Mission Accomplished...?

[DDT (12)]

Mission Accomplished...?
 
Not exactly... In fact, not even close, you might say! Very much a coddiewomple kind of thing for sure, though. We can dream expansively, fantasize creatively, and imagine limitlessly what we might think we want, and then we can make detailed plans accordingly. Along the way we can fight the good fight in a Herculean effort to stay the course and realize those dreams precisely as originally identified...
 
In the end, however, we always adjust to what really happens, and we find ways to bitch about the outcome and find someone or something to blame to ease the disappointment for not achieving our exact vision as initially quantified. Or, we can look for ways to accept, perhaps celebrate all the unanticipated surprises that actually came to characterize the outcome of our pursuit and experience.
 
In other words, how we choose to gauge actual results versus original thought is the real measure. Do we focus upon seeking compliance with arbitrary details and itemized steps while struggling to adhere to a strict itinerary as of paramount importance, or do we seek to determine joy and/or utility, or even disaster avoidance, as the ultimate desirable factors...?

Strict conformity, uniformity, and apparent sameness are of little value when quality of life and enjoyment of the overall journey are actually the end-game goals... Outcomes and consequences matter more than mere adherence to detail... substance over form...
 
We'd departed southern Wisconsin on a multi-state trek figuring to wander west-northwest and see what happened. Possibly visiting Glacier NP, riding the Lolo Pass, Chief Joseph Highway and across the Beartooth Pass, were on our minds as potential 'stretch objectives', but spending time on the road with plenty of 'openness' and flexibility to allow for unanticipated opportunities to be savored and/or pursued had been the real draw... the experiencing of a coddiewomple itself the articulated aim. We didn't even make it out of Wisconsin...
 
That first morning, difficulty in shifting gears became a problem for one rider... Ideas were kicked around about the potential source of the malady along with suggested remedies being deduced and offered. Nothing seemed to work, so Josh Cilley (Doc) was called for advice and assistance. That resulted in an unscheduled visit to the Cilley home where tools, parts, and expertise were available in abundance. The problem turned out to require only a simple shifter adjustment to correct...
 
Sometime during the shifter incident episode, the flap on a carrying pouch where driver's license and credit cards were kept had been inadvertently left unzipped at a fuel stop... and the contents of that normally secure flapped compartment strewn alongside one or more of the many backroads ridden that morning.
 
Following consideration of options, it was decided the odds were just too long of finding the lost articles by re-riding our route, so cancelation calls and new items ordered would be necessary. In the meantime, an entirely new plan was being kicked around. We decided to maybe head for the UP of Michigan with an expanded group that would include both 'the Cilley Boys'...
 
However, most of a day had been lost and the original 'itinerary' trashed within the first few hours! Just revised weather forecast and air quality considerations had taken an ominous turn sufficient to require a serious total revision of the 'plan'.

We got a room at a nearby motel and undertook a much needed skull-session to come to terms with an entirely new set of factors and likely abandonment of the grand tour driving us forward just a couple of hours before. The ferry ride across a river to an ice cream parlor on the other side, became our principal consolation prize on the return home...
 
Was that one day of a ride expected to last maybe a couple of weeks a success or failure? YES! In terms of meeting any of the stated original 'nice to have goals', not a single one was met. A return 'home' on the second day meant not even an unarticulated extended escape from routine and normalcy was achieved. The outcome compared to the list of original expectations had a gaping hole, and by that measure alone this had been a failure of epic proportions.
 
This was to be a coddiewomple, however, and the 'rules' were radically different than they would have been for a more traditional ride... Was a good time had by all...? YES! Were there challenges...? Of course. Did adversity, unknown risks, and embarrassment need to be faced...? You betcha. Did the eventual outcome bear any resemblance to the original expectation...? Not even close. Were dangers avoided while belly-laughs were being vigorously enjoyed? Heck yeah!!! Were friendships strengthened and lavishly celebrated...? Oh yeah, majorly so!
 
Life happened on our way to meeting previously set expectations, but the totally different outcome was actually more rewarding in many ways than anything we could have dreamed up for ourselves. I'd say our grand tour in my view was a resounding coddiewomple success!!! Too brief, of course, but it was exactly what I've come to see and to cherish as the new normal!
 
DDT (12)

[Hook#3287]

"Were dangers avoided while belly-laughs were being vigorously enjoyed? Heck yeah!!! Were friendships strengthened and lavishly celebrated...? Oh yeah, majorly so!"

Seems like you got the important stuff done. Everything else is cake.

[Rams]

When all you get is lemons, it's time to make lemonade.   Great write up!

Rams

[Mooskee]

When I read "We didn't even make it out of Wisconsin...", I laughed; and I knew the tale was gonna be a good one.

Great write up Bruce. Isn't it great how life happens when our "plans" get busted? When men make plans, God laughs.
Some of my best memories are from busted plans. I wonder had all gone perfectly, if I would even have a memory of the journey.

Ride safely,
Dave

[Oss]

it is certainly how we react to the "stuff that happens" that makes all the difference

Only way you could have improved the outcome IMHO is if Pie was consumed with that ice cream

Great story

[DDT (12)]

Bill,

We actually did dodge some misery! Weather forecast changes promised the reduced heat window thought to exist across northern North Dakota was evaporating even faster than the forecast was changing! That combined with an unexpected large uptick in smoke and reduced air quality levels left us realizing that had we not had those delays, we'd have ridden right into some nasty conditions! Laughing at all the things happening... and working out... plus the quality time we unexpectedly spent with the Cilley boys left us very happy about the outcome... A silver lining for sure...

DDT (12)



Ron,

Rolling with the flow is a reality of life you and I have discussed and marveled at many times. FYI, the lemonade was rather tasty at that... again!

DDT (12)



Dave,

Yes, you and I have shared some wildly changed road trip plans of our own, haven't we?! I don't care much about checking items off a carefully prepared to-do list... I do care about enjoying the journey and especially all of the unanticipated 'enhancements' to any trip!

You have a knack for 'broken field running' and maximizing surprise opportunities as good as anybody's! Beyond helping us overcome inertia, I think, 'plans' have questionable value or relationship to actual outcomes! Yeah, we all do it and it does seem efficient and wise. Where we go wrong, I think, is when we let departures from the expected drop our spirits and produce anxiety...

DDT (12)



Evan,

I completely agree with you! I also agree pie could have helped us cope even better. We did settle for ice cream and freshly baked cookies, though, and that got us over the disappointment hump. Still, I've made a mental note to include pie next time...

Hmmmm, Kickapoo ain't all that far from here. It's certainly not too late to continue marveling at the competing emotions of disappointment at not completing the planned trip and celebrating our good fortune with what actually did happen on that outing! The pie there is sensational!

DDT (12)

[flsix]

Another fine write up Bruce.
Plans dashed, fun had and pie around the bend.