April 15th

When people see April 15th on the calendar most think of tax day. Yes, taxes have to be post marked by midnight tonight. 

Other people may think of April 15th as being the anniversary of when the Titanic sank in 1912. Not a happy day, but it has earned millions for Hollywood's box offices. How sad.

When I think of April 15th I think of the anniversary of the birth of one of the world's greatest painters and most versatile geniuses in history: Leonardo da Vinci. Da Vinci was born in the year 1452. He was a master, it seemed, in all that he did. He was trained to be a painter, but his interests and achievements spread into an astonishing variety of fields that are now considered scientific specialties. He studied anatomy, astronomy, botany, geology, geometry, and optics, and he designed machines and drew plans for hundreds of inventions including the helicopter, before it 

was possible to even build one.

Because da Vinci excelled in such an amazing number of areas of human knowledge, he is often called a universal genius. However, he had little interest in literature, history, or religion. He formulated a few scientific laws, but he never developed his ideas systematically. He was most of all an excellent observer. He concerned himself with what the eye could see, rather than with purely abstract concepts.

And who can forget his Vitruvian Man drawing..... Like other artists, da Vinci was interested in the proportions of the human body. He drew a famous study of human proportions based on the statement of the Roman architect Vitruvius that the "well-shaped man" fits into the perfect shapes of the square and circle. According to Vitruvius, the parts of the body are related to one another in ratios of whole numbers, and these ratios should be used in the design of architecture. Leonardo's drawing of the Vitruvian man, done about 1487, is one of the most famous images in European art.

I feel fortunate to live in a city that hosts da Vinci Days A 3-day festival celebrating art, science, and technology. It is where art and science collide. Da Vinci Days has electric car races, kinetic sculpture races, film festival, sidewalk art, as well as music in the evenings. If you find yourself in Corvallis in mid-July it is well worth checking it out. 

Here are a few pictures Troubadour and I have taken while watching the parade and kinetic sculpture races.

-Au Revoir

" Simplicity is the ultimate in sophistication." Leonardo da Vinci

Random Cat Pictures

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Here is one of our favorite pictures of Sir Baxter playing with Squire Basil when Basil was a kitten. Sure wish the focus was a little better but at least we managed to capture the "attack". 

"The Attack"

Appreciez

-Au Revoir

"A cat is a lion in a jungle of small bushes." - Indian Saying

Monday the 13th

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Why is it harder to get out of bed on a Monday morning than any other day? Mondays make me think of Garfield the cat and how he did not like them at all. 

Out of any given Monday today has to be Monday the 13th. Now there are those people that are superstitious about Friday the 13th, but I seem to remember that any Monday the 13th was the worst kind of Monday for Garfield.

I hear ya Garfield, I hear ya.

-Au Revoir

"Monday is a lame way to spend 1/7 of your life." ~Author Unknown

A Hiking We Will Go

Well, actually, it was "a hiking we a went". On Sunday April 5th Troubadour and I took advantage of the unseasonably warm 78˚F weather here in the Willamette Valley and went on a 5-mile hike up Bald Hill.

Luckily we live about a half mile from the trailhead so it is just a hop, skip and a jump away. It was a great day and we tried to take several pictures since we actually remembered the camera this time.

We took this picture of an old wooden cross. It is located at the top of Bald Hill at the base of a tree. Not sure of the history of it. It might be a very old grave marker or it could be something else. If you look close you can tell where it had been buried in the ground. 

Here is one from a different angle in black and white. For some reason the picture just holds your attention.

This picture is taken along the path up to the top of the hill. I thought the tree limbs made an interesting composition against the brilliant blue sky.

Troubadour asked that I pose for a picture as there aren't many of me out there. We took pictures of him as well, but we'll save those for a separate future post. He takes such a good picture he needs his own post, mind you, I might be slightly biased.

-Au Revoir

"Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves." ~John Muir

The time has come...

