Riding Panacea
Looking over the blog posts of the past year reveals a steady decline in the production of stories, essays, and messages along with the attendant photographs that have been a stable of Scooter in the Sticks for 15 years.
Any deep investigation of this trend has been avoided, passed off to the realm of riding where an imagined revelation would occur and provide a solid, succinct roadmap for the future of Scooter in the Sticks.
I’ve been generously rewarded by riding my scooters and motorcycles. Insight, understanding, and clarity revealed during a ride have not been uncommon. But to think riding is a panacea that can replace thinking and hard work is simply not true. At least for me.
So I’ve been struggling with what to do with this blog.
Just Close the Book
More than once I’ve thought Scooter in the Sticks has reached a natural conclusion and I should create one last post to say goodbye to those readers who have subscribed and followed along as I posted my thoughts and experiences.
I’ve read that blogs are dead. Judging by the dramatic decline in traffic I can see how that may be the case. But there are still millions of blogs with millions more being created every year. So there is that.
Closing doors, burning bridges and saying goodbyes has never felt good. A lingering unease of error and regret likely fuel these feelings. So closing the book on Scooter in the Sticks at this point in time won’t happen.
I have been riding continuously since the last post and through the cold of winter here in Central Pennsylvania. Some rides, like the most recent on the Vespa ET4, were to run a few errands and exercise the fluids and the drive train of the machine to keep it limber through times of less than-normal riding.
Apply Force
Just do it fool. Force yourself to create more blog posts and shut up. Or force yourself to not care and just do what you want. Regarding creating more posts I have to ask myself, “Why?”
There have been positive outcomes from Scooter in the Sticks. I’ve met other riders and bloggers. I’ve gained knowledge and insight from the many who have shared and commented over the years. And the posts have served as a type of personal history through which I can peer into my past in a way that is more accurate than memory.
I am resistant to force. Something else motivates me to action.
Enter YouTube
A year ago I decided to begin producing video content on YouTube. The plan was not to eliminate blog posts, but the work required to script and produce videos consumed more time than planned, and writing blog posts got lost in the shuffle.
And surprisingly, YouTube generates revenue. Not a lot, but enough to cover fuel every month.
Wandering down the video production path was undertaken as an alternative to writing essays for the blog. I had grown weary of writing. Creating videos was a challenging puzzle that altered my interest and energy in creating something focused on riding. Making money was never a focus but has been a pleasant surprise.
Writing a Book
If there is a mercenary aspect to any of this it’s in the thinking that if I ever finish one of my books, the blog would be a good place to sell it. A BIG if, that idea of me finishing a book. But there it is.
The Eclectic Approach
The path moving forward that holds the most promise is an eclectic one, paved with whatever content I create, find interesting or otherwise deem worthy of setting in the digital stone of Scooter in the Sticks. And how often that might be? I don’t know. All I know is I am releasing myself from my own arbitrary goals regarding posting frequency.
So until next time, I hope you are well and riding safely.
Little known is that I have a blog that I write in sporadically and haven’t since about October. It gets a little more action during the riding season but even at that, not a lot. Heck I even have a Youtube channel (if you could call it that). Again, I only upload a video of the events I go to so I can post them on Facebook for a group I belong to. I feel your angst except neither my blog posts or Youtube videos approach the level of artistry or philosophy yours do. So I can’t even claim that I have worn myself out extending effort to them. I personally appreciate every post or video and it has given me a wealth of information about Vespa ownership and the associated requirements to keep them running. What ever you do I’ll be there to catch it in print or video appreciating each disertation.
Thanks for the supportive words Jim. I get into a frame of thinking regarding posting frequency that is kind of rigid. And when I don’t meet my expectations I feel like I’m failing. Complete irrational thinking on my part. I just need to let go of any expectations and just move forward with writing and posting as I do riding — footloose and carefree!
