Saturday, January 14, 2012

CC & Beyond

P1140005 We left the house this morning around 10:30, intent on going on a nice ride. We backed the bike out of the garage and discovered the front tire pressure was low. This has been a thing that’s been occurring lately and upon closer observation, Linda discovered that there was a crack in the valve stem. We added some air to the tire but decided that we really didn’t feel safe going on a really long ride until we got it fixed. This was AFTER we had to jump the battery to get the bike started. We’ve been putting off having to get a new battery cause, well you know….ya just get sick of shelling out money to fix things ! I’ve resigned myself to the fact that ever since I bought that 1972 Chevy Vega, when I was 16, that I work to pay for vehicles. I guess the alternative is that I’d need to take a bus or some sort of mass transit to wherever I need to go and that just wasn’t possible when you grew up in the country. So quit whining, Linda, and go get it fixed.
We went to a couple of garages in Port Aransas and they either didn’t do tire repairs on motorcycles or were closed. A guy, at the one P1140011 garage we stopped at, told us to go to Corpus Christi so off we went, hoping the finger nail polish I applied to the crack would buy us some time. We found a Yamaha dealer in CC and after a donation of $213, we rode away with a new valve stem and a new battery. I could stop worrying about breaking down out in the middle of nowhere.
We headed out for our ride and had a wonderful afternoon, driving along the coast. We stopped outside of Portland, near a fishing pier and walked along the water. There was a bird sitting in the water and he could barely move. I wasn’t sure what was wrong with him but after looking around him, I saw a jellyfish right next to him so we’re wondering if he got stung trying to eat the jellyfish. I thought he might drown cause his head would fall down in the water and he wasn’t moving his legs at all. I reached down to pick him up and he mustered up enough strength to reach around as if to peck me. I put my gloves on and reached down and gently closed his beak, then put my hands around his body and picked him up and placed him on a rock. We’re hoping that if he did have a neuro-toxin in his system, that it would wear off in time. We left him there…hoping for the best.
P1140014
P1140015
All of the “stuff” that was part of the jetty appeared to be construction waste….slabs of concrete and such. With shells and seaweed all over the surface of these chunks, it was actually really neat looking. Looked a bit artsy in its’ new form.
P1140006 P1140010
P1140012 P1140013
P1140018 P1140021
Temps today were in the low 60’s and the air was a little cool but it was so great to get out on the bike. It’s been far too long since we’ve had Vanessa out on the road. Hoping tomorrow is a repeat of today (except for the donation part of it). Hope you enjoy whatever you do this weekend…..live life !

No comments: