Sunday, November 19, 2006
Biker Dad
Since you had a chance to read his advice on riding, I thought I would also share a pic of my Dad on his motorcycle.
My hog
This is the bike I was riding yesterday:
Well, not the exact one, but the same model and color. I think it's pretty cute and it kind of made me feel like a bad ass. One perk to riding a motorcycle is that it doesn't ever look hard, even if you are nervous and don't know what you're doing. I was watching people get on the bikes and go through the drills and they all just looked cool.
Well, not the exact one, but the same model and color. I think it's pretty cute and it kind of made me feel like a bad ass. One perk to riding a motorcycle is that it doesn't ever look hard, even if you are nervous and don't know what you're doing. I was watching people get on the bikes and go through the drills and they all just looked cool.
Maybe it's too much, too fast
I spent yesterday, from 11ish to 5ish, learning to ride a motorcycle. I am really, really tired today. The class starts up again at 11ish today, but I am not sure I'm going to make it, for several reasons including the following:
1) I think it's going to rain.
2) I need to write a paper.
3) My hands and shoulders are super sore, probably because I was too tensed up yesterday (also, I was really surprised by how much the motorcycle weighed and how much you have to control that weight)
4) I value my life.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not giving up on the motorcycle thing, I just think I need a little more time to process it all. I'm not sure I would agree this is a course for beginners, unless you are a beginner that has your own bike to practice on/have been practicing a bit, or are a beginner who is a regular driver of a car that is stick shift. That is really what it comes down to, and I am not either of these things. The exercises went pretty fast. I had never even turned on a motorcycle before, and within a couple of hours we were speeding around in big loops, accelerating, braking, and shifting between second and third. It seemed a little quick to me. I'm pretty good once it gets up to speed, great at shifting gears up and down once I get going, and not bad at all with the steering and swerving and weaving in and out of cones. Unfortunately, I struggle with the clutch, and kill the bike about 35% of the time I try to take off. I could also be smoother with the stops.
I know it's just a timing thing and requires some practice, but my tendency to kill the bike at take off gets me all flustered and unable to focus. Plus, I would not describe the male instructor (there were two with our group, a man and a woman) as incredibly supportive or nurturing. I would actually describe him as kind of an asshole. So, while it's really not that big a deal to kill the thing, especially when you're learning, his impatience made me feel like I totally sucked. Being embarrassed and flustered is not conducive to concentration.
Today (day two of training) we're supposed to be refining our basic skills. Practicing things like tight turns, driving over obstacles (I think we have to drive over 2x4s), and taking our final test. I want another day to practice the basic stuff, so I think I'm going to reschedule the Saturday/Sunday combo for next weekend and have three days of training all together. Part of me feels like a weenie, but I would rather feel confident on the bike than just barely pass and feel like I rushed through the whole thing and only got the gist. I want to do it at my own pace and feel good about it. Even though yesterday's lessons were a lot of work, and yeah -- kinda hard for me -- it was also super, SUPER fun when I'd master something well enough to loosen up and enjoy it.
1) I think it's going to rain.
2) I need to write a paper.
3) My hands and shoulders are super sore, probably because I was too tensed up yesterday (also, I was really surprised by how much the motorcycle weighed and how much you have to control that weight)
4) I value my life.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not giving up on the motorcycle thing, I just think I need a little more time to process it all. I'm not sure I would agree this is a course for beginners, unless you are a beginner that has your own bike to practice on/have been practicing a bit, or are a beginner who is a regular driver of a car that is stick shift. That is really what it comes down to, and I am not either of these things. The exercises went pretty fast. I had never even turned on a motorcycle before, and within a couple of hours we were speeding around in big loops, accelerating, braking, and shifting between second and third. It seemed a little quick to me. I'm pretty good once it gets up to speed, great at shifting gears up and down once I get going, and not bad at all with the steering and swerving and weaving in and out of cones. Unfortunately, I struggle with the clutch, and kill the bike about 35% of the time I try to take off. I could also be smoother with the stops.
