Post Holiday

Another year of Folsom has come and gone. There was some good and bad.

My friend Trevan came up for an extended weekend. We hadn’t seen each other in over a year but as always, it was if we had just seen each other yesterday. We fall into old habits and patterns w/o any effort. It was good to see him.

Saturday night we went to Blowoff instead of the more widely known Magnitude party. Frankly, I find the latter a bit boring. In a city were sexual contact can be moments away, it has really never held that much appeal for me. Blowoff on the other hand was quite fun. Its house style music but with an 80’s/90’s twist. In other words, a really good beat with the tracks to older songs blended into the background. The crowds tend to be guys in their 30-40’s and hairy. heh heh. Trev and I danced from 10:30 until 1:30 before deciding to call it a night. It has been ages since I’ve danced the night away in a bar. Granted, it shouldn’t be a habit but I had forgotten how much I love to dance.

Sunday was the fair. I felt like a bit of a party-pooper because I was over it within the first hour. It was just too damn busy. We stayed all of 2 hours before calling it quits. It took that long just to worm our way from one end to the other. We ended up in the ‘hood hanging out at Moby’s (the bar).

Sunday night we did the Real Bad party. They scaled back on ticket sales this year so it was much more tolerable and easy to move around. Basically, it was crowded w/o being a total mess. Trev and I hung out for a bit socializing before worming our way onto a speaker. [1]Not for the reason you think. Being on the speaker gave us room to dance w/o being crowded or constantly bumped in to. heh heh We spent the next 3 hours dancing our ass off.

The bad news is my roomie’s ex-partner was in a really bad accident on Friday. He suffered several broken bones. The roomie got to spend his weekend at the hospital. I felt bad for him. I know he didn’t mind giving up his weekend but I still felt so sorry for him.

In other news, I…um…uh…um…well, I sorta met someone. heh heh I’m keeping a lid on things for now as every time I blab it all here, I seem to jinx it. lol.  I will say he is an apple fan [2]let the war begin and a gamer. We are off to a good start. :p

References

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↑1 Not for the reason you think. Being on the speaker gave us room to dance w/o being crowded or constantly bumped in to. heh heh
↑2 let the war begin

Comments

Into every life a little drama must fall. Some very kind and generous person left a snotty comment on my previous post. [1]Which has been deleted. I do not tolerate personal attacks. Here is the kicker though, the comment was directed toward my buddy brettcajun!

Oh yeah, it takes a real man to trash someone behind their back. *sigh* I probably shouldn’t be surprised, jealousy is truly an ugly emotion and it is very clear to me said person is just that. Btw, going out of your way to point out the flaws in others only serves to reveal you own. (And to said individual, kindly take your pissy bitterness elsewhere. This is your only warning.)

I forwarded the comment in its entireity on to Brett and I know he’ll be up in arms. Lol. If he wishes to repost it, its his call. For my part, I’m done with it.

** Update – per Brett, this pathetic person has spammed several blogs related to Brett’s. What a gem of a human being? **

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↑1 Which has been deleted. I do not tolerate personal attacks.

It Happened

Well, it finally happened. I banged my bike up a bit yesterday. Now, before you freak out, it was minor and I am fine, albeit a few scratches. Totally my fault this time. I went out on a late ride with my buddy Mark and we’d just left lunch at Alice’s. We were taking one of my favorite routes, Hwy 84 across to Hwy 1. It has a ton of different types of curves.

As usual I was spending too much time making sure the person behind me was keeping up and less attention on the road. I have an awful habit of doing that. Lesson learned.  Anyway, I came around a curve a little out of balance. [1]The irony here was my buddy had just finished bragging about how well I handle curves.  I figured since I was already going wide I’d just pull off onto the large shoulder. I assumed from the look that it was pavement. I was wrong! lol  Turned out it was very soft gravel.

