Queenie the Cat

For those of you who've never been owned by a cat, let me tell you...it's an experience you'll not soon forget. Queenie the Cat and my wife Linda is one such story.

They were a family long before I came on the scene more than 13 years ago.

Me? Well, I had HAD cats before and I liked them. I thought we sort of got along...they could take me or leave me and I felt pretty much the same way about them. A nice - you know "symbiotic" relationship.

I remember when I met Queenie for the first time. I had come into Linda's house and seen Queenie and thought "Wow, what a pretty cat". Naturally, I wanted to walk over and pet her but Linda cautioned me to "not pet the cat". I thought, how silly! I reached down to pet her anyway, and that was the first time I saw one of Queenie's Hissy Fits. She hissed, bared her teeth and jabbed at me all in the blink of an eye. If she had been a Cobra, I'd have been a goner.

Linda promptly walked over to her, picked her up and told her what a good cat she was.

This pretty much describes the special relationship my wife had with Queenie the Cat. Linda was Queenie's person. Over time, Queenie accepted me and I think she may have even liked me a little, but I was under no illusions, Linda was her special favorite.

You had to be around Queenie for awhile to really appreciate her "cute" personality. For example, she had no inkling of what the phrase "self-esteem problem" could possibly mean. I don't think she ever heard the word "NO" in her entire life and rules (if there ever were any) didn't apply. In fact, I don't think the laws of physics applied to her either. You simply wouldn't believe how she would run on walls and turn on and off lights!

Oh, and the Hissy Fits I mentioned earlier? Those were one of her favorite tactics and always a crowd pleaser. Queenie had a very strict sense of personal space and brother, if you violated it, you paid the price. The Hissy Fit would send large dogs and even large people running for the exits! It became quite comical for me. You couldn't be around Queenie for any length of time and not begin to appreciate her special talents. I even fell under her sway. I became her second biggest fan.

As the years passed, Queenie mellowed out. She became more tolerant of us humans in general (but never other dogs or cats) and she would even purr sometimes when I petted her. But throughout all of this, Linda was still her person. Many is the night I would watch Linda and Queenie curled up on the couch together simply enjoying each others company. Life was good.

Sadly, good times don't last forever. We lost Queenie this past Friday, September 11th. She was 17. Queenie, you made our life better and we loved you. You'll be missed and never forgotten.

I think I might be adopted

I came to a startling realization while on vacation. I am the ONLY one of six children who doesn't play guitar (incidently, I am also the ONLY left-handed child).

Think about it. What are the odds that every single child in the family, except one, would take up the same musical instrument? Not great, I'm reckoning.

So, I signed up for guitar lessons. And, I took my first lesson last night.

I actually struggled with this decision because my first experience with music didn't end well. Let me explain.

When I was in the first grade, I decided I wanted to learn to play the piano. I became passionate about it. It was all I ever thought about or talked about or WHINED about. Incessantly, I would bother my parents (who had very little money, by the way) to get me a piano and get me lessons so I could learn to play. I guess they finally decided that the path to peace was going to cost them a piano.

For six months, I studied and practiced and took lessons and eventually I even performed in a recital. It was wonderful. Then at the height of my first grade career, I decided "I don't like piano anymore" and I quit. No amount of cajoling, threats, bribes...or anything else, could get me to change my mind.

It was not a popular decision around the house. While the piano faded into the background as a musical instrument it emerged to become a convenient collection area for coats, books, science projects and the occasional pet entertainment center. The cat would sometimes walk across the keys evoking a paroxysm of laughter from me and the "dark" look from mom.

This went on for years. Mom came to hate that piano. No one in the house played it (except the cat) and I think it became some kind of terrible crusade for her to get rid of it. Eventually, when I was a senior in high school, she had had enough. She put an ad in the paper and tried to sell it. When that didn't work, she called Goodwill and offered to donate it. They said they'd love to have it but that she would have to deliver it. Well THAT was never going to happen, so what she did next shows just how desperate she had become.

She pressed every neighborhood kid she could into service and as I arrived home from school one afternoon, I saw them all pushing the piano out of the house and into the backyard. When I went around back I saw that someone had dug a very big, very deep hole. Next, I saw hatchets attacking the piano from all directions. Wood chips were flying everywhere. As pieces became separated they got thrown into the hole. Finally, the huge piece that was left, that couldn't be chopped up, was laid to rest on top of the other pieces and then the whole thing was covered up.

Today, a concrete patio erases my first foray into music.

Now here I am again, one step into the "music" pool for a second time. Excited to be learning something new, something that I think will give me pleasure. How will it all turn out?

I don't know the answer to that, but I do know 2 things.

1. A guitar doesn't require a very big hole.
2. If I can't learn the guitar it must mean I'm adopted.

Louisiana, Missouri - Murals

Yesterday, I took a ride up to Louisiana, Missouri. I rode up to see their Murals. Doing this gave me two things - a destination and a purpose. Now, I had heard about these murals and did a little bit of internet research to see if it would be worth the time and trouble to go up there, and the internet assured me it would be worth both. And, we all know, you can believe everything you read on the internet.

Anyway, I took off about 8:30 yesterday morning and headed up highway 79 north towards what turned out to be this sleepy little river town that's a throw back to about a hundred years ago. It lies about 85 miles north of St. Louis and 33 miles south of Hannibal. It's bonafide Huck Finn country.

It was really quite charming. There wasn't a whole lot going on there but there were lots of Victorian style houses and old, old brick buildings and a bunch of friendly people. Life moves at a slower pace here and you get the feeling you're not travelling in the same universe as St. Louis.

But let's get to the murals, shall we? Anyone who knows me, will tell you that I don't know the first thing about art. The design on a can of Budweiser is pretty much top notch art in my book. You see where I'm coming from? So, consider the source when I tell you that if you saw one of these murals sitting out in the middle of, say a cornfield, you'd call it a billboard. Now I'd admit that it's a pretty NICE billboard, but a billboard just the same.

But when they're painted on walls, they're called murals. Say it with me everyone, M-U-R-A-L-S. And this, I am told, is what separates art from advertising.

And so, I dutifully took pictures of as many of these as I could find (remember my purpose?). I'll let you be the judge as to whether these are art...or billboards.


I believe this ones called "Plank and Toll Road".














I think this ones called "Honoring all Veterans".














"Pike County Wildlife"















"Stark Brothers Nursery"















"Historic Churches"















I think this one must be called "Old Glory"















For all I know this was just the "Elks Lodge" regular sign...















"Buffum Tools"















"Lindbergh in Ashburn"















"The Railroads of Louisiana"















"Springtime in Louisiana"















"The McDannold Livery Stable"















"Cornish Ford"















"John B. Henderson"















"Buffalo Fort"















"Vintage Lacrosse Lumber"















I have no idea what this ones titled. Final Approach?















"Five Historic Homes"















"Georgia Street in the 1940's"















"Vintage Louisiana Fire Engine"















"Zebulon Pike"















"The Delta Queen Approaching the Highway 54 Bridge"















"Winter in Henderson Park"















And FINALLY..."George W. Trimble"

















So, whaddya think? Art or billboards?

Conclusion

Just a quick note to let everyone know I made it back safe and sound. Got home yesterday afternoon about 5:00 pm.

Thanks to all who participated and read the blog. It always gave me something to look forward to at the end of the day...knowing that someone might want to hear how my day went.

But, for now I'm back at work. I'll probably make blog posts from time to time, so check in anytime you want, but the daily posts are probably over for right now.

I put over 5,400 miles on the bike (still not named) during this trip.

She's resting in the garage today, we're probably both happy not to be seeing one another this morning.

Gotta go.

Day 15

Tonight, I'm in Weatherford, Oklahoma. I rode 610 miles. That leaves me with less than 600 miles to home for tomorrow. Praise the Lord!

I sure saw the extremes in temperatures today. I left Gallup about 5:50 this morning and the temperature there was 48 degrees. As I rode eastward though, the thermometer kept dropping. The lowest reading I saw (I actually have a thermometer ON my motorcycle) was 39 degrees.

I had the seat and hand grip heaters cranked up to full power but of course I was still cold. I finally decided to exit in Albuquerque (something like 130 miles east of Gallup). I thought I'd just get a hot cup of coffee and a bite and wait till the sun came up and warmed things up a little.

What a treat! As I exited I-40 and looked down into Albuquerque, I saw 5 or 6 hot air balloons gliding silently over the city against the backdrop of whatever mountain range it is resting there.

Drat! It just now occurs to me I should have taken a picture!

I gave the place the once over while savoring my coffee and liked what I saw. Things looked clean, the people seemed happy and it just sort of felt good to be there. On my ride out I scoped out both sides of the interstate and it still really looked like a nice place. Oh, and the mountains are beautiful. At one point I checked the elevation (yeah, I have one of THOSE thingies on the motorcycle too) and it read 5,600 ft.

The rest of the ride east in New Mexico revealed more of the same. I think I really like that State. I think their state motto is "Land of Enchantment" or something like that. Well, I'm enchanted.

The further east I went and as the day wore on, the hotter it got. When I arrived here at my hotel a little before six, the thermometer read 102. I literally had to force myself to ride the last 100 miles so that I'd have fewer miles to ride tomorrow than today.

