Friday, December 31, 2004

New Years Resolutions.............

Bullshit I say.

I love it when folks come up with a whole list of shit that they are gonna change starting on January 1rst. I quit smoking 5 years ago this January 8th. It wasn't something I planned specificly for that day, I had wanted to quit for a long time. Just took the smokes and threw'em in the garbage.

The first month was a bitch, but I never once seriously thought about lighting one up. Because I was a non-smoker thankyouverymuch.
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I smoked for over 20 years and the last 5 I positively hated. I wanted to quit and I knew that it was gonna kill me sooner or later but I just couldn't put them down. Now that I have been smoke free for awhile, I can't understand why the hell folks smoke and why tobaccaco is even legal......I'd rather see pot legalized.

I love dogs and like cats. This is one seriously uncoordinated cat.

I sure hope they didn't need any of that shit.

Better late then never, I suppose. 67 though?

I can't see these catching on anytime soon.

I love practical jokes. Jokes by smart people are even better.

I don't know why I find this site funny but if you work in a cubicle, turn your speaker volume up to ten and have Audrey say ..........."Eat my shorts"........ I'm 45 on the outside and about 12 on the inside. Sue me.

This is some good reading about traffic safety.

And this is some bad reading.

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Cool singlespeed. Dig the handlebars.

.................Till later. Next year, I suppose.

Thursday, December 30, 2004

Damn kids..............

I guess I like well behaved children. When I was a kid, my old man could be clear across the room and I knew my ass was in a heap of trouble if he shot me "The Look". Any of you that had fairly strict parents know exactly what I am talking about.

"The Look" meant stop whatever I was doing because I was pissing him off somehow. It also meant that I was gonna get my ass reamed whenever we got home.

Nowadays, kids are animals.

Not all kids are animals but most of the ones I see where I work at must have smoked their manners away in a crack pipe or something.

Last night at work, I had 3 children DEMAND that I give them a free cookie. I told'em, no dice kids-ya gotta get your parents permission as I can't hand out food to you and have you have an allergic reaction to chocolate or something.

About 2 minutes later, mom comes waddling up and start chewing my face off because I didn't give her kids cookies.

Told her the same thing I told her kids and then gave her kids cookies.

That seemed to calm her down some but I don't have to wonder where her kids learn their example from. I thought she was gonna pop a blood vessel there for a second. I love the general public.

Cosmic bread? Yeah sure. I used to make cosmic brownies when I was younger, but I'll save that story for another day.

It would suck to work for these folks. Work for free?

Till later..........




Wednesday, December 29, 2004

Just a couple thoughts.........

This is good news if you use AOL. The bad news is that AOL is a sinking ship. 5 years from now, nobody will be on dial up unless they don't have broadband access available.

I say blow.
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I may just make donuts for a living, but this looks like global warning to me.

I dunno, but if it was me onboard.......I'd be asking "You guys sure you got it fixed this time"?

I don't know what these people are pissed about. They are only #3 in the country.

I wonder how long they watched.

What the hell does this company do?
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We need to start a new tradition here in York. Instead of dropping a white rose-let's drop a politican. I think we oughta start with some of the county commisioners.

Anybody in the mood for a little TV?

I have to be honest-I have no idea who this football player is, but I like his style.

Who needs a horse trailer?
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Not sure if I linked this site before or not, so excuse me if I've had a "senior moment" Lots of good essays, stories and art. Read up.

Till later..........

Tuesday, December 28, 2004

Music and Airplanes

I listen to all kinds of music. Anything and everything.

Except some of the newer hip-hop and rap because I really don't consider alot of that stuff music cause ain't nobody singing.

I was listening to the Joey Reynold show at work last night and Joey was interviewing Henry Mancini's daughter. She is quite a singer and it turns out she has a new CD with quite a few of her fathers standards on it.

Awesome stuff. It's called "Ultimate Mancini"

My next door neighbor is a pilot for American Airlines. He stops in at work from time to time on his way home from evening flights. He was telling me some of the horror stories about flying over the holidays. I am so glad I don't have to fly for my job or commute a very long distance.

I consider my neighbor very knowledgable concerning the state of the airline industry and when he says the whole industry is in for a wake up call in the next 10 years-I believe him. I also wouldn't want his job for a million bucks. If I have a bad day at work-I might burn a few donuts. If he has a bad day.......well, we'll all read about it on the front page of the paper. Lots of stress.

He has a real Harley chopper but I was telling him about my new Kona chopper, he seemed pretty jazzed about it, maybe he'll take it for a spin when I get it.

It's kind of hard to believe that Wal-Mart sells this book.

This is funny as hell. I linked page 7 because it's my favorite. Santa just got back from a bender.

Lots of funny stuff here. I like the Wal-Mart story.

This movie reviewer needs to get a fucking grip.
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It's Sponge Bob for God's sake.

Maybe the reviewer of the movie coulda helped this guy instead. Ouch.

I like this guys sense of humor.

Cats are okay but I like dogs better.
We used to have to wash our dog when I was a kid and he always kinda liked it. If I had a cat and it needed washed.......... I'd probably bungee it to the roof of my van and head to the nearest car wash.

Happy " P.C. " Holidays................

Saw this and had to share.....

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral celebration of any and/or all holidays occuring before, after, during or near the the winter solstice, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all.

I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling, and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2005, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great (not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only "America" in the western hemisphere), and without regard to the race, color, creed, age, sex, physical ability, veterans status, religious faith, or sexual preference of the wished.

By accepting this greeting, you are accepting these terms: This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for her/himself or others, and is void where taxed or prohibited by law, and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher. This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and such warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.

Till later.........




Monday, December 27, 2004

Not sure why.........

But it called to me.
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Hadda buy it.

Shopping...........

WHOA! Wow, was it ever busy yesterday! I think since the popularity of gift card has increased, folks were out in full force yesterday.

I love it when I go to park at the mall, some folks spend more time looking and waiting for good spaces then they do shopping. My favorite is when I go out to the van with packages and someone follows out to my car waiting to take my space.
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I put all the packages in, figure out how much I have to get yet and have a drink of soda and make a call or something. Usually 2 or 3 minutes pass by-I get back out and continue to shop and the same person is still waiting there for my spot. I love it when that happens.

This is interesting. I was reading an editorial in Car and Driver magazine a few months ago when the editor wrote that the On Star equipped Chevy Malibu they were testing actually had an On Star advisor call them right after they had performed some high speed handling tests. They wanted to make sure that the occupants were okay. Turns out the editor found out that if certain parameters are exceeded in the on board computer, it will trip something and alert On Star.

Sure glad they didn't have that shit when I was a kid. I'm glad they have it now though!

Like coffee? I sure do but I think I'll take a pass on this variety.

I am digging this site. It's not like I have the bucks to go and buy all the stuff I like but it sure don't hurt to look. I might buy a couple of these. Killer deal.

Nice little write up from Frankie Andreu.

Time to do some shopping.........till later.


Sunday, December 26, 2004

I fell off the wagon............

I sure don't have to look far for a New Years resolution this year. All I have to do is look down about 2 feet.

Right at my stomach.
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I was doing so well with my diet.

I had lost about 10 or 12 pounds and I think I managed to put them all back on in the past couple weeks. Been working my ass off at work, coming home and sleeping a solid 10 hours for the past few weeks, didn't do a whole lotta good for my waistline.

Looks like it's time to get with the program, I mean I have shitload of clothes that don't fit and I ain't gonna go spend my bike money on fatboy stuff.

I am digging what this dad did.
My father's mindset when I was growing up was "If I want your opinion son, I'll give it to you".
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I can't stand to see shitty little brats at the mall or store whining all the time.

Don't watch much TV but I taped this. Damn, that's a neat deal. Too bad they don't have one where it's warmer.

This is an awesome site. Look around some. Don't bother to click the link if religious parody pisses you off. And don't e-mail me if you're offended.
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I really don't give a shit.

If that link didn't offend you...........
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maybe this pic of a redneck gingerbread house will.

I like this guy.

That's all for today, gonna go for a ride (inside) and go take our son to the store to blow all the money he got yesterday.

Saturday, December 25, 2004

Christmas morning..........

Since I'm an early riser, I am up about 2 or 3 hours before everybody else. Kinda quiet outside at 4:30 in the morning. Although Rt 83 is at least a mile from our house, you can still hear it most days.
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Not today, it's eerily quiet out.

I've grown up in this area and I can remember from the 60's when the intersection of Rt 83 and Mt Rose Ave didn't even have one single traffic light. Anybody remember when the York County Shopping center was a marvel of modern technology?

Since most of my parents brothers and sisters came from rural areas , they thought we lived pretty high on the hog living in the big city. Not really, it might have appeared that way to them but my folks struggled to make a good living when I grew up.

My dad managed a tire store about 3 blocks from where Liily Belle Allen was killed in 1969 and I can remember my mom worrying about whether my dad would get home safely every night. I was only 9 years old at the time, I do remember his car was stolen and the building were he worked in was broken into several times. About that time............he got a carry permit for his Navy 45.

I do remember just about everybody in a ten block radius knew who I was because he sold all the neighbhors tires at pretty good prices, so as a result-I couldn't get away with shit. My old man would know about any dumb stuff I did before I even got home.

One advantage of my pop running a retail/tire store was that they sold bikes. Not any high end stuff but when you are 12 years old- any bike is better then no bike. I was probably the only kid around with 2 or 3 bikes at the same time.
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Sometimes life is good.

This link will make you realize how fortunate we are here in America. Very powerful stuff.

Merry Christmas all.............

Friday, December 24, 2004

I'm a happy boy..........

Got my computer back 99% intact ....woooo hooooo. It's sooooo nice to be able to have more then one window open at a time. That plus the fact that this computer doesn't sound like a plane just landed in my downstairs rec room. That old computer is loud.

Everybody ready for Christmas?
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Yeah,Ive been a bad boy...................

Oh shit, we're gonna die.

This is funny, but it ain't safe for work.

Till later-I gotta go start my Christmas shopping.

Monday, December 20, 2004

oops.......

I'm not a computer expert by any means but I do know that somehow I screwed up our computer.

Big time.

I'm sitting here typing this on a 7 year old computer that can barely and I mean barely run IE 6, current antivirus software and a firewall at the same time.

Wouldn't be so bad but our daughters half completed science fair projecy is on the newer computer. I'm glad I have a Microsoft certified tech as a friend at work. He's gonna take a look at it and see if he can give'r a go.

Oops.

Needless to say, I'm not goona be posting a whole of images or links until I either get the computer back or buy a new one. What a pain in the hiney.


Saturday, December 18, 2004

Wet T Shirt Girls..................

Yeah, I knew that would get everybodys attention. I came into the house this morning after work and heard the upstairs living room TV blaring out an infomercial for a "Girls Gone Bad" type of DVD.

I know our 11 year son falls asleep in the living room on the weekends watching TV. Sure enough when I walked upstairs he was lying on the couch.

Sleeping.

Not sure what time he went to sleep but he was watching the Pittsburgh sports channel-let's hope he was watching poker or something.

Saw an advertisment on the message board of the mtbing club I belong to looking for "Christian" cyclists to join like minded riders in joining a club. Not too sure how I feel about that, as I believe in God and all that but would I get kicked out of the club if I said ........."Oh Hell, I got a flat tire"?

Or "Holy Mother of God, it's hot out".

The club mentioned something about racing. What about some volunteer work on the trails? The big thing I've found with most of these folks is "Accepting Christ into your life."

Gimme a break.

I'm a little unclear on that concept because I've always believed in God. I don't have to go to church every week or "Accept Jesus as my personal savior" to be a good dad or a good husband. Or even a good person.

Just ain't my bag. I don't think wearing my beliefs on my sleeve is the way to go but each to their own. It's a free country and all that.
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Thank God.

Not that I enjoy laughing at other people misfortune, but this is funny. Yeah, I know-I have a sick sense of humor.

Ever see the BMW series of films? This one rocks.

Why would someone put these up for sale?

I am seriously jonesing for a chopper bike. I'm a sick, sick man.

Till later............






Thursday, December 16, 2004

I complain a lot.

Yeah, yeah I know, tell me something you don't know already.

Earlier this week I commented on the YAMBA board about somebodys dog nearly taking a chunk out of my leg and someone wrongly thought I was talking about them and their unleashed dogs.

They even wrote out a whole huge paragraph saying that I was causing them and myself angst and told me to mind my own business.

Thought about it for a couple days............. I'm sorry, but I still don't feel any angst about telling anybody to leash their dogs. I think the sign in the front of the Park says "Leash your Pets".

It doesn't say "Leash your pets after a couple minutes" or Leash your pets after they have taken a crap" It just says "Leash your Pets".

Pretty simple and the sign is even written in simple to understand English.

What more could you ask for? ................Angst?

Please.

On to other things.................

The person I was talking about yesterday passed away. 57 is way to young to die but knowing Dolly, she will be hard at work up in heaven planting flowers and calling all the men younger then her "Honey Boy".

Rest in peace Dolly :-)

Couple weeks ago I was complaining (seeing a theme here?) about the cold weather. Wow, was I way off-base. Last night was cold. Anytime it gets down into the 20's, it's cold.

The fact that the forecast is calling for snow next Monday means I get to watch crazy people buy every damn thing in our store that isn't bolted down. Folks, this ain't the 1850's where ya'll might not get out for a couple weeks- they have this thing nowadays called a snowplow.

Thought about riding later today but after 3 or 4 seconds-I decided against it. The only time I ride this time of year is when I can talk somebody else into riding. That way somebody hears me when I complain.

Rethinking my next bike purchase. I might end up buying one of these. Totally impracticle except our 11 year old could ride it as well.

This gets me in the mood for Christmas. Okay, maybe not.

This fella needs to look up the phrase "practical joke" in the dictionary. Could you imagine him doing that in NYC. He would be the hood ornament of the first Crown Vic that he jumped out in front off.

Hey, this is a pretty neat search tool from Google. Just be careful what you type:-)

This is exactly how I play chess.

I'm a little hungry.
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Not that hungry though..............

Till later..........


Wednesday, December 15, 2004

Death...............

Kind of a scary title for a blog entry.

Cancer is a nasty, nasty thing.

A very good friend of our family is on her deathbed right now with cancer. She was doing very well a couple months ago and now she likely not live past this week.

Quite honestly, cancer scares the hell out of me. I smoked for over 20 years and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't wonder if I quit early enough. God, I hope so.

My wife had cancer 6 years ago and am so very thankful that it was caught as early as it was.

Cancer doesn't play favorites.

Till later..............


Tuesday, December 14, 2004

Starting your own business.

Got an e-mail from a buddy of mine. He is starting up his own shop.

I've known Will ever since I got back into riding in 1996, he is one of the coolest guys I know.

He never laughed at me when I turned up for shop rides on my Wal-Mart bike.

Turns out Will is starting his own bike shop at Ed's Ski and Sport later this winter. It's gotta be way cool to realize a dream and then act on it. I don't know alot of details but he is going to carry several lines of bikes and accessories and offer custom fitting and all kinds of other stuff.

As soon as I know more or get a chance to visit the shop, I'll post up more info.

Will certainly has the skills to pay the bills-best of luck bro!


.................Kinda stirred up a shitstorm on the YAMBA website.

Oops.

Sure didn't mean to piss people off, it's not my fault people don't follow the rules posted at the entrance to all the Parks. I don't feel any "angst" when I tell someone they need to leash their dog.

Same goes for the riders that feign ignorance of the signs when the Parks are posted closed to biking.

The rules and signs are there for a reason people.

I read Dirt Rag every month and there is an article this month that covers riding with your dog. Good article except for the last paragraph where the writer admits he rides with his dog off-leash in a park that doesn't permit it or bikes. Doh.

He say's that it's accepted but how the hell does he know he isn't pissing other people off?

I'm gonna buy one of these someday.
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Pretty much useless for anything except trolling around the 'hood. All the better reason to buy one.

It sucks to be a guy sometimes..........

Hey Bubba, watch this. Why does this shit always happen down south?

This is gonna be me in 35 years.

Baseball with an added twist.

I's leave a Geo sized hole in the nearest snowbank with one of these.

This is how things get done. Well not really, but it is funny and also not safe for work.

Till later..................

Monday, December 13, 2004

Actually..............

It's the dumbass dog owners that piss me off.

I love dogs but it's the dogs owners that I should probably pepper spray. York County will never run out of self-absorbed assholes who think laws and rules don't apply to them-so I may as well get used to it.

Saw some friends while I was up there and they were running their dog off-leash. Ran into them right after I had my incident with the owner of the 4 dogs so I wasn't really in a good mood.

Sorry, nothing personal but leash your dog. Nuff said.

Anybody that wants to educate themselves on spyware-this is the site to go to. You need to register to access all the features but there is all kinds of articles, a forum and all the software downloads you could ask for. It's good stuff.

Does the country really need this crap right now? Does Bush have any original cabinet members left? I guess the ones that stuck around couldn't find a job elsewhere.

Go to war with what you have? Doesn't seem like the soldiers have very much.

Middle East peace? Not anytime soon.

Not sure what this sign is all about..........
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As a parent, this would worry me. On the other hand, where the hell were these clubs when I was a kid?

Tonight is meteor shower night.

Don't ever piss Santa Claus off.
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A 2x4? Maybe Santa needs a little anger management therapy.

I'm glad this woman is okay, but I have a feeling she is swimming in the shallow end of the gene pool. How could you not notice?

Here's a joke..................

A kindergarten class had a homework assignment to find out about something exciting and relate it to the class the next day. When the time came to present what they'd found, the first little boy walked up to the front of the class made a small white dot on the blackboard and sat back down. Puzzled, the teacher asked him just what it was.

"It's a period,'' said the little boy.

