Out West

I'm moving, and I'll have use of one of these. OMG.

1P1P: Awesome Young Babes & Tommy Chong

Tommy buys vinyl here, a lot. Or rolling trays. It's all good.

So many hotties and hipsters, almost all under 30, flow through this corridor on 8th Ave S.  Two beautiful, astounding young ladies (college shoppers?) asked me if a cafe next door was open. One of my scooter coots spoke up, saying it was a bar (I didn't know!). They then asked for suggestions, so I sidled up and recommended Cafe Coco, if they wanted eclectic yet inexpensive fare, and awesome people-watching. They liked that idea, so I gave directions.

Good Move(s)

The move to Smyrna saved me over 20% on my insurance.

I picked up some odds-n-ends for Wanda at the dealership where she was uncrated, today. Had to order them, last weekend. I asked the service guys how much it would cost to have both tires changed. $175. That's with me supplying the tires.

Stopped at a place right on the Smyrna/Murfreesboro county muni line on my way back. They'll do it for $80, same day.

Did I mention my six-mile commute?

Long Time

Yes -- I live in the sticks, right now.

Tuesday, I'm moving into Smyrna. NissanTown.

Y'all gotta come have a beer.

Mission: Mend Michelin

So... I hopped on Wanda early this morning, to meet up with a customer who was already annoyed with the fact that he had to pay for these annoying backflow inspections, and dammit, he doesn't believe anyone other than the city should pay for these ('cause of course, municipal workers don't have to eat, pay bills... city trucks run on unicorn farts, etc), and oh my the water rates are so high!

Yeah, right. All my fault, of course!  Anyway, I had agreed earlier in the week to meet Cantankerous Taxpayer early today, so I was on Wanda by 06:30... and off we go.

I was making excellent time, and I got to Murfreesboro Road before 7 a.m. Just before I went under the runway at BNA, I heard this strange sound -- it was as if I were in a car that had gone over a loose manhole cover.* Having entered and exited the tunnel under the runway, I started up the hill to Dell's campus, and could feel a bit of squirreliness in the handling of the bike. I slowed down, and got into the right-hand lane to get onto Donelson. No emergency flashers... WTF, Honda?

I pulled over at the entrance to Dell building AO-1. Yes, my rear tire was quite flat, but not completely. I walked Wanda up the drive and into the massive parking lot, where I parked her near the edges where I figure no sane Dell employee will want to park. I called (Country) Jeff. He dispatched Ivy to come get me.

I looked up local numbers for Dell, trying to call them to ask them kindly to not tow my scooter. I found two numbers, neither of which had voicemail, or anyone answering them the entire day. Fingers crossed. Maybe they'd be so busy making phat stacks, they wouldn't notice.

I stopped and got Slime, a deluxe tire plug kit and a pair of pliers during my rounds, and made a plan. The 96X bus runs right up Murfreesboro Rd., and there's a nice, fancy new bus stop less than a block from where I left Wanda (if only Dell would leave her unmolested). With any luck, and $25 (payday!), I'd ride that white bitch home.

I finished up the work day, pulled into the plant early, so as to catch the 16:19 96X bus. (Country) Jeff then hauled me to the bus stop in plenty of time, and the damned bus had left, already. Second time this month!  Of course I found this out after Jeff had left. Oh, and I forgot my tire goodies and my Nexus tablet at the plant in the rush to catch the bus. Fortunately, the bus stop in La Vergne is very nearby an Auto Zone & a McDonald's, so I re-purchase said goodies, and sit for 90 minutes @ McD's with a cup of coffee to await the next bus in warm comfort.

You can see the Auto Zone from here! Oh, and all next week, free small coffee @ McD's during breakfast hours. No purchase necessary.

Finally, the 17:58 bus arrives. At 18:15.

MTA/RTA needs to get this 96X schedule straightened the fuck OUT, right now, y'all.

On my way once more!  Whoo-hoo!

I got off the bus at Donelson, picked up my helmet, Auto Zone bag and extra layers of clothing, and trudged across the street, and a short walk later, into the Dell lot. It's 26°F and windy, but I see Wanda -- huzzah!  I unpack the Slime, unlatch the seat, test the compressor (working!) and get to work.

