Cowardice?

So I am posting this here because I know most people won't read it. Today I found out that I lost a great friend. Dave "Crash" Collins left this world today.

He was taken by cancer today which he has fought with all his might. The question I have is am I a coward? I had two chances to go see him in his worst state and chose not to. Why because I was fearful to remember him sick and dying? Because I am fearful of death? Not sure why but I know I wanted to remember him always as the guy who made me laugh, talked to me when I was bummed, talked to me when he was bummed, shared beer and told great stories. He was never afraid to wreck his bike hence his nickname. I showed up to Thursday night beer gardens mostly to see him. I love the Boemkes, Scotty Mac, Mikey Miller, and the rest of the crew but Dave was the one guy I looked for regularly.

I know now that I miss him and haven't stopped crying since I heard. I know a great many people know him and I ask all of you never remember him sick and on his way out remember him smiling and with a great story and beer in his hand. R.I.P Crash I miss you!

Things I must do before I die!!

For some reason I have never made a list of things I want to do in life. I guess it is fear that I will never be able to do them or the fact that I am a type A personality and will obsess over the list and forget to enjoy the moment. So I decided a few days ago I will make that list finally and see what happens, if I achieve any of these goals it will be a good life.

The List
-Learn to ride a motorcycle
-Ride a motorcycle up the coast
-Live in New York for one year
-Travel all of Europe and Asia
-Skydive
-Bungee Jump
-Take a train across the U.S.
-ride a bicycle across the U.S.
-finally land a back flip on a BMX bike. Tried a few times when I was younger and damn near broke my neck.
-Disappear into the wilderness for a month
-Fire a .50 caliber sniper rifle
-Be in a high speed pursuit
-Live in Scotland for a year
-write a book
-write a screenplay
-be in a band
-Drive in a rally race
-race a Speedway bike
-be shot out of a canon
-sail across the Atlantic
-sail across the Pacific
-Stand on top of the Sears Tower
-Go to a Yankees game in New York.
-meet the President of the United States
-catch a rattle snake with my bare hands and kill it by snapping it's neck when I crack it like a whip (my whole family tells a story of my Dad doing this when I was a baby)
-Ride a bull
-Steer wrestle
-and finally die in a fight with a Big Cat where all I have is my S&W pocket knife.

So there is my list. Not much but definitely achievable if I do say so my self.

Thwarted

So went to look at webbooks for Jenna. Honda's battery dead. The brake pedal sensor celinoid was not making contact so brake lights were on. Well fix it with superglue and two nickels. Go up harbor cruising along, traffic lights are out. WTF? Go down the hill towards imperial and what do we see, 1984 ford f250 under a telephone poll. Not wrapped around but under. Front of truck looked similar to what a baseball bat against a roll of aluminum foil would look like wrinkled and folded in half. Well get past that and we to best buy, guess what they are closed due to power outage. So our plans were thwarted today we will conquer another day!

Test

So first blog from my phone. This is all I need. Just one more way to rant at the world.

What's wrong with Gay Marriage?

