Foreplay…
Yeah, I know your programmed, knee-jerk PC reaction is probably… “What could a geriatric white dude possibly know about any of the more pleasant subtleties of life,” right? Well, I may personally be the cause of all the world’s problems, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t figured a thing or two out along the way! One of those is that a little foreplay can be good for us.
Yep, it stimulates the appetite, arouses the senses, excites the imagination, and accelerates ‘getting us in the mood’. It even enhances the overall experience. In my view, that application can be applied in a wide variety of situations, too, and not only as a prelude to physical intimacy…
My previous thread was all about the ‘ah-shucks’ sequence of events that had thoroughly scuttled my attempts at going for a little jaunt the other day. All ‘downer’ setbacks and frustrations that would usually aggravate anyone to no end. Well, that’s certainly one way to look at it…
Another way might be to view all of that as a building of excitement, increasing of the desire to overcome hurdles, and to the eventual finding of my knees back in the breeze once again… Only, following all of those trials and setbacks, I would then be sporting an even broader grin and sense of exaltation.
Of course, none of that was fun or joyous in any way, and all of it did hold unknowns and the potential for various negative outcomes; none of which are the sort of thing one might choose voluntarily or willingly seek out… All of it had boiled down to at least one common denominator, though… we wouldn’t be riding anytime soon: Instead, we’d be dealing with… well, pure, unabridged ah-shucks stuff… It also could find us fighting hard to avoid the acknowledgement of a full-on ‘FUBAR’!
Perhaps my higher plane of thought that had led to choosing to see that as foreplay instead of disaster had occurred because I could afford such a luxury… There had been no urgency or imperative involved, as my only reason had been to simply go for a short ride to nowhere in particular… I’d harbored many doubts about the appropriateness of even attempting such a modest excursion just then… I’d been undecided, even hesitant, right up until the last moment when I’d actually begun to ‘dress for the occasion’.
I’ve often wondered if much of our altruism and high-minded notions come mostly when we have ‘low stakes’ in the game… or when we’re relatively risk-free of the direst of the consequences of our choices… when we have nothing or not much to lose. It seems as though when we are burdened with a mountain of pressing unmet legitimate and/or basic needs, we tend to see everything in an entirely different and much harsher light… Could it be as simple as being able ‘to afford’ to engage in platitudes that we often find ourselves headed down that path?
Well, our girl’s dead battery had stopped cold our initial attempt to go KSU. The irretrievably damaged battery charger had then thwarted that obvious next avenue of remedy. The discharged internal battery of the ‘geek’ had then at least temporarily blocked us there… The ‘opposing army’ had flanked us and successfully countered our every maneuver attempting to successfully respond. Things were not hopeless, however; it would just take longer for us to eventually depart for our therapy session…. Quite a bit longer…
I’d recharged the geek then put it into operation… It had done its job initially, and there had been much promise. I’d allowed lots of time for more than just enough of a charge to crank her, but also to see if she could be revived at all and function unaided… She had! I then allowed the battery to sit unassisted by the geek or anything else overnight to discover whether or not the battery might possibly now be able to hold a charge…
It wasn’t until much later when I checked my ‘Notes’ that I recalled having replaced the battery only last summer in Butte, Montana. It’s a best-they-had-available ‘Motor Craft’ picked up at the local Honda dealership there… I’d wondered about its condition and age, since replacement and timing might possibly be a part of any long-term remedy… I’d left her seat off and the geek handy during the ‘curing’ process in case it wouldn’t hold a charge… But it had!!!
Yep, after sitting overnight without the geek attached, our girl cranked right up with the battery completely unassisted… I was confident the alternator would now do the rest. “Happy days are here again!” In the meantime, I’d called a local riding bud of mine, Bert, to see if he might be interested in a ‘search and destroy mission’ for some BBQ (I consider him to be an expert in quality Q). He was. I then carefully explained the uncertainty of my being able to go, but he accepted my invitation under those conditions… I later called and confirmed!
I rode to Bert’s place out in the forest, enjoyed a cup of Joe, and passed a little time swapping some yarns and griping about a few things… then we were off. John Schmidt (and I think Terry Parrish) had suggested a place north of Ft. McCoy called the Hog Wild, so that became our target… Bert had been there before, but while I’d ridden by there, I’d never actually stopped to dine… Time to correct that deficiency!
Well, imagine our surprise when we arrived and the place was closed… A sign proclaimed they were closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. Dang! Not unusual at all to find Q places closed on Sundays and often even on Mondays… but Tuesdays? Oh well, that afforded us time to dismount, find relief behind a nearby shed, and jaw some more about stuff…
While we were standing around, a couple of guys (from Vermont, but down for the winter) on Harleys pulled in… We watched as they went through the same routine of disbelief giving way to grudging acceptance that we’d just followed… Didn’t take long, though, before we were all engaged in speculation, sharing memories of previous… whatever… Bert knew of another Q place a few miles away, and Mike and Bruce decided to follow us…
A relief stop at a park on our way to the next Q joint… Bert and his ‘B’, our girl, Mike and Bruce on their Harleys…
Well, what’s up with this? That place was also closed on Tuesdays! Mike and Bruce gave up and headed off to a regular restaurant they knew about in a nearby town, while Bert and I opted to seek a Q place mentioned to us by yet another Harley rider who’d happened to stop at the second place while we were debating options… We didn’t make it there…
Nope! I was a little confused when Bert made the turn into a small family-run Cuban-style restaurant a short distance from the last Q location… That turned out to be a great choice, though! Cuban style seasoned pork, yellow rice, black beans, tomatoes, and bread was the daily special, so Bert and I happily went with that selection. Mighty yummy, too!
After ordering, Bert and I did some small-talking, as we fidgeted with our napkins, eating utensils, and sipped sweet tea… things I think of as dietary foreplay… Those, combined with having unsuccessfully visited two Q places before, had our appetites ravenous and our salivary glands in hyper-drive! I was panting with so much eagerness, a cold chilidog would have been viewed as a treat beyond tremendous by the time it arrived!
The ‘special of the day’… and a great meal!
Oss had asked me to take some pics so he could ride along with us vicariously. As is customary, I forgot to take any for the most part… I did grab a couple, however, so those are for you, Evan… I reckon you’ll have to settle for a vicarious vegetarian meal, though… I had informed Bert that I would be dining on beef brisket Q that day in your honor, but we never made it to an open for business BBQ place… Alas, that Cuban-style pork special just looked too good to pass up…
Lessons learned:
1. Don’t just give up and quit when you encounter obstacles…
2. Foreplay is a good thing in lots of ways…
3. Rugged Geek power units are mighty handy in a variety of ways!
4. Hopeful thoughts and optimism are better than doom & gloom reactions and pessimism…
5. BBQ places aren’t always open on Tuesdays…
6. While you meet the nicest people on Hondas, lots of nice folks also ride other brands…
7. Sharing the wind on a gorgeous, near perfect day with friends can be plum enjoyable!
8. Our girl still ‘has it’!!!
DDT