I somehow let the valve stem core get away from me unnoticed, but I reacquired it with the help of my trusty flashlight pen, a freebie from a vendor. At first, the Slime didn't seem to be sealing the puncture, but after some rotation of the tire by hand (tricky, with the tiny compressor attached to the tire's valve by a 4" length of hose, let me tell ya), the pressure started gaining, and within minutes, was up to 30psi. I put on all my gear, and rode Wanda around Dell's monster asphalt farm for a few minutes at low speed. Checked the tire -- yep, all good so far. I pulled onto Murfreesboro, rode at ~40MPH, and pulled into the Shell station about a half-mile away... still looking good, and no squirrely feelings.

I rode about 5MPH slower than usual the entire trip, but I finally made it home about 20:00. Bit of a long day. We'll see how the tire is in the morning.

* The sound?  Oh yeah. I think I figured it out. Judging from the length of and the bend in the nail I pulled out of the Michelin carcass, the sound was caused when I hit a bump in the road, and the nail made contact with the inside of the rim for a brief time. Fun!

Milled? CHEWED.

The state is chewing the road surface of Murfreesboro Rd. just SE of Bell Rd. (as of today) all the way to the Rutherford County line (La Vergne). GROOVY PAVEMENT. Just a heads-up for y'all who like to avoid that kind of stuff. It makes me a little nervous, but I'm getting used to it at 50MPH.

Dear _o__ Plumbing...

Logo and phone number pixelated to be un-dickish.  :)  This photo was taken at a red light en route.

Hey good folx,

I was riding home from work on my Honda PCX 125 Tuesday afternoon, when the driver of your fancy new van #2 (with the spiffy vinyl wrap of the water drops... looks really good, btw) seemed to not  take my hint (left hand aloft, finger & thumb at "pinch," and spread apart, slowly) about his following me a bit too closely in said van. He was making a call out to Green Hills (or south of there, I assume; he turned off of Woodmont onto Hillsboro headed south) after 5:00 p.m.

Now, I'd prefer that you not single this employee out, but I would  appreciate if you could bring this up to all the drivers -- for them to be cautious of following any  vehicle too closely, but especially motorcycles and scooters. Riders are not very well protected against even minor collisions, and even one at-fault rear-end collision with a cyclist could be pretty hard on the ol' insurance premiums (and they're high enough already, no?). Hey, May is Motorcycle Awareness Month, so it might be a good time to just bring it up and get everyone's attention. Fender-benders are "small money" for all parties when compared to hospitalizations, as I'm sure you are aware.

Not that this has any bearing on the topic, but I just want to mention that I send y'all business on a near-weekly basis. Y'all sent my folx a nice, big deli tray and dozens of killer cookies this past holiday season (thank you -- the goodies were delicious, and appreciated by all). Of course, in my work, I send people to several different plumbing contractors in the area as well, depending on their needs, but your company comes up often as one of several good choices in a lot of circumstances. It stands to reason that the less time I spend in the hospital, the more time I can steer some of this work your way, and I am always happy to do it. Your company has an outstanding reputation for doing quality work in a timely manner at a reasonable price, so I feel no hesitation in recommending your firm as one of several to my clients

So again, I hope you will try to remind everyone at _o__ to be especially aware of those of us on two wheels. If your employee is late for an appointment and needs one of us to pull over and get out of the way, flashing the lights from low- to high-beam a couple of times will usually receive a courteous response.  :)  Thank you for your attention in this matter.

Ice, Pizza, Laundry, Cat Litter

Something I'm just now deeply contemplating: How do I get these bulky items back and forth as needed on the PCX?

OMG. This is serious.

The PCX does not have a flat floorboard. It also does not have a bungee-friendly passenger grab-rail. The PCX is the first scooter I've owned where I can say both. It's just so sexy.  Practical...?  Nice time to think about it, huh?

Ice, I suppose I can load in a backpack for a short run, but the melting has to be more of a factor that way than I am used to encountering with a floorboard run. I'll have to invest in an ice hammer, obviously.

Ponder, ponder.
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