Oh, priorities: I’ve been wanting to xatch up with the last several blog entries of yours, but I’ve been caught up in so much stuff that it’s not been easy; even my plans to give my pair of blogs some much-needed CPR has gotten pushed back, and yet I also just paid for a website for my photography, which I absolutely need to get cracking on (with my photographer wife holding the metaphorical gun to my temple to do so). Also sorting insurance stuff out so Thelonica can finally be made blemish-free, though that won’t be stopping me from hopping on her early tomorrow for a pair of tech gigs in Gotham: roads should thankfully be dry which is a good thing, since temperatures will won’t be too far above freezing.
Yeah, I think this is about the prospect of spreading oneself too thin, especially when a lot of the stuff you’re doing is more for fun than financial gain. Writing, photography, video (yes, I have a YouTube channel, with one extremely-sloppy clip posted that I should seriously consider yanking), blogging…a one-person act needs a break now and then, so I hear you. But I’m glad you’re keeping this particular iron in the fire, even if you might need to lower the flame a bit.
As I type this out, I’m looking out a NJTransit train window upon a spectacularly gloomy afternoon landscape. Here’s to sunnier days all around.
Stretched too thin. Yep. Sounds right. It’s easy to get overwhelmed with tasks and duties as you’ve outlined in your comments. I just need to get comfortable scaling back and lowering the flame!
I hope you get Thelonica all shiny again!
I always look forward to your blog, whenever it comes. However, I appreciate the effort required to produce such things, particularly as we all age and perhaps think we run out of new things to say. Anyway, well produced YouTube videos are great, but there is something particularly therapeutic in reading a beautifully written piece as you always seem to manage. So, if it comes to an end, so be it. But I will still be looking, just in case! Thank you.
I hope to continue to write essays here. For a long time, they revolved around rides I made. I’ve struggled to branch out a bit with the kinds of things I post but haven’t figured anything out yet.
Thank you for the kind words about the things I write. I’ll try and continue to present something worth reading.
It’s interesting perspective. I didn’t consider that with YouTube you can get some income for your time spent. I generally don’t watch the YouTube videos. My preference is for written word, because I can consume it at my own rate. If I want to scan quickly and stop and read those areas of more interest carefully. If I have the time to leisurely read through the post, I can do that. With videos, I’m forced to watch them as they are presented. A 16 minute video takes 16 minutes to watch, which is time I rarely have. Personally, if I’m going to muse about a ride, I generally do it in a written post, likely since video is my full time job, it seems too much like “work” to do a video about a ride. But since you pointed out the income factor, I will make more of an effort to watch the videos. Unfortunately life, and a new dog who hates to be left behind, have limited my riding for the past year or two, but our mild winter has me looking at the scooter cover more and more.
I certainly understand the challenge you describe with your job in video. I had a similar issue as a staff photographer. I could not generate energy at the end of the day to work on personal photography projects. So I had to quit the staff job to make room in my head for my personal projects. That’s a long story though.
Dogs certainly influence our lives and the freedom we might have otherwise. But from my perspective with two of them near by, they’re worth it!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I appreciate them.
I enjoy your blog post and your videos. A little gas money is a great side effect. As a reader and viewer I am fine with what you post and it frequency. keep doing what makes you happy & I will keep enjoying it.
X2!
Thanks Mike. I’ll post things as the spirit moves me. Hopefully a bit more frequently.
I can not wait for it to warm up so I can go riding on my Vespa again.
The temperature here has dropped below 20F. I could ride. But I just don’t feel like it.
Bring on the warm weather!
Steve;
I have been reading all of your blog posts since not long after you started them. When I receive an email alert that you have posted a new blog entry, my heart lights up. To me, your blog posts are like receiving a personal letter, addressed just to me, and written for me. A nice respite from all the clutter in my world
I am extremely grateful for that.
Whatever pace or frequency you decide to adopt, I will be good with it.
Steel
Thank you Steel for your kind words about my posts. Hopefully you’ll continue to receive email alerts!
