It’s been months since I’ve ridden the Vespa. Any adventure on the road occurs inside the comfortable confines of a Honda Odyssey van. Driving to Altoona, Pennsylvania today in the fog plucked chords of longing for being on the scooter. All I need do is repair the Vespa, brave the cold concrete floor of the garage and do a little work.
A little work; finding the time has been difficult. But the repairs are slowly rising up on my todo list.
Some things remain the same. Junior continues to insist on quality time in the world and I am inclined to try and deliver. This morning was nice as the temperature was already in the 40s when as we made our way through the park. There has been a lot of good riding weather this winter and I’ve missed pretty much all of it save for a few trips on my daughter’s Yamaha Vino.
For now both the Vespa and Vino continue to quietly sip electricity from the Battery Tenders wondering what the hell has happened to me.
Soon though, soon…
Junior and I made the end of the day walk in State College, Pennsylvania. Calder Alley offers a nice, long stroll at night with a lot of things for me to look at with the camera and many fine aromas for Junior to consider behind the many bars and restaurants.
Just a quick note to let you know your RSS feeds aren’t dead and neither am I. Just consumed with other more pressing matters at the moment.
This picture would look better if there was a Vespa in it.
It is good that even though you are not riding your bike, you still give insight on what you are up to. Nice and still interesting information. Let us know when you get back to riding or even more interesting how you repair your bike.
Steve, keep delaying those repairs much longer, and this might happen:
In the Nittany Gazette:
Local man, famed throughout the moto-blogging world, has disappeared and is the subject of a nation-wide hunt. He was last seen by his wife, packing what seemed to be his worldly possessions onto his Vespa scooter, laughing maniacally and yelling: ” She’s fixed! She’s fixed, now leave me alone, for I must ride and satisfy the pictorial cravings of my readers!”
Known as “scooter in the sticks” by reputed legions, he’d recently allowed himself to be kept from riding by needed repairs on the scooter and rumored tasks from “work” and “life in general”.
State Police Trooper Jack McSwervy reported seeing a silver colored scooter shape flash by his cruiser the same day the missing man disappeared. Although he gave chase, the vehicle in question outdistanced him and was lost when it turned into one of the local forest trails. While attempting to follow, the trooper’s cruiser was hit by at least three small deer and was disabled. The trooper has been released from the hospital and is recovering from the “rats on stilts” jitters.
Anyone seeing this scooter rider, laughing maniacally and yelling “I’m free!” over and over should contact the local BMW Motorcycle Club so they can get word to their designated chase rider: a man of legends and tales, Jack Riepe. It is believed only Mr Riepe can catch up and get the missing man to return from the beyond where his mind has escaped.
I was beginning to think that this was going to be one more of those abandoned blogs…
Or maybe Dom’s story has already taken place and you were caught…
Steve:
after Dom’s comment, there was little left to say . . .
bob
Riding the Wet Coast
Hang in there Steve, I know we will 🙂
Work and be busy now for one of those days after retirement
(what’s that? eh?)you may very well go riding off into the woods of Pennsylvania shouting and laughing, “I am free!”
Mind about that time the men with the strait jacket in hand appears inviting you inside.
Working in an educational environment will do that, you know!
Pirelli: I can almost envision the repair, the organizing of the garage space, getting the tools in order, freezing on the concrete floor. Wait, freezing on the concrete floor. Don’t like the sounds of that. But I am getting antsy to ride so something has to happen.
Charlie6 (Dom): I suggest you raise the garage door a bit higher when undertaking maintenance on the Ural that requires the engine to be running. Reading between the lines of your mostly accurate account of what is happening in Pennsylvania I can detect the beginnings of delusional thought and vision. One can only hope it’s the fumes and not some sort of odd biomechanical reaction to a sidecar with the human body.
A part of me is definitely missing — riding, photography… but I persevere.
Thanks for sharing the tale. It was just was I needed to read as the warm days disappeared and a frigid wind returned.
RichardM: I was fearing the same thing. Bad habits and sloth are a potent mixture to do nothing. But I’ll get back to things and I’m sure as a better man.
bob skoot: Dom’s literary prowess continues to build. I bet he has a book in the works and will one day spring it on us — some sort of quasi-post apocalypse tale of a man and his sidecar rig bringing justice to the road in the Rocky Mountains.
Or something like that.
David Masse: You are one patient man. I’ll eventually breath some energy back into my riding (and blogging) life.
Bryce Lee: Work continues to be an excellent adventure though at times I can forget those feelings when I am in the middle of some stressful or difficult project.
The Vespa — I thought — would keep those men with the strait jackets away!
Hallo.
Am glad that the blog will not be abandoned. Reading informative pieces in your blog is what i will be looking forward to.
I am a Touring Motorcycles Enthusiast and a follower of your work. Keep up the good job.