A complete surprise to me + Happy New Year!!

On of the reasons that I've always maintained a blog or a journal or something along those lines is because I enjoy writing.

So imagine my surprise when I found myself waking up about 5 or 5:30 every morning for the past couple of months to write a novella, or a short novel.

It all started as a bit of a joke.   I was talking to a friend of mine that actually has written several romance novels.   What we we talking about doesn't really matter but I found myself challenged to write better than half the hacks in that particular field.    So I managed to write a 2066 word short story that got some good feedback not only from them, but from the general public as well.

I'm friends with several writers in fact so I felt that if they enjoyed the work I was doing, then I was on the right path so to speak.

The only problem was that I didn't think I was done with "Emma", the main character in the story.  Could I, a guy, write something from a women's point of view that would make sense to women?   How does one write a particular type of scene if you've never experienced that yourself?

The Emma character story started to grow.  Different chapters were written.  She started to grow into a monster of slightly under 15 thousand words.   Then when that story was finished...I looked back and said, "How did you get into this predicament Emma?   What drove you there?

So the prequel had to be written with the intent to unit both stories into one coherent whole.   That took another 15 thousand words.

I wrote a novella.

It was finished just a few days ago and now, it sits in the hands of five or six trusted friends who will review and edit it, helping me hopefully improve upon it.   There is still a lot of work to do because I'm sure there will be a rewrite or two in some areas, a couple of changes to be made.

Then I intended to see if I can either self publish it, or get it published the more traditional way.  However I'm rather proud of myself.   I managed to write something that may never see the light of day, but I still managed to do it.

That's a pretty cool feeling.


Now as far as 2018 goes!

Honestly the year was not a bad one, other than a costly mistake on my part (I owe about 6K now sadly) the year as a whole was not a bad one.

One of the reasons that I was even considering becoming a truck driver was I liked the idea of a more steady income, something that was recession proof (drivers are always needed) and that I could see the country...and write about it.    After all, this blog was originally designed with adventures in mind right?

I will also admit that I missed writing, I was not doing much of it before October.   I could not really figure out how to back up the tractor trailer properly.   If you can't back up properly your going to cause a wreck.   It really is that simple.

So lucky for me I was able to take advantage of the Annual Enrollment Period in Medicare and keep myself and the lovely Sue from starving in the month of November.  In December, I swallowed my pride and went to a headhunter resume in hand.

By the middle of December I was offered a position with New York Life in their call center.  The pay was acceptable but not great.  The benefits however were amazing!!!

Matching 401K up to 6%, then they would match at 50% up to an additional 4%.   In other words $8 out of every $10 I put into the 401K was matched by the company.   You don't see that anymore.  Pension plan!!!   Also something you don't see anymore.   A medical plan with no copay's?    WHAT!

While I'm not happy with where I'm starting out, I'm told this is the way NYL does things.   At 52 years old I'm swallowing my pride and will do what ever is needed to be done.

You want me to clean toilets for those benefits?  DONE!

Did I mention I was vested as of day one as well?

No wonder it's so hard to get a job there.

The only thing that I don't like about the job is the commute.  It takes me about an hour both ways to reach my destination, which can be longer depending on traffic.   Even though gas is relativity low now, we all know it will not stay that low forever.

Suddenly a motorcycle for the comment starts to make a bit more sense.   Although I would have to ride the freeways again, something that does not appeal to me.  It's also been two years since I've ridden a motorcycle. 

The last time I did, I was gun shy to be honest.  I would hate to buy another bike and be guy shy again.

Sue, when she pushes for a bike at all, wants me to ride a three wheeler.  She just feels that they are more stable and that I would be less likely to take a risk since they are a bigger bike.   Plus, as she points out to me...two of the three accidents that I were involved in were not my fault.   True...but still. 

I have to admit that the Can Am's are fun to ride. 

Although they are not cheap.

Oh well, Happy New Year everybody. 

I got to get back to work.

