Christmas comes so quickly now, the long anticipation and waiting as the season’s magic grew that I felt as a child now seems like a sudden flash, a moment come and gone.  And as I sit here on Christmas eve, snow falling quietly outside, the house warm and quiet as the kids have just left and Kim and I prepare for that long winter’s nap, I have a little time to reflect and share best wishes for a fine holiday.

The Vespa still sits in the garage waiting for me to engage in repair actions and return to the cold roads of winter.  Reaching into the archives from a few years ago I retrieved this image of the scooter hauling home a Christmas tree.  After 8 weeks of Vespa free living I have begun to forget how capable that machine is…

Saint’s Cafe feels like home — a quiet festive atmosphere where people know my name.  On Sunday morning I get to spend some time with friends, talk about life, photography and the things that bring us together.

An early view, not long after the doors opened, before people begin to arrive.  In those silent moments my mind wanders through Christmas past and Christmas present.

The Vino has begun to grow on me.  Lights and trees and trappings of the season remind me of trips to Pittsburgh as a kid with my mother, the pilgrimage to Joseph Hornes to see Santa Claus, the Christmas Town trains at Buhl Planetarium, candlelight services as church on Christmas even and all the other little experiences that color my ideas of the holiday.  And they wash over me as I ride beneath the twinkling lights as if I was 6 years old again.

More riding magic perhaps.

One last stop on the ride home to admire the home decorations that come closest to Clark Griswold in the movie “Christmas Vacation.”  This site would have fueled years of seasonal magic for me as a kid.

The clock draws near Christmas morning and it’s time to shut down the computer and hold hands with my wife and await the arrival of Saint Nick.

So to all who visit and read here, Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Nothing like a KTM draped in Christmas lights to ring in the holiday season.  Hard to believe it’s December already.  The festive machine appeared at the Piston and Pints Christmas party on the deck of the Boalsburg Yacht Club.  More pictures appear on my Scooter in the Sticks Facebook page.

The past few months have been so busy and hectic that the mass upload feature of Facebook is pretty seductive.

The Vespa has been dead for over a month — the HT spark plug lead burned off.  A replacement wire arrived last week but I have to dismantle the scooter to attach it to the coil.  No time or energy for that task yet.

I’ve read Jack Riepe’s new book, Conversations with a Motorcycle, several times now and have completed several drafts of a review.  Like the Vespa, the review has fallen into a world of wait as other more pressing matters consume time and energy.

It’s a great book and worth adding to your library and will make a great Christmas gift.  I’ll offer more extensive comments soon.  Until then Riepe will probably think I never read it or something. Click the link above to find out how to order.

Stirring the mix of busyness and chaos more — I’m still debating over whether it’s time to abandon film, a darkroom, and the ever more archaic process of chemical photography.  I love silver prints but I’m not feeling the fire lately…

The Leica M6 still works and I’ve continue to add to the growing pile of exposed film.  I hope to awake one day soon and know what I should do.

Still manage to make my way to Saint’s Cafe on Sunday morning but neither Paul nor Gordon have been able to push me one way or the other when it comes to photography.  I suppose they have their own demons to wrestle.

That’s where things stand in the sticks at the moment.  High on the list is to publish my review of Conversations with a Motorcycle.  So is fixing the Vespa.

Not sure which I’ll get to first.

It’s not every day you see a nearly 50 year old motorcycle still in operation.

Amanda and Ivan rode a 1965 Honda S90 to the farmer’s market in Boalsburg, Pennsylvania adding a few more miles to the 12,000 currently on the odometer.  A short conversation revealed Ivan keeps the machine in operating condition along with two other vintage bikes — a 1982 Yamaha XJ750 and a 1974 Honda CB360.

After a quick photo with the iPhone I couldn’t help but think about the advertising campaign in the early 1960s that rocketed Honda sales upward in the United States — You meet the nicest people on a Honda.

Makes me wonder if I don’t need a project bike in the garage…

The season for Piston and Pints ended this year with lots of motorcycles (and three scooters) and food and friendship.  Ken Hull’s brainchild event was a rousing success.

A toast to all involved and plans for next spring and a return of Piston and Pints.  Having too many pictures to post here I decided to try and share them via my Scooter in the Sticks Facebook page.

Have a look and see who you can tag.

As the days shorten it’s more and more common to arrive at work under a gray autumn sky.  Leaves are falling and probably already past the peak for those engaged in regional leaf peeping.  I’ve been so busy of late that my riding is limited to getting back and forth to the office and any writing or photography is connected there as well.

For a lot of riders the change in season brings an end to their riding.  For me, I’m content knowing that my favorite riding times are just beginning.  Visually the landscape is stimulating and the brisk temperatures rattle me from the lethargy of summer.  I’m reminded of a dog I used to have and how he would come alive in winter from a brief dip into a cold mountain stream.

All I need is a few miles on the Vespa.

I have a ton of stuff to post and share.  Just need to find the time…