it's been a while since i've posted on this thing, almost 3 months from the look of it. there are reasons for this, some of them good, some of them pretty sorry-looking. let's start with the good:
first off, having a full-time job certainly takes up a lot of one's time. yeesh. don't get me wrong, i'm enjoying the gig (and the money), but it's time consuming. almost 40 hours a week! what with that and my social life (ha!) i haven't had much free time. being walking distance to work, riding isn't so much a necessity these days and, until someone decides to bankroll my next trip around the county (or beyond), that means motorcycling unfortunately falls into the "free time" category.
secondly, gas is expensive! even on my days off, i have to think twice about taking a joy ride. seattle is a good bit further away from fun, windy roads than bellevue was, and using a full tank of gas every time i have a couple of hours is not in the budget at the moment. again, waiting for that sugar-mama to take on my riding habit. anyone?
i have been riding, however, mostly to hurling practice and occasionally over to the eastside for dinner with the folks. i don't know if i've mentioned this before, but i'm really not a fan of public transportation (especially OUR public transportation), so if i can take the bike without too much extra effort (read: money) i usually will. 520 being a toll bridge now, however, i do have to stick to I-90, even when i'm traveling to kirkland. i never liked taking 520 anyway, though. it's a narrow-laned bridge with too much construction and people speed like motherf@%kers. Not very bike-friendly.
in a lot of ways, vixen is becoming merely my mode of transportation, other than walking (which is still 90% of how i get around). it's a different mindset, to be sure. instead of the thrill of getting on the bike for a ride, it's just a way to get where i'm going. i don't know if it's a bad thing, necessarily. i'm getting extraordinarily comfortable riding in the city (and just about anywhere), i just don't want to lose that great feeling you get setting out onto the open road.
the other curious side effect of this is that i seem to have forgotten how to ride in cars. or rather, my body has grown unaccustomed to the sensation. i recently spent the day riding around with a friend from out of town (mostly in the back seat), and i was actually starting to get motion-sick by the end of it. on top of that, i didn't like the feeling of being boxed in like that, and don't get me started on the stale, recycled air you get in those cages. i was surprised at the severity of my reaction to being a passenger, but not displeased. it means my car-less experiment is going well, i think.
anyway, in terms of consistency, i'm going to try and post more regularly. i was initially thinking once a week would be a good goal, but there are literally weeks i don't get on the bike at all, much less have anything interesting to say or the time to write it down. i'm going to shoot for once a month for now, in hopes of upping it to twice a month if the urge takes me. i may be expanding the format a little, to include more general observations of being car-less, but i'd like to keep it mainly focused on motorcycles (and possibly other two-wheeled vehicles). wish me luck.
until then,
rftc,
scott
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