Road Trip - or Don't Blow Bubbles in a Full-Face Helmet.....

I'm a bad influence on my kids, or so I've been told, so when I bought a motorcycle it was no big surprise when my youngest child decided to follow suit.

Kari first talked about getting a scooter - a practical bike with automatic transmission, limited power, and built-in storage options.  She initially planned on a 50cc scooter with a top speed of 35 mph or so.  In my opinion, an underpowered scooter like that is a hazard on streets with a speed limit over 30 mph, since you may not be able to keep up with the traffic, so I suggested to Kari that she look at slightly larger, 150 cc scooters - generally capable of speeds of 55 mph or so.  This would allow her to accelerate and cruise at the speeds generally seen on city streets. 

Kari was open to that idea, and I was glad to hear that she planned to purchase safety gear and had enrolled in a Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) class.  She wisely decided to purchase a bike only after completing the class and getting her motorcycle operator's endorsement on her driver's license.

As I suspected, Kari took the MSF class on a 250 cc motorcycle, and loved it.  After that, she was unlikely to settle for a scooter - she'd want a "real" motorcycle!  She started shopping in earnest, and quickly narrowed her list to a couple of favorites.  At this point, I thought it might be fun to make the trip up to Las Vegas (actually Henderson, NV) and tag along for the search.

My bike, while certainly capable of a highway trip, isn't as large as the real "touring" motorcycles.  With that in mind, I decided that before taking off, I'd talk to my mechanic (Mike, at Medusa Cycles) to see if he has any concerns about the bike making a 700 mile round trip.  Mike - a nice guy who's always willing to take a quick look at something and give you his opinion - said, "the bike will handle the trip a lot better than you will."  I took this to mean I'd be OK, and decided to hit the road.

Traffic in the Phoenix metro area is atrocious, so I elected to get an early start to miss the worst of it.  I ended up hitting the road at 5:00 a.m. on Friday morning.  My plan was to get out of Phoenix, then take my time, driving slowly and taking lots of breaks.  The first part of my trip went according to plan - I got in the HOV (carpool) lane - motorcycles are always allowed in the HOV lane - and cruised the freeway for about 70 miles until I was on the outskirts of town.  I admit I gave a big sigh of relief when I hit Carefree Highway and the open road!

At this point, I started to see the problem with my plan.  It sounds good to "drive slowly", but you have to actually do it!  The highway - speed limit 65 mph - seemed designed to make me drive much faster than that.  Virtually every time I glanced at the speedometer, I was traveling between 75 and 80 mph.  Clearly, I was going to need to work on my speed control!

I did find that it was easy to stick to my plan to  make frequent stops.  After 75 to 100 miles, I desperately needed a break.  The drive from Phoenix to Las Vegas is desolate, at times, but there are good stopping points spaced at that approximate distance.  I made the mistake of skipping a break on the outskirts of Phoenix, and ended up needing to go all the way to Wickenberg - roughly 125 miles from home - for my first stop.  I also stopped at Wickiup, Kingman, and a restaurant about 30 miles from Henderson.  At each stop, I gassed up, walked around, got a drink, and tried to waste a little time before I had to get back on the bike.  At the restaurant - thoroughly sick of the motorcycle seat by this point - I decided to take a longer break and have lunch.  Afterwards, refreshed and full, I finished the ride, arriving at about 1:00 p.m.

My bike performed flawlessly - easily keeping up with traffic, even when climbing mountains at altitude.  While I still understand why a larger bike would be better for long-range touring, I now know that my bike would be capable of longer trips, if necessary.  Some music would be a big help - lacking that, I sang every song I know on the trip.  I was hoarse by the time I got to Kari and Suzie's - I'm guessing you won't find too many bikers flying down the highway singing show tunes at the top of their lungs!  If I make a practice of hitting the road on this bike, I'll have to get a more comfortable seat and headphones.  If you're willing to take your time and take a break every 100 miles or so, the stock seat works OK.  For what it's worth, the trip back was better - it was much easier to keep my speed at a more appropriate level than on the trip out.

When I bought my V Star, I knew I wanted a "cruiser" style bike - laid back, low seat, with your feet in front of your body.  Kari initially liked this style too, and started to look at a couple of nice options for starter bikes.  Soon, however, she discovered that she liked "standard" motorcycles - a more upright riding position, with your feet more or less directly under  your body - better than the cruisers.  She did NOT like the sport bikes - more commonly known as crotch rockets.  Unfortunately (and unlike in the 70's, when every manufacturer had multiple small-displacement standard bikes from 100 to 350 cc's) there are few options for new standard motorcycles.  We also had problems since, unlike in the Phoenix area, used bikes are harder - and more expensive - to find.  With all these factors contributing, Kari ended up choosing a new bike - a Suzuki TU 250X - a small, "retro" styled bike with fuel injection and a reputation for rock-solid dependability.

Kari, on her bike in the showroom.  Looks like a good fit!

It's Here - Kari literally dropped her sandwich and ran outside when the truck arrived.

After some hard bargaining, Kari's bike was delivered late Saturday afternoon (you can ride your new bike home from the dealership, but - especially for a new rider - it's dangerous to ride a strange bike in traffic, so the wise person has it delivered).  Now it was practice time!  Kari spent a half hour or so getting used to the clutch, shifting gears, and practicing low speed turns, starts, and stops.  After that came a few laps around the apartment complex before dark - then it was time to put her baby to bed and plan a short practice run on the street in the morning.

