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One of the good things about being so close to the good folks at Texoma Harley-Davidson is I am able to take advantage of some good deals at just the right time. A customer traded in a 2009 Honda Shadow 750 Spirit on a new Harley and I made an offer on his trade-in.... and they accepted.
The Shadow has really been well cared for and the previous owner just installed new tires a couple of months ago. He had no intention of trading bikes, BUT then made the mistake of test riding a new Harley and had to have it. Above is me in the middle and good friends (and HD salesman) Steve on the right..and the vivacious Kim on the left. Both are longtime friends and were excited to see me back on two wheels. I had a stroke in 2009 and the doctor told me to get rid of my Road Glide (see previous posting). It is somewhat easier to get rid of the motorcycle itself rather than the riding bug that remains inside of you. I have been riding since I was fourteen years old and it is not something you can just quit cold turkey.
Momma wasn't taking any chances as she purchased a gremlin bell before we left the dealership. The bells are suppose to ward off evil spirits and demons, and keep you safe on the highways and byways,...but I had a bell on my Nightrain in 2005 when some dizzy blonde ran a stop sign and hit me (see previous posting). I have been without a bike since I sold my Sportster last summer.
This was my 2005 HD Sportster that I sold in August of 2012. It was a good ride for local events and the Shadow reminds me of the Sportster a lot. The Honda is shaft drive instead of a belt, and the transmission shifts a lot smoother & quieter than the Sportster. Both are comparable in size and performance but I think the Honda might have a little more low end torque. As you can see by the above photo, I spent quite a bit on accessories to make the Sportster a one-of-a-kind bike. I posted photos on Craig's List and a young man from Mansfield, Texas came all the way to Denison to purchase it.
My wife has been hinting that I should buy another bike, and this one seemed to be too good to pass up. It rides like a dream and so far I am really impressed with its performance. The add-ons such as windshield, engine bar, saddlebags, and Cobra exhaust are easily a thousand dollars.
The previous owner even admitted to his salesman he had put new tires on the Shadow two months ago since he was not planning on making a change...but then he rode that Harley and lost all of his resistance. I don't have any plans to make an extended trip on this bike, but I do plan to get in some runs around town just to get that 'wind in my face' feeling again.
I thought I was over my motorcycle days, so I sold my helmet, leathers, rain-gear, and a hell of a lot of accessories I had in the garage. This photo was taken as I was about to ride to a store in Sherman for a new helmet. Since that accident in 2005 I have promised Momma I would wear one. I may have a different opinion after the newness wears off, but right now I am impressed with the Honda and have hopes for a long and lasting relationship..
2007 was a hot summer in Texas, so Momma and I wanted to go somewhere cool. She has never been on a stern-wheel paddle boat so I told her to find one via the computer. The General Jackson is based in Nashville, Tennessee and that is where we headed on vacation that year.
Actually there are numerous paddle-wheel boats in Nashville but the General Jackson was the first one Momma located on the computer and that is where we ended up. The General Jackson was built in the 1870's and has a complete restaurant onboard,..but we decided to have our lunch on the veranda overlooking the stern-wheel.
This is Momma on the veranda and pointing out the spray of water coming off the stern-wheel. It was definitely a cooling spray but I also enjoyed a couple of frozen Margaritas to make sure I eliminated a sweaty brow. The General Jackson also has cabins for those wishing to take an overnight venture down the Cumberland River.
Momma went up one deck to shoot this photo of me below. You can see the paddle-wheel just below the canopy. Also check another pleasure boat about a mile back of us.
The boats are based right in the downtown area of Nashville and the whole experience was good. The ships and docking area was clean and well kept. I took this photo from the deck of the General Jackson as we passed another boat stopped at the dock. Nashville is also home to the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Grand Old Opery, and many more interesting stops.
On the way home we stopped off in Memphis to see if Elvis was home,..but he wasn't. We were going to take the tour of Graceland but one of the staff jumped us for simply taking the above photo. They wanted me to pay for posing my wife in front of this sign. I got into a squabble over the marital status of his mother, but Momma pulled me away before it got physical. The trip overall was a big success and we had fun.....
I am always looking for a way to make a quick buck,...so in 2005 I was at the Plainview, Texas distribution center for Wal-Mart and saw a motorcycle ad on the bulletin board. I copied down the phone number and when I got home I made some inquiries on the computer to see just what a 'Honda Magna' was all about. Turns out it is a V-4 750cc engine and even Honda calls it a factory rocket.
This is the way it looked the day I purchased it. The previous owner was also a Wal-Mart driver and he had nothing but glowing reports on the bike. He also had documentation on all the service work performed on the bike. A photo album was filled with pictures of him and his girlfriend traveling all over the country on this bike. We haggled a bit on the price, but I ended up giving him something less than what he wanted.
