So I was reading and I thought I would pass on two things to you.
1. I just finished reading this......
I have been looking for an old bike to restore and this book has helped tremendously. In fact, it has given me a step-by-step procedure to follow......
a. Talk to everyone you meet and mention to them that you are looking for an old motorcycle
b. Go look at every old bike that you hear about, even if the guy says, "It is in really bad shape" (you may find something rare and collectible)
c. (Now here is where I start to get confused).... Take out a big pile of cash and give it to the owner of the bike. Even if the bike is rusty and crusty and only about 1/905885 there, he will want a lot for it, so be prepared to pay.
d. Then take your "new bike" to some other dude and pay him an even larger pile of cash to do all the work for you (even more confusing)
e. Wait about six months to a year until you get a phone call to say that the bike is finished.
f. Collect said bike and then brag about how "you" restored it from a barn find, rusty mess to this beautiful work of art (even though you have no idea even where the air filter is located).
Don't get me wrong, it was a fun read.... I liked the stories.... I liked reading about the bikes.... it was inspirational and made me really want to find a bike to work on...... BUT I think these dudes are a little out of my league cash-wise.
In fact, my real plan of attack looks more like......
a. Talk about old bikes to everyone I know
b. If I hear about one, go look at it and beg the guy to just give it to me (b/c I can't afford to buy the bike and restore it as well). Maybe play the "preacher card"... I am a nice guy.... it is cool that a preacher rides a motorcycle and is interested in working on an old one.... cry if I have to!!!
c. Take bike home and spend years saving money to do anything with it until Sari becomes so fed up with my cheapness that she ups my allowance and tells me to stop being such a penny-pincher and buy what I need. I then proceed to buy only what I can't reused, remake, rewire or do myself.
d. Ride my "sort of restored" bike around town.... and if someone says, "Dude that thing looks like it was painted by a chimp that has no thumbs" reply.... "Well, I found it in a barn!" (As if that somehow explains something) and then ride away before they can get an even closer look at it.
So..... anyone know where I can find an old bike - cheap????? :)
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On a more serious note.......
I was also reading an article today by a lady named "Bronnie Ware" (yes "Bronnie" is the proper spelling - add that to your list of future baby names). She wrote a book called, "The Top Five Regrets of the Dying- A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing". It is a memoir of her work doing palliative care and what she learned/observed. The top five regrets.......
1. I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me
2. I wish I didn't work so hard
3. I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings
4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends
5. I wish that I had let myself be happier
So there you go. Something to think about while you can do something about it.
Who would have thought that you would get something serious to think about on this blog, hey? Don't worry. It likely will not happen often. :)
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