And Once Again
As an elderly man of this the Hyborean
Age, it falls upon me to tells tales of might and woe and also beer
drinking. Might and woe I ain't so sure about, but beer drinking I
know and also do I know about hard work and pain. I once was quoted
as saying “there can be no art without pain” and while what I am
currently involved in doing might not be art, there is at least
plenty of pain. So maybe it is art after all but that is not what I
came here to talk about; in fact, I have no idea what I want to say
but as usual, you can count on me to say it anyway.
There's This
One of the things I always worked hard
at teaching my various offspring were these little nuggets that I
magically called “Secrets of the Universe” to make them sound
enticing but really they were just the stuff of common sense, another
thing that has involved pain and loss in my real reality but whatever
the case, the Pythagorean Theorem is about as real as it gets and
there is also Pi to consider. So there ya go.
And Then Again
Meanwhile, the Trailer Park Cyclist
pedaled this morning; again in the predawn to the local coffee place
for a mug and an apple fritter. Enjoying a momentary lapse of work,
he then came home, drank the coffee, ate the fritter, pondered the
Universe and then looked over in the corner of the trailer to where
sat his forlorn and neglected Little Miss Dangerous, his Little
Darlin', his 1981 Schwinn Super Le Tour bicycle, the partner of many
a long ride, many adventures and much guilt.
There were clouds in the sky and rain
foretold: and yet...
The Rest of the Story
Well, I rode. Worn out yet restless, I
rode. The saddle beckoned and hurt my butt. The pedals were mired in
some kind of glue and every little bump was painful. But I rode and
the sky opened and the rain fell and the thunder rang and yes,
there was lightning and it would have been disastrous and dismal but
somehow, it was perfect: this is Florida and the rain was warm and my
road was empty: rain-drenched and exhausted and recharged I plowed my
way home and soaked up a hot shower and cracked a beer (and poured a
shot) and here am I to tell about it.
And This...
What's to tell? Oh, just this: there
are secrets in the universe and one of them is that the more it hurts
the better it feels and also, sooner or later, pain pays off and
another thing: A squared plus B squared equals C squared and 3.14 is a magic
number.
Yer pal, Old Tim Joe
Whispering Pines Trailer Park and
House of Mirrors
November 15, 2013
TJ! Glad to hear you are still alive and pondering the meaning of the universe. Also glad to hear you've been on Little Miss Dangerous.
ReplyDeleteWe missed you and are happy you stopped back in to give us this nugget.
Hope all is well.
Dan
I'm with Dan.
DeleteHappy you're still around.
Well Dan all is well and yet it ain't: I'm violating my vow of poverty and becoming much poorer for it. But as we all know, the piper must be paid...I guess...unless you're the piper...wait a minute...
DeleteI'm happy I'm still around too, Jonathan. Mostly. Thanks, dude, it counts.
DeleteWhen you have nothing to say, I really like how you say it, amigo. Glad you got in a ride. And that guy Pythagoros knew his potatoes, didn't he?
ReplyDeleteBrian I have always recognized the wisdom of austerity, even during my most profligate periods of hedonistic hellishness. Pythy and his followers figured it out early on: get by on nothing and make everyone else wish they had what you have, even if what you have is a big pile of...hold on: magicians never tell their secrets. Thanks for your loyalty and I will be by later (if this bootleg web connection holds up) to spread my, uh, wisdom over at your place.
Deletetj
Another secret? Some of us check in even if it's been a while. There might even be some automated way to get email when it's updated - but that would take all the fun out of it.
ReplyDeleteGlad to see you back here.
berry
Berry the End of the World will be announced by automated email. So if you don't get the memo, maybe it won't happen. If you do get the memo, don't tell me I plan to sleep late that day.
Deletetj
Wow...a new post by TJ (always a treat...even when you don't really have anything to say, you still entertain...wish I could do that!) And anyway...like I can talk...it's been a month TODAY since MY last post...sheesh. Seems this time of year always brings me to a mental/creative hiatius for some reason...as we near the holidays the speed of life somehow increases every year and I feel stressed trying to keep up with my self-imposed hectic pace. However this Friday I'm off to Virginia for a week at the bro-in-laws farm (3 hrs northwest of Richmond out in Amish territory) which always works to slow life back to an easy crawl, if only for a short time.