Steve, I’ve entertained the same thoughts you have re continuing the blog. In the end, once I let go of the foolish notion of trying to gather more readers and such and think of the blog as what it started as: A Web Log. I use it now to record where I’ve been and what I did….for my memory is rapidly turning to mush. Luckily, I can go back all the way to 2006 to see what I was up to…..
The aspect of personal history on a blog is no small thing Dom. More and more I find it pretty nice to peer backwards in time.
My memory is mush as well. It’s hell to get old.
Whatever you do or don’t do going forward Steve, I’ve certainly enjoyed and appreciated every post you’ve written, every photo you’ve taken and offered, and every video you’ve posted. After fifty-plus years of riding, I’ve personally achieved everything I ever wanted to do on two wheels – so due to old age and poor health I’ve finally quit riding – but I’ve been able to live on and ride on vicariously through your site and your offerings. So from one rider to anyone. I offer you my heartfelt “Thank You!”. And whatever your future offers me, if anything, I’ll appreciate each and every morsel of it.
Thank you Kitty.
I’m sorry that you had to quit riding but at least you did what you wanted. The day will come for all of us that we will take that last ride. Until then, as you say, I’ll appreciate each and every morsel of living.
Here’s something to ponder Steve. I’ve only been following your blog for the last 5 years or so, but I’ve read every one of your posts since the inception. Your blog still has the feel of what you USED to do………..things that are a bit of a struggle now. Wonderful reading by the way! That said …..you aren’t that person any more. What I would suggest is mentally consider shutting this present blog down, draw a double line and start a new one about who you are right now……..not who you used to be. That would be quite helpful to those of us that are struggling with age issues……..but want to “keep on keeping on”. I have no idea if my babbling makes any sense………but I hope it at least gives you food for thought. Best Regards, Jim
You’ve pointed toward what has been rattling around in my head — writing about the experiences of aging and riding. As you say, it’s where I am now. I’m not commuting anymore, not riding as I once did. The things I do and the concerns I have are different.
Thanks for the food for thought. It’s really helpful!
Steve, I enjoy both your blog and your YouTube channel. Both are thoughtful and skillfully done, and your love of two wheels is evident as well. I view them both as communicating in the same voice, albeit in different mediums. You always offer a unique perspective in both formats, usually bringing to mind something I didn’t know about or never considered. Both have good vibes, and a good community of followers that I’m lucky to be part of.
As a fellow creative, I recognize the importance of feeling inspired to make something. What fuels this desire is usually a mystery, but I’ve found that sometimes working in a new or different environment, or using new or different tools can somehow spark something. And once that spark bursts into a flame, you’ve got to run with it as far as it will take you.
Just a thought, but – even if you aren’t posting anything – I’d keep the blog right here, guilt-free. You may find future seasons where the spark to write is rekindled. Until then, I’ll be happily following your adventures on YouTube.
Thanks for the comments Andy.
Creation and inspiration often seem at odds. Or at least co-dependent. And add my expectations of what I create into the mix and it’s just a big, mental mess.
I just need to let go of it all and just let the wind blow me where it will.
Steve, I didn’t get to read all your blogs, but, what I read was full filling with time line good read. One of the best is the Monster Mountain Lurale ride, where it crabed the Himalayan bike and it was after the titanium spokes. It was chewing pass the synthetic rubber it wanted the cobalt with in the bowels of your seat. But YOU WONE the battle, with your side kickstand.
I don’t win many battles but I do show up for them. As I get older and more fragile, I think I need to rethink the battling!
I believe I have benefited from the content of your blogs, and will surely miss them when you retire, and I hope you continue to find peace through the operation of your 2-wheelers.
Thank you!
I want to keep writing and posting. I just need to get my head on straight, meaning figure out how to reconcile the blog and the YouTube channel so it doesn’t feel like a competition.
Thanks for your comments. I really do appreciate them.
Steve, for what it’s worth, I think blogging is the most benign in the spectrum of social media and contributes the most value in terms of emotional well-being and connection.
One thing is certain, it’s a great way to chronicle a life and there is a lot of value in doing that (said the guy whose own blog posts have dwindled).