"Well, I can see that,'' she said, ''but what is so exciting about a period?''

''Damned if I know,'' said the little boy, ''but this morning my sister was missing one, Daddy had a heart attack, Mommy fainted, and the man next door shot himself."

Till later....................

Sunday, December 12, 2004

Damn dogs...........

So I went for a mtb ride up at Rocky Ridge today. I was unaware that it was "Run your dog unleashed day"

Man that shit pisses me off.

If I never have to deal with another asshole dog owner who thinks it's okay to run their dogs unleashed................that would work for me.

Tired of trying to not run over dogs and getting nipped at-just gonna aim for them from now on.

And carry mace.

Saturday, December 11, 2004

More thoughts about the library....

Everybody in our family reads. Our daughter has a room full of books, my wife and I always have our nose stuck in a book or a magazine and even our computed addicted son reads from time to time. I have a friend at work whose wife works at the library and basically, they are running on fumes.

Budget cuts affect everybody but this is one place where the county commissioners need to suck it up and throw the folks at the library some cash.

Sometimes, attorneys are just assclowns. How about a little personal responsibility?

IE6 blows. 80,000 students at Penn State can't be wrong.

Part 2 of the pic I posted beforehand
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Drink one for me buddy.

Copyrights will soon mean nothing.

No need for a stud finder here.

Think about this, if this sick bastard didn't have enough money to post bail- his ass would be in jail right now. He's gonna enjoy being locked up, he'll make somebody a nice boyfriend.

Is this a wild picture or what?
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Kites are dangerous. Damn.

THIS is a catch. I woulda been scared shitless to be on that boat.

This is gotta be the weirdest application of PalmPilot technology I've ever seen. Ouch.

This is just satire, but it wouldn't surprise me if it happened.

She woulda never made it to 92 if I lived next to her.

Cycling team or Army unit?
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Pretty darn cool training if ya ask me. Tyler shoulda never left.

My friend set a new world record for spyware on his computer, over 800 registry settings, cookies, BHO's and programs. Actually that wasn't that bad. The first time I scanned for spyware on our computer -I came up with over 500 items.

That's what happens when your whole family uses the same computer. IE6 is an invitation to let malware onto your hard drive. Mozilla Firefox is the dog's balls.

I watched The Collective again last night, watching Ryan Leech ride across a chain just blows my mind. Check out the teaser for his latest video- the dude has the skills to pay the bills.

Till later...............

Friday, December 10, 2004

Send the Library money.............

I printed this out. Looking forward to using it sometime.

Not too sure this link is work safe. It's an advertisment. It's all in how you interpret it I suppose.

I don't think our store sells this coffee.
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And yes, I smudged the picture a little.

It's not a Camelback............................
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It's a Dogback.

I've already blown it.

This would kinda suck if it happened to someone.

Our county commisioners still have their heads up their asses. Let's forget about taking people's property by emminent domain for a park, baseball stadiums and put some money into the county were it's gonna make a difference..............
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The youth and folks that can't afford to buy books.

I can remember going to the county library when I was a kid and we're still members. It's worth the money.

Not much more to add today, gonna be doing an X-Box marathon with my son and helping Hank de-infest his computer of spyware later today.

Till later..........

I'm curious...............

I think I'm your typical middle aged married guy, does the following happen to other guys?.......................................

Everyday when I get into the shower, the hair care, skin care and assorted bottles of cleansers seem to multiply. I counted this morning-14 different containers of stuff. What the hell are they all for? Gimme a bar of soap and 2 minutes of hot water and I'm a happy guy.
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I especially enjoy doing the "naked shaving creme" dance, that's when you knock the container of shaving creme off the ledge in the shower and try to avoid having it break one of your toes when it hits the shower floor. What makes the dance even better is when you grab the hot water knob for balance and end up turning all the hot water off.

Wakes ya up in a hurry.

This weather we are having is great this time of year when you work 3rd shift. Dark and rainy when you go to sleep in the morning and pretty much the same in the afternoon when you wake up. Just shoot me.

At least the rain isn't all snow, it'd be asshole deep to a giraffe by now.

Cannonball, baby. Ya gotta love that guy.

I wonder how this guy stayed up for that long. Hmmm, let's see........ he's from Columbia......

Ever hear somebody say "My cats are my children"?
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Cat's are NOT like your children.

Whaddya do when your cat gets really, really sick?
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I'll tellya what you do-you take it to the vet and have it professionally killed and then you go to the pet store to buy another one. If you tried that with a kid-I think you might get in a spot of trouble.




Can't we all just get along? Wassup wid that? I know sometimes xc cyclists take a dim view of freeriders but I can't imagine them slugging it out. Most freerider guys I know would beat the shit out of most xc guys anyways.

Tip-Never hit somebody in the face with a closed fist. It hurts like hell. Use a pool cue or a beer bottle.

Here's a real good reason not to do drugs. Scary.

When I was a kid, my dog used to do this all the time. Damn dog humped everything.

Old people shoudn't drive. I passed some guy on 83 last night that was going 35mph. Granted it was raining out, but 35 mph? The guy was an accident waiting to happen.

Here's a news flash-terrorists are planning something involving your local miniature golf course. Good God, how many ass-monkeys are there is Washington? I feel safer already.

Not.

Gun control run amok.

Here in the USA, gun control generally means........"Take your time aiming"

An update from my rant yesterday...........Rumsfeld is a liar.

Till later............

Thursday, December 09, 2004

Reading the news....................

This pisses me off. I bet his ass was driven to and from his "town hall" in an armoured vehicle. Soldiers are driving around in homemade armoured humvees after nearly 3 years in country?

Inexcusable.

What's is this guys hookah? Back to normal in a year? Sure.

Not sure how I feel about this. As usual, Congress is right up on it- what's it been, 3 years since 9/11? Couple things are for sure-we'll have less privacy and pay more for it.

Hockey is on strike? Who gives a shit? Exactly how long is the hockey season anyways? I always seem to remember the playoffs lasting until June or so....... 3 months of hockey is enough.

