Don’s World

Hello folks,
Just got back from dinner and I got in trouble just before we left the eating establishment. A “lady” and her male escort, maybe her hubby, entered the restaurant and was seated near us. When their food arrived, she made a rather loud spectacle of herself as she offered a prayer for their food. She went to some length toward the food and on and on. The male half of the table looked somewhat embarrassed at the whole thing. After she got to the amen portion of her prayer, I made a simple observation, a little bit to loudly as it turned out. I simply said, “I see she’s eaten here before.” Well, she popped out of her chair like it had suddenly bit her and said, “WELL, let’s go.” Never did see either of them again for the remainder of our meal.
Guess I did something Good? or Bad? or…

Tis a lovely morning in Western South Dakota. When I arose a couple of hours ago, I took a peek out the window and saw nothing. The fog is so thick I cannot see across the street. The fog is expected to hang around most of the morning. Since the temperature is in the low 20s the fog has formed a cloak of ice covering everything, including the roadways and sidewalks. Some folks complain about these conditions but I find them pleasing. When the sun eventually breaks through it will be absolutely beautiful. Natures flocking is so much more sparkly than that stuff they spray on trees at Christmas time. Every direction emits a glow and sparkle. Even the tumble weeds that have as yet to begin their journey will glow and reflect tiny rainbows of light. How can you not like such a scene? It is all a matter of attitude. I am making a pot of coffee and when it is ready, I am taking a mug full and going for a stroll around my neighborhood. What a treat for all my sensory receptors these marvels will be. I will view the light show, sniff the crisp clean air, listen to the crunch of my feet on the icy flora and get rosy red cheeks while the soft breezes tug at my jacket tail. What a feast it is going to be. Well, the coffee is about done so I will close this note, pour a mug of eye popin nose teasin coffee and begin my journey.

I am sitting here this morning sipping a cup of hot chocolate spiked with a hint of almond and reminiscing of spring mornings in Tennessee. Things were different when I was young and most of those things have been erased because they are too painful to recollect accurately. However, those that remain are wondrous. I am drifting around the chambers of my memory and recalling some of my favorites. While most of those memories have altered over the years the essence remains true.

Travel back to your youth with me and see if any of this is familiar. Do you remember awakening to the burble of water coursing over the rocky creek bed? How about the chirp of birds as they enjoy their breakfast? Were you ever treated to the aromas of bacon frying and coffee brewing as you drift up out of slumber? As you rolled to the beds edge, did you have your eyes pop open and your mouth fly open whilst sucking in a gasp of air when your feet touched the floor? Those linoleum floors sure were cold weren’t they?

And now, for a brief escape, let us take hold of the past and pull it into the present in our minds’ eye.

We dress and stroll into the kitchen where we enjoy a breakfast feast. On those special days, and we are only traveling through one of those extra special days, the feast consists of bacon or ham, eggs, hot biscuits, gravy, jam, jelly, apple butter, grits and other treats. Don’t forget the tall glass of icy cold milk. We enjoy as much or as little we care.
Those were the days when cholesterol was something to be sliced and fried in bacon grease. Calories were something old folks worried about. You remember, the really old people, like maybe even as old as 30.

Step outside and draw in a great breath of fresh cool morning air. A visual feast awaits as we scan the landscape. A light mist hovers over the fields. There must be at least a thousand shades of green reflecting from the trees, shrubs and ground cover. The eastern sky is just starting to glow with reds, pinks, grays, yellows, violets and oranges as the suns rays are starting to peek over the hills. The rest of the sky is a wonderful clear blue with an occasional wisp of cloud. The still air is a wee bit crispy as the rays from the sun warm your back. Looks like it will be a warm one today. Start the days adventure by walking up the gravel covered road to a favorite part of the woods. A few steps into the forest and you are in territory never visited except by you and Davy Crocket and Daniel Boone and maybe Kit Carson and a couple of other close friends.
Well, that is enough for now, I better get back to today for a bit and come back here to continue another time.