The biggest challenge is when the motivation to post changes. In my case I was trying to pay forward all the help I got from you and other bloggers when I set out on my quest to commute on a Vespa.
The interesting thing that I never anticipated was the bounty of experience that came as a result of my blog. Meeting you, riding with you and Paul, meeting other bloggers and ModernVespa cult members from coast to coast. Riding to visit so many places on the west coast, the east coast, the Florida gulf coast and Everglades, Tuscany…. Wow… what priceless experiences.
My blog is not contributing to that original motivation that drove me.
Mostly, I am just occasionally writing to share with the few who still follow my blog how I am still very much alive, still riding.
I have many, many hours of video that I could cobble into some interesting Brompton adventure videos. But as you know, it’s a lot of time to get from clips to viable YouTube fodder.
Until some more compelling motivation to post drifts my way, I’ll post… sometimes… and always follow your posts.
Please don’t close the door.
Your description of your blogging arc and the value it has provided is not unlike my own. There remain many reasons for me to continue. Sorting out the need for motivation is all that stands in the way.
I also agree with your suggestion that a blog is the most benign form of social media. And at the same time perhaps the most useful in connecting to other people and sharing at a deeper level. That has been my experience.
I’m not ready to close the door yet.
I enjoy your blogs, and avidly read them. They are well written, very thoughtful, informative, and a joy to read. But that’s beside the point. Blogs are a labor of love. If you aren’t enjoying it anymore, then why do it? You have your YouTube channel, and you seem to enjoy the new challenges and opportunities it offers. Selfishly I want you to keep writing your blog. But my more honest side says “Life is short, especially for those of us in our 60s with heart trouble. Time is precious. Too precious to waste on things that don’t bring joy and fulfillment to our lives.”
It’s weird — after I post something I feel good. Perhaps not joy and fulfillment but something positive nonetheless. Throughout my life I’ve struggled with motivation and inspiration, often two things beat up by perfection.
It may be I just need to accept things not having to meet some blurry standard I have.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts Clyde. They were helpful to read.
I will continue to look forward to “Scooter” whenever / wherever it arrives👍😊. At times I recognize my own experience more fully viewed through yours…including the slowing of momentum. This can be enlightening, comforting or even a little challenging. Thank you. Be as gentle with yourself as with us.🤗👍😉
Thank you for the kind words about the work I post.
Being gentle with myself…. I forget how often I’m not doing that. Except when I’m riding. I just can’t ride enough!
Steve, I understand your thoughts. At times I have tried to drop my travel blog, but surprisingly there are a few people that really want to read it, so I press on. It is, as I always say it is “my” travel diary and I often refer back to them for reference. I don’t think they are as good as they once were but they are still there.
Your blogs are a lot more celebral than mine and I need that. Whatever you do please through one up every now and them.
A blog as a diary for reference certainly is a value for me. I’ve been journaling since high school and now have a small mountain of journals in my study. But they don’t contain the sorts of things I ever need or want to return to. And finding something specific would be difficult. The blog on the other hand has the sorts of factual information I might want, and a search function makes finding something pretty easy.
So I will continue to post things here if for no other reason. And for you!
I’ve been writing this morning but am uncertain if it will become a video or a blog post. It’s 18F right now. Sunny, but colder than I want to deal with for riding. Old age is making my mind and body weak!
“And for you!”
And I thank you for that.
Hey Steve,
Can’t think of one person whether they ride or not after reading and seeing your Great photos would b happy if they went away.I along with the comments stated sure would b at a loss.Thank you for all in the past and always look forward to something you share.. Riding for me is Good Therapy and Scooter in the Sticks is too!!! Take care ,enjoy the ride no matter where it takes you,always an adventure around the corner●
Thanks for your kind words about the work I post. Riding is good for me as well, and as difficult as it sometimes is, so is writing about it. I’m not sure what the future will hold but this is where I’ll report.
After some single digit weather it appears that the temperature will rise above freezing and I’ll get to ride some.