Now what? I’ve been hunkered down for a week now, and I’ve grown more than a little tired of that! No complaints about my current digs or the current set-up or anything… just the usual cabin fever thing that comes with the life-choices I’ve made in recent years… Trade-offs again…
Mutually exclusive selections present themselves, and we must give-up one thing in order to gain the other… When both alternatives are desirable, the seemingly simple equation becomes a confounding conundrum…
Whichever I choose, I’ll enjoy all that follows, but… I still must pass on a choice that would also have rendered some enjoyment… in order to pursue the option selected… Value judgements again… Is there some lesson in all of that I’m supposed to be seeing?
I departed my ‘home’ in Florida a couple of months ago to go wander and to attend a gathering or two… I did all of that, but I had to cut the random roaming a bit short, so ALI could get some new tires and maybe have a wee oil leak looked into… I more or less reversed my course, and started the amended route to southeastern Louisiana from west Texas… and to the den of the Troutdude…
Ahhh, Troutdude… my bud, my amigo, the genius wrench who’d solved the chronic drive train malady that had seriously threatened the continued relationship I’ve had with ‘our girl’ for nearly nineteen years, now. I owe that guy big time! He’s not the only one to whom I owe a huge debt, of course, as many, many others have also helped to keep us together and out yonder doing what we do… Thanks again, everybody!!!
Back in Mandeville, the first order of business was to revisit the Acme Oyster House in the nearby community of Covington, LA. Dennis, Shelia, and Jonathan escorted yours truly over there and… I didn’t have any oysters. Nope, another entrée caught my eye, and… Shelia did have some, however, and once again I was reminded of that basic tenant of life… You can have either, but you can’t have both!!!
Still, a very satisfying meal was had, and a mental note had been made to make the ‘other’ selection soon! That opportunity would come sooner than I’d expected… The following afternoon, Mitch arrived… He’d ridden down to assist Dennis with a couple of items, ALI included… We returned to the Acme…
Mitch had oysters, as anybody could have predicted… However, Dennis and I did not… Nope, when there the last time, he and I had both spotted a dessert offering, and… well… again with the choices! We both opted for the gi-normous dessert, figuring oysters can come another time… Oh well…
The following day work began in earnest on our girl… Both tires were replaced, and… a look-see into the cause of and remedy for that persistent wee oil leak. The one that leaves a small puddle directly under the left-side timing belt cover’s lowest point when on the side-stand for any length of time… Never a large puddle, just a bit more than a mere spot… some have speculated she’s trying to identify with her ‘American Iron’ cousins… I dunno…
Her valve cover gasket was replaced, and careful attention to reinstallation was paid… It took a day or two, but the 'spotting' returned… Not as large as before, and probably not anything to worry about, but… it is still there to remind me that she, like her rider, is getting ever longer in the tooth… Anybody know if they make ‘Depends’ for bikes?
It was time to depart Mandeville, so we headed towards Nederland, TX. My land-lady’s youngest brother lives there, and she’d encouraged me to drop by for a visit. I’ve known him for nearly fifty years, but I haven’t seen him in close to twenty years either. I’d called to ‘test the waters’, and I’d received an enthusiastic welcome!
A very nice visit followed, and we even went out to one of his and his wife’s favorite restaurants… We were in Texas, so naturally I had my palate all set for a steak… They both ordered fried catfish, however, so… I changed my order to that, as well… Heck, I do like fried catfish, and I can get a good steak any old time, I reasoned… Then it hit me…
I’d been in Louisiana and passed on oysters… twice! Now I was in Texas and passing on steak… Have I entered some sort of decision-making vortex? One that causes me to make choices counter to what I would ordinarily choose? One thing is for sure… I’d never have been able to consume both meals in one setting!!! Nothing to worry about, I finally concluded… I’d have found a winner either way… in either case!
OK, so I left Texas and headed for Montgomery, AL. I had some routine, follow-up doctor doings scheduled, and while I could always choose to do otherwise… there really was no choice here. I bit the bullet and did what I should do…
I arrived several days early for a couple of reasons… First, I very much preferred to ride through Baton Rouge on a Sunday rather than any weekday, so no real choice there, in my mind anyway… Second a weather front was on its way, and I do not like to ride in rain, especially cold rain. Again, a choice, but not really…
I had also made another curious decision… I’d decided to slip in and out of Montgomery without making contact with anybody. Odd, I know, but sometimes I just want to be alone with my thoughts. Instead of socializing, I’d just ponder and consider what might come next… After two days of nearly constant light rain, temps dropped, and we actually had one of the rare snowfalls here!
Snow is now all gone, and the temps have returned to a more tolerable range... doctor stuff is all done... almost. I do need to return next Tuesday afternoon for one more test, so... While it is time to move on, I can't wander too far, and that means... I'm still undecided, but I do have a strong inclination to head east over to visit my cousin/brother... Hmmm... Wonder if consumption of copious quantities of beer will impact the test results...?
DDT