Looks pretty good, parked next to mine, doesn't it?

About ready to take off!

We're done riding, and I'm about to head back home.

In the morning, we took a short ride before I headed home.  Over the next couple of weeks, Kari rode her bike to work and around town.  When she finally had to gas up, she needed a whopping 1.2 gallons (91 mpg)!

Oh, one more thing  - there's very little clearance between your face and the inside of a full-face helmet, and gum sticks pretty well to everything.  If you chew gum, try to resist the urge to blow bubbles at 70 miles per hour.......

Pickleball Mania!

Not long after moving to Arizona, I met a guy who invited me to take a pickleball lesson.  I hadn't seen the game in person, but I'd heard of it, and watched a bit on YouTube, so I knew I wasn't interested, but I agreed to go and watch.  Of course, as soon as I watched, I knew I'd have to try it!

If tennis and ping pong had a love child, it would look like pickleball - played on a court the size of a badmitton court, with a net similar to a tennis net, using a wiffle ball and what looks like an overgrown ping pong paddle.  The rules of play are similar to tennis, with a few notable exceptions - it's more of a finesse game than a power game, like tennis. 

Players are ranked based on their skills and tournament results (I'm a 3.5) - the very top players are 5.0.  Tournaments are usually divided by skill group, with 3.5 being by far the biggest group.

Although similar to tennis, pickleball has some advantages for a recreational sport:

• The court is smaller.  This fact, coupled with the slower wiffle ball, makes it easier for non-athletes to compete (although speed and athleticism is still a big advantage).
• The rules, in particular the "no volley zone" by the net, help to encourage long rallies - top players may hit the ball back and forth a dozen times or more on a typical point.  This makes the game a lot of fun to play.  The very top players focus on location rather than velocity for winning shots.
• Games tend to be closer - even players at slightly different skill levels can play and have fun.
• Since everybody's close together on the court, it's a more social game than tennis - there's a lot of laughing and joking before, during, and after points.

The above may make it sound like this is a sedentary sport best suited for the rocking chair crowd.  In fact, pickleball is about as competitive as you'd like to make it.  I play with a group that is very competitive (I often play with 4.0 and 4.5 players, and one woman just moved up to 5.0).  I'll often play for two or three hours with little or no break - an exhausting workout.  The benefits are obvious - a great aerobic workout that's fun.  At the end of our play, I'm always shocked at how quickly the time went.

When I first started to play, I was only interested in playing with friends for fun.  After playing for a year or so, I started to want to test myself against better players, so I decided to enter a tournament or two.  I teamed up with a woman who started playing about the same time I did for mixed doubles, and also entered a couple of tournaments with a male friend I had met last year.

Tournaments typically have awards for the top three finishers in each division, so of course I finished in 4th place in the first two I entered!  In the third tournament I entered, my men's doubles partner and I played poorly, and were eliminated in two matches (tournaments are typically a double elimination format).  Mixed doubles, happily, was an entirely different story - we advanced through the winner's bracket to the championship game, which we won!  It was a lot of fun - we met a number of new friends, and had a cheering section including our other friends who were competing in different divisions.

Here's a series from our championship match - a pretty typical exchange for us in this tournament:



 I'm hitting a "Drop Shot", intended to land in the no-volley zone.

Vicky and I are at the no-volley line, waiting for our opponent's return.

The return - a "Dink" was a soft shot hit to me.  I've just dinked the ball back into their "kitchen"(the no-volley zone)

They made a mistake, hitting the ball high to Vicky's forehand.  She's putting it away at their feet in this photo.  I'm starting to smile, because I know this point's in the bag!



We won this one!

The champions, with gold medals!

On that day, we played really well.  We're good players, but not elite.  Check out the video below to see pickleball played at the highest level.  Jennifer Lucore is, I think, the best woman player in the country.  She teams with Phil Bagley - a top men's player - and lose a close one to a team that includes Steve Wong, who has been ranked #1 in the country.  Vicky and I play a similar style to Lucore/Bagley, albeit at a lower level.

I'll never be an elite player, but I've had a lot of fun and made a lot of friends playing the great game with the funny name!

The (Not So) Easy Rider

41 years ago, I met a girl.  Girls being what they are, I soon found out I needed money for essentials - dates, presents, etc.  I had two options - get a job, or start selling stuff.  Being the ambitious fellow I was, I decided the best choice was to sell my beloved motorcycle.

I had a dirt bike when I was a kid.  When I turned 16, I asked my dad if he'd cosign on a loan for a motorcycle.  He, of course, said NO.  My natural response was to go out and find a cheap enough bike that I could buy without the loan.  I found a 1964 Suzuki 250 street bike, a little rough around the edges, but it could do almost 90 on a straightaway, so I jumped at it.  For years afterward, I remained puzzled that my father was so mad when I brought it home!

Through the years, I'd occasionally miss riding a bike, but I managed to convince myself that it was a part of my past not to be relived.  I was too old - too sensible - to get back on a motorcycle again.  All that changed a couple of months ago.

Living in Arizona, I was struck by the fact that this is nearly perfect motorcycle weather.  Sure, it's blazing hot in the summer, and winter mornings can be cool, but there's virtually no weather that makes it impossible to ride (unlike Nebraska, where large portions of the year are absolutely out of the question).  I also realized how practical a bike could be as an alternate form of transportation - virtually any motorcycle will be more efficient than almost all cars on the road.  I decided to take the leap.

Before purchasing or operating a motorcycle, I researched my options.  Since safety was a priority, I registered for a Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) new rider class.  This class combines classroom work with practical operation instruction on a closed course with provided motorcycles.  An additional benefit was that passing the class would qualify me to get the motorcycle endorsement on my driver's license without testing at the MVD.  I registered and took the class in late November of 2014.

After passing the class, my next step was to determine what bike to buy.  In the 70's, my 250 cc bike was "mid size" - plenty large enough to haul my relatively large (6', 165 pound) frame around.  After 41 years, I discovered that things change.  60 pounds had been added to me.  That didn't help, but an even bigger factor may have been the change in the bikes themselves.  My old bike was a 2 stroke, high revving, "standard" motorcycle.  It didn't weigh much, and it got pretty much all the performance possible out of it's small displacement.  Since I now wanted a "cruiser" style (a more relaxed, laid back type of bike), it soon became apparent I'd need a little more horsepower.

Motorcycle salesmen - close cousins to used car salesmen, as it turns out - were quick to assure me I'd need a large motorcycle.  The recommendations I got ranged from 600 to 1800 cc's minimum.  Since I didn't have plans for any long trips, I decided to go towards the lower end of the range.  After looking at a few bikes and studying online, I decided to go with a Yamaha V Star 650.  The V Star seemed a good compromise between power and agility - easy and fun to handle in town, with enough power to handle the freeway.  As a bonus, the air-cooled Yamaha has a reputation for reliability, and some great deals can be found on the used market.

My V Star, after adding the saddle bags.
 

With my decision made, I set out to find my new (to me) bike.  I ended up buying a 2007 Custom 650 V Star with about 18,000 miles from a young guy who had his bike listed on Craigslist.  He had originally listed the bike for over $4,000, but had reduced it a few times until it was down to about $2,800.  After looking it over and taking a short test drive, we agreed on a price of $2,200.  Since it needed a new speedometer cable and a clutch, I'd end up with about $2,600 invested - about half the price of new, and less than comparable machines I'd seen advertised.

With the purchase of the motorcycle, I needed to spend some money on a few other things - safety gear!  When I was young, I jumped on my bike wearing whatever I happened to have on that day - shorts, t-shirt, tennis shoes, and I was good to go.  As an old guy, I knew I'd have to wear something more appropriate.

The first thing I'd need was a helmet.  I'd only worn a motorcycle helmet a couple of times in my life, but I'll never ride without again.  In addition, I'd want gloves, a jacket, and pants for added protection.  Although you can buy all this stuff online, I knew I'd need a bit of help selecting the proper gear.  Fortunately, there's a store in Mesa called Cycle Gear that has pretty much everything you need in stock at fairly reasonable prices.

For a helmet, I decided on a full face helmet for maximum protection.  As appealing as riding with the wind in your face can be, facial contact with asphalt can be disastrous - I may not be handsome, but I look better with my face still intact!  A helmet can cost upwards of $600, but there are some less expensive options out there that still provide the same level of safety.  I ended up buying a Bilt (Cycle Gear's store brand) for around $100 - a bargain, considering it has all the safety agency approvals.


I bought some leather gloves with armor on the knuckles, an armored jacket (mesh, with zip out windbreaker liner), and some Kevlar-lined jeans with armor in the knees to complete the look - all told, I spent about $350 for protective equipment, plus another $100 for the saddlebags.  For a little over $3,000, I was ready to hit the road!

 

What I soon found out was, buying everything was the easy part.  After over four decades out of the saddle, I was a bit nervous on my first ride.  To start off, I took a side road - 45 mph speed limit - to head out of town.  I figured a weekday morning ride would be best, traffic-wise, so I headed east of town about 12 miles to meet some friends to play pickleball (more on pickleball in a later post).  The ride involved several miles through town, a short (1 mile) stretch of freeway, then 4 or 5 miles on a 4-lane highway (55 mph).  The first half of the ride was sheer terror - after my training class and on-line reading, I was convinced every car was trying to murder me.  On the freeway, it felt like someone was grabbing my legs and trying to pull them from the pegs.  When I hit the end of the freeway and slowed down to about 60, I felt a huge weight lift from my shoulders - suddenly, I felt at home on the bike.  60 mph seemed a nice, comfortable cruising speed, and I felt like I could handle the road, traffic, motorcycle, and anything else that came my way.  Since that moment, I've not felt overwhelmed on the bike. 

 

In a way, I now feel as though I never took a break from riding.  In other, very important ways, I feel as though it's been a lifetime.  As a youth, I felt invincible - I can distinctly remember seeing a car about to pull out in front of me and thinking, "it's OK - if he hits me, it'll be his fault".  Seeing potential trouble, I didn't slow down - I just plowed on ahead, trusting in my youthful reflexes and the maneuverability of my bike to keep me alive.  Amazingly, it did - I never had an accident on a motorcycle (not counting dumping a dirt bike racing my buddy at night in the snow).  Now, I know I'm not quick enough to ride myself out of trouble.  My head's on a swivel, always looking for potential trouble.  If I even think a car MIGHT turn into me, I slow down, move over, or do whatever I think will keep me upright.  I'm not afraid on the bike, but I'm definitely cautious.

 

After just a month of riding, I'm much more likely to take the freeway than before.  I still don't LIKE riding at 70+ mph, but I recognize it's actually safer to ride fast on a limited access road than it is to ride at 50 on a city street.  By the way - forget about staying under the speed limit - If you drive at or below the limit, you'll get run over.  It's way safer to move with the flow of the traffic.

