Damaged but liveable

The Chase: yesterday was followup  appointment after the MRI last Friday which revealed a small meniscus  tear. Bob, the PA doing the exam said that fixing the tear at this time is my choice as it will prolly not propagate or cause the knee to lock. I have a chronic slight pain that if I can live w/ it no rasping off the loose end will be required. Cool. I know what is the deal w/ the knee. Last Fri after the MRI I fell laterally on my left side including the knee. I shared this info which caused Bob to order X-Rays as it was possible I broke the smaller leg bone. Bob said no harm and my knees are solid w/ great cartilage remaining. Bob and I go way back in treatment years and  I trust his judgement. The DR in VA didn’t go far enough in his exam and possible treatment. No harm, no foul. I am still too sore to lay on my left side on the X-Ray gurney.

Celebrated good news w/ Jeff, owner of U District PT, another fix me shop. Jeff is intrigued w/ living on the road. We had dinner @ No-Li.

Wed I rode a short less hilly ride in Riverside included was the ditch. Along the river I spooked a bald eagle which I watched fly downstream in my direction.

Today I rode Beacon / Sekani area w/ 2 Boeing engineer buddies, one, Les lives here and sometimes I sleep in his driveway like Wed night, and Cal who lives here on the weekends on his time then over in the Puget Sound for 4 days of work. Lunch was a Loppers Ball reunion w/ Cal, Tom an engineer who lives here full time and is storing some of my stuff, and Dave, a planner who I used to work with. For 17 years here I cut little trees down on the ski slopes @ 49 Degrees for my season lift pass, these guys joined in later years. Boeing wages now replace sweat equity. These guys are long term friends going back to 1990 when we all joined the new Boeing fabrication plant here in Spokane. Lots of history and fond memories.

3 years ago I paid $600 for a 3 day Better Ride skill clinic. One of the big take aways was riding w/ bent elbows as in pushup position instead of stiff and locked elbows. The bent elbows puts the rider in an athletic attack position more centered over the bottom bracket for better fore and aft wheel weight. The bent elbows gives a safety measure when rolling down drops: as the front wheel drops w/ straight arms the front wheel pulls the rider right over the  bars because there is no travel in the arms. Straight arms also pushes the rider back unweighting the front wheel. This rider didn’t pay for lessons and rejects my free tip:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAHe remained upright. Nice lycra. A seat bag on a dropper post?

I have been searching for a shop to install a Propex heater in my van. I found a Westie conversion shop in Renton who will do the install. Will be great having circulating warm air thermostatically controlled. I will plan my itinerary for a Puget Sound visit.

Very dry here such that the knapweed has been killed for this year. Knapweed is a scourge.

I researched a retail pot store here in Spokane. 2 days ago I stepped to the counter. WA stores allow lots of shoppers in @ same time. $27 a gram. Bought a gram of sativa and indica (in the couch is a way to distinguish the species). I bought and received a Haze portable vaporizer. It runs on lithium ion batteries, the kind that started fires on the new 787.

I found a WA distillery moonshine in a large liquor store here. I like is best of what I have so far consumed.

So I am here all next week. Hot and dry here, sleeping w/ side door opened.

Tomorrow I will ride MT Coeur d’Alene one of my favorite trails.

Abe commented on the Clark Fork ride that captures the diversity of the US. He likes it because it is along a white water river and is under tree cover, stark difference to his Phoenix locations. Those of you who have ridden back east know the tree cover, etc. I like riding back there for the difference from the mountain states.

I want to get a hold of Mike and Allison whom I met up in the Zunis. They told me about the book, American Nomads by Richard Grant. Along the way I would stop @ bookstores and ask about the book. Not in stock but they can order it. I never committed the time to wait for delivery. However, the first day in Spokane I ordered it from Aunties, a cool local bookstore in downtown Spokane. The first paragraph captured what living on the road is for me also.

“Looking back on my own American wanderings,  they seem to flow together as one; memories strung out on a single cord of highway, fourteen years long and headed nowhere in particular. I like to think I have tasted freedom, but I also recognize the signs and snares of addiction. After a while, wandering generates its own momentum, its own set of cravings, phobias and justifications. I like to think of it as an adventure, a perpetual seeking out of new horizons and experiences, but like so many endeavors of this kind, it has also been an act of flight- away from a point in space and time, away from routines and responsibilities, away from a state of mind. And when it began, escape was my only concern.”

Parked on side street in Brownes addition, soon The Elk.

One comment on “Damaged but liveable

  1. Hey Craig! Glad that you found the book. It resonates doesn’t it. Boy those pictures Bill posts make us want to head right back to the zunis although we are speaking awful words like j*bs and things. In CA now, will be in the tahoe area before too long. Let us know if you will be passing through.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *