Raindrops

This morning was damp and misty but I decided to ride the little red dragon instead of taking the transportation module. As I rode it started to sprinkle and the first few raindrops made me wonder if I had made the right decision. Then a small raindrop hit my lips and I tasted how clean and fresh it was and I knew that it was going to be a good ride. It rained just enough to make the streets slick. I slowed down a little and realized that none of the people in their cars had any idea how wonderful the rain tasted or how cool and refreshing the air had become. I was extremely happy that I didn't take the car today.

Motorcycle Photo and Text © Crownedstoat – All rights reserved

Last night I watched "You've got Mail" and what surprised me most about the movie was the continual blatant product placement and the fact that the lead characters are not particularly likable. Writer/director Nora Ephron had things she wanted to say with the story but it just seemed to come across flat. I also found it hard to believe that after destroying the family business that the Meg Ryan character would ever consider forgiving the Tom Hanks character. It was a completely predictable romantic comedy that made common mistakes. characters were introduced and not expanded upon. There was the stereotypical trophy wife who runs off with the nanny. The significant others of Hank's and Ryan's characters were interesting people who deserved better partners and hopefully found them after being cut loose. Just random thoughts on an old movie.


Text © Crownedstoat – All rights reserved
Sandwich photo courtesy of Wikicommons - KF

Exploration

I was looking at a building as I walked down the street a few days ago and I wondered what it looked like inside. I figure many people have that same thought but I have often tried to answer that question. I will walk inside and ride the elevator and explore the floors which are open to me. I look in utility closets and take stairwells. I examine the art on the walls and try out the furniture. These explorations have led to discoveries of amazing palatial bathrooms with more square footage and finer appointments than my home. I've discovered secret alcoves with wonderful mosaic tile work and a private smoking balcony with amazing chairs and an ashtray that was one of the nicest pieces of design I have seen. Then there are the discoveries of mundane cubicle farms and sad lonely offices with dying plants and photos of disgruntled families on the desk. It is a crap shoot but a fascinating one.I don't just explore urban places I try to explore everywhere I go. When I was in high school a buddy and I would grab a backpack and go on all day hikes along the drainage ditches and canals that ran behind and through the suburban community where we lived. We saw the wild unkempt side of the local country club as well as the tennis pro and one of his students studying more than tennis. We had lunch under a grove of pecan trees that must have been over a hundred years old and that now unfortunately has been bulldozed and replaced with a strip center. We wandered stoned in the dappled sun and reveled in the secret joy of discover. I have a friend that likes to take his boat up the canals that run through Houston and show visitors the downtown skyscrapers from a unique vantage point. They gaze up at the towering buildings as herons fly past and fish splash near by them. Even when I am walking through the grocery store I take time to explore the offerings on the shelves. Vacuum sealed gnocchi and smoked,salty seaweed have been two of my better discoveries. I plan to start sharing my discoveries here and hope that I inspire some of you to do the same.




Text © Crownedstoat – All rights reserved
Allen's Landing photo courtesy of Wikicommons - Scott Ehardt

Laughing at the absurdity

This morning as I rode to work on the Blue Meanie I promised myself I would show a little discretion and control. I managed to make it about 2 miles into my ride when I saw cars taking evasive maneuvers as Captain Arrogance entered the freeway with total disregard for everyone else on the road. Using no signals and cutting vehicles off without regard for safety or courtesy Captain Arrogance was a barracuda amongst the snapper. He sipped his caffeinated beverage and cut off another driver as he entered the fast lane. As I watched him an overwhelming juvenile urge descended on me and I rolled onto the throttle hard. I pulled up beside the $73,000 Porsche Cayenne GTS and as I pulled even I looked over and waved. He glanced over and as he sipped his coffee he floored the throttle to show me what money and Teutonic engineering could accomplish. I believe he really thought that his high dollar panzer could run with the Blue Meanie. I dropped a couple of downshifts to drive the lesson home and showed Captain Arrogance what two wheeled superbike performance was like. I thought that might be the end of it but the Captain was too stubborn for that and he proceeded to cut traffic off in an even more asinine manner. He got stuck behind some traffic I had passed and in his frustration pulled into the lane of a large black Suburban. As I watched events unfold in my mirrors he almost hit the massive American box causing its driver to start chasing him. My juvenile activity had started a multi-vehicle chase on a busy freeway. I decided I would put some distance between myself and Captain Arrogance and his pursuer. Traffic didn't cooperate and as I waited for a hole to run and hide in the red Porsche pulled up next to me and I saw the angry beet-red face of the Captain cursing at me for having the audacity to show up his 400 horsepower SUV. The black Suburban and its red-faced cursing driver pulled along side and horn honking, middle finger flashing and cursing ensued. I took the opportunity to find the elusive hole and disappeared at a high rate of speed. As I rounded a curve and decelerated to a safe and prudent speed, I saw the Porsche driver make a highly illegal lane change and using all of his power rocket away from the Chevy. Unfortunately he did this just as a cop car entered the freeway. Lights flashed and I am betting Captain Arrogance had the pleasure of receiving many tickets and perhaps getting the chance to sample the City's special accommodations. I laughed in relief that I wasn't joining him then I laughed even harder at my own stupid, juvenile behavior. I laughed so hard I cried at the memory of Captain Arrogance red face spewing profanity at me. I'm not proud of my stupid and dangerous behavior. High speed blasts in morning traffic are antisocial and thoughtless and I do not recommend them. I hope as Captain Arrogance was sitting in the City's metal-barred accommodations he came to have the same realization.