 

In any case, short (15 miles or less) trips at freeway speeds aren't a problem for me or the bike - it can easily handle 75 mph for extended miles.  I'm not sure what the top speed is, but at 90 it was still accelerating.  I know I wouldn't want to ride at that speed for anything other than passing a car or getting out of a tight situation.  I have a windshield, which helps, but at freeway speeds the wind is fatiguing, and I still feel like my feet are being pushed off the pegs.

 

Around town, my bike's a dream to ride.  Although it weighs close to 500 pounds, it feels very light and maneuverable - much like my old 250, in that regard.  With a very low seat height and low center of gravity, I never feel as though it's going to get away from me.  Speed and acceleration are more than adequate for my needs, but it's not a "fast" bike, like a "crotch rocket". 

 

I've only checked the gas mileage on two tanks, but both gave virtually identical results - between 49 and 50 mpg - good enough for me to round it up and say I get 50 miles per gallon.  This represents my typical use - warming the bike up, with a combination of city, freeway, and highway driving.  While nowhere nearly as economical as the smaller scooters and motorcycles, it's over three times as economical as my car, and compares favorably with most cars on the road.

 

What don't I like about my new ride?  There are just a couple of things:

 

1. Maybe it's just because I haven't had a car without fuel injection for 25 years, but this thing is the most cold blooded contraption I can ever remember driving.  It has a carburetor (two, actually), with a manual choke.  If it's less than about 80 degrees outside, plan on using the choke to start it, then letting it run for 4 or 5 minutes before attempting to ride.  Once warm, it runs flawlessly, but it just won't go when cold.  If/when I upgrade, I'll get a fuel-injected bike
2. As I said, the top speed on my bike is over 90 mph - fast enough to break every speed limit in the country.  That being said, I understand why you'd want a bigger bike for extended highway travel.  Operating at continuous higher speeds would be fatiguing - there's a lot of vibration, both from the engine and the bikes interaction with the road.  A larger, heavier bike with a bigger engine would be an improvement in this regard.
3. I'll rarely, if ever, ride 2 up.  If you plan to do so regularly, you may want a bigger bike.  While this one is certainly capable of carrying you and a passenger anywhere you want to go, larger, touring model motorcycles will have more secure and comfortable accommodations for passengers.

 

Of course there's a lot I really love about it, too:

 

1. The looks - it looks like a bigger bike than it is.  It's also drop dead gorgeous - I love the color and lines of the bike.
2. Performance and maneuverability.  There's plenty of pop from the line - more than enough to get away from cars, when necessary, but it's small and light enough to handle like a smaller bike.  While it wouldn't be my first choice for a long range touring bike, it COULD serve that purpose, while still being an effective around-town commuter.  As I've said - a good compromise between "too small" and "too big".
3. Economy.  Just as in the performance aspect, I get decent economy, along with enough performance to keep me happy.
4. Design.  I like the simplicity of this motorcycle - my bike is virtually identical to those made a decade earlier.  It's air cooled, so there's no radiator to worry about or maintain.

 

At this point, I'm still learning how to ride again, so I don't know how (or how much) I'll ride in the future.  I'd like to take some local trips - 20 to 50 miles or so - with a friend or two on two-lane highways or into the mountains.  I'm not sure if more extensive traveling is in the cards, but, if it is, that may change my outlook on things.  For now, I'll concentrate on cruising around and enjoying the ride!

 

 

 

Goodbye Old Friend

 

The end came with shocking suddenness.  Cassie had refused food for the first time in her life about a month earlier.  We put it down to a reaction to some medication she was on, and concentrated on finding something she would eat.  After several weeks, with only middling success, we took her back to the vet for more tests.  This time, they decided to do some x-rays, and found the problem.  Cassie had cancer - everywhere.  It probably started in her pancreas, but had spread to her lungs, stomach, spine, and other spots.  Our vet told us to take her home, let her eat whatever she would tolerate, and call when she got worse.

Amazingly, she started eating and showing some life again.  We managed to convince ourselves that the cancer was slow growing, and that we'd have a few months left with her.  A week later, the truth was obvious - in the space of one night, she went from outwardly healthy to barely breathing, and unable to walk.  We didn't want her to suffer, so we went to the vet and had her put to sleep. 

Losing a dog is very upsetting, and I've been terribly sad each time it has happened.  In many ways, losing Cassie is the worst of the bunch - but this isn't a post to make you sad.  When you bring home that puppy, you know this day is coming.  About the only thing that makes it worth while are the memories you're left with, after they're gone.  Here's my "Top Ten Cassie Memories":


Here's Cassie, locked in a deadly battle with a stuffed toy at the lake!



10.  Cassie was skinny.  When we first got Cassie, she was about a year old and weighed 47 pounds - on the same frame that would scale out at a lean 93 pounds about 5 years later.  She was the skinniest dog you can imagine - her ribs were prominent, her hips stuck out, and her head looked enormous.  She looked deformed.  To make matters worse, she lost 7 pounds over the next two months while I tried in vain to find a food that would agree with her.  Even with all her health problems, she was a sweet dog - walking nicely beside me, stopping to throw up, then continuing the walk as though nothing was wrong.  When we finally got her to hold food down, she packed on weight and was as healthy as a horse.  For the rest of her life, she was lean and healthy, her weight staying between 90 and 93 pounds.