We loaded it into the back of the Silverado for the trip home to Denison. Notice how I had to get down in a ditch to lower the rear end so the bike could ride right into the bed?... Well that little maneuver turned out to NOT be the best idea of the day.
Luckily the dude had a 4-wheel drive vehicle to pull me out of the ditch... Then Momma and I could start the 300 mile trip back to Denison. I have a Harley-Davidson decal in the back window of the pick-up and it was the only thing between me and the Honda on the way home..
As you can see, the bike had almost new tires on it, and despite being seven years old, it had only ten thousand miles on the odometer. I figured I might be able to turn a pretty good profit on this one.
All I did to it was detail it real good with some chrome cleaner and put a couple of coats of wax on the paint and it shined like a new penny. The previous owner asked me if I knew anything about Magna's, but I scoffed him off with some comment about riding bikes since I was fourteen years old. He said, "This bike is just like any other bike,..until you reach seven thousand RPM's..and then you better have your head screwed on real tight." I can attest his comments were very true. This bike comes alive in the higher RPM's and it's almost like another gear.
Notice it does not red-line until ten thousand RPMs..and it will do every bit of that in a heart beat.
I placed ads on Craig's List and in the Cycle-Trader but without any positive results. Local Constable Mike Putman is a good friend of mine and he told me about a guy in Southern Oklahoma looking for a Magna. I called him one night and told him about this one and the next day he showed up and we ended up tying down the Magna in the back of his pick-up. I made a few hundred on the exchange, but many times I have thought about this bike and secretly wished I had kept it....but don't tell my Harley friends.
If you have been keeping up with my parade of cars through the years,..you are aware we sold the 1997 Plymouth Breeze (above) for considerably more than what the local Dodge/Plymouth dealer was willing to allow me on a trade-in. Armed with cash-in-hand, we went looking for a new ride for my wife. She went through car websites and reviews, and decided on a Buick Century because of its great dependability and reputation.
We traveled to McKinney and visited Lone Star Buick/GMC there, and were treated like royalty. We had a couple of cars in the fawn/beige color in the past and Momma decided she wanted a Century in that color. The green of the Breeze was definitely hard to keep clean. She test drove this one and really fell in love with it. I forget the salesman's last name but his first name was Ron, so I thought it might be a good omen. It was a rainy day and they delivered the car to her under the carport so she wouldn't get wet. I was following her home in my Silverado pick-up and she pulled over to the side of the road less than a mile away from the dealership. I jumped out of the truck and ran up to the Century as she was putting down the window. She did not know how to turn on the windshield-wipers and almost panicked.
One of the features she asked about when we first got to the dealership was the coffee cup holder. She was adamant about that cup holder until the salesman assured her it was right where it was suppose to be. Please forgive her Sponge-Bob key chain! I must be missing something as I can't understand the excitement over this individual.
The Buick Century was also a super car to clean and that silver-gray paint never showed any streaking or spotting. A good friend of ours is the local Constable and when I was telling him about Momma's new car he made the comment, 'Buicks are for old gray-haired ladies.' Momma was quick to put him straight on that topic (she still talks to him). In 2005 we made a trip to visit friends in Tucson, Arizona and the temperature going across the desert was 120 degrees, but the Century's air-conditioner kept us extremely comfortable, almost chilled. The V-6 engine performed without a problem and the car went through only three sets of tires in all the time we had it.
The Century gave us about five years of good dependable service and the only reason we finally traded it off was some hail dents to the car while we were at the movies one night, and a good deal on the next car... That one coming up in a future story.
I will be the first to admit I never heard the word 'Topiary' until I saw the movie 'Edward Scissorhands' with Johnny Depp. The story of a young boy without hands and his adopted father was a doctor who installed clippers on the ends of his arms. Edward is shy because of this defect but becomes popular in the neighborhood when he clips everyone's hedges and bushes in various shapes. It gets out of hand and ultimately he is banished from the neighborhood...
.... Getting around to the subject,.. My wife is a champion at shaping the bushes in our front yard. Our house sets about ten feet above the street level and when you climb the steps to our front sidewalk you are greeted by this at the top.
To cut down on the guessing game, I will tell you... It is an American Eagle with its wings spread. It has greeted our guests for almost fifteen years and is open to a wide range of interpretation. One of our nephews even thought it looked like a chicken with its wings spread... Humm... Maybe! I do see a hen settling over her nest to keep the eggs warm..but around my wife I am adamant about it clearly being an eagle. In the background you can see a couple more bushes in the flowerbed..