Our overnight cashier is a very nice older woman who has a problem. She has a single hair growing out of her chin that has to be at least an inch and a half long. I goes out in several directions and seems to have a mind of it's own. One of these nights I'm gonna ask her about it.

I think Martha got a raw deal, but I don't plan on watching her on TV next year.

Life in prison or death. Whatever. Just get the damn trial over already.

Big air. This guy has a set.

One things for sure.......................
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Somebody got fired.

All reason goes out the window when you use. She's in the running for "Mom of the Year" for sure.

Me insensitive? Nah. But this satire commercial is funny. Personnally I don't care if someone is gay, straight, black, yellow, red or white but funny is funny. And everybody should be able to poke fun at themselves.

Somebody is gonna take a damn eye out. When I was a kid, I was always in the roughhouse. True story- I was so scarred and scraped up from bike wrecks and assorted wipeouts that Childrens Services came to visit my mom when I was a kid because they thought I was getting beat.
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I pretty much destroyed every bike I ever owned as a kid.

I was hard on bikes, this guy is hard on cars.

Girls don't fart. Yeah right.

This is a cool bike, I don't know what it is about British steel hardtails, but they do have a distinct look to them.

My gut feeling is that Lance is skipping the 05 tour. I'm glad, maybe we'll get to see him in some more of the spring Classics. How cool would it be to see Lance lead George out for the win at the velodrome at Rouboix?

Link to a teaser video for the latest mtbing flick. I'm not sure I like it.

I suppose I am spoiled after watching "The Collective", which has to be one of the best movies made about freeriding. If you've never seen it, buy it or borrow it and watch it with the filmmakers commentary turned on instead of the soundtrack.
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Good stuff.

Till later

Wednesday, December 08, 2004

I have to brag...............

Yes, I'm gonna brag about my kids today. At least one of them anyways............

Our daughter is one smart (she has smart parents:-) cookie, she took the SAT's and scored over 1400 on them and as a result she has a very good shot at a full ride scholarship at 3 different universities.

Full ride as in they pay for everything. For 5 years.

Needless to say, my wife and I are liking that a whole lot.

She goes to visit one of the schools today-she is going to De Sales University to check into their physician assistant program. Is that cool or what? She will be the first person in my side of the family to ever get a college degree.

One of the best parts of having kids and raising them is getting to see what they end up doing in the world, so far it looks like our daughter is going to being going down some interesting roads.

In the past our son has expressed an interest in many things, I gonna really enjoy watching him and seeing what floats his boat when he gets older. It's gonna be interesting to say the very least!

Checked the stats on this site this morning-on average 40 people read this site everyday...................... that's kinda hard to comprehend- wow, am I popular or what? I'll try and not let it go to my head.

Anybody ever use these? Someone at work told me about them and WOW! I am a convert. I tried them yesterday before I went to bed and slept like Rip Van Winkle. I can hardly wait to try them out on a bike ride.

Yeah, I know they ain't gonna turn me into Lance or anything but I always have suffered from congestion during outside exercise. I'll still be staring at a lot of guys asses on rides but at least I'll be able to breathe better.

I was so happy after last Sunday's road ride in that I could walk normally the next day without any back pain, now I'll be booger free to boot. Could life get any better?

Why yes it could, I need to win that damn Powerball drawing tonight. A bazillion dollars and I retiring tomorrow and I'm gonna retire some buddies so I have somebody to ride with.

You know who you are :-)

This is a commercial for Victoria's secret. Nothing really that racy here but I gotta wonder....... most women in the USA ain't gonna be trippin if their hubby buys them some underwear. Don't most women buy their own underwear? I don't get it.

If I wanna guarantee myself getting lucky on Christmas night-I gonna buy my wife one of these...............
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Underwear?.............. Gimme a break.

Hey, this is safe for work and it's kinda neat. What else can ya ask for?......... Well, you can ask for this which is definitely not safe for work.

I love practical jokes and this one is funny as hell.

Folks, this link might be useful. Don't use it to search for pron at work though, especially if you work somewhere that a cubicle dweller could hear the search results.

This kind of shit makes you wonder what the world is coming to. Thank God she didn't kill them. They'll take care of her in prison. Maybe I lack compassion, but if she did that to my children-I'd have no problem doing it to her just so she knew how it felt.

What the hell?

Lose a couple pounds maybe?

Not to be harsh, but wouldn't have using a gun been easier?

63 years ago today.

till later...............





Sunday, December 05, 2004

Fat boy...........

Holy Mother of God.

I had a blast today out road riding but I need to lose some road hugging weight. I've lost 10 or 12 pounds which is good but more has gotta come off. I'm not spazzing yet, I am right on target for April but I'm impatient. What's new, right? At least my back wasn't screaming after today's ride. I'm slow as hell but that'll improve.

Watched a pretty nice save on a tight bend by my buddy Greg, not sure how he did it,he pulled it off though. It coulda been a nasty one. He has the skills to pay the bills.

With the forecast calling for rain Monday and Tuesday-looks like some more inside riding is on tap.

Looks like this guy used a bucket of epoxy to install his fork.
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I like this article. I kind of get to see both sides as our 11 year old and 17 year old have never not had internet access. I also help my pop figure out how to send e-mails and look for stuff online. He is such a hoot- one year ago he swore he never would be online, now he needs pryed off the computer.

Ain't technology wonderful ?

These guys are good. Looks incredibly dangereous but having ridden with traffic in the past, I'd be more worried about tagging a pedestrian then a car. Those guys are hauling ass.

Saw this chart on the onion.com...............
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On a serious note, Mozart made some wonderful music. Okay,maybe not that serious but he died 213 years ago today at the age of 35.

Saw this link to some new saddles on PezCycling News. I guess some folks will buy anything as long as it is expensive enough. My opionion? I think they are butt-ugly. They'll probably sell every one of them though................

This is a really cool article about bicycle touring in Vietnam. I just copied and pasted the whole thing into my blog as the site requires registration before you can look at anything......