 

 

9.  Cassie almost wasn't our dog.   I had gone alone and looked for another dog at the Humane Society, and liked Cassie.  Since Theresa wasn't completely on board, I wanted her to see her before making a final decision.  They agreed to put a hold on her while we were deciding.  After seeing her, Theresa was OK with her, so we went to the office to complete the paperwork.  When we got there, another couple was at the counter, saying they had decided to take her.  They were disappointed to miss out on her, but quickly walked back to find a different dog.  Had we not gotten her, I doubt if she would have survived - she was to be an outside dog for these folks, and I doubt if they'd have been willing to spend the money I did to get her healthy.  For the first month or so, I sometimes wished I'd have let her go with them.  I never felt that way after that, though.

 

8.  Cassie pees and poops on command.  We often traveled with the dogs, and it's pretty easy to get frustrated if they won't do their business quickly when you make a stop.  I got in the habit of saying, "Go Potty" when I was waiting for them.  Soon, both dogs would squat and pee when I said this.  Cassie would also poop on command - an ability I've never seen in other dogs (or humans).  On her last day, deathly sick and barely able to walk, I took her outside so she wouldn't get sick in the house.  She walked out, looked at me, and squatted to pee - even though she didn't have to go.  She believed that's what I took her out for, and she still knew what to do.

 

7.  Cassie is an obedience class star.  Soon after I got her, I enrolled Cassie in an obedience class.  I've found it's a good way to socialize dogs, bond with them, and give them some basic skills that are useful.  As the first class started, Cassie was terrified of the other dogs, tried to attack several, and was generally about as bad as you can imagine a dog to be.  Embarrassed, I took her to a corner of the room and worked with her alone.  Much to my surprise, she almost immediately learned sit and heel, and by the end of the first session she could heel right by the other dogs without a bad reaction.  By the end of her first course, she performed better than the instructor's dog!  I ended up taking her through a number of advanced classes, and she was amazing - her eyes would be riveted on me, and she would follow my lead without error.  I never worked with her more than about 15 minutes per day, and never entered her in any competition, but she was always the best dog in every class.  After a couple of courses, I even had her take the Canine Good Citizen test, which she passed.

 

6.  Cassie lets the bunnies live.  A few years ago, I was mowing the lawn, and I noticed a nest of rabbits under a bench in the corner of the yard.  They were very tiny, about the size of mice.  Cassie saw them too, and was just about to go - as dogs will - and kill them.  Now, I don't really care all that much about rabbits - there's no shortage in Nebraska - but I really didn't want to see the carnage.  I was also less than enthusiastic about her eating them and getting sick.  I yelled at her, and said, "Cassie, NO!  Leave It!".  She sat down about twenty feet from the nest, and looked at me.  I repeated my words, and she just sat there, staring at the nest.  I assumed they'd be safe until the moment I turned my back.  To my surprise, she didn't bother them the rest of the day, even when I went to mow in the front yard.  Amazingly, she never went and cleaned out the nest - when I'd let her out in the yard, I'd say "Leave It", and she'd go sit about twenty feet away, watching.  Over the next several weeks, the bunnies got bigger, until they were gone, and she never touched them.

 

5.  Cassie dodges the water spray.  When she was young, Cassie used to "go off" at times in the car - barking at cars, drivers, other dogs, cows, or whatever she decided bothered her.  We got the bright idea to cure her of this habit by spraying her with a water bottle each time she acted up.  She quickly learned the proper reaction - bark your head off, then duck!  Needless to say, the only thing we accomplished was to end up with a wet lab - unfortunately, it was Charlie, not Cassie, who took the spray.  I guess we did teach her to duck after barking!

 

4.  Cassie owns the paddle boat.  When we bought our lake home, we decided to get a paddle boat.  It was virtually impossible to get on that thing without Cassie.  We had to keep a leash on her, because if she saw someone on the other side of the lake, she'd just jump in and swim to them.  With the leash, she'd sometimes pull the boat backwards, trying to go see  kids.

 

3.  Cassie the fisherman.   Once we started fishing, we learned that Cassie liked nothing better than to go on the boat and "help".  We used a large cooler as a live well, and Cassie would try to grab the fish as they swam in the cooler.  We sometimes fished for catfish using floats made from "fun noodles" - foam swim aids.  Each float would have a line attached, and we'd throw around 30 of them in the lake and wait for the catfish to bite.  When they'd hit it, one end would go under water, while the other popped up.  With Cassie along, we didn't have to worry about missing one - she'd see it and get very excited.  If you didn't watch out, she'd jump in to fetch it.

 

2.  Cassie the lifeguard.  Cassie loved to swim.  She also loved to jump in and fetch your fun noodle - sometimes almost drowning you in the process.  If you managed to hold on, she'd tow you back to shore.  Sometimes, I'd jump off one side of the dock.  Cassie would jump off her side, and be there when I came up for air.  If I went to the other side and didn't jump right away, she'd bark at me until I jumped.

 

As I'm writing this, my mind is filling up with great Cassie memories.  I could easily go on with this - talking about my big, brave dog who was deathly afraid of flys, or how she'd trick Kodak into giving up his side of the couch, or even how she could fly - jumping off the deck to the yard 13 feet below, but I decided to make  this a top 10 list, so I'll stick to that, for now.  So, with no more fanfare, here's my number one memory of Cassie:

 

It's a tough life, but somebody's got to do it......