Nothing. People say it's a sin, an abomination, a disrespect towards the institution of marriage. First of all most of you that claim that it is a sin, you sin every fucking day. You lie, cheat, have premarital sex, spill thy seed, are envious, rage, very vain, only look out for you and yours, and oh yeah women you are working in the workforce, not at home taking care of your loved ones and being subservient to your husband. Is it okay for you not for others? Oh I know times are rough, and the economy sucks so you have to work, to make that brand new car payment or mortgage that you just took out to put in the pool. Sorry I don't remember anywhere in the bible it saying that you deserve a SUV, a pool, or flat screen T.V.. Pretty much don't remember God saying "follow my rules unless it means you can't get the things you want." As for the sanctity of marriage ha what a crock, some of you that protest gay marriage have been divorced not once, not twice, but several times. Oh let me guess, it didn't work out, he/she didn't give you what you needed, you were young and stupid. Once again I don't think your God said it was okay if it didn't agree with you. So really stop using your God and faith as a blanket for your bigotry and fear.
Start looking at it like this, if you don't like it, don't do it. I don't like religion so I don't follow it. See real simple. Start looking at the benefits to society of gay marriage. "What can two fags getting hitched do to help society? No fucking queer gonna help me." Be patient the answer will come. Let's look at this from a financial aspect. Average marriage cost in America is $20,398. Just in the first three months of the gay marriage being allowed 11,000 same sex couples got hitched. Now do the math on that number alone. Yes many of them got married at the court house. Shit if someone told you that you could get your dream to come true wouldn't you run to the source as quick as you could. Now if you figure there are probably a great deal of people still looking to get married let's just use a round number of 2000 alone in California. Not that hard to imagine. So if you divide it in half (cause it takes two to tango) and multiple that by the average cost of a wedding you get 20,398,000 spent and put into the economy. That is just the cost of the wedding not the gifts bought by people to give to the lovely couple, the money dance, the gas used to get the ceremony. Oh holy shit did you just realize that was California by itself. Now imagine if every state had that. I bet you the average across the country would be about 700 couples/state. 700 times 50 equals 35,000. 35,000 couples times $20,398 average wedding cost equals $713,930,000 dumped into our economy. I am not sure but I think that is close to 3/4 a Billion dollars.
I know some of you have found fault with my financial logic. "Jess, you fag lover, they don't all get married at once. So it won't be that much money at anyone time." Well shit marriages don't happen all at once. But what they do do is give people like you and me a job from day to day, wedding planners, caterers, photographers, just list a few. So if they get married over the next 10 years that is still 71,930,000 a year. Not to mention all the younger ones that are going to get older and want to get married. Oh my god it is a never ending cycle of revenue.
So if you look at if from a different angle it can make sense why it should be allowed. If you can't just sit back and accept that they should be allowed to make their own choices and have to deal with the consequences of your God in the after life, look at it this way and justify it as the fucking country needs this revenue. Sad thing is I know most of my friends feel the same way I do LET THEM GET MARRIED!!!! But there are a few of you that are just going to read this and go "Fucking fag lover, he's probably gay and doesn't want to come out of the closet." or "My god said that it is wrong so it has to be". Just do me the favor of looking in your holy book where your God also said that no man shall cut his facial hair or trim his hair. Seems like you have an excuse why that is allowed to change but not this.

What I know about health care!!

might not now enough about politics to give any advise about what the government should or shouldn't do regarding health care. What I do know is what I have lived. For all of you that are anti-reform please refer to my life for the past 18 going 19 years.
All I have to say is have a mother that has had cancer, breasts and ovaries, heart attacks, and not to mention MS. Watch a Woman that has worked her ass off all of her life and dumped thousands of dollars into health insurance. Watch as she is stripped of all her financial security by a corrupt insurance system that charges her 3000/month for the shots she needs to just get out of bed to go to the restroom. Watch as she has to go through red tape up the ass every year to get re-approved for coverage for this and doctor visits, while only getting 1500/month from full disability. Watch as that Woman who was once able to raise two boys on her own, run the largest electrical contracting company, be a Labor Management Commission Compliance Officer between IBEW and NECA is slowly drowned to death, literally, in red-tape, ill-care, negligence, and lack of empathy by fellow humans, or so called doctors.
Watch as your mother dies because she, you, and your family can not front the costs of a corrupt, pro-profit, self serving calculation to risk system. Watch this from the time you were 15 years old, and your money for college, car, and savings that you and your family worked so hard to secure are bled dry to keep her well.
Sit back and wait for the day when the cost becomes too great and you get to see her suffer in insurmountable pain. Wait patiently everyday for that telephone call that she has passed away or taken her life out of sheer anguish and frustration.
Sit through all of this everyday of your life and tell me that reform is not necessary. Tell me that if this was your mother, father, sister, brother, or child that you wouldn't scream your head off for some change.
Tell me you are enough of a cold hearted bastard to watch as another human being suffers like this, you would say that there is no reason for change. When you say this come say it to my face, so I can beat the ever lasting fuck out of you, and make it to where you are now reliant on this oh so wonderful system we have now. Then we will see how you feel about change!!!!!
Like I said I do not know enough about politics and economics to tell you how to change it. I only know what I have lived. I am not saying that doctors shouldn't get paid well, or hospitals work for free, what I am saying is there has to be fairness and equality in pricing for a necessity of life. Wether that means regulating fees, creating an exchange, or regulating insurance companies, I do not know. Just fucking fix the system!!!

Death of My Riding

Why is it when you start to work at a bike shop you stop riding as much. I am not racing at all this year I am lucky if I get in 100 miles a week these days. I haven't ridden my cross bike lately. I got a Peggoretti Lugino and it only sees the road once a week.  My Look 595 Ultra sits in the shop like a statue. I really miss riding 6 hours at a time on my days off I have so much crap to do. I live six blocks from work and don't even have a commuter bike to ride into work so I walk or drive. I need to start riding again and getting back to a decent level so I can go on no drop rides. oh well we will see what happens. Other than that I am really excited for cross season even if I am not racing it is still fun to see all the new people doing it. I mean there are so many people doing it now.  The only thing I fear is it becoming like road and mtb races. Snotty and full of assholes!!! Let's hope it keeps its fun side! Peace out and as always

Ride on

Ride safe