Sunday, December 05, 2004
Susan Kaye
Special to The Plain Dealer

Can Tho, Vietnam -- Cycling along a patch work of rice fields in the pancake-flat Mekong Delta, the crush of traffic thinned to a trickle and cars mostly disappeared. We rode past rusted bicycles laden with dragon fruit or coconuts stuffed into large wire baskets and past motor scooters pulling rough wooden carts piled with cabbages.

Then I heard a youngster's shout. He was herding a dozen water buffalo at the far end of a field. When he saw me -- cycling shorts, outlandish jersey and helmet -- he knew he had spotted a foreigner. With another shout of "Aallo!" he ran toward me through stubbled grass. I slowed, but even so, he had crossed only half the pasture when I passed.

He gestured exuberantly, "Aallo, aallo!" As I waved back, he jumped with pleasure, then skipped back to his cattle, seemingly the happiest kid in the province.

My most enduring memory of my cycling trip through Vietnam is not the parrot-green rice fields, nor the rush of free-for-all traffic and insistent honking. Nor is it the intoxicating flavors of fresh spring rolls and rice noodle soup spiced with mint and cilantro.

Instead, I remember the smiling eyes and happy faces that called out to me: "Aallo!" "What is your name?" "Where you go?" Hundreds of children brightened my days as I pedaled south from fishing villages along the South China Sea to deep within the Mekong.

Before my husband, John, and I set off last winter on this 12-day cycling tour, I spoke with my friend Sally Kurtzman of Denver. A former college instructor in Saigon, she reminded us, "Vietnam is a country. Not a war."

She was right. In this jam-packed nation of 80 million, everyone we met was gracious in hospitality, pleased that Westerners are returning to visit.

Even in Hanoi, where the party headquarters remain and where communism weighs most heavily, we felt no rancor.

Still, the war ended only 29 years ago, and every adult has a story.

LL Hai Son, the cycling guide working with our tour company, risked his life 25 years ago when he and another teen manned a 39-foot boat, carrying nearly three dozen South Vietnamese to freedom in Malaysia.

Midway through our journey, a village elder in Lat, a Central Highlands ethnic village, invited us to his wooden "long house" where we shared homemade rice wine from a bulbous earthenware jar. Greeting us in French, he explained he had fought with the Special Forces during what in Vietnam is called "the American War." Afterward, he paid the price of siding with freedom, spending 15 years in a brutal "re-education" camp.

Yet another encounter came on our first day of cycling, outside Nha Trang on the south-central coast. On a rural stretch of road where we were alone except for peasant women shouldering bamboo staffs with baskets of vegetables hanging from each end, we photographed a Buddhist temple, its pink tiers rising from a lotus pond.

The head monk, Thich Tam-Tri, invited us for tea in his study where we sat on an inlaid bench, a whirling fan nearby. He related his teen years at the University of Saigon; when war broke out in 1965, he fled to the temple.

"The bombing in this region was heavy, and our buildings collapsed," he said. "Now we have a new complex where I live with four disciples."

Squeezing through

crowded streets

The heartwarming greetings that accompanied us softened the intensity of the road challenges. Yes, there were hills, but no Tuscany-style grinds. Instead we were thrust into a never-ending stream of scooters bumping along with families of three, pedestrians, bicycles overloaded with stuff, oxcarts and three-wheeled cyclos that functioned as everything from minivans to flatbed trucks.

We were the only ones in Vietnam who even considered using hand signals for turns. I never saw a driver slow down when making a right turn into the swarming traffic. Their practice is to merge, honk and hope. We were swept into the tide; any hesitation would cause even more furious honking behind us.

Vietnam traffic has other variations: I was spinning through a frenzied stretch of market traffic in Phan Thiet only to be confronted with three abreast motor scooters, plunging toward me, against the chaos heading their way. Drivers routinely use the "wrong" side of the road to reach their destinations, because turning across several lanes of traffic is impossible.

By choosing to cycle, we experienced Vietnam up close. Actually, in your face is a more accurate description. If we weren't navigating the teeming roads, we were winding through the cacophony of small-town markets that spilled into the road.

Wet with sweat and flushed with the unfamiliar, we passed seething markets where some 500 large white goose eggs were laid out for sale; others where rows of homemade joss sticks, incense for the upcoming Tet (the lunar New Year) celebrations, stretched for two blocks. As if we were cycling by an endless picnic, whether in town or along rural roads, we'd see families squatting to cook over outdoor braziers and workers hunched on small stools, slurping pho, the ubiquitous soup.

With guides

by our sides

The tour included 16 Canadians, Australians and Americans - ages 40 to 72 - along with three guides. Three support vehicles, driven by Vietnamese who looked out for us along the 250-mile cycling route, shuttled us into and out of Saigon and were always an option whether we were weary and hot or reluctant to cope with traffic. In cities, our guides posted themselves at strategic corners, pointing the way and even helping to slow traffic so we could safely turn. We averaged less than 30 miles a day, which left time for sightseeing and relaxing in posh resorts (we stayed in six of Vietnam's dozen or so luxury properties).

Several firms, large and small, offer bicycling in Vietnam. We chose Backroads, a Berkeley, Calif., adventure travel company, because it is the only one to cover so much of Vietnam's 1,000-mile length. The tour started in Hanoi, included a town in the Central Highlands, two south-central beach regions, Ho Chi Minh City (still called "Saigon" or HCMC) and Can Tho, a city of 500,000 on the southernmost tributary of the Mekong River.

Our last day we walked the streets of Ho Chi Minh City, passing the first stores we'd seen (outside of hotels) that catered to tourists. There's no McDonald's, but we spotted a KFC and Baskin-Robbins. Private enterprise is thriving, from the peasants selling roasted peanuts to the innumerable ragged shops crowding the towns. If the people have their way, the pace will accelerate. A guide in Hanoi told us, in the privacy of a car, "Our political models are Thailand and Malaysia because we see their freedom and how much better things could be for us."

While American visitors, businesses and hamburgers are still a rarity, the Vietnamese couldn't be more generous with their smiles and "Aallos."

