Next Week

 Time is flying by faster and faster all the time and next week I am three quarters of a century old ! It's so strange getting old, never thought I would. You know the way I lived when I was young led me and everyone who knew me to believe I'd never make it out of my 20's.Well we were almost right but somehow I pulled back from the edge of the black hole that was I being sucked into and wandered off in a different direction alone for some time before I got pointed in the right direction. So, here I am now rapidly approaching the end of this life happy and living my life to the fullest . The other day I painted a picture of the ocean . Posted a crappy photo of it that I took while it was still wet.  For some reason this painting doesn't photograph well but that's life. Worked on a job for a few days getting this basement room ready for a transformation into a small second kitchen in a neighbors house.While working on any job I have lots of time to think and this job is no different.I was thinking about the last painting and what brought it to the canvas .You know, things don't just pop out and land on a canvas, nope, there is always some previous experience involved. So here I am sitting around thinking and it hit me. The Halloween storm of the early 1990's here in New York. That's it ! That day was incredible. It rained something  fierce and the wind was gale force so I had to go to the beach. My wife, who was then my girlfriend and I drove out to eastern Fire Island to Smith Point .The ocean was fierce ! The waves were way over 10 ft and the wash was coming right up on the dunes. I went in ! Walked out into this insane knee deep wash as these monster waves were breaking 10 or 15 feet in front of me  soaking me with spray coming off the ocean at around 50 or 60 mph .It was pulling me closer and closer as my wife was screaming at me to get out. I couldn't resist it. It was as if the ocean was calling me and I needed to be in her grip. The sand was washing out from under my feet and now I was waist deep when I finally returned to the edge of this dune where I could climb out. I loved it ! You know, these moments when your life is in danger are when you are the most alive you will ever be and I experience them from time to time usually on my motorcycle but sometimes in other situations.Jumping out of an airplane from 5000 feet in the air was another. That was on my 30th birthday after I backed away from the black hole. The thing with the drunk cowboy in Utah back in 1970 was another. I really thought for a second or two that he was going to squeeze the trigger of that 357 magnum but he didn't. I've always lived on the edge of something , it's who I am. I think we all do but fear blocks most people from actually getting to the point where the adrenaline kicks in . But, these days I play it a bit more safe. It still happens though. That pothole on the Long Island Expressway that damn near took me out back in 2021 at 70 mph on my BMW K100 comes to mind. When I hit that fucking life stopped dead. It was as if the video paused.I saw it, I hit the throttle and hit it dead on straight.The bike bounced up out of it after the forks bottomed out and when the rear wheel hit the other end that front came back down out of the air and bottomed out a second time as I held on for dear life.Then the tank slapper started and the shimmy almost overpowered me but the motor made enough power for me to accelerate out of the shimmy and regain control .This all happened in a space of time probably under 2 seconds but because time stood still it seemed like forever. As I powered out of it I looked at the speedo and I was now going over 80mph and climbing . I never felt more alive than in that moment. And here we are years later after these events still moving forward and rapidly approaching SEVENTY FIVE  years old next week !  You see, this is what  the basis of some paintings are all about. Now if I can just figure how to paint the feeling of flying through the air like a bird

or perhaps the fear of staring down a drunk with a gun pointed 6 inches away from my face ! I use digital to get some of these things into a visual form like this image called " Into The Darkness"

Or this one  that I made from a photograph of an oil painting I did 

 Well, once I finish this last small construction job that I have going right now I will no longer be tied up with work and be able to spend more time working on my art again as old age chases me down and finally takes me.

I Truely Am A Motorcycle Addict

 Like the title says I am an addict. Over the last couple days I have come to terms with selling off my BMW K100 RS and my nice little 66 Valiant vert. Well this morning I'm looking through motorcycle parts for sale ads on Craigslist when I come across 2 service manuals for a BMW R60/5 . I look ,I respond because as I sell off the K100 I find myself with the time and space to finally get to fixing up this nice little 1971 BMW R60/5 that my friend Tony gave me way back when I finished restoring a 1966 Yamaha YM1 for him.

I basically built him a brand new 1966 motorcycle.This was back in 2011or so. He had this same motorcycle as his first bike when he was a 17 year old kid. The day I handed it off to him we went out for a nice 75 mile ride and on a break for some coffee he told me he was giving me this old BMW as a thank you. Well,here we are many years down  the road and now it's time for me to bring this sweet little motorcycle back from the dead.She's been stored properly and some of the work has already been done so it should be a fun project for me.It may end up being the perfect bike to ride with this fucked up leg I have since tripping and falling causing the injury 3 or so years ago.Probably need a hip replacement but that ain't happening . No room in my budget for that crap so I push on limping around like Chester in Gunsmoke .Here is the /5 

My buddy Juan had one just like this so it won't really be too difficult to figure it all out. It's a sunny day here in NY today and I'm gonna take the K100 out for a ride to give it a work out . Gotta keep her running well to sell her . Here she is on one of the trips I took on her. So you see,I really am addicted to my motorcycles.I just can't help myself!

