People. People are interesting, mostly.
Some of them are interesting because of what they think. What could be better than learning something truly unique and earth shattering from someone? Kind of a eureka moment where something just clicks for you, or changes your outlook on life.
Some of them are interesting because of what they do. You have your accepted conventions of behavior. You know what you would do in a situation, and when you run across someone who does just the opposite, and better yet, pull it off, that can really make you think hard about things.
Some of them are interesting because of what they are not. What do you expect from someone, a normal human being? What do you do when you find someone who completely does not meet this expectation?
Regardless, I know a lot of people. I’m the sort of person who likes to sit back and watch, and where I can, give a little nudge here and there and see what happens. Sure, I’ll hop in an joke around if I have the chance, but usually I’m that quiet creepy guy sitting in the corner watching. I’ve seen a bit of everyone over the years. It is all interesting.
Where the heck am I going with this?
I headed down to Socorro on Saturday in search of cow. The kind of cow that when turned into steak, becomes a delicious treat. I knew of a place, a place in the middle of no where, where I might be able to acquire such a thing. This place has a name, and that name is the Eagle Guest Ranch, in Datil, NM.
I discovered this place way back in college. Or rather, I was told of its existence. My Uncle Eddy told me of this place, as he has a rancher friend out in Pietown (which is even further out on highway 60 than Datil). I told some of my adventure loving friends, and we mounted an expedition to this location. The treasure we discovered was in the form of the ‘Special T-Bone’, which was a 1 inch thick steak that would envelope an entire serving platter. Yum.
Saturday was preparation. I got a new tire on the bike, tuned it up, and headed to Socorro. Danny was to ride with me out to Datil on Sunday at 11am. Further, Chris, Josepine, Lewis and Bill were going to follow along in Chris’ “cage”, as us biker types refer to automobiles. Get out of that cage and ride, man! Jo and I spent time with Bill at the Capitol Bar. At least until closing. At which point, surprise surprise, Bill wanted to goto the El Camino for food. I must stress this point, it was a true surprise. Bill never wants to go anywhere to eat, especially after the bar closes.
Sunday was to be an interesting day.
Browsing the songs in my library here, seeing if anything new is in the iTunes store that I just need to have…
suddenly
I hit a track I haven’t heard in a long time. I know that is a lie, I’ve skipped over it 20 thousand times since… then. But tonight, I heard it, you know?
going back
There I am, in a place far away, a place I can never return. I can smell it. That fresh, wet smell that the Tech campus always had in the summer, which sometimes I get whiffs of here, and it always makes me pause.
Was I a fool to think it could have lasted forever? When did it end? How did I get here?
the song
It plays on, and I’m still alone, like then, late night, concrete floor, fans whirring from the computers. The glow of the monitor. Clack of the keyboard.
connected
Where did I leave it? When did I arrive here, when did I leave?
her
What happened? I’m not really sure. Eyes feel moist, did it really matter that much? How long have I been like this?
gone
I guess it’s true you can never truly go home again. But sometimes, maybe just for a little while, I want to go back there, if only to observe… what happened?
~in the arms of slumber, i’m leaving it all behind~
So, my new Battlewing showed up today. Take a look at this:
Old, very worn out tire (smooth as can be down the center):
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This is a Bridgestone Trailwing with about 8500 miles on it.
Compare and contrast to the new tire:
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Gonna be nice when its on.
So today I finally got around to that 7500 mile servicing on my bike, now at 8550 miles. Whups.
I have a tire on order, a Bridgestone Battlewing. I had planned on putting a Metzeler Tourance on the back of the bike, but the new Battlewing which was released in Europe a while back has been getting rave reviews. My current tire is BALD. I should take a picture. It is flat and smooth across the center, which is not good, especially for rain. The new Battlewing has 9mm of tread, which is quite a bit, so i hope to get some good mileage out of it. Getting 8500 miles out of a motorcycle tire is a small feat in and of itself. I’ve been running some Ride-On in my tires for about 5000 miles so far which I think has helped the wear. I’m not nice to the tires, my wrist is far too snappy 
Read on for what amounts to me being a gear head about my bike. I’ll understand if you skip it. But I thought it would be interesting to share.