This one may take a little more imagination since the leaves have not come in fully. We are definitely a dog family (3) and this is a doggy in shape. Last year it was full but has lagged behind the other bushes so far this season. To the left of the dog you can see our bullfrog peeping out and to the right is Marilyn, our terrapin to remind me of the University of Maryland (my alma mater).
This one should be more obvious than the others.. It is the state of Texas. Momma is from San Antonio and I was born in Dallas, so we both have a lot of pride in our home state. Agreed, the panhandle is a little shallow and the lower Rio Grand Valley needs to grow a little more, but you have to admit, it is a good representation of the Lone Star State.
My wife and I are also believers in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Master,...and this basket-bush is the resting spot for an angel to look over our house and keep it safe. The angel holds a harp that is made from a wind-chime and the slightest breeze brings a comforting jingle. We had just trimmed back this bush today so it is showing some bare spots in the basket.
Overlooking all the topiary work is the mosaic piece that my wife made a couple of years ago. She had never done anything of this type before, so we went to the Goodwill store and bought some various colored dishes. We were not concerned about any chips on the plates and saucers as she broke them with a hammer when we got home. It was originally a table from our patio in the back, but it turned out so well we decided to remove the legs and mount it on the wall of the garage. I have been married to the same woman for almost 25 years and she never fails to amaze me with her many talents. When we were first married she said something I will always remember,.."You buy us a house, I will make it our home."
Mission Accomplished!
In 1990 I had been dating my wife for just over a year and we were extremely close (wink-wink) by this time in our relationship. The previous year we had dressed up as George and Martha Washington for Halloween and were the hit of various parties we visited that night. Some people thought we looked more like the First Family than the real Washington's. I was still working in television news at the time so my wife-to-be was responsible for our entire costumes.
This is the way we looked in 1989 and looked dashing, if I do say so. One hour before this photo I was doing a live sportscast from a local football game and had no idea what lay in store for me. I arrived at her house and she had everything prepared for me. All I had to do was step into the clothes and she did my make-up and wig.
Friends that saw us in 1989 were curious how we were going to outdo the Washington outfits in 1990. I have always liked the pirates of the 17th century, so I mentioned it to Momma as she began to formulate what we would do for Halloween of 1990.
Again, I had to work the late news on TV this night, and when I showed up for the preparations this is what I discovered. I would be Long John Silver and she would be my parrot. Note the parrot is tethered to the hook of Long John. My costume is simply a makeover of the previous year; the pants are the same and the coat has been altered...But her outfit was totally handmade one feather at a time.
She used a hot glue gun and attached each feather to her outfit one at a time. Needless to say, she has the patience of Jobe. I would have gone crazy before I finished the head-piece...and this is just the front.
The tail of the parrot is also a work of art (you know what I mean). She had secretly been working on this outfit for over a month and again was the hit of all the parties we attended. Friends had to come and touch her outfit to discover the feathers were real and not just some store-bought costume. She may be one of the most gifted people I know.
This was taken when we arrived at Linda Hamilton's home and she is a longtime friend of us both. I still remember her scream when she opened the front door. She said, "Don't move until I get my camera." Linda worked at the TV station with me and was sort of a sister to me. She would advise me on different women I dated through the years. When I finally discovered this one, Linda was constantly harping on me NOT to let this one get away... I didn't.
We have both really loved Halloween over the years and enjoy dressing up. I missed some Halloween's over the years due to my travels, but 1990 was definitely one to remember.. In closing, remember the favorite line of most pirates.... ARGHHHH!
Happy Father's Day to everyone who has fathered a child. Not just the act of intercourse, but the raising of that child into a grown, functioning adult. It is not an easy job! I know since I have been on both ends of the situation.
My Dad became a single parent when my Mother died in 1955. I was in the fourth grade at the time, and even then knew that rocky roads lay ahead for the two of us. I was the third child, but my brother and sister had already moved away with families of their own. The ten years between my brother and I became a major point of conflict between my Dad and me. My brother grew up in the 1940's and I was part of the Rock 'n Roll generation of the late 1950's and early 60's. The word 'rebel' was a constant part of any argument between Dad and I.
Dad was a hard-nosed disciplinarian and believed that you had to work hard for everything that came your way. He was a second generation American,...his father came to America in 1908 from Germany and Dad was born two years later in Mobile, Alabama. In 1930 he left Bama and headed for Texas in search of a better life. Immediately upon arriving in Kaufman, Texas he met a girl and started dating her. That would be my mother.
This photo was taken in 1945 when he returned from World War II and was still looking a bit gaunt. He was six foot four inches tall and used to joke about how bad the Japanese were if they could not hit a target that big. Having children delayed his entrance to the Army but he was drafted just in time to be a part of the invasion of Okinawa.