Yesterday

 Yesterday was a crappy day with the weather. It was raw and cloudy. I just couldn't get into riding so I went down to the basement. Started straightening up some and pulled out all my art supplies that I had brought home from my camp last October. Handling all this stuff got me motivated to set up a studio area up in the room where my three tortoises reside . So, I made space, put things away in the attic, brought up all my brushes and tubes of paint, set it all up and painted a picture of a stormy day at the ocean.

Today is a repeat of yesterday with clouds,wind,some showers,and temps. in the low 50's F so maybe I'll work on another . No motorcycles today that's for sure but there is fair weather ahead for Sunday and Monday so maybe I'll get my 66 Valiant convertible out and take her to a car show with a for sale sign in the window.

She's a survivor with a shade under 60,000 miles on the clock. All original with no rust anywhere .Has all the dings and small dents the original owner put in.  She was a well off old lady who lived in Manhatten and had a summer home in the Hamptons . The car was bought new in East Hampton and never left there until I got it. Always garaged and only used in the summers. I'm the second owner. Bought it from the estate in 2003. It had 52,000 on it when I got it! Hate to let it go but I'm old now and there are other more important things for me to be doing with the time I have left here on Earth like today when I paint !

So Now It Begins

 You know , when I start new projects for a trip there is always an overlap with something I'm already doing.This upcoming adventure is no different. Yesterday I went to Home Depot with my neighbor and ordered some new cabinets for the small kitchen that I am building for him in his basement. I started this project a couple weeks ago while he and his wife were in Florida at their other house. This job will probably be the last construction job I do but one never knows . There was a kitchen there but it was real crap so we decided to rip it all out and start fresh. Here are some photos of the beginnings of this job. This is the path to getting the parts needed to fix up my Moto Guzzi for my trip south this autumn. See, the overlap is just like back in 2014 when I was building the rooms in Pete's attic and back in 2009 at Jason's house when I went through it so I could go on a 14000 mile motorcycle trip out west .The trips are the reward for me .Those months on the road free make getting involved in these projects worth all the effort that goes into them.

                                              Working out in my backyard on a door for this job

                                              I used to shlep this saw all over the place to jobs 

                                              now it lives in my yard and the work comes to it

                                          

So now I wait for the cabinets and for John to get a plumber to deal with the under sink issues . Today is sort of nice out, somewhat cold but sunny so my mind is telling me to go ride. Sitting here waiting for it to warm up enough to actually do this I'm listening to this Radio Paradise thing on my stereo and looking at parts I'm going to need to get for the 850-T. It's new clutch time and this is what I'm going to install in my bike:

https://www.mgcycle.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1698

I have one in there now but it's tired .Seems like oil got on it and it sometime slips under load in 5th gear so it's time.Can't really complain, I got over 75000 miles out of it so it doesn't owe me anything. This is how it begins .It's April,I want to head out in the third week of September so it's time to get to it.Gotta sell a bike and my 66 Valiant convertible so there is plenty of money around. Can't deplete the buying a house fund to go play but I still need to go play ! What good is life if one can't do as he pleases? I think I'm going to sell the BMW K100 RS 

 This bike should bring me enough to fund this trip and besides, as I got older it has become more and more difficult to ride .It's too damn tall and pushing it around  has become a real pain in the ass for me with my fucked up hip. The Moto Guzzi however is another story.I have no problems riding it .It's somewhat lower and lighter making it my bike of choice for most rides I go on these days. The K100 has been fun and I had many good trips on her but it's time to pass her on to someone younger. So now Spring has started to show her face and it's time for me to get to the things that really matter to me . MOTORCYCLES !