The first 7 or 8 hours riding are fun, but the next 3 or 4 are just torture.

Note to self: Don't schedule any more motorcycle trips that go longer than 8 hours in a day.

Linda, if all goes well tomorrow, I should be home by 5 or 6.

See ya...

Day 14

I made it to Gallup, New Mexico today. I rode 652 miles.

I got an early start this morning. I woke Sarah up, said my goodbyes and was on the road by 5:30. Oddly enough, the freeways weren't near as deserted as I had hoped. Either LA likes to get up early for "another day in paradise" or people were just coming home from the night before.

Anyway, I had to face my fears and tackle the 101, the I-10 and the I-15 all without the benefit of a lousy cup of coffee. Remember those amusement park roller coasters that we all used to scream our heads off on? Well, that was me riding down the I-10 this morning.

No one even noticed me.

But, I managed to make it through and just like I suspected, when I got to Interstate 40, everything calmed down.

The rest of the day I just pushed across Arizona in some kind of Tazmanian Devil crosswind. I was afraid some of the 18 wheeler trailers were going to tip. Every time I went to pass one, I'd goose the throttle and fly by.

My instruments are all covered by a thick layer of dust. Now I ask you, how can a motorcycle get dust on it when it's going 75 mph?

No pictures today. All I stopped for was gas and to use the rest room. At the rate I need to crank miles, there probably won't be time for pictures tomorrow or Sunday either. So, if you've been following along JUST to see my boring pictures, I'm afraid it just got more boring.

Till tomorrow...

Still Day 13...

I leave for home in the morning. I need to get up early and head out before all the traffic critters come out.

I figure whenever I get to I-40 and have all these California interstates behind me I'll be able to relax just a little.

This afternoon I took one last ride up the PCH and allow me to bore you with just a couple of more pictures...

I know one looks pretty much like the next, but there's always something mesmerizing about gazing out into that vast expanse and hearing the sound of the surf pounding on the rocks below, listening to the call of the sea gulls and feeling the rush of the sea breeze against your face.

It's like Mother Nature is kissing you.

I sat on a rock for several minutes and tried to take it all in. I feel sorry for anyone who hasn't ever been able to do this. It calms me. I hated to get up and leave because I know it will be awhile before I get to see this again.

OK, enough of that. Sarah and I are getting ready to go out and have pizza. Hopefully, by this time tomorrow I'll be more than 600 miles east of here and will be able tell you about my day. Till then...

Day 13

Blog was down last night so I couldn't finish up yesterdays post.

Sarah and I took a ride yesterday afternoon on Mulholland Drive. I guess I thought it would be a little more uninhabited, but it's every bit as populated as the rest of Los Angeles. I felt the pressure of cars behind me impatient to pass. I pulled over a number of times so that they could get around us. Again, this traffic! I hate it.

The views were nice though, although we didn't ride the whole way. The traffic kept getting worse so we just turned around and headed back to Sarah's apartment. We did get a couple of pictures and we found a gentleman nice enough to take a picture of the two of us...















Sarah is taking me out for breakfast this morning so I need to get going.

Have a great day!



























Just back from breakfast. We ate outside it was so pleasant this morning. The coffee here was very good. Now, Sarah is off to see a client and I'm going to take a ride up the PCH. We're going to meet back at her apartment a little later this afternoon.

Here's a picture of Sarah I took at the sidewalk cafe...

Day 12

Sarah took me to a little 50's style cafe last night for dinner. After that we drove around for a while and she pointed out a lot of interesting sights. I honestly don't know how she stands the traffic in this town. Driving down the I-5 yesterday was enough to send me to therapy (yeah, yeah, I know...here come the wise cracks).

Later on today we're going to go for a motorcycle ride on Mulholland drive. I've never driven that road and Sarah says it's really pretty. You get to see some good views of the valley from up there, so I should have pictures of that later today.

Other than that I'm just catching up on housekeeping duties. Went to laundromat this morning and did some laundry. I actually brought too many clothes on the trip. I could have traveled lighter by doing more sensible packing. Oh well, guess I'm learning valuable lessons for future trips.

Gotta go for now, but I'll be back later.

Day 11

No pictures today. Sorry!

Got to daughter Sarah's this afternoon and we're sitting here now trying to decide where to go eat tonight. I don't know about you but out here in LA they look at the menu's on the internet and decide what they're going to order before they even go to the restaurant. Now that takes eating out to a whole new level in my book.

Back home in Missouri, you (that means Linda) go and see what coupons you have and go from there.

So, just wanted everyone to know I made it here safe and sound.