Motorcycle Photo and Text © Crownedstoat – All rights reserved
Porsche Cayenne photo courtesy Wikicommons - 3268zauber

Rain and pipes

I am an occasional smoker and it is a vice I practice in careful and controlled moderation. When I started smoking cigarettes thirty years ago I was aware of the risk and so I didn't inhale. That hasn't changed and I have smoked less each year but there is something comforting and wonderful about the taste of smoke in my mouth. A friend told me years ago that for him the sight of his "exposed breath rising to heaven" was one of his secret joys and I heartily agree. I moved from cigarettes to cigars after a short time then fifteen years ago I became a pipe smoker. My grandfather had been a pipe smoker and I recall being fascinated by the pipe racks around his home and the pipes that occupied them. I find pipes to be beautiful works of design as well as practical tools. The tactile sensation of a sand blasted brier or carved meerschaum in my hand as it grows warm from use never looses its appeal. Today is cold and rainy, weather particularly perfect for a pipe. A pipe for me unlike anything else is also an instrument that inspires contemplation. The risk brought on from occasional use seems a fair trade for the pleasures that result.

Photos and Text © Crownedstoat – All rights reserved

70's dining

A few years ago my step mother gave me gift certificate to Steak and Ale for Christmas. I have to admit I didn't give this gift certificate much thought until my friend Alex came into town and he thought it would be amusing to use it. As we pulled into the parking lot a sense of nostalgic happiness flooded over me. Just about every Friday night my family would head out to a restaurant, usually a steakhouse. We mostly ended up at Bonanza but occasionally it would be a Sizzler or a Steak and Ale. As I walked into the door of Steak and Ale with Alex I felt comfortable and relaxed. I looked over at him and saw a big grin come over his face. I asked what he was thinking and he said " it feels like coming home, there is something so familiar about this place". The restaurant was set up as a series of small separate rooms containing four to six tables each. It made for a cozy environment and the thick carpet and low ceiling as well as the heavily textured stucco walls made for a quiet dining experience. The service was attentive and the food was a step above the regular chain fair. There was nothing healthy or light on the menu but we were eating as our fathers had eaten in their prime; Red meat, alcohol, butter, salt and fat dominated the meal. We spent much of the meal talking about our childhood in the seventies and our fathers influence on the men we had become. I subsequently took other friends to the same Steak and Ale and each time they all responded with a sense of happy nostalgia. Everyone also appreciated the quiet atmosphere and professional service.I keep an eye out for sixties and seventies restaurants now and when I find one I check out how they have held up. Usually they have become a little shabby and rundown and almost always I am the youngest patron in the joint. I like that these places don't embrace the loud, excited, "fun" vibe that most modern chains insist on promoting. I understand that a restaurant wants to turn the table quickly and that a hyper, upbeat, loud environment leads to you eating more of their product but it isn't what I look for when I go out to dine. I think our parents were onto something when they dined out and I plan to continue to search out these forgotten icons of unhealthy food choices. Take a look at another example of our dining past:

http://www.sambosphotos.com/


Image courtesy of Sean Davis, Flickr,creative commons license

Your Maserati does 185 but you don't...

Today as I rode the Red Dragon to work I came upon a lovely Maserati Quattroporte looking and sounding like petrol burning sex. As I followed behind I reveled as each electronically controlled shift happened in just 100 milliseconds. It was the sound of Formula One technology on the street. Then as this piece of Italian loveliness came to the first curve the driver reigned the beauty in and parked it in the turn. As I went by I looked to see if the driver had spilled his coffee or dropped a contract and instead I saw a man in desperate need of driving lessons. The road straightened out and I heard the ripping linen sound only an Italian vee eight makes and the black auto went past only to once again be parked at the next bend. I was able to keep the Maserati in sight and watched as it was driven like an aging Detroit land yacht. I am fortunate to live in an area where I come across exotic high performance vehicles on a daily basis and my hope is that all of their drivers and riders will invest in a little track time and some professional instruction. It made me a much better rider and driver and transformed how I thought about every vehicle I use. Here is hoping that the next time I come across Mr Maserati he has a big grin as he cruises sedately on the straights and uses a little more of his chassis's capabilities.


Image courtesy of Tuigh, Flickr,creative commons license