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Well it has been a little over 6 years since I took the Team Oregon motorcycle safety class out at LBCC and received my motorcycle endorsement.  As yet, I have not had my own bike to ride and I am reluctant to venture forth on Troubadour's 2007 Triumph Bonneville (he bought it new and has only had it a year) so I have been relegated to riding pillion.  I am ok with that.

We have always wanted to buy me a bike to ride.  We keep saying someday.  You know how that is.  We bought a house in Lebanon and needed to renovate before we could sell and move into Corvallis where we really wanted to be.  Did that in 3 years then bought our current house which needed a lot of work.  First year we renovated (gutted) the bathroom, then did landscaping and just this past December we gutted the kitchen and did a total remodel of that room.  Other priorities kept coming up in place of that elusive first bike.

And now.... our house is at a place where we feel comfortable that it is presentable to company (if we ever had any) and can switch gears to more frivolous spending. We have been researching and checking Craigslist daily for about two months now looking for good used bikes.  Haven't really run across any that strike our fancy - in our price range.

We prefer something that will serve dual purpose.  I don't mean necessarily dual sport but something tame enough for me to get reacquainted with riding but big enough that Troubadour can commute to work in the rain and snow and that gets better gas mileage than the Bonneville.

I am just shy of 5'8" tall so the popular always recommended Honda Rebels are too small and low for me.  I don't feel comfortable with my knees up at mirror height while riding.  I do believe toilet seats are higher than the seat of a Rebel.

We have been to Eugene, Salem, and Portland and through all of the motorcycle shops and sat on many a bike.  The Honda Shadow VLX 600 is a good fit.  The Suzuki S40 is also a good fit.  

The best fit and comfort by far has got to be the BMW G650GS. Of course it does. Couldn't be a cheap Japanese model.  I really like the idea of a bike that is only 423 pounds wet weight and the gas tank is located under the seat so the center of gravity is lower. Troubadour likes the idea of heated grips and ABS for winter commuting.  This would serve our dual purposes.

The BMW's hold their value and are not cheap on the used market. We must weigh the pros and cons of buying used or putting a down payment on one and buying new.  

We are still in the debating stage as we are trying to mix fiscal responsibiliy with functionality of the motorcycle.  Those darn bikes are hard to find used too.  Decisions sometimes can be the hardest part.  

Then little miscellaneous unexpected bills crop up and need to paid. Who needs to see a doctor anyway, right?  Damn privatized "for profit" health care.  Almost makes me pine for British Columbia again.  Almost, not quite.  

So I might not get my own bike this year, but if we keep looking you never know when the right one at the right price will be discovered.  I will ride my own bike though. That is a personal goal. I am determined to get comfortable on my own bike and riding in traffic.  Pretty soon it will be like second nature; some might say it will be easy - "just like riding a bike".

Stay tuned.......

-Au Revoir

"It takes more to share the saddle than it does to share the bed." 

     - Author Unknown

Full Face Helmets and Spring

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It is a known fact that life smells different when experience from a motorcycle. This goes for the good and the bad. Everything from roadkill to second hand smoke at stop lights to spring blooms smelled along the open road.

Spring is in full force here in the Willamette Valley. The magnolias, cherry trees, plum trees, daffodils and miscellaneous shrubs are all in full bloom. This is the start of allergy season.

They say if you don't have allergies before you arrive in the Willamette Valley, you will before long. I had allergies before but they were worse and for a longer duration. I still have allergies but they are mostly related to the grass seed industry that is so prolific in this area. Linn County is the grass seed capital of the world, but I don't mind as Troubadour works in the industry therefore it puts food on our table.

My allergies start mid May and run to about July 4th when the grass fields are cut down for harvest.

As an ATGATT motorcyclist, let me say yes, it is possible to blow your nose in a full face helmet while riding pillion. 

You haven't lived until you have sneezed in a full face helmet....... repeatedly ........with the visor down.

I'm just sayin'..........

-Au Revoir

"When you're riding lead, don't spit." ~Author Unknown