Being Thankful

It's Thanksgiving. 

A few moments ago I got off a video call where my parents and my brother's family were celebrating Thanksgiving.

I'm here in Florida and missing them.

My father's health is still in question although he's doing well at this moment.   My mother, while she is my mother and I worry about her mental state and her ability to drive and take care of herself if...when...my father passes.

I lie to them.   Tell them things are fine here at Casa De Wilson.  They don't know that I left my job in late September to learn how to drive a truck.   A half baked idea about finding myself, finding time to write (which I used to do a lot more of, and better...sadly you only get better when you write, and I've not been).

How it was a chance to get off the phones and away from things and look deep into myself and figure out exactly who and what I am.

It's complicated dear reader.   It's complicated.

Why is a 52 year old man still looking for and needing approval from his parents?

Our house is still up for sale, and we recently had a death in Susan's extended family.   I know she wants to be there, to be part of the lives of her friends and large family.

For me, I have mixed emotions about leaving Florida for the cold confines of Pittsburgh.  Part of me wants to go home, to be with my family.  To say goodbye to my Dad when that time comes, to be there for my mother.

To try and start some sort of relationship with my brother...and his adopted daughter.  We just got off the phone and my collection of children's classics is going to her.  They were given to me when I was three and I remember reading Black Beauty, Robin Hood, Heidi and Tom Sawyer growing up.  How those stories enraptured me.    Even now I hold these books with reverence.

They are 50 years old now, these thin blue volumes and the bindings are still good.  The pages slightly faded but the illustrations; looking almost like they were done with old wood blocks, are still fresh and clean.   On a whim I look online and find my books, my books!, for sale for over $100 dollars.   Two of the volumes are missing in that set, my set is complete and probably in better condition.

These were gifts for my kids.  It never happened that way.

I just hope that Avery, my brother's adopted daughter, develops a love a reading; a wonder for words and the worlds that they create.  That one day she will hold these books the way I do now, with nostalgia and wonder.  I touch the covers with love and respect.

Even though our house has not sold yet, we are packing things up to make it easier when that time comes, getting rid of things that we no longer use or need.  Sue's collection of Elephants, once numbering over 600, is being whittled down to sentimental items only.


Old Cd's, tapes, albums and yes; even old books are finding their ways into libraries and Goodwill stores.  The odds and ends that make up a life.  I hold a rare record in my hands and wish for a record player to here the notes of a long dead jazz trumpeter come to life once again, but I put it in the collection bin to take it to the local collector and see what I can put into my back pocket for it.

As much as I would love to keep an old Blue Note album, it is better that someone actually enjoy it before it wraps beyond recognition and repair buried in my closet.  Susan makes a joke about how she's glad it's not a Brown Note album which is an old joke only a music lover would understand.

She tears up over an old photo of her now deceased husband.  Scott was a good man.  Taking care of her and his daughter long after the divorce.  I always respected him for that.  It was what a man was supposed to do.  To care for those that he loves.

me in a horrid picture

It's later now, I raise a glass for the third year in a row for World Peace.  A tradition started on a whim by Pastafarians.  The rest of the world has stopped it seems.   I won't.   #pastafariantoastforpeace

I'm feeling mello and loved and oh so thankful.  I'm also feeling very sentimental as my Facebook memories remind me of rides that I took on this day and the best cat in the world. 

For my father and his being alive.  Even though I don't think I'll make it home for Christmas this year, I hope he'll make it through another.

For Susan, who stands by me and supports me.   Sometimes I wonder why.

For running water, for my home, for my cats that want to be petted at 3 AM when I'm sleeping, for friends, for everything.

Thank you and Happy Thanksgiving.

From 2 smaller wheels to 18 big ones

These past two years have been interesting.  I've made some good decisions, some bad ones.  Some were made for me...But as of October 1st, I'v officially left the financial world and enter a new one.

