Thank y'all for the birthday wishes! After watering all the trees & plants (quality time in the yard with the birds & the bees), I spent two hours cleaning & detailing the big ol' thumper. I like working on motorbikes, not only is there a Zen aspect to it, but it gives a rider the chance to closely inspect the bike and see if any problems exist. I took a spin round the 'hood, just a little 3-mile triangle out to the highway, down one exit, and back to the house via the scenic route. Wanted to make sure the battery was still strong, which it was, the bike fired right up first try, lol... that's the way I like my bikes to start, and this big ol' KLR 650 has electric start too, no breaking my leg with wicked compression on a kickstarter, lol.
Now, I could have ridden up to Silver Lake today, that was actually my plan, but here's the rub: while I was camping in Whetstone, AZ, with all my stuff in storage, and AFTER I locked into buying THIS home, I went on a spending spree and bought the bike, all kinds of cool accessories, etc. I also threw down money for some mods on the bike, plus a new front tire (dual sport knobby). Sierra Cycles in Sierra Vista, AZ, didn't have any Dunlop tires in stock... not to fit my front wheel, anyway. And I'm a Dunlop kinda guy when it comes to cycle tires, I like Dunlops and they've never given me any problems. But since the shop had no Dunlops for my bike's front wheel, I went ahead and had 'em put on a new Continental tire.
Fast forward a few months, and I'm still dealing with home rehab, haven't ridden the bike much, too busy dealing with other BS, right? Well, in comes an email from Continental saying that there's a safety recall in effect. I jot down the numbers, check my bike, and long story short, the "new Continental tire" is one of those slated for recall. I just learned this within the past week. So today, I ask myself: "Gee, the tire LOOKS okay for a ride to the mountains, but do I really wanna DIE on my 60th birthday when the tire blows & washes out on a hairpin mountain curve, with my dumped bike sliding in front of an oncoming truck?" The answer is: "Er, no thanks, I'll take Option 2 for $500, Alex!!!" BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Damn.
So I rolled the detailed bike back into the shed, covered it with the brand-new deluxe cover I should've put on it months ago, and now I'll wait for word from Continental about where to have them swap out my tire in Alamogordo. Might be one of those supply chain issues too, taking the fools MONTHS to correct the problem. This is why I usually buy Dunlop tires, lol, but at the time I only had one choice, and I didn't know whether any cycle shops in Alamogordo would have a tire to suit my bike, so I went ahead with the cheesy Continental number, pfffffffft. Meh, it seemed like the right choice at the time, and I figured I'd swap it out early once I put some wear on it, lol. Doesn't look like that's gonna happen, thanks to the recall.
No big deal, I plan on celebrating my birthday by visiting Silver Lake & Ruidoso Downs this weekend, I'll just take the car instead. I've been meaning to get up there to check out the lake, and watch the horse races at the track, I'll just combine the two destinations this weekend, might even be tomorrow if the lake is open, and I think it is. I'll still celebrate my birthday today, probably by going bowling, catching that latest dinosaur flick if it's out, and visiting the pool hall on my way home. The bowling alley is next door to the theater here in Alamo, and all that is only 10 minutes from my home. Sounds like a good way to spend my birthday, knowing that there will be more celebration in days ahead. Let me explain that to y'all...
Traditionally, the days between my birthday & July 4th have been one nonstop party, with friends stopping in throughout the time frame and joining me in my celebration. Now I live in the boondocks out in the high desert, and those good friends who are still alive happen to live elsewhere, so it devolves upon me to meet new friends if I want company at this time o' year. I intend to get out of the house and off the property to celebrate today, knowing that I'll be heading to the mountains tomorrow or this weekend to further celebrate my birthday, lol. Oh, yeah, the Mescalero rodeo is also happening this holiday weekend, and I would like to attend that for at least one day, which means perhaps two trips to the mountains, lol. Works for me!!!
Anyway, it's time to do some leg work on the web, just to coordinate all this birthday celebration I have in mind. I've been too caught up with the home rehab work, despite the slump wherein nothing happened for awhile, and it's time to get back to what really matters in life: having a good time! I did knock out most of the interior decorating in the rooms which are already finished, so I'm looking at painting the kitchen & bathrooms AFTER the 4th of July holiday, lol. I'd like to work on the front porch as well, but that may wait until cooler weather arrives... which will give me at least two months to roll through those painting projects, lol. Maybe three months, ya never know about these things. But for now, I have a good time!!!
I did work on that wooden paneled wall with the flag chart on it, but I'm not sure whether I'll make further modifications. I'm the kinda guy who likes my home neat & orderly, and I also like 'symmetry' in my home decor... my original intention was to surround the flag chart with old school sailing photos from a calendar way back in the day, but due to the presence of a trim strip on the wooden wall, my plan went south. I now have skinnier photos on one side of the chart, thanks to that stupid trim strip, and I don't really like the uneven look. Part of me says, "Meh, we're living in an imperfect world!" But another part says, "F___ that, do it right!" No matter what happens, the nautical photos are still primo, lol... here they are:
Nice tacking duel shot in that last pic, and the others don't suck either, lol, but y'all see what I mean with the gimpy Long John Silver side all whittled down? I think I'm gonna redo that wall so there's more "decor equality" [leftist libtard phrase I just coined, lol]. I want more balance to the photos on each side, though the overall nautical effect is exactly what I seek in this endeavor. I think the sailing shots go well with the flag chart, aye? I just have to balance out the decor, same way I'd want decent trim aboard a boat, lol... meh, I have a feeling I'll be peeling some photos and repositioning them once I figure out how I want the wall to look. Now, here are a few quick pics of my riding gear for the big ol' thumper, lol:
I didn't bother removing the hangers, the fully-armored riding suit hangs in a large wardrobe or closet devoted entirely to outdoor adventure gear, lol. Nice suit, it's just a bit warm in summer if you aren't moving... like the suit, my boots & riding helmet fit me perfectly. The visor on the helmet is doable since I have a fairing or windshield on the bike, and I always liked the visor on this type of helmet, same goes for the top-shelf goggles I bought. I couldn't find a decent helmet with a built-in visor, so I opted for this HJC number & goggles, they work fine in light of my riding style, which includes offroad thrashing. I like being able to tilt that visor to block the sun while I'm negotiating tricky trail sections, lol. CHEERS!!!
I'M OFF TO PAR-TAY, MIGHT BE TIME FOR A 'CANNONBALL FREIGHT TRAIN' BONG HIT: THAT'S WHERE YA TAKE A BONG HIT, HOLD IT AS YA TAKE A SHOT, THEN EXHALE THE HIT, LOL... IT'LL DO A NUMBER ON YA!!!
!! Hubby will be home on puppy duty. He has inside jobs today so he won't leave until I get home. Got everything (flora and fauna) watered and fed. Hopefully a nice afternoon, nap and pool! Got Bear a pool (made for rough dog use) for his front yard. He REALLY loves it. His front yard is under a big oak about 50' from my pool. He can be near me and have fun!! Hope everyone has a nice day!!
Think this calls for a celebration w/ Fireworks and everything. 