Since I was already coming out of a the curve the bike was moving too fast when I hit the gravel.  Still having a bit of momentum from the turn, I knew as soon as I hit the gravel I was gonna loose it. Sure enough, the bike fishtailed and down on its side it (and I) went! The gravel was slippery but it was also soft, which turned out to be a good thing. I slid for about 20-30 yards before coming to a stop just shy of a guard rail. (Now that would have hurt!)

The fall/slide/crash was actually quite benign (luckily). I ended up with a few scratches and road rash and that’s it. I had all my gear on, as usual. My riding jacket/pants got all dirtied up but was none worse for wear. I didn’t even bang my helmet!

As you can see from the pics, my bike suffered some damage. Thankfully, I have sliders and the left one took the full brunt of the spill. It will need to be replaced as its bent now. I also broke the left foot-peg (below) completely off and scratched part of the engine casing. I’ll probably leave the casing for now but will eventually replace it. I don’t like it looking all banged up. That was about it! I was really (pleasantly) surprised at the lack of damage to my baby.

We spent some time looking over the bike before taking off again. All looked to be in good working order other than the foot-peg. I decided I’d just bend my leg back and up and prop it on the passenger peg. It worked like a charm. [2]Other than forcing me to lean way over on the tank and constantly push my balls into the tank. Thankfully, they were still in tack after the 40 miles home.  There was one more surprise in store for me though. About 3 miles further on, the gear-shifter peg fell off. (The blue lever in the below image) They are made to break to prevent the frame from being damaged so it wasn’t surprising. However, this created a unique problem because I had no real way to shift gears now. The lever was still there and working fine but the little peg I catch my foot on was gone.

I originally decided to just start the bike in 3rd gear. This would have reduced the need to keep switching back and forth.  It takes some timing to get the bike to take off in 3rd but it worked. Knowing I couldn’t ride all the way home in 3rd gear, I practiced using just the lever with my foot.  After about 10-15 miles, I started getting the hang of it. I had to look but I was basically just sliding my foot high and tight under/over the lever to shift. I still had to look down for most of the trip but I managed and made it home w/o any other incidents.

The down side is my moto shop is closed on Monday’s so I have to wait till Tuesday to take it in to get the foot-peg and shifter replaced. I’ll get generic ones until they get some more of the shiny blue ones (that I just bought 3 months ago).

References

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↑1 The irony here was my buddy had just finished bragging about how well I handle curves.
↑2 Other than forcing me to lean way over on the tank and constantly push my balls into the tank. Thankfully, they were still in tack after the 40 miles home.

Long Ride

Today was a bit of a long ride and a new route (for me) all rolled into one. It turned out to only be two of us which was probably good considering.

The Mines Rd part was basically a one lane road thru open space. It had some great curves but the road was so bumpy and gravely you couldn’t go fast at all. Definitely not a route for newbies. It was very scenic though. We stopped about mid way in the lowlands and I was overcome with a bit of nostalgia for home. It wasn’t the landscape so much as the vastness of it. There were a few farms spread out thru the area but most of it was just open space. I’ll admit I get so caught up in the daily grind I forget sometimes how much I enjoy nature and the outdoors.

I hadn’t planned a group ride in a few weeks so I wasn’t sure how many would show. I honestly was hoping for a small group (I got my wish) as the route was obviously a bit tricky in places. Like a good little EMT, I brought along my first-aid kit and extra water blah blah blah. There were only 2 of us as the weather was a bit overcast in the early morning. I think that scared a few people away. Anyway, the day was drama-free, no accidents or getting lost. I’d never met the guy that came along today, we met up in Livermore. I really liked him. He was very easy-going for one. He has been riding for decades but didn’t have any attitude about it and was very easy to ride with. We chatted and got to know each other a bit over lunch.

He lives in the East bay so after lunch we split up. He took 680 and I took 280. The ride had gone faster than I expected so I decided to take Hwy 84 across to Hwy 1 (along the ocean). That was a mistake. The fog had rolled in something fierce and I froze my ass off. lol

I didn’t stop and take pics, sorry. I’ll try to remember to bring the damn camera next time.

