Random Thoughts

Good Sunday.   Wife and I watched our Pittsburgh Penguins end the Philadelphia flyers season so the flyers can go golfing tomorrow.  HA!

I thought it was awesome that they kept chanting CROSBY SUCKS right up until he scored again to put the final nail in your coffin.   Yeah, that chant works for you.
See ya next year fellas.

In fact, the flyers remind me of Adam Lambert from American Idol.   I like them about the same:

On another note, my brother Pat got  his iron butt 1000 tonight.    I’m happier than hell for him.   1000 miles in 17 hours.   Hit road blocks from wrecked semi’s in New Mexico, but split lanes and jumped barries to make it through.    My brother Pat is a fucking stud.  Here’s to you bro.   You’re as hardcore as they come, and I’m proud to be your brother.   I owe you a bottle of fine single malt scotch.

Great day today, and still another day in the weekend.

You know what, my wife is pretty damn sweet.   She loves Extreme Makeover home edition, and I like Overhaulin.   Yeah, I’ve watched EMHO with her, but the fact that makes her amazing to me is she watches Overhaulin’ Reruns with me.

She’s with me when its good, and she bunkers down with me when it’s bad.   In my experience, that’s a a rarity.   Straight up rarity.   I sincerely love my wife.

I am.  Gasoline…. (so is Mrs Zip).   If I had to do it all over again honey, the only thing I’d change is I’d find you earlier.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFHbGuSRAwg&hl=en&fs=1]

Easy like Sunday Morning.     Life has never been more stressful, but I’m getting hardened about swimming upstream.

Clint and I sat at the bar last night and planned out a 2800 mile ride to calgary on May 23rd.   Ill head out friday morning and ride the 1120 miles into High River, Alberta Canada in a single session, meeting him at the border, and I’ll earn my Iron Butt Certification.     My friends say I can’t do it.   I’ll definately do it.   I’ve done 600 miles in a day, and was fresh as a fucking daisy.    I can do the other 500 miles no problem.     Granted, I didn’t wake up untill noon, but I was spry and energetic as a 16 year old.   I’ll do it.    I actually can’t wait.
Because I’m easy.   Easy like sunday morning.

Times are indeed tight. I sold the fatboy this week to square up a little on some debt and it feels good to have some debt taken care of.

I need to ride. I’ve got the Street Glide back and I need to load up the tent and sleeping bag and find me a place in the desert to ride to and watch the stars. It’s impossible to have a cheaper vacation.

The stock market crashed in 1929. This is what they rode then:

After the crash of 29, they figured it out. in 1934 in the heart of the great depression, they designed bikes that still copied to this day.

We’ll figure it out. We have to. We just will…

From a recent ad campaign by Harley Davidson, which I tend to believe:

“Over the last 105 years in the saddle, we’ve seen wars, conflicts, depression, recession, resistance and revolution. We’ve watched a thousand hand-wringing pundits disappear in our rear-view mirror. But every time this country has come out stronger than before. Chrome and asphalt has always put distance between you and whatever the world can throw at you….. If 105 years have proved one thing, it’s that fear sucks and it doesn’t last long. So screw it, let’s ride.”

Right now I know half a dozen people who have lost their Jobs due to the economy.    All I know is I have a wife who looks to me to keep her and our 3 kids safe, to keep them fed and keep us together.  Come hell or high water I will do that.    What will come of this?  I can only think alot of good.     We’ll rely on each other more.  We’ll save more.   The economy will be more real, not based on someone trading commodities out of fuel.

Stick together.   We’ll work through whatever comes ahead.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rmt-u1lTG0&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999&border=1]

Yeah, Pretty dark.

This weekend, I’ll finally be riding.   My wife is going to run me down to Phoenix to get the street glide.   From there, I’ll be draining my entire winter stress out onto the road and I cannot wait.   It’s all I can think about and it keeps me going.

Ever feel life has you stretched so completely tight that you aren’t yourself?  That your easy decisions in life  — the very basics of who you are are a bit out of wack?   The economy, marriage, business, work, friends and everything else in life I’ve worked to build are weighing on me.   I have no doubt that 1,000 miles on the open road will cure that.   It always cures it.   It feels like the stress of life drains out on the road a drop at a time and is refilled by the best parts of life:   Courage.   Love.   Strength.   Inspiration.    Monday, I have no doubt I’ll be a new person and be back to myself, ready to kick ass and take names.

And its only tuesday.   Damn.

This song seems to make sense today:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsLylyEoLDo&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999&border=1]

My Street Glide is in Phoenix and it’s driving me nuts.   I need it back.  It’s not  a want, its a need now.   Work has been intense the last few weeks changing over into an entirely new and great direction, but with the weather getting completely rideable and not having my touring bike I gotta admit is really wearing on me.   I need to go for a long and lonely ride into the desert, put my feet up on my touring pegs and drain all my stress out onto the road for 6 hours.   I need to camp out in the desert with a flask of Scotch and sleep under the stars.    I need to wake up in the morning, eat some beef jerky from my saddle bags and drink coffee while I wait for it to warm up and take the 6 hours home.

Once it’s back, I gotta tell you I’m never parking my bike anywhere other than my garage.   It’s like leaving one of my kids down there.   It seemed like a good idea when I did it, but with me not being able to bust out and go for a ride right now is all I can think about.    Nothing sets my head right like my bike and an open road with no stress.   My brother mike calls it going on walkabout.    I need to go on walkabout.

I found this picture on the web and photoshopped it up a bit.   It’s a road I will hit this summer, on route 66 in New Mexico.   Its a gorgeous road.