This is my Dad and my Uncle Guy in 1946 when both were back from the war... Turned out both had been on the Okinawa invasion.
Another bit of differences...My brother looks just like my Dad and both are tall. I take after my Mother's side of the family and peaked out at five foot eight. Here is a photo of the family my Dad
had to leave behind while gone to the war.
As you can see, my brother is already over six feet tall and here only in the ninth grade. Looking more like Mom, I am four years old here and already a Dallas Cowboy fan...even though they would not come into existence until 1960.
The squabbles and differences would remain between my Dad and I right up until I dropped out of college and joined the Army in 1964. I had gone to basic training, schooled in codes and radio signals, and then underwent jungle warfare training at Fort Bragg before being sent to Vietnam. On the way to the airport for the flight over he came apart and started crying. For the first time in our relationship he told me he loved me and to be careful. I was twenty-one years old when I heard those words for the first time.
I knew he loved me from the very beginning. It was just a different time and era, and men didn't go around tossing out words like that. He was always more fond of his first-born son that looked so much like him, but that is not to say he did not make time for my sister and me. He worked extremely hard to make sure we had all the essentials and I can't remember too many things I ever wanted that I didn't get.
I was still in the Army in December of 1967 when my Dad suffered a heart attack on his way home from church. He died before they could get him to a hospital.
He is buried next to my Mom and they are together again. I have been without a guiding force in my life until my wife came along, but even she is not the one to talk with about some experiences.
I guess the lesson learned here is: Never take your parents for granted. I am the father of three girls and a son...and I have tried to instill in each that every time we part..it could be for the last time. Bad feelings are not to be carried over into a new day. Get it out in the open and get over it (especially tough with 3 girls). I like to think I have a special relationship with each, despite all of them grown with their own families now. We come into this world in a gradual entrance, but we never know when it will be time to depart.
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY DAD.... I love you !!
Forgive me, but I have left out a bike. Maybe it was a mental lapse since I never considered it my bike. A friend of mine had this motorcycle and was involved in a messy divorce. He wanted a loan and gave me the motorcycle to hold as collateral. I had a Kawasaki KZ1000 in my younger days, so I loaned the friend thirty-five hundred dollars and took his Vulcan Classic home with me.
The bike cleaned up real well and I kinda liked the low end torque of the 800cc engine. My friend had installed a set of Cobra exhaust pipes on it, but never had the carburetor re-jetted, so that was one of the first things I did to it. Notice the chrome piping around the edges of the fenders? I bought a roll of it through a mail order company and when it arrived it was 100 feet of the piping instead of the ten foot roll I ordered. Needless to say, I have used it on just about every bike I have owned since then.
I took over the Vulcan Classic at the same time I owned the 1997 Gold Wing, so despite having the best highway cruiser on the market, I made a couple of trips to Palestine on the Vulcan Classic just for a change of pace. The trip from my home to Palestine is 183 miles, so I had to plan on at least one gasoline stop along the way. Since the trip was made at five o'clock in the morning I needed to find a station that was open for business at that time of the day.
After about a year of having two bikes in the garage, Momma started to give me a little grief. When I contacted the friend I was holding it for, he told me about another girl in his life and to just keep the bike. He signed over the title to me and now it was officially mine. We would use the Gold Wing for long trips with friends and use the Vulcan Classic for short jaunts around town. The Vulcan was chain drive, and a lot of people are turned off by this feature....BUT chains have been the driving force for motorcycles for more years than the drive shaft on most modern bikes. I have discovered a chain-lube that should be on your garage shelf if you have any chain-driven vehicle. It is made by Honda and contains a teflon ingredient to make it stick to the chain rather than being slung off onto your fender and chrome items. What I would do is put the bike up on a stand or jack...and clean the chain real good...then run the bike around the block to warm up the chain..and then put it back on the jack and spray the chain with the Honda Chain-Lube. Let it dry by itself before riding and it will really amaze you. It also quietens the chain a little.
In the top photo is me cleaning the bike. I was doing this one day and a woman driving by stopped to ask if the bike was for sale. She was a nurse at the Veterans Hospital in Bonham and was looking for more economical transportation from Denison to Bonham. I let her ride the Vulcan around the area while I accompanied her alongside on the Gold Wing. She loved the bike and said she needed to talk to her husband about it before jumping off the deep end. Usually that means you will never see that person again and they just wanted a joy ride on your bike, BUT she and her husband showed up about an hour later. He took it on a spin around the block and came back smiling. This was in 2002 so the bike was five years old, but only had around forty-five hundred miles on the odometer. I was firm, and they ended up giving me $5800 for the bike. He drove home in the car and the nurse followed on her new ride...a 1997 Vulcan Classic.
