The much anticipated (dare I say dreaded...) SNOWDOOM 2011 has finally arrived. The Dixie Deepfreeze, Birmingham Bling Blizz, Magic City Meat Locker, and a few more, are all names I've heard over the past few days here and there. Now spending way too many years in OKC, you got used to the snow, and the tornado's, and the heat strokes, but OKC is flat as a 10 year old's chest. And therein lies the difference. Birmingham, while not "mountainous", is, indeed hilly, curvy and generally not a place you want to try skating your car around on a sheet of ice. Add to that most of the drivers here are the ones that fell out of the trees and didn't have enough brain to figure out how to get back up in the tree anyway, and you get to see all kinds of weird shit the morning after a snowing here. Cars on top of cars, cars on top of dumpsters, buildings, in trees (and I mean "UP", in the trees), cars hanging off the freeway bridges, parking decks, etc. Then you have the "upside down" cars, in the ditches, in the neighbor's front yard, middle of the intersection, bottom of the hill, just about any place you can imagine, you'll find at least one that has gone "dirty side up" after we get snow or ice. And I doubt if in the morning will be much different either. But it will be funny to see.
So, we are prepared for the SNOWDOOM 2011 monster, as best as one can prepare for this sort of thing, got the canned foods, extra smokiesmokie's, Milo's Sweet Tea, cases of firelogs, stacks and stacks of firewood, and so on. As they say "Fate favors the prepared", maybe it will smile upon us and we won't loose power (worst case scenario) and we simply get to hole up in the house and look at the pretty sights, and sliding/skidding idiots tomorrow as we look out the windows. Point in case... We just stepped out on the front sun porch to look at the snow and what comes sliding down the hill past our eyes? 4 guys on an inflatable Queen sized air mattress. Let's see, take one hill, add air mattress, beer and the ageless Southern Motto of "Hold ma beer and watch this shit", and you got 3 drunk guys sledding down the middle of the street. Only in Dixie!
We extended our invite to our neighbor David, his dog Elliot and cat Boetie (pronounced Buoy-T) for a spot in front of our fireplace should we loose power, at least we won't freeze to death. We can cook over the fire if need be, I've got that covered with a folding camp grill, outside will be the food cooler, and in these parts we'll still have water till the pipes freeze even without power. So, we got all the essential bases covered. And here's a quick SNOWDOOM 2011 update, not only do we have snow, we have THUNDERSNOW!!! Yep, lightning and thunder during the snowstorm. Only in Dixie!
Enough about the snow... Next week is my birfday! The 15th to be exact. I'll be 54, unless I choose to use the rule that once you hit 50, you can start counting backwards. In that case, I'll be 46, again. Either way, I'm looking forward to it. Healthy, as best as I can figure, still ugly, but they say there's no cure yet. If you consider the mileage I got, the bullet holes, the "replacement" parts from various motorcycle accidents/military experiences, and years of smoking my ass off, I'd say I'm in pretty good shape and expect to go a few more miles. And more importantly, I still WANT to! My ailments are a combination of a whole lot of little things that just keep me right on the ragged edge of insanity. If I get my gut to stop hurting, then my back starts coming apart, and then my hearing (or lack thereof) goes on the blink, and then the tinnitus cranks up and it sounds like a Cicada concert, then my leg swells, then my kidneys quit, then... well, shit, see what I mean? If it's not one thing, it's another. And most have cures, but I am really trying to avoid surgery (back, neck, ears) at all costs. No, I've had surgeries before, and that's why I'm trying my best to dodge that bullet. I don't do well on anesthesia. It take s a lot to put me down. Enough in fact most of my organs go into shutdown and it takes several days to flush them and get everything cranked and firing on all cylinders again. Waking up on a ventilator is not a fun thing. Been there, got the T-shirt. So, I may have no choice but to take things one little surgery at time and see how it goes.
Speaking of birfdays, today is Anna Grace Suggs birfday. She's 6. We had everybody over yesterday for her Birfday Party since the snow was coming today. Had a great time and met a child who made me rethink my opinion on forced birth control. Well, I'm sure you think your Grandkids are perfect too, I do. Next month is Logan's Birfday, he'll be 7. Man, that roaring fire in the fireplace behind me feels damn good as I look out the window and see the snow still falling. Makes me want coffee. BRB...
Sip... ahhhh! Might as well bitch and moan about Project ROADPIG while I'm typing. I wanted to have her on the road by this Winter so I would know what I needed to do over the winter so she was ready for some nice roadtrips come fall. Headed to Augusta GA, Aiken SC, Houston TX, Gonad AR, TN, FL, OK, NC and a few more. A lot of miles, and I don't want to be stranded on the side of the road so I want to build her right. And that's where my problem be laying. I get all fired up, smoking from both ends, chomping at the bit and foaming at the mouth, and I know what I want to do, I just don't have the tools at the moment to do the metal work I want to do. So, I pump myself up, measure, sketch, draw and then... nothing. The thing about tools is real simple, they are addicting, and you can never eat just one. So, I need a bandsaw, I need a tubing saw, a tubing bender, a MIG welder, a plasma torch, a belt sander, grinder, on and on... See what I mean. I'll have more invested in tools than I will in the bike as a whole and would be fully equipped to build frames professionally. So, looks like I'm gonna just have to take her to a custom shop and say, "Hey, I need a hardtail, how much?". Let `em do it, and be done with it. Matt got some new ink on his right arm and told me our favorite Tattooist, Shane at Non Stop Art is ridding a old 550 he's done some custom paint work on so I need to stop by and lay eyeballs on it for possible new ideas. Either way, I need to get off my ass and just get it done.
Speaking of Matt's new ink, it's beautiful! A pirate ship with a Craken attacking it. The shading Shane just did really brings out the depth and detail like you wouldn't believe. Once the color is added, it's gonna be wicked. I'm still looking for budding artists to come up with my tat design if anyone is interested. I want a medieval sword on my left arm and a shield on my right should someone out there have the desire to see their art creation be displayed on my skin forever, draw away!
I have a friend who will be looking for a new puppy in the near future. Her current doggy buddy is sick and won't be around much longer. Breaks my heart. I'll be loosing 1/2 of Team TurboDog that I walk everyday. So, a real bummer for all of us, but I think he might like to meet "the new kid" before he goes. Might want to pass along some tips and hints. So if anyone has any leads on a replacement puppy, keep me in mind. I think Garcia is an Akita, so think German Shepard sized puppy. All leads welcomed.
Ok, I've bored all of you enough for one night. I'm going to sip my coffee on the porch and see what strange things come sliding down the hill in the dark. The parks ought to be covered up with sledders in the morning. So should the ER's soon thereafter.
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