Met an old gentleman down at the Longhorn Café, the only restaurant in Black Hawk, last fall. Seems like almost every time we go there now, he is there or will be before we finish our meal. He is rather kindly and we always trade a few jokes and pleasantries when we meet. A few weeks back, he told us he had a cabin in the hills above Custer and asked if maybe we could go up and check it out for him. He is not able to travel as he just got out of the hospital with a bit of pneumonia and he likes to make sure all is well there. He gave us the key and said take a few days and enjoy. The place is well equipped and supplied and go ahead and use anything there. Just make a note of what was consumed so he could replace it the next time he goes.
Well, I didn’t have anything else going on so I said what the heck, let’s go check it out. The wife was a bit hesitant but with a little coaxing agreed to go along.
Well, the first surprise after we got there, the place is very nice but the bathroom is only for taking a bath. The other uses we have for a bathroom are accommodated in a little house a couple hundred feet to the west of the cabin. Guess he just never got around to installing the facilities in the house.
Mid-morning the next day, the wife came in from her trip to the outhouse and yelled, “Fix that blankety blankety outhouse now! Blankety blankety blankety” I said, “What’s the matter with it?” and she yelled back, “Just fix it” and stomped off to the bedroom. I got the hint something was a bit askew so I went check it out. I walked all around the building a couple of times. I went inside and looked all around a couple of times and only saw a couple of loose boards flopping in the wind so I went out his shed and found a some nails and a hammer and re-nailed the boards.
A few hours later the wife had to visit the house again so I stood at the door of the cabin waiting for her to thank me for the work I had done at her request. It didn’t take her long to burst out of that house and come trotting back up the path to where I was leaning up against the wall. About six paces out she let out a screech and started giving me a bucket full of what’s for. “I told you to fix that outhouse and you didn’t do a blankety blankety thing, now get out there and fix it”.
You can image how I felt after that. I was pretty much floored. But I went on back out there and checked it out again. I decided to take no chances this time so I gave it the full treatment. I started by digging a ditch to divert any water from the high side. Then I put a fresh coat of roofing material on the roof and re-caulked the frame around the door. I put a few nails in each board then went inside and caulked around the base where the walls meet the floor. I checked the door to make sure it closed tightly around the frame and didn’t let in a breeze.
Well, at this point, I didn’t have a clue what else could be wrong but I decided to check in the hole as it was cold and I knew the smells were going to be frozen under a coat of ice.
Now I got down on my knees and stuck my head down close to the hole and I looked all around and under the rim and nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. About that time the wife walked out to see how things were coming along and she reached down and tapped my shoulder. I didn’t know anyone or anything was around. For all I knew, it was a bear or other beast as there are many of them in these hills.
I came out of that hole with a start and left a right healthy handful of beard hair when I did. I let out a yelp and yelled “OUCH, THAT SMARTS’. Well the wife finally smiled and said, “Now are you going to fix it?”

Here we are, Sunday the 15th of August and the rally will officially end at sundown. The number of folks remaining is maybe 50 to 75 thousand. Down from about 500 thousand a couple of days ago. The hangers on will likely be gone by next Sunday. Many stay to see the sights and take in the roads when there is more room. Went into Sturgis, just to be able to update this log this morning. I know it is nasty work but I gladly do it for all of you.
I was mozying down the street and saw a lovely couple of lasses up ahead. Well, I know I should be relaxed in my walks but these two just had to be checked so I picked up my pace so I could get a better look and maybe a quote or two for you. Well, as I approached from behind, they reached the corner and turned to wait for traffic to clear. Now dear friends, what I saw next was just about unbeliveable. The lass on the right had a beard and mustache that made me jealous. It did not fit the flowing blond hair and curves I had been following. The lass on the left however, made my heart skip a beat or two. She was so ugly, I had to cover my watch to keep it from stalling.
As I continued my walk, I decided to keep the pace down to a sensible mozy.
I came upon a bench and thought a brief rest was in order. As I sat there, I looked off into the morning sun and was treated to what I thought was a homeless type with his shopping cart full of personal belongings. As he came closer, I observed the blanket move and then it was thrown up and over the dude pushing the cart. Now in that cart was a better than average lass wearing a happy smile and enjoying her freedoms. She had one freedom in each hand and it really scared the heck out of me when it looked like she was going to throw one or both of them over her shoulders. It would have for certain caused great pain even if it didn’t break her back. She had tattoos in places where some folks don’t even have places. I can’t say for sure but I suspect she might have been advertising for a tattooist. Mighty fine tattoos she had too.
Now that pretty much takes care of this years rally. I hope to bring next years rally to you as well and in the mean while, I plan to travel around this western United States and bring you reports of what I find. If there is someplace you would like to hear about, just let me know and I will try to get it into my itinerary.