It's a complete change of lifestyle for me, and as you probably guess from the title, I've decided to drive a truck.  I'll get to my reasons in a bit, and since no one really reads this blog, I'll do so in my own time.

I have been in call centers all my life, I've been a phone jockey. I've been a team leader. a trainer, a supervisor, a manager.   Honestly there is much that I've not done.  When I decided to go the independent insurance route in 2016 it was a bit of a shock.  Luckily I didn't lose money the first year like I feared.  I didn't make money either but I didn't have to hijack anything out of our savings accounts to pay bills, so I'll consider that a success.

Then ten months ago a friend of mine called me and suggested I go to work back in a call center.  I would still be an Independent agent, but one where I would not have to pay for leads and that's a large chunk of change saved up right there.   The job also had a few other perks like working when I wanted to, as long as I put in 40 hours, etc.

The first 3 months were training, paid at $18 an hour on Medicare products.  I'm a big fan of Medicare, but not of selling it over the phone.   However I did what I was asked. In the months that followed, I only hit my sales goals once.  Something needed to change and you can read about that more in the other blog I keep.

So why trucking?   Well, I have my reasons but it mostly had to do with skills and being in a job where I would always be in demand.  It's not recession proof, but is damn close to it.  I'm not worried about doing the actual job, I can learn that part of it. While I may be a proverbial monkey with a gun when it comes to anything mechanical, I can learn.

What scares me honestly is being isolated.  I am an introvert at heart but I also know that in the past I've made bad choices because I was lonely.  I'm also hoping that this isolation and new experiences will get me back into writing and blogging.  It's something I've missed, and besides, my first best selling novel should have been written by now (actually I've the first 3 chapters done and it has the working title of "Emma").

I read about drivers that may not be home for months.  Or how you see nothing but strangers (waitress's, dock workers, other truckers) and how your whole world consists of the cab and sleeping quarters of your truck.   A world reduced to 50 square feet.

I also read about seeing the Rocky Mountains for the first time and the beauty of the high plains or watching the sun raise over the ocean...then watching it set the same day over mountains in the west.  Of the wonder of leaving the desert and driving into snow. 

What this came down to for me was a change of pace, of needing to finally do something different for a bit.

What this came down to for me was family.  While I can do insurance and banking anywhere in the world (and my former company did offer me the chance to work from home), it's also based on relationships.   That life insurance policy leads to a call about Medicare.  You need Dental work?  I got that covered.  Your daughter is getting married and needs home owner's insurance?  Done.

I remember I insuranced an entire street because I treated the people right.  I've several standing invites for dinner and at least one woman offered to set me up with her Daughter!  Relationships matter.

Still, however, I have to face facts.  My father is ill, and my mother will need help in Pennsylvania.   Sue's family is in the same place, her father doesn't even remember her now. 

The income needs to be more stable moving forward.  I need a job where I can slip into easily without much disruption if we do move.   Insurance and banking is about building relationships, and I'm not willing to spend another two years or more of my life to building those relationships again in a new city.

I just hope I'm making the right choices.

So long story short, I'm back in the blogging game.  Concentrating on travel and trucking and what ever else comes my way.

Take care.

Rob

Pursuing your bliss

I've been giving a lot of thought lately about THE FUTURE!

The lovely Susan is out of the hospital, beaten up but still the plucky lovely woman I fell in love with all those years ago.  Her daughter will be in town for a few weeks to take care of her while I'm required to be at work. So even though my mind is temporary at ease, it still churns with uncertainty.  I don't care for uncertainty.

I thought about these things after a long and frustrating day at work,  where on paper at least the day appeared to be a good one, but underneath it was crap-tastic.  The ride home, on familiar roads nearly empty of traffic on a warmer than normal night, should have eased a troubled mind but did little to help.  A nice glass of white wine and early to bed should have helped but did not.

A lot of these issues that plague my mind are dealing with retirement (20 - 25 years away EEK!), insurance (I'm exposed) and job related (it's a good job but certainly not what I expected to be doing at this time in my life).