 

 

1.  Cassie the lap dog.  As a general rule, we don't allow the dogs on the furniture.  The exceptions were:  the downstairs couch (when we had a downstairs), our bed (only when it was unmade), and my recliner.  Amazingly, Cassie understood each of these restrictions - she'd often stand at the foot of our bed and loudly demand it to be unmade, so she could go to sleep.  After we moved to Arizona, I'd often find her lounging in my recliner when I came home.  The best part, however, was when she'd crawl up in my lap.  There she'd lay, gazing up at me with those eyes that said, "I think you're wonderful".  That's the image in my mind when I think of Cassie, and what I  think I miss the most about her.   



That's my Girl!

My Busy Week

A few of weeks ago, I got called by a former client, who was ready to sell the home I'd sold them a few years before.  It's always gratifying to get a call like that - after all, if they didn't think I did a good job for them when they bought their house, they'd hardly call me to sell it, right?  To make it even better, they told me they had decided when they bought their home that they'd call me when they wanted to sell.

The odd thing about this call was, it was the THIRD call from a former client I received THAT Day!  That's right, three people who bought homes from between 2007 and 2009 called me on the same day.  I made arrangements with each of them to go look at their house and give them advice on pricing, as well as how best to market their home. As it turns out, all of them needed a bit of time to get their house ready for market - they all worked like crazy over the weekend, and I listed all three last Monday.

The Lincoln real estate market is strong right now - there is a shortage of quality listings on the market, and buyers are active.  By Friday night, all three of my new listings were sold, and one of my sellers had already written up a contract on a new home.  A second seller is still looking, but will probably buy a home in the next week or two.  In addition, I sold two lots, which will turn into a pair of town homes (one of which is already sold!), and listed another new construction town home that is just getting started.  All in all, my week was one of the best - and busiest - since I started selling real estate.

I know I'll never be this busy all the time - and who would want to?  I don't mind working late when I need to, but I certainly don't want to do that every day.  When it happens once in a while, it's great fun.  Now, I'm taking a week off.  I don't need to feel guilty - I got enough done this week!

Blown Away

Many years ago, I owned several guns - a couple of shotguns and a .22 rifle.  I didn't hunt or shoot a lot, but on occasion I'd get out and use them a bit.  My father had a .22 pistol that I had fired a few times, but I've never owned a hand gun.

After having kids, my hunting and shooting got put on the back burner - I didn't fire a gun for over 25 years.  My guns were sitting dusty and rusting in the closet, so I eventually just got rid of them.

A week or so ago, we were out to dinner with my son and daughter-in-law, and they mentioned that there was a new indoor shooting range that had opened in Lincoln.  When they said they were planning to go, Theresa said, "I'd love to go shoot a gun!"  Once I got over the shock, I reluctantly agreed to go and give it a shot (pun intended).

BigShots Indoor Range is a nice place, located just off of West O Street in Lincoln.  The owners are very friendly, and they seem to be quite safety-conscious.  Since we hadn't been to their range (or, in Theresa and my case, any range) we were required to view a short video on gun safety before we could shoot.  Although they are experienced shooters, Matthew and Mitzi also had to watch the video.  The woman who set this up - "Terry" - was nice, and didn't look down on the neophytes in our group.

Theresa and I don't own a gun, but Matthew and Mitzi have a .357 Magnum revolver, and some very nice friends of theirs (Joe and Audra) let us borrow a .22 pistol.  BigShots has rental guns, but you must have a county handgun purchase permit to rent.  If you don't have a record, the permit is easy to get - it costs $5.

We rented hearing and eye protection (required), and went to the range.

If you go, the first thing you'll notice is that some guns are LOUD!  Some guy was shooting something about the size of a bazooka - we all jumped about a foot off the ground the first time it went off.  Standing in the booth next to it, you could feel the concussion every time he fired.  The .357 was fairly loud as well, making the .22 sound like a cap gun in comparison.  Joe gave us some instruction on how to safely operate his .22 semi-automatic pistol, and Theresa blazed away.

The targets at the range are on a track, and can be moved to any distance desired.  I'm not sure of the maximum distance, but it's enough that most of us wouldn't be able to hit the target at that range.  We were typically shooting at targets in the 5 to 10 yard range.  Surprisingly, both Theresa and I were able to group shots within about a 6 inch range at these relatively short distances.  Not surprisingly, the .22 was much easier to shoot accurately, although both Theresa and I were OK with the .357.  After a bit of practice, I improved quite a bit with the .22. Matthew and Mitzi were, of course,  better.  John and Audra were quite good, from my perspective - Audra had some really great groupings with the bigger gun.

All in all, it was a lot of fun.  Friday nights are "Date Night", so the range fee was $20 for the two of us.  While ammunition for larger caliber guns is expensive, .22 ammo is still relatively cheap, so, if you own a gun, this isn't the most expensive night out you can imagine.  Gun rental would add a bit to that, but it's still affordable.

A couple of weeks ago, I'd have told you I'd never fire a gun again.  I'd also have been pretty sure I'd never own a hand gun.  Even more surprising, Theresa had a great time!  After going to the range, I find myself thinking about buying a pistol, and making the range a more or less regular outing. 

Bacon!

My brother has had a life-long love affair with bacon - his one true love.  I created this post a while ago, but decided to save it for his birthday.

Besides eating bacon, Bill spends most of his time gaming, working in his yard, or writing posts for his blog. He's 62 today - he might want to cut down on the bacon a bit if he wants to see 63.

Happy Birthday, Bill!

I'm Back!