Don

Welcome,
Well, here we are with Friday the 13th on Friday. It has been another fine day for some and not so fine for others. To start with, a rather obnoxious type of gent was bragging about how much better his non-Harley bike was than the Harley’s the crowd were riding. A couple of apes grabbed him by the arms and a couple others grabbed his bike. The bike ended up in a tree. Somehow the tree caught fire. The firemen were not able to save the tree. The bike did not survive either. Guess the big mouth will take commercial transportation home this year.
A couple of days ago, one or more parties had several more libations than was good for them. Seems they got a hold of a “Commercial Firework” and went to the grammar school playground to set it off. When the fuse was lit, the perpetrator kicked it over while getting out of the way. The explosive hit the wall of the school and detonated taking out several windows. The playground was littered with glass and firework wrappings.
No arrests in either of the above events but the investigation is continuing for both.
A couple of professional riders have donated their organs as a result of accidents at the races. Several more survived and elected to keep all of their organs intact. At least for the current time.
Weather continues to be a bit chill. Up to the 60’s and 70’s in the daytime and down to the 30’s and 40’s at night. I enjoy climbing into my bed and pulling the covers up over my CPAP mask and thinking about those poor devils in their lightweight sleeping bags. At least it is not raining at night. It seems that about 4:00PM everyday there is a minor rain with a bit of hail included. Just enough to slick the roads for a few minutes and test the skid skills of the riders and drivers. Hot dang, but I am always either home or parked during these tests. Lordy lordy but my preference is to keep it this way.
Well, I notice the biker population is starting to dewindle so it won’t be long before we are back to normal and usual. Maybe watch the grass grow for a few weeks before the snow returns. Until the next chapter starts, I guess I will just step back and observe. So, CUL.

Don

Hello all,
Here we are in the second day of the bike week and the following stats have been collected.
Six deer have attacked six bikers, six bikers are dead and four deer are dead. Two were missed when the bikers dodged.
110 arrested for drugs and disorderly conduct. 40 arrested for driving under the influence. 8 arrested for running a 3 card Monty scam.
A second helicopter has been brought into the area as the injury rate requiring life flight assistance is about one every 45 minutes.
Gas prices have risen to $1.99 for the bikers. Expect it will go back down after the bikers leave.
Drove down to the Sturgis Zoo, downtown that is, and really got entertained. Two miles of driving requires about an hour and a half. People are everywhere. Saw a dude try to load a bike onto a trailer and he was so high he missed the ramp and drove into the trailer instead on onto the trailer. His eyes widened as he slow motion cleared the handlebars and he landed flat on his back on the trailer. A biker mama walked over and picked him up and sat him by the trailer wheel. Then she lifted the bikes front wheel onto the trailer and then shoved the rest of the bike onto the trailer. A substantial crowd cheered her efforts. Note, don’t mess with a biker mama, it could be detrimental to your health.
The women come in all sizes at this event. Saw many around 100 lb and saw just as many that exceeded 250 lbs. All look like they could handle themselves just fine thank you. Tattoos are everywhere. You can really get screwed, blued and tattooed here. Well, time to get busy and collect more tidbits for the next update, C U Soon.

Don