The Inventory Continues

 It seems like it's been going on forever but it;s really only been three months.I'm on the last model of bike and it's April . Life is good in many ways so I really have no complaints.I mean really,how can I complain about anything, I'm about to turn 75 years old !  Yup,the end of this month I'm am three quarters of a century old. Damn , when I was 20 no one thought I'd ever see 25 . Not even me but here I an down in the basement digging through boxes of antique motorcycle parts and planning my next motorcycle trip.Thought about getting a newer bike to head out with this September .Looked on line some.Found a BMW K75GS locally.Went and looked but it's too tall like my K100RS so I gave up on that idea and decided to drop a bunch of money into "old faith full"  you know, my good friend the 75  Moto Guzzi 850-T. You see, this it what happens when I handle all these motorcycle parts. I can't help myself, I'm an addict ! Sunday was Easter and I got out on the T for a good 2 hour ride. Sure felt good. Had all this time to think about heading out on an adventure while riding. The way I see it is that this could be my last chance at enjoying the freedom of living on the road but I doubt it. What I'm thinking is I'm gonna ride right out of this fucking insane asylum we live in. Who knows, I may get cracked up or loose my marbles while blasting down some mountain road in someplace like Montana but who cares. To me that looks way better than sitting around here waiting to die. What I've found is that it seems better if you go out in a blaze of glory than to waste away dealing with doctors who are really doing nothing more than mining your savings account. These are the thoughts of an old biker coming through the crap that's been planted in all our minds over our time here on Earth. It's all bullshit. It's way better to live to the max right up to the time it all just ends than filling your mind with all this fantasy about the all powerful dude up there in the clouds . So, even if I have trouble walking with my screwed up leg I'm going. This photo is my Moto Guzzi a week before I rode it up to Nova Scotia in 2014. So, it's time to start ordering the parts !

This trip is my birthday  present to myself for my 75th .Hey, on my 30th I jumped out of a fucking airplane from 5000 feet up in the air so a motorcycle trip down south with a couple of my friends from down that way doesn't seem all that unreasonable to me. My wife is even good with it! So now it's back down to the basement to get this damn inventory finished so I can move forward and get on with what is really important to me. Getting old is ok as long as you keep yourself in decent shape so you can enjoy it. I'm very fortunate that I did just that. You know, I still have a 32 in waist and work like a horse on a regular basis banging nails and building stuff for people , painting houses  dangling off extension ladders 2  stories up. Hard work pays off in the long haul. NEVER STOP !

This is last year working on my friend Steve's 1965 Plymouth Barracuda.

This is my world, old bikes, old cars, and painting

The Never Ending Inventory Job

 Maybe not never ending but it sure feels that way. Actually I'm making progress. I have 3 basic models of motorcycles I collect and have finished repacking and writing down what is in the boxes , numbering them , getting them on shelves in numerical order , and separating the junk to take to the scrap yard  for the two oldest models. Those are the Yamaha YDS3 / YM1 model and the Yamaha DS6 model.Next it's on to the R5 stuff.So,I am about three quarters of the way to the finish line for the inventory of the motorcycle parts.  When this phase is completed I move on to the clean up the place phase . Then it's on to the garage . This second phase should be way easier and not so time consuming. I'm going to load up the truck with all sorts of stuff I'm never going to use and haul it to the scrap yard. May as well turn it into cash . Selling it is just too time consuming . Motorcycle parts seem to sell but the car parts I collect are another story. These days very few people have any interest in restoring these cars , they all seem to want to throw 60,000 dollars into something with a 700 horsepower  motor and build some gas guzzling piece of crap  that is useless . So , the car parts I don't need for my little 6 cylinder 1965 Valiant station wagon  head to the scrap yard and get sold by the pound. Some stuff will get sold like the 4 speed transmissions I have  but most won't. My days of building cars are  sadly coming to an end but , who knows , I may win lotto and get a 50 Ford F1 pick up with a flat head V8 or a 60 Ford panel truck with an original 6 cylinder 223 in it.  I still lust for these ! But , as I handle all my buried treasure down in the basement I come across things that make the gears in my head turn and I get inspired to build more bikes. I came across these really cool aftermarket wheels  and the European version of the Yamaha DS6 fuel tank the other day. You see , the Euro version had rubber knee pads . I like that look and the wheels are aluminum not steel and will really add to the look of the bike. So, it will be just like this orange DS6C I sold last year only different and unique in the North American market.

 The inventory has some unintended rewards ! I'm a motorcycle addict , I just can't help myself ! I've also been fooling around with an old painting I did . I've radically altered it and turned it into a different piece of artwork that expresses some of what I experienced as a young man in the late 1960's  . I can't wait for the inventory to be finished because I have a head full of ideas I want to paint with . But, for now the digital will just have to do.