Photo Op

Thank you to everyone for the kind words on the pic. I do clean up nicely, if I don’t say so myself. *g*

On a side note, the suit pictured in the last post was so tight if I had thrown my arms up in the air I’d have ripped out the armpits. I’m not joking, that bad boy was tight! Apparently, yours truly has developed some girth in his upper body since moving SF. [1]Ironically, the pants fit just fine.

Don’t even get me started on taking the jacket on and off either. I kept it on thru most of the ceremony as I was afraid of looking like a dork trying to get it back on. Of course, there was a meal along with the reception. I finally had to break down and take it off as I was afraid I’d be popping buttons in my plate.

Seriously though, I’m a little irritated as I’ll have to replace the damn thing at some point. Which sucks because I kept the newest suit out of the bunch when I gave all my other ones away. [2]I used to have to wear suits in my old job back home in TX. I’m tempted not to even bother. It might just be cheaper and easier to rent one for the next snazzy event.

What about you? Buy or rent?

References

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↑1 Ironically, the pants fit just fine.
↑2 I used to have to wear suits in my old job back home in TX.

Joined at The Hip

Today my buddy kristaki married his sweetheart Ramune. Inserted is my self-inflicted mugshot taken before the big shindig commenced.

In a not so random turn of events, I knew both the bride and groom, I work with both of them. The groom and I were in the same academy class together. We hit it off as buds pretty much right away. Ramune started about 3 years later. They’ve been living together as a couple for some time now but today was finally the big day.

I normally avoid formal events as I hate the fussiness behind all of it. We’ve become a society focused more on the appearance of tradition vs the actual meaning behind it. [1]A topic in itself, but we’ll save that nut and crack it open on a later day when I’m desperate.  I couldn’t not attend their wedding. While I know kristaki more, Ramune was indoctrinated into the local chapter as a Steward and I’m hoping to mold her in my professional image. [2]Don’t go there! lol Seriously, I think she is a sweet soul with a mischievous side that doesn’t come to light until you really get to know her. I’ve always thought they were a good ‘fit’ for each other and I was reminded of that today. Looking beyond the nervous apprehension, I saw a couple secure in each other with a bright future together. I wish them all the best.

You can stop here unless you wish to read my reminiscent ramblings, which as you know can be significant at times. :p

Continue reading Joined at The Hip

References

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↑1 A topic in itself, but we’ll save that nut and crack it open on a later day when I’m desperate.
↑2 Don’t go there! lol

Testing

I downloaded a new app for my G1 which allows me to update the blog on the fly. Not that I’m gonna be writing long-winded posts on a qwerty but not a bad idea. It has a very small memory footprint which I like.

The interface is a bit bare but simplistic and clean. It offers limited editing and the option to attach pics. It did a good job of pulling down categories and supports tags as well.

Not sure how often I’ll use it but its nice having the option. [1]This post was written and published using the app.

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↑1 This post was written and published using the app.

Respect

I love Rachel Maddow. Hers is one of the few political programs I consistently watch. I started watching knowing that she was a lesbian but I continued because of her sheer talent. While she has an obviously liberal slant, she is very fair-minded. Having a strong sense of that myself, I guess it is only natural I like her so much. And unlike many others, she pokes insight at the Dems as much as Republicans. Granted the Republicans get more but that’s only because they make it so much easier with their abundant and growing ignorance and fear-mongering. Rachel often calls foul regardless of party and calls it like she sees it. I love that!

Her investigative reports are some of the most in-depth of anything on TV. I was completely blown away by her interview last night with former Secretary of Homeland Security, Tom Ridge. Besides getting his point of view, she also asked him several tough questions. [1]And to his credit he responded rather well. And while she obviously disagreed with him at several points, she maintained civility and respect.