Kaye, a free-lance writer in Aspen, Colo., has cycled in five continents in the past 20 years. She can be reached via e-mail at travel@plaind.com.

Good stuff, maybe someday.................

Until later.


Saturday, December 04, 2004

I love my fenders.

I'm a certified bike geek. I sometimes just go out in the garage and stare at my bikes. I think about all the cool places I've been and all the neat people I've ridden with. Tonight I was wiping down my Surly and admiring it's lines.

Geeky, yeah I know.
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Not many folks run full length fenders on road bikes. I do because I think it looks cool, it keeps me from getting a wet ass and it reminds me of the first "nice" road bike I bought when I was 14 or so. I saved my ass off for 2 summers and went downtown to Schwinn Cyclery in downtown York and bought a bright orange Schwinn fillet brazed road bike with just about every imaginable accessory possible.Looked exactly like this one only it was bright orange. And it had shiny chrome fenders. plus just about every other accessory that Schwinn made.
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Sweet, sweet bike............ I wish I still had it, but somebody stole it off my back porch a couple years after I started driving. Wasn't too upset at the time because I stopped riding after I got my license. I sure with I had it now though. No hard feelings to the guy who stole it, but I hope he rots in the innermost circle of Hell.............
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Not sure what I'd do if I got one of these for a Christmas present. Probably the same thing I'd do if I got one of these. Santa ain't gonna be sending me anything anyways, here's what he did with my letter. Bastard.

I kinda like this commercial. And this one, turn it up to 11.

I like this joke, people that act like assholes. oughta get treated like assholes.

I like this guy. My wife and I have two wonderful children that have all their limbs and the parents of this kid oughta be pretty darn proud. I love his quote at the top of his web page.
Good stuff.

Going for a roadie ride with my buddies this morning. Gonna get my ass handed to me for sure but it'll be nice to get outside and get some fresh air...............

till later.............


Friday, December 03, 2004

Dumb sports on TV

Sure is alot of dumb sport on TV this time of the year. Tractor pulls, rodeos, lumberjack competitions and my personal favorite- golf. Watching golf on TV is like watching paint dry on a humid day.

Maybe they could spice it up a little. Perhaps make it into "Monster Golf" where they could make each hole a race and you would have to jump your golf cart over whoop-de-dos and get extra points for distracting your opponents.

Of course 99% of people out there would think that watching cycling on TV is just as boring.

Heard the best Christmas song ever at work last night..............

Silent Night played with a bango. WTF????
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It will be a miracle if I don't lose my mind before Christmas gets here.

This isn't a big deal, there are soccer moms in York that do it all the time.

Magic tricks. I have no idea what the hell this guy is saying, but he's pretty good.

I'm just some dumbass Irish guy, but this is funny as all get out.

It's probably not a good idea to smoke crack right before you go on "The Price Is Right"

Think this guy does steriods? Naaaaah. I'm wondering if he has an air valve up his ass to "pump up" Sick.

This game is addicting.

Steel is real. Although I don't have one of these particular bikes (yet) nothing rides like my steel Surly.

Red Bull Rampage is on today.
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Huck this. Beats the hell out of golf.

Over and out for today.........


I'd drive 50 miles for a donut...............

I had a nice compliment from an elderly couple last night. They said I make the best donuts they've ever had.

These folks drive the whole way from Baltimore once a week just to buy the donuts I make every night. I've had several job offers from Baltimore area shops to run their bakeries, but who wants to drive 100 miles a day and work 10 to 12 hours a day to boot. Not me. Even at double the money.

I'm such a slacker-I love my free time.

The price of fun is going through the roof. Ever equate stuff like dinner out or a day at an amusment park to an equivalent of what you could buy in bike parts for the same money?

Trip to Disney for a family of four equals nice shiny new bike. Is that awful to think like that or what? Disney is one week- A bike like the Pugsley is forever.

When you are 45, forever is about 20 years give or take.............

Canadian kids have all the fun.

This is interesting. I went to school with a guy that had this and it always seemed to manifest itself during quiet moments in class. For example, I can remember taking a bio exam, it was really quiet and out of the blue Joe said "F**K .......F**K............ F**KING FROGSImage Hosted by ImageShack.us
Everybody in the class busted up including Joe after he had a moment to reflect on what he said. The test was about frog dissection and I guess it got the best of him.

I'm so glad my new phone doesn't have a camera.

It's not always easy making fun of other peoples stupidity, but in this case-I'm okay with it.


Could this be the next "big thing"?

God, I hope not. We already have some retard that terrorizes our neighbhorhood with a motorized scooter. When that asshole comes screaming down my street, I wanna just sit on the front porch and pick him off with my BB gun. I like my piece and quiet.

I wonder if this is what Bush has in mind........
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Oh my.

Saw this on drunckcyclist.com today..........................thought I'd share.

Why is marijuana not legal? Why is marijuana not legal?
It's a natural plant that grows in the dirt.
Do you know what's not natural?
80 year old dudes with hard-ons. That's not natural.
But we got pills for that.
We're dedicating all our medical resources to keeping the old guys erect,
but we're putting people in jail for something that grows in the dirt?You know we have more prescription drugs now.


Every commercial that comes on TV is a prescription drug ad.
I can't watch TV for four minutes without thinking I have five serious diseases.
Like: "Do you ever wake up tired in the morning?"
Oh my god I have this, write this down. Whatever it is, I have it.
Half the time I don't even know what the commercial is...
people running in fields or flying kites or swimming in the ocean.
I'm like that is the greatest disease ever. How do you get that?
That disease comes with a hot chick and a puppy.The schools now... It is all about self-esteem in the schools now.


Build the kids' self-esteem, make them feel good about themselves.
If everybody grows up with high self-esteem, who is going to dance in our strip clubs?
What's going to happen to our porno industry?
These women don't just grow on trees.
It takes lots of drunk dads missing dance recitals before you decide to blow a goat on the internet for fifty bucks.
And if that disappears, where does that leave me on a Friday night with my new high speed connection?

