And I won't ride a motorcycle when it's raining and the thermometer says 45 degrees.
I'm pretty tough, but I'm not interested in seeing how miserable I can make myself.
All four of the bikes have electrical systems that drain the battery even with the ignition off...
Clocks, radio memory, etc.. I like to start them all and ride them half an hour or so every two weeks. But it has rained a lot lately, and my time off hasn't coincided with dry days.
Monday morning the rain stopped. By afternoon the temp was still about 45 but the streets were dry. I disconnected the trickle charger, pushed the old BMW out of the garage, and rode into town to pick up a few needed items.
Later, Sara Jean came home and said, "I have a craving for a 'Subway' sandwich... let's go get one."
To which I replied, "Bundle up. Let's ride."
And so we did... top speed of 30 mph in third gear. Still, it felt great, good for bike, and us.
Big Bubba flew in from Arizona last night. I drove into BigTown to pick him up and arrived early so I could do a little last minute shopping before going to the train station to pick him up. I arrived at the Mall about 9 P.M... they were staying open until midnight. I was surprised at the number of folks there shopping, and most of them were actually carrying bags of items they had purchased. Almost everything was on SALE, so it will be interesting to see how retailers have done this year. I suspect the fact that sales started early and stores have kept their doors open longer will mean profits will be slim. Let's see if my feeling of the pulse is correct.
So the Greybeards are ready for Christmas. It's been a year since BB has been home and it is a comfort just knowing we can reach out an touch him. I'm starting my week of nights tonight so our celebrations will be scheduled around my hours at home. That's fine. It may limit chances for disagreement.
All of us in EMS hope to be sitting on our hands the next few days. All too often we are called to cases we know will taint memories of the holidays for years to come. All we can do is try to mitigate the damage and hope to make those memories brighter.
Hold your loved ones close, everyone.
And behave yourself... please.
8 comments:
Hope work doesn't get too busy for you.
Merry Christmas G.B. !
It's been over twenty years since I owned a bike, but one of the best rides I had was on a night when the temperature was around 49 and an occasional drop of rain would fall. The highway was empty, I was bundled in heavy coveralls and there wasn't enough rain to wet the pavement.
I probably wouldn't have chosen to ride, but I had spent the day with friends in another town and had to ride home. The weather caught me before I made it home.
Have a very Merry Christmas and fly safe.
Having an international jewelry retailer for a client I haven't gotten to take time off around Christmas for the last seventeen years. And the season is always tainted for me with thoughts of how it is exploited in American culture for profit and most people don't give the real reason for celebration a first tought, much less a second.
I always think of the story of Christ's reaction to the money changers in the temple and wonder how culpable I might be since I make my living service a customer that has built the vast majority of its revenue into the Christmas sales season.
It feels like I'm exploiting the birth of Christ just like they are.
BUT...it doesn't stink near as bad as the days when I was a cop and having to bust up the usual family fights and work the fatality accidents as innocent travelers and pedestrians fell victim to the holiday drunk drivers and strong-arm robbers. Especially the family violence calls...those always spiked around Thanksgiving and Christmas.
I bet it is doubly depressing for emergency medical personnel since you have to be hands on with the victims of the increased stress, accidents, suicide attempts, etc. So sad that this period of celebration is also the time the weight of the world comes home to roost for so many unfortunate people.
BUT...put those depressing reflections aside and accept my warmest wishes for a Merry Christmas to you and yours! May you be blessed and joyful as you celebrate the birth of our Lord, and may all your endeavors at rescuing and saving others be successful.
GB -
I hope boredom is your company this week. It would be nice.
Merry Christmas, sir.
cjh
GB, just as an aside, heard on the radio in Kalifornia today that estimates of shoplifting/theft between Turkey day and Christmas will be $2BILLION in loss this year...
Mrs Jinksto and I were coming home from Church on Christmas Eve and saw cars parked at the local VFD... so we went home and took a cake off of our Christmas table for them.
When we got back to the station there were only two EMT's there and one was heading home.
The EMT keeping the watch on Christmas morning got a whole cake to himself.
It was a spur of the moment thing... something nice to do. He seemed to appreciate it a lot.
Thanks for keeping the watch sir. Thanks a lot.
Post a Comment