Lesson for the Day

So today I learned that if the District of Columbia decides to replace street lights with more efficient ones, they will. What they do while in the process, is put the new lights in place, covered by burlap or some such material, while the old ones are still working. The interesting part of all of this is, DC in its infinite wisdom, decided to put the new lights, RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE OLD ONES! At the corner of 11th and M streets, NW, there is currently a new set of lights, covered, blocking the view of the old ones...awesome. Good job DC.

Let It Flow

Always swimming, slipping, sliding,
through the water, ever gliding,
Try to catch a wave,
No words of yours can save,
Underwater, never breathing,
Feel that heart, ever beating,
Water is beautiful, ever changing,
Splashing, pooling, rearranging,
Dive right in, feel that wet,
Hit the wall, another set,
Hundreds, fifties, catch your breath,
Or sink to the bottom, wait for death,
Water crashes, water falls,
Swim the breaststroke, swim the crawl,
Butterfly and backstroke too,
Grandma breast, whats he up to?,
Frozen water, hail and snow,
Where'd it come from, where's it go,
Be like water, Bruce Lee said,
Rising slowly, over your head,
Immerse yourself, let it go,
Only then will you truly know,
Its too late now,
You've gone to far,
You say, "but how,"
I wonder who you are,
I am Will, always will be,
In the water, water's in me,
Peaceful as a glassy lake, violent as storm,
Pieces of my heart you take, thats just not the norm,
Ne'er again will you feel love from me,
Nor do you deserve,
Any kind of sympathy,
Your life just took a swerve,
I am still Will, always remaining,
Big Willy style, spirit never waning,
None can catch me, no one is allowed,
Reach up into the big sky, try to grab a cloud,
You can do that first before,
You'll e'er have me anymore,
For I am the one, of which they will say,
He is the One, that got away.

Two-wheeled Adventures Part Deux

Though the time frame between my posts has been great, my next adventure on my motorcycle happened not long after my trip down Skyline Drive.

On 14 November, I was a regular guy (ok, no I was still me), but I was on my way to work when I ran into a little speed bump. Alright, scratch that, a speed bump (read 2005 Nissan Altima) ran-the-fuck-into-me! Those of you familiar with Backlick Road in Springfield, and that awesome mixing bowl we have will be able to place this story best, but I'll try to explain as best I can. If you take the Backlick Road exit off of the Franconia-Springfield Parkway, and then take a left, you will pass through a strip mall type area, and then the road goes to the left, but there is a fork to the right. If you go right, the one lane turns into two, and then both lanes turn right and aim towards the on-ramps for 395, 495, 95, and God-knows what else. Now that the scene is set, the story can begin....

Well you see, what had happened was...I was in the left lane, and therefore the outside lane in a right hand turn, the NIQ (Nissan In Question), was in the right lane. Then, as it happened, we were both in the left lane, and he clipped my rear tire. This caused my bike to spin 90 degrees so it was perpendicular to the lane I was in, and it slid a good distance on its left side. I actually saw this coming, and this is where my inexperience came into play. I watched the car come over into my lane, and I honked my horn. It seems so insignificant and trivial now, I honked my horn. What I should have done was nail the throttle and gotten the hell out of the way. I didn't. I know why I didn't, because the road was wet from rain that morning that had stopped only an hour or so before, and I was going into a curve, so I didn't want to be going to fast.
I could have been very seriously injured in this event, but I wasn't. There are a few reasons for that. 1) I was wearing as much equipment as I had at the time. Helmet, gloves, jeans, motorcycle jacket with armor in it, and boots. 2) I got off and away from my bike as soon as I felt it start to go down. I hit the ground and tucked and rolled.
All in all, it could have gone a lot worse, I could have been run over by a car that was behind me (Thank You for stopping), I could have hit the ground at another angle and broken something, my bike could have landed on me and crushed my leg or other parts of me. But none of that happened.
We left my bike laying in the lane, which was very helpful for the police to determine cause in the accident, and they judged accordingly. The other driver, who turned out to be a huge asshole, aside from hitting me, was issued a summons for improper lane change or some such thing. Far more significant was that his being at fault made his insurance policy pay for the damage to my bike, which turned out to be totaled. They also replaced my jacket, and helmet. I ended up getting everything I spent on that bike back, and I found another one! I went from a 2000 Yamaha YZF-600r with 29K miles on it, to a 2002 Yamaha YZF-600R with 22K miles on it, and I paid less for the new one. There is not really a downside to that, except that I didn't have a bike for almost a month while I was looking for the new one.

I suppose thats all for now.

Thanks and Congrats

I'm taking this opportunity to give thanks. Yes, Thanksgiving may be over, but mine was shall we say, less than positive. I am thankful to those who have stood by me through the time that I have known them, especially in hard times when I need it the most.

On another, more pleasant subject, though I have told them congrats in person, and some of you may not have a clue who they are, Brynn and Eric, two of my dearest friends are now engaged and I wish them the best. Sometimes, things do work out. Good Luck guys, and congrats again!