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The Itch
Blatherings From The Editor
Over the last couple of months Wanda and I
have torn down and removed the wooden deck and cover from our backyard. After 20 some years the wood was rotten and
unsafe, so we pulled all the wood out of the ground and dug out some serious
chunks of concrete. Back breaking work
for sure.
Getting contractors to come to the house
and provide estimates for a new deck and cover is no easy job either. Of the dozen or so “landscapers” we’ve
contacted, only a very few have actually come to the house. It takes a lot of work and planning to redo
a backyard, and not all landscapers want that much work.
All that digging, prying and waiting for
landscapers to not show up has kept us pretty busy. Consequently, we haven’t put very many miles on the Beemer this
summer. A couple of the rallies we’d
planned, along with The County SEAT Ride and The Dam SEAT Ride, have had to be
put on hold. Thank goodness for the
SEAT lunches and summer breakfasts or we wouldn’t have ridden at all!
If riding a motorcycle is a true part of
your inner being, then you understand what I mean when I say you get an “itch”
to go for a ride. This itch can only be
scratched by feeling the wind in your face, collecting bugs on your wind screen
and enjoying the perfume of a flattened skunk on the back roads of
America. Aah!
Recently I’ve begun to notice telltale
signs that I really do need to scratch that itch. Although the big K bike hasn’t been started in days, I’ve been
checking her tire pressure and her oil and coolant levels almost daily. Yes, Grasshopper, your tire pressure will
fluctuate up and down without every taking your bike out of your garage. I’m afraid if I started cleaning her, I’d
end up stripping her to the frame and doing a
full-toot-wiring-harness-plug-cleaning-marathon…which really isn’t such a bad
idea.
Truthfully, we’ve ridden so little in the
last few weeks, it’s the first time in a long time I’ve thought about hooking
up the battery charger. Even thought
about checking the battery. Forgot it’s
one of those sealed, no maintenance types.
Duh!
Meanwhile, I get email from fellow SEAT
members saying things like, “Going for a ride through California and Oregon,
see you in a couple of weeks.” or “Going to the national, want some
pictures?” The itch to go for a ride is
turning into a major rash.
Unfortunately, I don’t see any salve in our future for at least another
month.
A
while back there was a discussion on the “Beeg List” (IBMWR.org) asking the
question, “How long can you go without going for a ride?” At the time I laughed and thought what a
silly question, no one “has” to go for a ride.
Or do they? Maybe I chuckled too
soon. Deryle & Wanda, wheelbarrow
riding backyard landscapers.
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