Just on the off chance that anyone is out there reading this, I apologize for not posting during the last couple of weeks.  I've had a busy time at work, caught (and recovered from) a cold, and took a long weekend vacation at the lake.

Now, I'm back, so I'll get something posted soon!

The President Supports Marriage Equality!

Barack Obama, in an interview today, came out in favor of allowing same-sex couples to marry.  While his announcement doesn't change anything, it is an important step towards equal rights in this country - the President, the leader of the free world, has taken a principled stand.

I haven't agreed with everything President Obama has done - in particular, I'd have liked to see both of the wars ended in his first term - but I have always admired him as a man.  The contrast between Obama and Romney couldn't be clearer - Romney stands for nothing other than his desire to be elected.

Already, I hear complaints from the Left - "this doesn't go far enough", "he should have done this earlier", "He should push for a federal solution", etc.  I even agree with some of these complaints - but look at the circumstances.  This statement comes in an election year - one in which he faces a very beatable opponent - and, while it may energize the base, does nothing to broaden his support.  I believe most voters who support gay marriage are already in his camp.  Furthermore, this may serve to fire up the socially conservative Republican base - a group that was largely uninspired by Mitt Romney.  This statement may not be perfect, but it's a courageous stand, taken at a difficult time for the president.

I don't see a large political upside for the president in all this, but history will record this as a milestone.  For the first time, a major political party in the United States will officially endorse marriage equality.  If Obama loses the election due to this - I don't think he will - he's earned my respect.  He'll never read this, but I'll say it anyway:

Thank you, Mr. President. 

Fire!

A couple of weeks ago, we got a disturbing call from our neighbors down in Missouri - our dock was on fire!  More specifically, our fishing boat had ignited - it was completely destroyed, and the dock had extensive damage.  This weekend, we're down here, meeting with insurance adjusters, dock repair people, and boat service folks. 

We were amazed when we saw the photos from the fire, but seeing the damage in person is even more striking.  The fishing boat is no longer recognizable as a watercraft - much of the fiberglass cloth is still there, but the resin has burned completely - it's as if the whole thing just melted.  The steering wheel is laying in the middle of the mess, the pump for our live well is a burnt tube in the back, and the anchor is sitting next to it - the only piece of the boat that is still functional at all.

We have no idea how the fire started.  Our insurance company asked if we had any enemies down here, but all of our enemies live in Nebraska, and we're careful not to let them know how to find us down South.  The fire marshal just ruled it an "accidental fire" - he really has no clue what happened.  It appears as though the fire started near the front of the boat, by the trolling motor batteries, but it's hard to tell for sure.  There was about 12 gallons of gas, split between the front and the back end of the boat, so there was plenty of fuel.  I suspect some kind of short, but that's just a guess. 

Most of the damage was to the area right around the boat.

The whole underside of the roof, and most of the structural members are covered in soot.  Some of the roofing material has buckled, and some support members may be structurally suspect, but most of the structure is OK.

Our paddle boat, once stored on this burnt section of dock, was completely consumed.  Only the pedals remain!

Our other boat sustained relatively minor damage.

This is the adjustable-height seat base from the fishing boat.  It was blown out of the boat, and ended up on the dock.

We had just reinforced the transom on the fishing boat - that's probably the only reason the motor isn't laying on the bottom of the lake!

This fan has seen better days!  The dock will need to be completely rewired.

The photos really don't do justice to this - it's a mess!  The good news is, nobody was hurt.  Nothing except our dock and boats was damaged, and we'll still be able to use the house.  With a little time - and a bit of money - we'll be good as new.

Now, the bad news.  We had two boats, only one of which was insured.  Guess which one was completely destroyed?  We'll get a little coverage under our home owner's policy, but it's still not good news to lose the fishing boat.  On top of that, we liked that boat - it was old and ugly, but we had a lot of fun with it, and it worked well for our needs.

We also lost all our fishing gear - the new stuff that was set up just like we wanted it, as well as some old gear I'd had since I was a child.  A few of the lures in my tackle box were ones I got on vacation about 45 years ago.

The other big negative?  We discovered our dock was under-insured.  Our insurance agent told us we had "full replacement coverage".  That's true, but only up to the limit of our coverage - in this case, about 2/3 of the value of the dock.  Since our first estimate for repairs came to about twice our coverage amount, we're now looking for ways to reduce the expense.  Had we been adequately covered, we'd just be able to say, "fix it"!

Even this dark cloud has a silver lining - after this experience, we'll be sure to evaluate our coverage on both houses to make sure we can recover in the event of a disaster.  What else did we learn?  We learned our agent in Lincoln (Ray Thompson State Farm) is on top of things.  Even though we have a different agent for our lake home, I got a call from Shannon in the Lincoln office, asking if everything was OK.  Our Missouri agent, Joe Varnen, is another story - we finally talked to him today, almost two weeks after the fire.  We are also disappointed that he didn't give us better guidance for setting up our policies - Ray's office will go over our coverage every couple of years to make sure we're set up right. 

In the end, we were responsible for our own property.  We could - and should - have known the exact limits of our coverage.  As I said, we'll get everything fixed, and eventually this will be just one of life's experiences.  Right now, it's a giant pain!

Misconceptions about the American Worker

I called to talk to my brother after he posted about Saw Stop - an impressive safety device for table saws - on his blog.  During the discussion, we each remarked on the fact that we had, on numerous occasions, witnessed workers putting themselves at risk by ignoring or bypassing safety devices or procedures.  That got me thinking about the perceived laziness of the American worker.