Masterminds are another word that comes up all the time.
You keep hearing about these terrorists masterminds that get killed in the middle east.
Terrorists masterminds.
Mastermind is sort of a lofty way to describe what these guys do, don't you think?
They're not masterminds.
"OK, you take bomb, right? And you put in your backpack. And you get on bus and you blow yourself up. Alright?"
"Why do I have to blow myself up? Why can't I just..."
"Who's the fucking mastermind here? Me or you?"Americans, let's face it: We've been a spoiled country for a long time.


Do you know what the number one health risk in America is?
Obesity. They say we're in the middle of an obesity epidemic.
An epidemic like it is polio. Like we'll be telling our grand kids about it one day.
The Great Obesity Epidemic of 2004.
"How'd you get through it grandpa?"
"Oh, it was horrible Johnny, there was cheesecake and pork chops everywhere."Nobody knows why were getting fatter? Look at our lifestyle.
I'll sit at a drive thru.
I'll sit there behind fifteen other cars instead of getting up to make the eight foot walk to the totally empty counter.


Everything is mega meal, super sized. Want biggie fries, super sized, want to go large.
You want to have thirty burgers for a nickel you fat mother fucker. There's room in the back. Take it!
Want a 55 gallon drum of Coke with that? It's only three more cents.Sometimes you have to suffer a little bit in your youth to motivate yourself to succeed in later life.
Do you think if Bill Gates got laid in high school, do you think there'd be a Microsoft?
Of course not.


You got to spend a long time in your own locker with your underwear shoved up your ass before you start to think,
"You'll see. I'm going to take of the world of computers! I'll show them." We're in one of the richest countries in the world,
but the minimum wage is lower than it was thirty five years ago.
There are homeless people everywhere.
This homeless guy asked me for money the other day.
I was about to give it to him and then I thought he was going to use it on drugs or alcohol.
And then I thought, that's what I'm going to use it on.
Why am I judging this poor bastard.


People love to judge homeless guys. Like if you give them money they're just going to waste it.
Well, he lives in a box, what do you want him to do? Save it up and buy a wall unit?
Take a little run to the store for a throw rug and a CD rack? He's homeless.
I walked behind this guy the other day.
A homeless guy asked him for money.
He looks right at the homeless guy and says why don't you go get a job you bum.


People always say that to homeless guys like it is so easy.
This homeless guy was wearing his underwear outside his pants.
Outside his pants. I'm guessing his resume isn't all up to date.
I'm predicting some problems during the interview process.
I'm pretty sure even McDonalds has a "underwear goes inside the pants" policy.
Not that they enforce it really strictly, but technically I'm sure it is on the books.

One last link before I go, way cool online bike zine.

That's all for today folks............

Thursday, December 02, 2004

Tyler shoulda quit when he was ahead........

I can't believe Tyler Hamilton didn't have the decency to resign before it cost his team a berth in next years ProTour. I still think he might be innocent but now he has likely cost the jobs of 25 riders and at least twice that many people in support staff.

Bad move.

On to something lighter.......... This guy crossed Australia on a penny farthing. He raised a whole shitload of money in the process. Rode one of those once-it's like riding a unicycle with a training wheel. It ain't easy.

Ed Hidden from Keystone biking sent me this. It's an 8 minute movie that looks at the future of media. Very thought provoking...........

I watched the Overhaulin' episode with Lance Armstrong and the GTO that Sheryl Crow bought for him. Whew, the Goat was a fright pig after they removed all the bondo and exposed all the rusted panels in it.

I have no idea how they accomplished that build in 7 days, I'm sure they had parts and pieces ordered well in advance of actually working on the car. Turned out really nice though.

Very cool interview with Christian Vande Velde. I'd love to have that bicycle treadmill pictured in the article. I'd put a George sized hole in a wall for sure.

If anybody needs any ideas for what to buy me for Christmas......
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I take X-Large :-)

Beat ANY speeding ticket. Glue one of these to your dashboard. Uh huh.

Swimming in the shallow end of the gene pool. With shoes on.

Dale Earnhardt has been reincarnated. Some dumbass NASCAR fan will snap this up.

I'm pretty sure I've posted this before, but a cat caught on a ceiling fan is just too damn funny. Don't freak out, I'm pretty sure the cat was fine after he cleared out the cobwebs.

A dog would never do anything that dumb.

I think these are a great gift idea. Like my friend at work said........"You used to get into alot of fights when you were younger, didn't you?" Me? Nah.............

Till later.

Wednesday, December 01, 2004

I am such a butt-wipe...........

I did something I feel really bad about. On the way home this morning in the pouring rain-I drenched some poor guy riding up Mt.Rose Ave. on his bike. If the guy wearing a yellow slicker on a mountain bike is reading this........ I am so sorry!
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I couldn't move over to the other lane because it was occupied and had no choice but to run through the huge puddle that gave you a second shower this morning. Sorry again.

I'm sure bad karma will bite me in the ass somewhere down the road. It usually does.

I complain alot but everybody in business has at least one customer or one client they can't
stand

I have several.

My all time favorite customer always wants me to give her a reduced price on things late in the evening. It's kind of hard to argue with her about giving her a discount on donuts as I am throwing the old donuts into the trash.

Gotta throw the old ones away sometime. Besides,talking to her is like hitting yourself on the head with a pipe.

It feels good when ya stop.

Played around with the layout of the site-it wasn't showing up too spiffy on IE6. Sorry bout that, I use Mozilla, so what the hell do I know?

I'm fired, aren't I ?
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Are they focking serious? I wonder what the hell the studio execs are huffing........

This guy is from Canada. Go figure, eh?

A web page devoted to dead cats. Makes me a little emotional......... mmmm no not really.

I like cats and everything but they're cats. Cats don't come when ya call them, they don't do tricks or anything else cool. They just sit around, sleep, eat and shit in a box.

Dogs are way cooler.
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When I was a kid we had a dog that probably inseminated ALL of the female dogs in the neighbhorhood because our dog would have humped a table leg. Wait a second, it did hump table legs............it was a horny little bugger.

Go downtown and use some of these terms. Measure your life expectancy in minutes.