Gotta go...

Day 10

Not a lot of pics today. We sorta ran out of time. It took us about 6 hours to go around 200 miles today. Highway 1 is the twistiest road I've ever driven. I'm not sure I would have had the strength to do it on the Harley. Last night as I fell asleep, my hands were turning left and right. There must have been hundreds of switch backs on one 22 mile stretch.

Even though we gave ourselves 4 days to make the trip down the coast, I just wasn't prepared for how slow we would sometimes have to travel. Don't get me wrong, if I had it to do over again, I'd still want to do it...I just would want more time. I find that we're pushing through things I wish I had more time to savor, but I only have 2 weeks, so I'm making do.

It's been a real pleasure having my brother Kerry keep me company. He had to turn back today and head back up towards Seattle. I have a lot of memories and laughs that I'll keep forever about this 'once in a lifetime' trip. Thank you Kerry.

After Kerry left, I decided to change course and head for LA as fast as I could. I decided I'd get to Sarah's in the early afternoon tomorrow and then maybe on Wednesday, she could ride up the PCH with me to see parts of the coastal trip that I missed today.

Oh, BTW...I'm staying tonight in Soledad, California...and boy, is it ever WINDY!

Remind you of anything?...

Day 9

Sorry about not posting yesterday! Kerry and I didn't get in until late, and then the hotel (if you want to call it that) didn't have wireless internet. Heck, they didn't even have cable TV.

They did, however, have lots of shag carpet if that tells you anything. But, I'm getting ahead of myself.

My adventure down the Pacific Coast Highway with my brother. Boy, was I finally glad to get going. I figured with Kerry along there was at least a 50% chance that I would be able to finally make fun of someone besides myself. Well, let me tell you... We decided to top off our gas tanks before we got on the road. We stopped not 5 minutes from his house and both filled up.

Then we took off for his bank so he could make a cash withdrawal before we left. On the way to his bank, I notice something seemed different. Then, I suddenly realize my tank bag is missing. I left my tank bag back at the gas station! It had my computer, my (new) cell phone, maps and all kinds of good stuff in it.

Kerry's 1/4 mile ahead of me but there's no time to catch up and tell him what's going on so I just turn around and speed back to the gas station. Kerry will figure out eventually that I got 'lost' and come looking. He's the smart one of this team.

Well, lucky for me the bag was still sitting on the ground right where I had left it. Whew! Dodged another bullet. I swear, if I told you how much trouble I've had keeping up with everything I brought along, Linda would never let me leave home by myself! I'm just not used to having to manage all this stuff! I've got all the motorcycle luggage (that is full) and now I can't keep track of it all. Agh!

I'm gonna speed up the story a little cause I'm tired and I want to show you some pictures...

We made it down through most of Oregon yesterday. We got down as far as Coos Bay. Like I said earlier we got in late and had all kinds of trouble finding a room. Lesson learned, last night we made reservations for our room tonight!

Today we made it down as far as Fort Bragg, California. I think it's about 125 miles north of San Francisco. Oh, I also had a few mishaps today. Let's see, first I started out the wrong way on a one way street. Then, later I left my sweatshirt at a coffee shop we stopped at. Kerry has to drive behind me so he can clean up my messes.

Now for my editorial comment. For my money, Northern California is a whole lot better looking than the entire state of Oregon. Oh, Oregon had its moments, but also had a whole slew of tourist trap beach towns. Think Lake of the Ozarks on steroids.

Northern California is absolutely beautiful. We drove through Redwood Forests and saw breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean. I had to wear my rain suit and sweatshirt just to keep warm most of the time but I was never uncomfortable. The thing you see a lot of here are people riding bicycles on the highway. I mean, they're everywhere. All different styles and a lot of them look like they're towing camping gear.

Also, the campers are everywhere. Early this morning, we passed through one town and saw a girl, a guy and a dog...ready? ... sleeping on the side of the road. I'm not talking on the grass beside the road, they were right on the road surface. They were either sleeping, or dead. The dog looked up when we rode by so my guess is sleeping.

Anyway - pictures. No explanations...just pictures.

Day 7

The wedding was great yesterday. It never got as hot as feared and in fact, as the day wore on the cooler it seemed to get. It ended up being very pleasant.

Anyway, I took tons of pictures and I'm having a problem trying to decide which ones to post. So for now I'm just going to 'cherry pick' the ones that get posted. If anyone wants to see the ones that don't make the cut you'll have to ask me about those later.

Lots of other relatives are coming today for a BBQ. It'll be busy. I need to clean up the motorcycle and get ready to head out with Kerry in the morning. I'll try and make another post later...