I have a different perspective on this than many - I've worked in all kinds of production jobs, from the lowest-ranking guy on the line all the way to being the boss of the whole plant.  From what I've seen, workers in this country are anything but lazy!

If you want to make someone mad on the job, put up a stupid barrier that makes it hard for them to do a good job.  I've seen line workers scream at stock pullers because they ran out of material.  Why do they do this?  If they run out of parts, they have to stop working!  You'd think all those "lazy" workers would just be hoping for a chance to goof off, wouldn't you? 

I've seen the same thing with safety devices - employees who risk personal injury as well as disciplinary action because they don't follow proper safety procedure.  When you ask them why they do that, the answer is almost always, "that takes too much time".

At one time, I was Quality Assurance Manager at a manufacturing company.  We set up inspection requirements for operators to get the first part of each production run checked out before continuing the run.  Once again, the objection was based in the idea that stopping to look at the part would slow then down.

I've noticed that most of the talk about "lazy, good-for-nothing" workers comes from managers and staff members who have NEVER had to work on the floor (or, if they have, they were insulated from the real world by virtue of being related to the big boss).  Some of these folks will stand around bad-mouthing the help, without realizing that most of those folks want nothing more than to do a bang-up job.  Most of being a supervisor involves eliminating all the little things that keep people from doing their job.

Of course, I'd say the general good intentions of people go beyond the production floor.  In my current job as a Realtor, I've been impressed by how honest most sellers are - they genuinely want to let buyers know if there are defects in their home.  Believe it or not, they actually want the new owners of their home to be happy!

To be fair, all the misconceptions in the factory don't belong to the bosses.  Many rank-and-file workers believe their boss LOVES to fire people.  In reality, many managers are reluctant to enforce rules, and the LEAST favorite part of almost any manager's job is firing or writing up their employees.  Indeed, as a production manager, the most common problem I saw in managers who reported to me was their reluctance to demand high performance from their people.

So, I've painted a pretty rosy picture of life on the manufacturing floor, right?  All the workers are motivated and honest.  The managers - their only fault is that they're too nice - gently encourage all these blue-collar supermen to be careful, and have fun out there!  With all that going for us, U.S. manufacturing will be back on top in no time, right?  Well, not exactly!  There are still workers who don't want to work, or don't have the requisite skills to get the job done.  There are stupid, dishonest people out there - and some of them are the bosses!  Too many companies have poor procedures, weak designs, and flawed business plans.  Nothing in this life is perfect, and manufacturing  is not even close.  Other businesses share these issues, and the problem rarely lies in the willingness or motivation of workers.  Stereotypes are the product of a lazy mind - turn your brain on, and form opinions based on observable behaviors, not your own prejudices.  Come to think of it, that's pretty good advice in almost every situation!

Happy Birthday, Theresa

My wife is a complex person, much too complex to describe adequately in the space and time available here.  Since anyone reading this probably already knows her, I won't try to paint a clear picture for you - instead, I'll talk a little about how she has changed in the 35+ years we've been married.
 
As a newlywed, Theresa was beautiful, sweet, and conservative.  She had no ambitions, other than to be a great wife and - eventually - mother.  She worked, of course, because that was what you did if you didn't have kids, but she always assumed that would stop when we had children.  In many ways, she was innocent, even a bit naive.  Of course, most of us share those characteristics at the age of 18.  What not all of us had at that or any age was her honesty, character, and courage.  These things haven't changed - she doesn't cheat, lie, or steal, and she will always speak her mind. 

At 18 (and for a number of years after), Theresa was unconcerned about her long-term health. She did want to stay in shape, but only so she looked OK - it had nothing to do with fitness.  Theresa was a smoker for the first 15 years or so of our marriage.

On our move to Lincoln, we had a bad experience with several Realtors,  before we found one who did a good job.  When we talked about it, Theresa said, "I could do better than that!".  She did.  She started out in real estate part time, and soon was doing very well.  A few years later, the largest company in town recruited her to be an assistant manager and trainer, and she was well on her way to a successful career in management.

At about the same time as the job change, she gave up smoking.  I had quit a few years earlier, but it was a much tougher task for Theresa.  In quitting, she demonstrated the strength, resolve, and mule-headed stubbornness I had come to expect from her - characteristics that would help her in later years as she struggled with nerve damage from a back injury.  That allowed her to not only function despite the pain, but to actually increase her fitness level.  Eventually, she was able to lose weight and gain some control over her body.

Like most of us, Theresa has changed through the years.  She no longer has the same conservative, religious world view she had in the 1970's.  She's broken with the Catholic Church, and no longer attends services.  She still has, I believe, some spiritual feelings, but recognizes the issues with that faith.  She has gone from having virtually no career ambitions, to being extremely driven, and settled into the belief that work, while important, is not the most important thing in life.  She's still beautiful, but isn't vain.  She's extremely health conscious - she works out hard 5 or 6 days a week, and eats sensibly most of the time.

Fortunately, there's a lot more that hasn't changed.  If the naivete is gone, the good heart is still there - she'll do anything for her friends and family.  She's more likely than anyone I know to do an unexpected good deed for someone else.  She's personally very disciplined, and extremely protective of her kids.  Most people like her when they meet her, and those that don't are missing the boat.  She's a genuine, strong, caring person, well worth the effort to get to know.

On January 28th, sometime in the last half of the previous century, Theresa was born.  It's a great day - Happy Birthday, Theresa!