It's titled Psychedelic Discorporation

The Big Inventory Job

 Been down in the basement this last week sorting through boxes and boxes of motorcycle parts. It's an overwhelming job at times but I'm finally starting to see progress. I've been collecting parts for the 4 models of Yamaha two stroke bikes I'm interested in for the better part of forty years now . Last inventory was twenty years ago when we moved into the house we now live in. It all started way back when my little 1969 Yamaha DS6C got stolen from my back yard in 1978 . What happened is that it got
stolen, destroyed, and recovered back in the late 70's . It sat while I fooled around with this 650 Thiumph that was nothing but grief and
aggravation , sold it and found myself without a bike . That lasted for about
3 days. I looked around and found this 70 DS6 with no papers.
Back then no papers was a real problem so I got the bike
cheap. I had the paper on my DS6C so I took the new one apart
and set it up on my DS6C frame. It was ugly but it was a good
runner. I drove it like that for 10 years. It was my only bike! I looked
and looked but could never find a DS6C . In 1985 it needed work so I bought a 1971 Yamaha R5 to replace it . Then I found a ds6 parts bike to fix my old DS6C . Got her running again  so now I had two bikes on the road and running. One day I saw a 1966 Yamaha YM1 for sale in the paper so I bought it. This got me started on this thing about finding a YDS3 like I had back in the 60's and crossed the country on. The M1 was a close relative of the YDS3 so I started to restore the
blue YM1 and started sending out wanted pictures of a DS6C in
all my letters and parts orders. One day I received a call and
some guy in Pa. told me about this Harley Dealer in NJ. who had
about 100 old Yamahas in a storage building.It turned out the
dealership was originally a Yamaha dealership and these were
all just left behind by the previous owner. I called and made an
appointment for the next day and when I got there I couldn't
believe my eyes. There were about 150 Yamahas from the 60's
just sitting there and a parts room full of NOS parts! I found my
DS6C and another one for parts.The good one was left there in
1969 over an unpaid repair bill!! It had 1400mi on it,a dented
tank,smashed instruments and a dented rear fender,the rest of
the bike was like new.I got the pair for 300 dollars. After we did
the deal I asked if I could look around the parts room some.The
owner said sure go ahead so I did. I found a YDS3 front fender
and all sorts of bits and pieces for my M1. I also found a front
brake for the TD1B that my friend Don Scarborough was
building. This place was a gold mine. Over the next year I told all
my friends about it and we cleaned him out. The one thing he
didn't have was a green DS6C gas tank. That was the only part I
needed to get back my DS6C. I looked and looked and one day I
found one in NC. at Wilson Cycle Center. This place turned out to
be another gold mine.The owner was a real gentleman. He used
to send me my parts with a bill and give me 30 days to pay! So I
order the tank and I wait and wait,no tank.  I call, he says he sent it
UPS so I track it.  It turns out he sent it to my friend Don in
Michigan. I finally get the tank and a fully restored DS6C with
1400 miles on it. Like the YDS3 I use it all the time and it looks
and runs as good as the day I finished it.I 've owned this bike
since 1972.  I rode it to Newfoundland, all over the Adirondacks,
and Main & Nova Scotia. It's probably the best motorcycle I have
ever owned but now that I've been riding my 1975 Moto Guzzi 850-T for the past 15 years  it's now a tie between them in this best of contest. So, this is how I ended up with all these damn motorcycle parts . I just kept on bringing home wrecks ,broken ,non running rusted bikes that people didn't want. I stripped them for whatever parts I could salvage  and built an inventory of parts to keep my bikes going .I haven't been in a dealership to buy parts since way back in the 1970's ! Now I'm an old man and I need to lighten up the load a bit so it's a good thing I'm spending all this time down in the basement digging through boxes of motorcycle parts. I think of it more as treasure which makes it hard to part with but I have been selling parts for a while and as I go through it it's getting easier to let go. Look , I sold that beautiful DS6C I built as a replica of my original one. It was orange when it came from the factory but I could only find green parts in the 1990's so I restored it as a green one.  Had to have factory paint and chrome to keep it original . I learned to do auto paint and then built an orange one.  Well age brings an end to the needs to have certain things and having two of the same bikes is one of those things so I let the orange one go. This is sort of how I feel about the inventory of parts now. I'm coming to accept that I won't be needing all these parts and motorcycles much longer.  I turn 75 in April . I'll always have a few but I don't need 6 registered and another 6 or 7 projects . So, this winter project is a good thing for me. Here are some photos of the mess I'm dealing with and how it's shaping up.

The original 1969 DS6C that I bought in 1972  

What she looked like in the 80's 

What she looked like in the 90's and still looks like today 

And finally the replica I built of her in orange that I sold to a guy in California who I since became friends with.  This is what I love most about riding motorcycles , you always make these incredible friends . These two photos are of the day I finished it and the day I handed it off to the shipper

But , who knows , as I keep going through these boxes of parts I keep finding all this cool stuff to work with. So far I only dealt with the YDS3/YM1 parts.There were over 60 boxes when I finished this model . Today I start on the DS6 model. Who knows what I'll find in there and how it may or may not inspire me.I have a strange feeling there is another orange DS6C in my future only this time it will have the European fuel tank and it will be a keeper. I think it would look real good in orange with this tank .

I traded a seat for this tank. In the US it's a rare piece , not so much in Sweden where it came from. I can't ever see myself not in the motorcycle world !