Obama by the numbers

 

Montana

In Lolo MT.  Gas grub then on to Missoula .  Awesome day of riding!

Back on the road

Just crossed into Idaho

68 Degrees and sunny!

Day 1 is Done.

Mostly ok.  Lots of detours and really hot down in the valley .

Time for a nap and  a swim!

All set to ride in the morning

Day one will have me heading south along the east side of Mt. Rainier until I get to the White Pass Scenic Byway.  I'll take the Scenic byway east until I get to Lewiston, ID.  The object is to avoid freeways whenever possible. 

Day 2  I'll leave Lewiston and ride up Lolo pass to Missoula, MT.

From there I'll head west to Wallace, ID on the freeway and will probably spend
the night in Wallace.

Lessons From Mom

We'll See

Taoist Proverb:

An old farmer who had worked his crops for many years had his horse run away one day. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came to visit. "Such bad luck," they said.

"We'll see," the farmer replied.

The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses. "How wonderful," the neighbors exclaimed.

"We'll see," replied the old man.

The following day, his son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbors again came to offer their sympathy on his misfortune.

"We'll see," answered the farmer.

The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son's leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbors congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out.

"We'll see" said the farmer.

Then the government passed healthcare. The Democrates rejoiced. The Republicans wept.

"We'll see" said the farmer who knew the theatrics of both sides were simply to distract the people away from the truth.

Mike Rowe of "Dirty Jobs"

I stumbled upon this video of Mike Rowe of the Discovery Channel's Dirty Jobs. Not for the weak of stomach, but worth your twenty minutes if you can hang on through the first five.

His site is MikeRoweWORKS.com.

New Years Resolutions for 2010

Remember last year? I said I could just recycle my resolutions from the previous years. Well, it looks like I'll be able to pretty much do the same thing this year.

My resolutions from last year:

#1. This is the year I'll finally ride my motorcycle cross country. Taking a motorcycle trip across the U.S. is something I've wanted to do since I was a teenager. This year is the year!

Didn't happen. I did take a trip to the bay area and a couple overnighters but no cross country trip this year. Maybe next year.

#2. Play golf. Yes, I know it's been 10 or 15 years since I played but I think it's time to start again. Back when I used to play, the game became a serious addiction that threatened to ruin my life. Now I think I'm old enough to handle it without becoming addicted.

Nope! I never even touched a golf club. They’re still up in the storage area above my shop.


#3. Shoot more. I don't spend nearly enough time at the range. This year I want to compete in some IDPA matches and maybe take up sporting clays.

Don’t I wish!! I never did compete in any IDPA or IPSC matches and haven’t shot a single clay target with my shotgun. I did join a new range down the street from my office so I should actually do more shooting in 2010


#4. Sell a vehicle. I don't know which one, but we have too much stuff and it's time to start getting rid of some of it. I think probably the camper will go, and maybe the boat.

Just as last year, this is really funny. I did sell the camper and the boat but guess what. We bought a 34 foot motorhome and a 27 foot sailboat! Oh well. It's a disease.

#5. Finish the interior of the '57 Chevy.

Nope. I didn't work on the '57 all year. Maybe next year if I don't sell it.

So, just as last year, I'll just recycle my 2009 resolutions for 2010

Xmas 2009

Xmas 2009 has come and gone and Kit still hasn't opened all of her presents !!! Hard to believe, isn't it? Every once in a while she comes over and says "I think I'll open a present now".

This year was fun though. Kit really enjoyed playing with Matt and Terry on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. They really had a great time.

Kit's First Gingerbread House

Kid made her first gingerbread house yesterday. Thanks to help from grandma and her older cousin Terry, it came out really great!!!

More baking and decorating is in store over the next few days !! :)

We had quite a cold snap there , didn't we ? I've never seen it so cold for so long since I've been up here. The pics here are of Snoqualmie Falls during the freeze. Seeing the falls like this is extremely rare.

Now the weather is back to normal (that means it's raining) with temps up in the 40s for the forseeable future. Doesn't look like a white Christmas this year.

SDG Reunion

I took a quick trip to the bay area last weekend for a reunion. It was great to see all my old friends from SDG and as a bonuns I got to stay with Dan, Tuk & Kit.

Kit is growing so fast!!!

None of the pics I took at the reunion are any good, but here are a few of Kit :)

Tootsie!!

Well, Jessica was her name. That's what she was named by her breeder. We've changed her name to "Tootsie".
She's 10 months old and her birthday is just a few weeks before Romeo's. Romeo was born on 12/27, Jess was born on 12/18.


She's a real sweetheart, very quiet and calm. The total opposite of Romeo!!

Celtic Knot

It's been 15 years since we sold 'Kelika', our US-27 that we had in the bay area. I guess that was long enough to heal our sailboat wounds because we've gone and done it again.



Currently named 'Glory', this Ericson 27 became ours on Sept 26th. Her new name will be "Celtic Knot". If you don't know what a celtic knot is, here's a link to the wikipedia entry on the topic: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celtic_knot .

