Peer Pressure, the DMV, and Motorcycle Maintenance

Peer Pressure. It isn't just for secondary students any more.

We were on our way to Rochester for some meetings. I got to drive (yes, that is got to drive; I cannot stand to be in a vehicle that I am not driving...control freak, anyone?) and was driving at my typical speed limit - 5 mph (that's five miles an hour under the speed limit for you non math people) and my passengers were less than thrilled. "C'mon, BJ. Can't you at least go 61?" they whined. After half an hour, I relented: "Ok, guys, but if I get a speeding ticket, you're paying it."

Right.

Of course I got a ticket. It's my first ticket in 20 years. Did the gang jump to my rescue? Sort of. One passenger yelled at the cop as he was turning to leave: "C'mon, no warning?"

At this point, I was convinced I was going to jail. Luckily, he had gotten his quota and he kept walking.

So, kids, don't give in to peer pressure. You are the one who has to pay the fiddler.

The DMV

I really wanted to get that last name problem cleared up. The best way to do that was to get my new driver's license. I think the way they interview people for DMV jobs is they treat them as badly as possible. Anyone who sticks around gets the job. All I know is, they are in a very bad mood. I am not sure, but I suspect they don't like anyone with an accent.

They wouldn't let me get my license. Not with my real name, anyway. I was told I didn't have permission on the divorce decree. PERMISSION?!? WTF?!? It is the first time in my memory that I have yelled at a CSR in public. I yelled at her. No satisfaction, though. I called Arkansas, thinking that I would just get my name changed down there then transfer it. No dice. Looks like a lawyer is about to make some money. So a warning, ladies. Consider getting that hypenated name, or at least remember this should you ever get divorced. I assume the lawyer could have written that in.

Motorcycle Maintenance

When I was a student at AGS (yes, they actually had AGS way back then) we were required to read the book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. I only remember one point from the book. The guy was talking about being out in the world, and how people in cars are watching the world go by, as if watching a television set. Your window, he said, is the screen. If you are on a motorcycle, though, you are no longer merely watching; you are a part of it. That is how I feel about hiking. When you're hiking, you're a part of it. You're touching the world.