It is very refreshing to see a news commentator still focus on the news vs ratings. If you’ve never watched, I strongly recommend you check her out.

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↑1 And to his credit he responded rather well.

Quickie

No, not that. Get your mind out of my gutter. lol Just a couple random shots from the ride this past weekend. I ended up going Saturday and Sunday.  Saturday with a few of the guys and Sunday solo. I’ve been forgetting to grab the camera but I managed to snap off a few this time.

This was on Sunday when I went by myself. This chick was walking by staring at me like I had two heads because I was taking a self-pic. I guess she’d never seen anyone taking pictures with one of those ‘new-fangled thinga-ma-jigs’ referred to as a camera. Of course, I promptly ignored her. Whateva! lol

I sometimes like to ride solo as I can do my own thing. Riding in a group (especially as the lead) requires a lot of effort and you have to always be thinking about how a particular move will affect everyone. Plus, not everyone rides at the same skill level and/or style. I tend to be aggressive (without being crazy) but ride much slower in groups. It really isn’t fair to ride too fast or aggressive in large groups as it isn’t really safe. It encourages people to ride outside their skill level and that’s always a bad idea. Solo or in groups of 2 or 3, you can haul ass and pass a lot more.

Saturday, there were only 3 of us so it wasn’t bad. We didn’t go far, just down to Woodside/Alice’s for lunch and back. On the way back, we were cutting across Hwy 84 to Hwy 1 (which runs along the ocean), I was a ways ahead and came across a guy that looked to have wiped out. He was walking and carrying a fairing so I was thinking, ‘holy shit!’ lol Turns out, it worked loose and blew off while he was riding and he was just retrieving it. He was kind of a hottie but totally straight. I stopped to check on him and let him use my tools to try and jerry-rig his fairing back on. I think he pegged me for being gay but he was way cool about it. [1]He might have caught me staring at his rather pronounced crotch but I’m not sure. heehee After that we just cruised home along the coast enjoying the beautiful weather. The rest of the ride was pretty uneventful.

Sunday, I got a wild hair and decided to go solo. I went back down South thru Woodside, up over Big Basin, and then down Hwy 9 which has some awesome curves. I took a couple of rough roads that I normally avoid as its just not safe to have large groups of hard terrain. [2]My wrists weren’t too happy about that

It was crazy busy with bikers everywhere. I couldn’t believe how many bikes were out on the road. At one point, I’m cruising along at my speed feeling quite proud of myself for being a bad-ass until this guy blew by me pushing close to 90 mph. He was taking curves like a maniac and burning thru the route. It was very humbling because I’m a good rider but I’m not a pro. I think its nice to keep perspective when you are traveling at high speeds on two wheels with nothing between you and the pavement but leather and pads. I wasn’t even tempted to try and catch him. Anyway, this last shot is of my bike parked up among the throng at Alice’s.

On the way back, I stopped back thru Woodside and ran into a buddy. We hung out and had a late lunch before heading home. The fog, which had been unusually absent, had rolled in with a vengeance while I was tripping thru the mountains. It was down right frosty coming home along the coast. So the ride home was very windy and chilly. I got a wake up call when I saw a newer model cadi trying like crazy to pass every car in sight. This guy was driving crazy. He was passing on blind curves and hills. As we come into Half Moon bay, I see him cutting other cars off and weaving like an idiot. This was right before I pulled over to put the liner to my jacket in. After getting back on the road, I come over the next hill to see him pulled over with not one but two chippies behind him. Serves his dumb ass right. I drove by real slow, flicked open my visor, smiled real big, and gave him the gayest wave I could. What a douche-bag. I hope they impounded his car and made him walk. That idiot could have killed someone.

Anyway, I made it home in one-piece and promptly crashed on the sofa for a nice 2 hour nap.

References

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↑1 He might have caught me staring at his rather pronounced crotch but I’m not sure. heehee
↑2 My wrists weren’t too happy about that