I need a break.  I need to pursue what makes me happy for a bit.  I thought about some of my fellow bloggers adventures and trials as I rode.  Including the Bobscoot project, Motorcycle Philosophy, the Rounders forum and other sites.  Writing makes me happy.

Slowly but surely a nebulous idea started to form in the back of my mind the other night.  In a few days I hope to be contacting many of my fellow bloggers and riders about this idea.  Looking for input and data.  Maybe even a contribution or two...of the non monetary kind.

a postcard of a simpler time.

I'm curious to know what makes us tick.  Those of us the ride all year round, or have given up their cars to fully accept the two wheeled way of life.  Why some of us have given up the comfort of our cars to be cold, wet, hot, sunburned, windburned...and why that makes us happy.

For a brief moment in time my bike was my primary means of transport, in addition to saving some cold hard cash, it was an interesting experience.  Of course, living in Florida, riding year round is a rather easy affair.

I am curious to learn about those where riding year round is not an easy choice.  

Of course, nothing may come of this, the project may never get off the ground...but it should be fun to see if it does.

A bit off topic (and late) but HIGHLY IMPORTANT!

A combination of having family visiting from up north, training and working with people for my new position, negations for picking up another route for the small business on the side (we won the bid thank you very much), and weather has kept me off the bike this week.

However I could not let Banned Book Week pass without a comment.  Maybe it's because I picked up a dog eared copy of the Motorcycle Diaries recently.  Maybe it's because I know a few writers (See my links page for links to their books).  Maybe it's the firmly held belief that an educated populace can decided what is best for it and that leads to greater freedom.  Maybe its because I used to teach (as well as other things)...who knows.

Banned Book Week is a celebration about the written word and the power that words have to persuaded - Friends, Roman's, Countrymen lend me your ears from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar comes to mind.  In the beginning Caesar is portrayed as a power hungry madman...yet at the end of Mark Anthony's speech in the play; the common people raise up against Caesar's assassins.

Books have the power to make us think.  Provide warnings.  Enter the public consciousness and become part of our shared, common and very human experience.    So, when I hear about censorship or that some people are pushing for a particular belief system over another the hair on the back of my neck raises and I start to snarl.

Sadly the people that raise these complaints are often doing so with the best of intentions.  I'll be the first to admit that I've read some material which I've found questionable.  One book dealt with slavery, racism, used offensive language and was determined to show youth rebelling against authority figures.  The name of that book?  The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

Yet this book is a classic of American Literature.  Perhaps the racism was part of the time and had to be considered in context (although frankly the racism in the book is shown to be stupid and misplaced).  The issue of slavery, handled well I thought and considering how the book was published in 1876, certainly understandable.  Jim, the escaped slave, is a very honorable man.  Their are lessons to be learned here, if we open our minds to receive them.

Almost two decades ago I read The Autobiography of Malcolm X because I was looking for a way to relate with my students - I was teaching science at a mostly all black high school at the time.  I found it to be an amazing book and marveled at the journey Malcolm X took.  Here was a man that served time in jail, was a pimp and a thief, yet somehow found a way out of a thugs life to lead a people to something greater.  Something better.  Yet, all the students related to was the hatred, not the love that Malcolm eventually came to.

Interestingly enough...both these books have been banned at various times.  I can certainly understand the reasoning...radical and dangerous thinkers who promote ideas that don't suite the mainstream.  I would recommend either of these books in a heartbeat.

I don't know if I'll be on my bike much next week, or the week after (God knows I hope so!).  I hope to be, I miss riding.  But if I'm not, I'll curl up with a classic and catch up with my reading.  We can still think for ourselves, enjoy that freedom.

Just a quick update - a famed Lambretta lives.

Our good friends over at Scooter Diaries gave us some good news recently.  The famed Lambretta is restored and purring like a kitten.