ReplyDeleteHope your work pace slows a bit and you and Little Miss Dangerous can make-up and get out there a bit more. Stay safe my 2-wheeled brother!
Matt thanks so much. I saw yer Big Hike posts and I haven't had time to give them them the attention they deserve but soon, buddy, soon. Enjoy Virginia, I always do. The Blonde is there this week burying her father. Good Lord. It has just been that kind of November.
DeleteA new post from Tim Joe always brings a smile to my face. Nothing to say ..!? I heartily disagree my pedaling pal, you quoted Pythagoras and talked about both pie and apple fritters and made me look up Hyborean -Glad you took LMD out for a spin -nothing makes a shower feel better or a beer taste fresher than earning it by pedaling squares after a long hiatus from the saddle. Tailwinds Brother
ReplyDeleteRyan
Hey Roadie! Let's start a really bad cover band called the Pedaling Squares!
DeleteThis Booger is nothing without the OG, my Velo Brother. Thanks, as always.
tj
There must be a new pyramid erected in Florida. You have been gone for a while and come back quoting Pythagoras.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear that you are OK and re-finding LMD even though she abused your backside!
Jim
Coach, she ain't the first lady to abuse my backside, if you know what I mean. Wait, that didn't come out right...I was meaning my teacher Miss Chandler in the third grade after I...well, we'll leave that story for another time.
DeleteFigure it for a lumberman to connect Pythagoras to the pyramids. I can't get nothin' past you guys.
tj
Ahhh, the Pythagorean Theorem... I quizzed myself and then looked it up to be sure. I'm proud to say I remembered it correctly from school, although I haven't calculated anything to do with a triangle in many years.
ReplyDeleteI then turned my attention back to you blog... Still aglow from the pride of not losing my book-smartness... The receptors of my brain drawing up memories of high school... At the same time reading your blog and searching for clues about your hiatus... All the while immersing myself in your portrayal of the Florida climate, the concept of a welcome rain while cycling, the pain of a tough ride, the soreness of the butt, and the profound pleasure of a shower and nourishment afterward.
Thanks for providing so much when you write.
Why Angie, you make me blush. Thank you so much for the kind words. As a carpenter/builder, I am a member of an unlikely guild that uses these esoteric formulas every day without any clue as to their source. It is how we determine the length of a rafter. It is how we find out if the corners of a house we are building are square and also, sometimes, to put a man on the moon. Pythagoras was one cool cat and definitely an early precursor of the Essenes, the gang John the B probably hung out with and definitely an influence on another guy who spent some of his youth in Ancient Egypt. There be magic in numbers.
ReplyDeleteI am very happy to know you are still watching. Thanks!
tj
That's what Coach Bangs was referencing. The pyramid builders had all this down a long time ago.
It doesn't have to be fun to be fun.
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Matt
One of the more odd facets of the multi-faceted human condition, Matt, wouldn't you say?
Deletetj
I really like that Matt. I'm thinking I will be stealing that and using it at practice tonight for my guys! Maybe about their third set of running ladders.
DeleteThanks!
Jim-
DeleteJust to be fair, I stole it from Mark Twight.
Cheers,
Matt
TJ
ReplyDeleteGlad that you took the time to post. It's good to hear from you, and good to hear that you're still getting along.
Those inclement weather rides can be great. Who cares if it rains, or if the wind blows? If I wanted easy I could always get back on the couch. Snow is falling here today, and I'm pondering the wisdom of a ride around town in the dark when I get home.
If you need a bass player for that bad cover band, I'm in.
Steve
PS Yer online friends are glad to hear from you, even if it is a short one. Take care of yourself, work, and ride your bike (and I hope you're socking away some 'bike money' during this hot streak).
Thanks, Steve. I'm socking it away, alright, but not as fast as I hoped. This looks like a long haul. There will be two bikes at the end: a 29'r and a bad ass road bike. The roadie will come from Black Mountain and the 29'r will, undoubtedly, be a Surly. In the meantime I am spreading around the money to some of those close to me who need money more than I do and also: I own a truck now and it must be fed. Whatever the case, thanks for checking in. It is always a comfort to hear from the OG.
Deletetj
TJ-
ReplyDeleteYou the Man! Thanks for the generous invite and taking the time to check in on us. We're heading back home for the Holidays and then chasing the sun south of the Equator for the the winter.
Keep 'em rolling!
Cheers,
Matt