Friday, October 4, 2013

Decisions, Decisions... And Creating Pickup Lines

A big part of why I had any carb issues in the first place is because the bike sat completed until I could make my way out here...and of course the main mechanic was away on a road trip of his own by the time I landed in Boston.

Well, we chatted yesterday and he's back and willing to meet up and give the bike a once over. So, do I backtrack another day or deal with it on the road? That's the decision I needed to make last night.

I woke up to this this morning and decided to meet with him and then head out. This was my view...it may have had something to do with it. Last night was my first time feeling the fatigue. I found an empty house with "for sale" signs right on the main drag, it had a carport for my bike and a soft wood deck for my back. Perfection. Up till then, I was on a curvy mountain state road lined with trees, colder than I wanted it to be for this trip but distracted by the dazzling of the stars. The sky was big. :)

A day earlier I arrived in Albany at night, the city was covered in darkness. I had planned to exit directly downtown, have a beer and chat with locals. Instead the carbs riddle me again and again. I puttered to a stop about one exit prior than desired. I was in what appeared to be an abandoned industrial area. The bike rolled into a parking lot in front of a warehouse sparsely lined with a strategic patch of grass.  Rolled out my sleeping bag. Laid flat on my back, in hopes of uncurling my spine out of the hunched "café" riding posture and arose to the brilliance of the sun the next day. State Of NY Water Conservation Building

The last time I was in Albany I was 26, married and trying to convince my then wife we should invest in brownstones there. I had my builders license and I was hungry...she had a meal ticket and wasn't. Lol :P

I stretched out on the sleeping bad as I slowly got up. Stood. Pulled out my jump rope and did a few sets. Pushups. Ate a carrot, apple and orange. Checked my dead phone and started making a plan for fixing this bike and finding a bar...in any order that suits your values.


I found a building that looked occupied, stated my business, asked to charge my phone, use their restroom and slowly made a few new friends. I left my phone there to charge and went to find a hardware store or motorcycle shop. (Phibbs Power Sports) Instead I met a woman who owned the cross fit building I was admiring along my stroll. She wore spandex shorts and a belly tank top and sported a muscular feminine frame in the right places. She was attractive, my age or older and I could see her faint green veins slightly in her calves and thighs. Her face was kind and she seemed out of place for Albany, maybe a transplant. As she got closer I admired a wild ruddy look to her, short tussled thick blonde hair and a demeanor that told you she's been to plenty rodeos. Later I learned she grew up in Boston, was a widower and had 2 grown kids off on their own. CrossFit Beyond
I stopped mostly because of the outdoor chin-up/adult monkey bar setup they had, tempted to do a few chin-ups...but then I was really drawn in by a second structure on the property.  It was a small red brick structure, square, terracotta brown clay tiles, long narrow windows and in need of restoration or a wrecking ball. I leaned towards the former. She and the building both leaned, towards the latter.  She says it was the towns old water pump station. Handsome. It would make a great cigar, sandwich or barber shop, bike store, café or juice bar...any of which I'd love to own. She and I talked about work, life after marriage, the whole dating "again" thing, motorcycle road trips and the best pickup lines. I would later return to use her bathroom and kitchen in the cross fit before heading out to leave Albany. She lamented about the dating scene, bars and clubs and asked my advise about meeting people and I told her I probably have no freedom of speech on that subject but my best suggestion would be to not try. Discover your own passions and actively pursue them...there will be single people at that place when you get there, too.

So my map is looking like this now, best case scenario. I've lost more days than I care to discuss and now there is rain afoot. Hoping for less McDonalds and more of what's in that wallet. (For the record I only eat the hash browns there...maybe an occasional biscuit sandwich - but rarely) I guess I just felt indebted for using the free wifi and drying off.

The next three days should be pretty intense to get to Milwaukee, if the rains shift I'll go to Bloomington Indiana instead. Both places represent two very different things I love about the Midwest. And both are towns most people pass by...but I strongly suggest you reconsider them. I'd add Albany to that list too.

I first had (newly legalized after 95 years) absinthe in Milwaukee while visiting a plant for work. I had extended my flight into the weekend because I wanted to see some farms and visit their Art Museum on the water...it looks more like an architectural representation of a sailboat crossed with a harp. In good way. And then there is Elsa's, a small restaurant just north of downtown, which looks like a classically trained French chef went on a binge, woke up out of his stupor in a greasy spoon and had an epiphany for a menu idea. Everything there is essentially diner food - on organic range fed steroids. :@)

In Bloomington I was drawn in by the small town charm of incredibly talented and intelligent locals. No social posturing and disingenuous phrases...just real folk. I had my first taste of Bourbon Beer here. (Max's Place) Downtown is lined with mom and pops, from the usual second hand stores and Barber Shops to the Men's haberdashery with an amazing selection of avant-gard  fashion forward finds. World music festivals. Great artisan/craftsman shops, bars, food and cafes provide an amazing back drop to the stirring debates among the everyday folk. All this surrounded by cornfields - if you ask me, its things like this that makes America great, but I digress. Long story, short, I was supposed to be in Bloomington for one day while hitchhiking cross-country two years ago almost to the day...I stayed four.

So, right now I'm at the rally point to meet my Mechanic. (Greenfield Public Library) I'm 8 hours early. And can I just say I love "Motorcycle Parking Spots"? If only our governments were run more like small towns in America. I'm reminded of Churchill's book "Coniston" - oh wait, recalling the ending, maybe they are, lol. :)

PS: I almost forgot the business of pickup lines. So the conversation about pickup lines started at cross fit but followed me into "Stouts", a pub a few blocks down. (Stout) I'm sitting there and chatting with 3 guys who are mesmerized by the bartenders posterior. She's about 5'8", brunette, extensions, pretty face and overly nice in that "I get paid to do this" kind of way, eh. So, the one guy who is really interested asks his friends, "what do you say to a woman like that?" And everyone at the bar is tossing around pickup lines. There is even an elderly couple chiming in. I offer one he likes and it worked. I have to admit it was off the cuff and I later told her outside that she can only blame herself, or by self I mean her ass. She laughed. Her new boyfriends didn't. D'oh! ;)

The line: "Excuse me what brand of jeans are those you are wearing?"
She'll answer: "blah, blah, blah, thanks YOU, blah, what's your name?, blah blah"...
Respond: "I'll have to remember that. They are very flattering by the way. When I get a girlfriend again...she's wearing THOSE jeans!

Hey, it worked. Let's hope my bike puts out as much. ;)



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