I have been wanting to read this book but somehow my subtle hint to the girlfriend and my parents of "Hey, I would really like this book for Christmas...for my birthday....because I want to read it"  seemed to fall on deaf ears; it appears I will have to buy myself a copy.   Truth be told, with everything that has been going on these last few months it was forgotten about.

For those of us that like good stories and adventure, I thought I would share this video with you.

Speaking of Epic Adventures.  This is the last day of the 2014 Scooter Cannonball.  Congrats to all that made that journey.  Have a beer, you deserve it.

Closeout (updates on various things)

I caught a glimpse of her in the mirror today.  We were on our way to breakfast at IHOP and Sue was tucked in behind me.  I could not make out her face in her new helmet but I could feel her hands around me and the press of her body on my back.  She was buying breakfast and I could not have been in a better mood.

I knew I was in trouble when she mentioned her wanting to buy some sort of communication device so she could talk to me when riding.  How Christmas was coming up, and my birthday a few short months after that.  In other words, I should expect a communications headset.

Sometimes I catch a look at myself in my gear and it's odd to think about everything that is now in my closet that is biking related.  We now have four helmets, four sets of gloves, three sets of jackets, two pairs of boots, two sets of rain gear and a partridge in a pear tree.  We have come a long, long way from a canary yellow pullover and a shiny half helmet  Well it may not be the best gear it does serve a purpose, and hopefully we will never have to test our gear.

Now that fall is coming, we should be riding more as a couple.  It was incredibly hot and humid this summer, we didn't ride nearly as much as we could have.  The heat also effected my participation in the Equinox to Equinox rally.  I finished a very respectable 13th at of 202 participants and met my goal of a top 25 finish.  I managed a total of 291 points.  If I had continued to play I have no doubt I could have finished in the top ten, maybe even the top five.  You can see my various photo's here:  I was # 096.  Well I enjoyed it, I have to admit that I am not if I would participate again.  It just seemed it to long.  While the guys at the Pace Podcast do a great job, I just feel they just bit off more then they could chew.  It would have been nice to have had updates, either on the podcast or the website, regularly.  We will see what they have planned for next year.

Finally, I love a love a good adventure story.  I love travel stories and - at the risk of being called a "wimp" or worse - romance stories.  So when I came across this story on Scooterfile I had to follow up on it.  It seems that a young man fell in love with an idea.  To ride from Canada to Peru on a 150cc Lambretta.   Now that would be crazy today...but in the late 50's?  Perfectly insane.

Thanks to the Kickstarter website

One hitch in his plan. He met the woman he would marry three weeks before hand.  He still goes on the trip, and then, showing what must of been a sure sign that he was crazy in love.  He asks her to marry him and come on the journey with him.  You can't make these stories in Hollywood.  Unless you throw in an alien invasion or Zombies.

His son is trying to put together the money to tell his parents story.  From what I understand it's just a question of getting the money for the printing.  You can read more about the Bowman's adventure on their Kickstarter page.  The official website is at The Scooter Diaries and goes into much more detail about the project. Of course, their is a Facebook page as well.   It's an interesting story and worth looking into.  

Well I know famous people now....sort of

Recently two friends of mine have been published.

Alan Seeger has written two books and both are rich with imagery  imagination and general weirdness.  Pinball is a fun little jaunt into what may have been and what should have never been.

Lucid Dreaming is a series of essay's, stories and odds and ends about the unimportant stuff of Life, Death and Rock and Roll told in a fun and entertaining way.

My good friend Brook Harwood has also just finished his first novel and is in the process of putting the finishing touches on it before publication later this year.  I've been asked not to say to much since this is getting the full publishers push.  I've read it parts of it, and frankly it's not my cup of tea.

For fans of epic other worldly adventure with a firm understanding of mythos and horror then Brook's soon to be published epic is sure to please.  More to follow on that I promise.

So congrats to two good friends and their works.
It also now is confirmed that there will be a whole series of works by Brooke.  I wonder who plays me in the movie?