I know it's just a timing thing and requires some practice, but my tendency to kill the bike at take off gets me all flustered and unable to focus. Plus, I would not describe the male instructor (there were two with our group, a man and a woman) as incredibly supportive or nurturing. I would actually describe him as kind of an asshole. So, while it's really not that big a deal to kill the thing, especially when you're learning, his impatience made me feel like I totally sucked. Being embarrassed and flustered is not conducive to concentration.
Today (day two of training) we're supposed to be refining our basic skills. Practicing things like tight turns, driving over obstacles (I think we have to drive over 2x4s), and taking our final test. I want another day to practice the basic stuff, so I think I'm going to reschedule the Saturday/Sunday combo for next weekend and have three days of training all together. Part of me feels like a weenie, but I would rather feel confident on the bike than just barely pass and feel like I rushed through the whole thing and only got the gist. I want to do it at my own pace and feel good about it. Even though yesterday's lessons were a lot of work, and yeah -- kinda hard for me -- it was also super, SUPER fun when I'd master something well enough to loosen up and enjoy it.
Why I shred my junk mail
Some have rolled their eyes like I am an obsessive compulsive nut job, but this post from Load proves that it's not a bad idea to shred your junk mail before you toss it out. Especially if it comes from a credit card company.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Another weird dream
I think I went through all of last year without ever remembering a dream. But lately, I've been dreaming a lot.
The other night I dreamt that the skin from my lower lip to my collar bone was dissolving. You could see my teeth and there were holes going all the way through into my throat and windpipe. There was no blood or oozing. The holes were black and crumbly -- maybe moldy? -- almost like I had become a zombie or something. No real plot to the dream other than the fact that I was grossed out and didn't really know what to do about it.
The other night I dreamt that the skin from my lower lip to my collar bone was dissolving. You could see my teeth and there were holes going all the way through into my throat and windpipe. There was no blood or oozing. The holes were black and crumbly -- maybe moldy? -- almost like I had become a zombie or something. No real plot to the dream other than the fact that I was grossed out and didn't really know what to do about it.
Photos I've been meaning to post since September
As I mentioned, Ross flew me out to D.C. in late September. I got to meet Jack, and I think it's safe to say we hit it off. Our time together has made me re-evaluate my previous opinion that babies are scary and gross. Some babies might be okay.
Here are a couple of pics...
Geez, he's cute.
Yes, that's Jack-drool in my hair.
In fact, the whole clan is pretty cute all around.
Here are a couple of pics...
Geez, he's cute.
Yes, that's Jack-drool in my hair.
In fact, the whole clan is pretty cute all around.
Men and their hair
Dudes, I'm curious... how much do you pay for haircuts? I got into a debate about this the other night, and my opponent was arguing that no "normal" guy spends money on their hair. However, my experience tells me that when it comes to hair there are three categories of men:
1) Those with buzzers who cut their own hair, spend next to nothing on it, and care very little how it looks.
2) Those who got to a barber (this is usually $25 or less).
3) Those who go to a stylist, might be described as "metro," and are usually very well groomed (stylist = around $40 to $50 a visit).
I don't really have a feel for which group is the largest, though. What do most guys spend on their hair? Leave a comment and let me know. Tell other guys to leave comments too, because I suspect I'll need a fairly big sample to be able to draw any convincing conclusions here.
1) Those with buzzers who cut their own hair, spend next to nothing on it, and care very little how it looks.
2) Those who got to a barber (this is usually $25 or less).
3) Those who go to a stylist, might be described as "metro," and are usually very well groomed (stylist = around $40 to $50 a visit).
I don't really have a feel for which group is the largest, though. What do most guys spend on their hair? Leave a comment and let me know. Tell other guys to leave comments too, because I suspect I'll need a fairly big sample to be able to draw any convincing conclusions here.
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