Philosophy and Motorcycles

Philosophy and motorcycles are two of my favorite things in life. This blog will be bits of wisdom gleaned from a misspent youth and an adventurous dotage. People who like/love wisdom or motorcycles, classic or modern versions of either, are welcome to visit and comment.

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Location: Wisconsin, United States

I have been married to the same lovely woman for decades. We have one son, two cats, and live in rural Wisconsin, USA. I ride and rebuild motorcycles, and I am semi-retired. Favorite bikes are Yamaha XS650, FJ1200 and Ducati 900SS. My wife is a home care nurse. I am a Myers-Briggs INTP. She is ESFJ. Our son works at the Apple store in downtown SF and is teaching English as a second language in San Francisco, no grandchildren.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Vacate

We just came back from a trip to the shores of lake Superior. Weather was marginal for the trip, wind and light rain much of thee time. We went by car since predictions were not good and I wanted to be able to spend a couple days visiting with my wife. That's one thing I dislike about trips by cycle. It's difficult to visit. One of my favorite things about taking a trip with my wife is that it is a great time to just talk with each other for some prolonged conversations.
We visited Fairlawn and Glensheen mansions. Of the two I prefer Fairlawn. It is not quite so over the top. My favorite building of any of them was the gardener's cottage at Glensheen. That is more a practical size dwelling. I cannot actually picture myself in any mansion.

I am close to done with the Moto Guzzi T3. It isn't charging and I don't have the seat back from the upholstery lady. Other than that it is down to details. I don't know what to do with the police switch for horns and lights. I may mount it although it connects to nothing. I may remove it and its wiring.
In general I like driving the T3. It has a muscular industrial feeling that reminds me of going drinking with a friend whose only vehicle at the time was a REO dump truck. Everything was heavy and deliberate but it has a manliness about it that many would call by other names. My outing on the T3 didn't result in any surprises. I had my wife follow me just in case of problems but it went fine. It is a very different experience from the V50 or V65, which are "small blocks."
I won't post a picture of the T3 until I get a proper seat for it. So far I have been sitting on a styrofoam block and foam pad. It's neither pretty nor comfortable but has let me drive it enough to get a feel for what needs to be fettled before I can take it on a real trip. It still amazes me how easily I can be stumped by simple problems on old cycles. There is a certain enforced humility to the process.
LN