Here are a few examples of celtic knot artwork.






I really wanted my Irish ancestory to be represented in the name and I came up with a lot of ideas but when I stumbled on "Celtic Knot" while browsing the web for things Celtic, I just kind of liked it. Other names high on the list were "Shamrock", "Asgard", "Leanhaun Shee", "Leannan", "Maeve Erin", "Paladin", and "Tara".

I also like "Goblin" and "Gunslinger" but those were vetoed.


The boat will be kept at the Everett Marina for now. I think I want to eventually get a berth at the Edmonds marina but there's a 12 to 18 month wait for that and I'm not even on the wait list yet. So far, I like Everett. It's an interesting place to sail from and the marina itself is very nice with good restaurants and services.

A new adventure!

Well, we've gone and done it now! I guess we're definately OLD. After selling the boat, the camper and the van, we decided to buy a motorhome. We actually had planned to buy a somewhat smaller rig, something on the order of a 27 foot class C but we found this one at a really good price so we went ahead and bought it.

It's a Bounder 34 foot class A motorhome. It's a one owner coach and is in really excellent condition. Queen bed, dual A/C, two TVs, Microwave oven and a regular

oven. It's call a "basement" model because it has tons of storage in all the compartments underneath the floor.

Speaking of tons, it weighs eight of them. Yep, eight tons, 16,000 pounds. I guess

that's why it only gets around 8-10 mpg.

This is the "living room" The passenger seat swivels to face the couch so there are two recliners in the living area with a table between them.

Kitchen and dinette area.

This is the "living room" with the passenger seat facing forward as it would be when we're on the road.

The kitchen area. Dual sink, stove, oven, etc.

The bedroom. Queen bed with a small nightstand on each side.

Harleys and Guns

Now it just doesn't get much better than this. Maybe it's time to trade in the geezer glide and get a new bike!!!


Jul 28, 2009 6:06pm

Eastside Harley and Wades Guns in Bellevue will be starting a promo via the internet. When a customer purchases a new 2009 big twin Harley from now through the end of July (could go into August), they will get a $500 voucher towards a purchase of a firearm or merchandise at Wades Guns. This offer is internet-only promotion, share and pass this audio file along. We are also posting a video to www.eastsideharley.com

Goodguys Rod & Custom Show

Last weekend was the 22nd Pacific Northwest Nationals at the Puyallup fairgrounds. I took Friday off so I could enjoy the day there and go to the Nostalgia drags up at Pacific Raceways Friday evening.

To say it was hot would be an understatement. For the pacific northwest it was positively scorching!!! As hot as it was, it beats rain on the weekend of a hot rod show.

Saturday I slept in a bit and Carole went back to the show with me for a few hours of browsing the vendors and cars. After an all too expensive hot dog and rootbeer float we relaxed in the shade for awhile then headed home.









Here's a slideshow of some of the photos I took over the weekend

545 PEOPLE

545 vs 300,000,000



EVERY CITIZEN NEEDS TO READ THIS AND THINK ABOUT WHAT THIS JOURNALIST HAS scriptED IN THIS MESSAGE. READ IT AND THEN REALLY THINK ABOUT OUR CURRENT POLITICAL DEBACLE.




The author of this piece, Charley Reese, has been a journalist for 49 years.

545 PEOPLE

By Charlie Reese

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.


Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have deficits?


Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?


You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does.


You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations.. The House of Representatives does.


You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.


You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does..


You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.


One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president, and nine Supreme Court justices 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash.

The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes..

Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.


What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. The president can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.

The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? Nancy Pelosi. She is also the leader of the majority party.


She and fellow House members, not the president, can approve any budget they want.. If the president vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to.

It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace 545 people who stand convicted -- by present facts -- of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.

If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red .

If the Army & Marines are in IRAQ , it's because they want them in IRAQ

If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way..

There are no insolvable government problems.

Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible.

They, and they alone, have the power.

They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses.

Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees.

We must vote ALL of them out of office and clean up their mess! Whatever you do,....next election,
DO NOT RE-ELECT ANY OF THESE INDIVIDUALS!!!!!

Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper.

What you do with this article now that you have read it.......... Is up to you.

Quick update.

Wow, I haven't posted since I got back from vacation!!!

Been pretty busy trying to get rid of stuff. The van got sold last weekend so that's one down.

I finally got the camper advertised on craigslist and have a bunch of responses on it. Several people are scheduled to come by tonight and a few more tomorrow. Hopefully we'll get that sold and out of the driveway.

The boat is for sale (or trade) again too. Not as much activity on that though. I've been trying to get it cleaned up to be a bit more presentable. I got some indoor/outdoor carpteing to put in the cabin and installed all the upholstery that had been stored in the garage. It's beginning to look decent enought that I can take some new photos for the ad. It sure would be nice to get that out of the driveway too.

I'm still debating whether or not I want to sell the pickup. I really hate to let that go, it just seems like it's worth it to just keep it around.

That's about it. This weekend is the Legends car show in downtown Kirkland and depending on what's going on with the boat and camper I hope to make that show.