especially since I didn’t know jack about it before. I finished up some end tables this last weekend. They’re ok, but I’m already restless to take it to the next step and I’m looking at table saws, routers, and the like. Eventually, I won’t suck at it, and I’m enjoying the hell out of the pursuit.

But I gotta get out. I’m ready to ride.

So this next weekend I have a week off. I scheduled it months ago, before all this covid shit happened. With work and the adjustment of working at home, I hadn’t thought about it all, but I’m thinking maybe hitting up some old haunts in Northern AZ and route 66 to see how thing have changed. Either way, I gotta show those places to the new bike, and if I haven’t I haven’t *really* broken her in. I’ve made enough furniture and spent enough time around the house that the wife has given me a hall pass for the trip. Hell, I’m sure she wants some for herself too.

I was born to ride. It’s in my blood somehow, and I enjoy the living hell out of it.

I hope all you biker pricks out there are ignoring the nonsense, riding it like you stole it, and enjoying your free god-given rights. If you’re not… I don’t know why you are reading my blog.

Rode 50 miles this morning with the wife to find a sit-down breakfast joint. We found a place, that mostly ignored all the state regulations. Sat on the back porch of the place, ate some killer Huevos Rancheros, and felt like a free man.

Shit is opening up in Arizona.

Life is good.

A great song.

Turned out good. I’m pretty happy with it. I’ve been talking about getting into woodworking for years, and finally jumped in and did it. I’m kinda fired up about it.

40 bucks worth of wood and a new Dewalt Mitre saw. I think end tables are next. The wife wants a white shiplap wall, with a built in entertainment center and shelves with these hanging barn door things. I hate our kitchen table, so thats gotta happen.

Yah, this is cool. I get to go buy new tools and get wife points for building home things for her. That means I can trade those points in for a week long ride at the end of the month 🙂 Plus its pretty fun, I’m not gonna lie.

I’ve been riding since my father first bought me an XR 75, at the age of 11. I’m thankful he did that.

I think the road, to me is a metaphor for life: Twists and turns, things that are unexpected, personalities that stick with you, and a lot of long miles in-between. The road it seems, is a helluva adventure. And the nice thing is, it never ends.

It’s why I can’t wait to get on the road again.

For that spot, when you’re out there in the middle of a good road, and you need something to fit the bill.

Twist that throttle; Something good is about to come up.

Randy Meisner Knew. Take it to the limit.