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A few years ago when I was running my own  computer store in a little town of 5,000, a good friend/mentor was running a auto body shop. One day at lunch, he was describing a dilemma he was dealing with in his business. He began discussing one of his employees by saying he was dependable, hard working, and  easy to work around. I could sense the impending "but". "But",  he continued, and he began airing his frustration with the body man's finish work. The guy could disassemble the car, perform structural repairs, straighten frames, weld, bolt on new body panels, and all the heavy lifting parts of the job. But  when it came down to the fine details of bondo or fiberglass, filling, sanding, and preparing to paint, he seemed to come a bit short. The owner said it seemed that "aww, that good enough" seemed to be the sentiment on detail work. The owner said he spent hours on end showing him the process, sanding, smoothing, test painting, sanding agai...

For several years, if you went shopping for a motorcycle, the one thing you would not have been offered was a test ride. It was just a non-negotiable due to insurance issues. A few years ago, that began to soften a bit. Harley-Davidson dealers began to have "Demo Days" a couple times a year where they would put out eight or ten bikes and anyone with a valid motorcycle license could take a guided ride on any or all of the selected models. With the economy tanking and sales of motorcycles at an all time low, test rides have been on a come back. Even Harley-Davidson dealers are advertising test rides and providing scheduling of test rides for potential customers. Harley-Davidson Try a Bike Victory Motorcycles raised the stakes on test rides recently. Victory Test Ride Victory is making a $100 wager with potential customers. Take a test ride on one of their Victory models, then take a test ride from a competitor. If you buy the competitor's motorcycle, Victory will giv...

Over the last couple of weeks, I have talked to friends and family that have been struggling to deal with the events that life has been dumping in the laps as of late. A co-worker who just buried her best friend the weekend before last was at her parent's for dinner last night, and her father had a heart attack. Another friend is struggling with a son's addiction and pursuing intervention. Another struggling with customers who drop of tons of work but then duck and dodge him when its time to pay and pick up their work. Another dealing with a son debating dropping out of college. The list goes on and on. At times, we can get caught up in the events of day to day life and begin to feel like its a frustrating struggle. But be of good cheer. Remember what Jesus told his disciples at their last meeting? John 16:33:   “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” There i...

So what do you do when it is too cold or raining too hard to be out enjoying riding your motorcycle? Read about motorcycles of course :) Here are a couple of books I have enjoyed reading over the last couple of years on motorcycles: Leanings by Peter Egan In case you have lived under a rock and do not know who Peter Egan is, he has written for Cycle World since 1977. Leanings is a collection of his tales from his failed attempt at a cross-country riding trip on a British Twin to his journey along the abandoned Route 66. Egan sprinkles in his frustrations at motorcycle maintenance. His humor and adventure makes it worth the read. Leanings 2 by Peter Egan Another grand collection of stories and adventures from a man who loves motorcycles and playing in a garage band. The Old Man and the Harley by John J. Newkirk In 1939, a nineteen year old man sets out on a Harley VL Big Twin to see the New York's World Fair and the San Francisco Golden Gate Exposit...

Romans 8:26-27 (NIV)   26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God. Psalm 139:1-4 (NIV)   1 You have searched me, LORD,    and you know me. 2 You know when I sit and when I rise;    you perceive my thoughts from afar. 3 You discern my going out and my lying down;    you are familiar with all my ways. 4 Before a word is on my tongue    you, LORD, know it completely. I cannot begin to tell you how many times I have heard someone decline praying in a small group or in public because they say "I don't know what to say" or they are concerned about their public appearance. A few times I have seen it go so far that a father did not want ...

The weather guessers predicted rain this week, so begrudged, I commuted in the cage. One morning it was a deluge and traffic was horrendous, but by the afternoon the sun was out. And to add insult to injury I saw a couple motorcycles on the highway on the commute home. But I was holding on to the prediction that the rain would end Wednesday night and it would be clear, windy, and colder Thursday morning. WRONG! I awoke Thursday morning to rain beating on the bedroom window. The first thought through my mind was I am not willing to fight metro traffic in this weather on the bike. So another commute in the cage. And again traffic was maddening, a 42 mile drive took and hour and 20 minutes. But at least I had time to pray for friends and family dealing with illness and co-workers suffering the loss of a friend. This morning it was cloudy and 37F. That was all I needed. A Sweater under my riding leathers, a fleece scarf, and a insulated half mask under my fullface helmet and I was adeq...

It seems last year Mario Batali hosted a charity event at Texas Motor Speedway in November called "Asphalt Chef" and threw down a challenge to Guy Fieri (you know the Camaro driving guy from Divers, Drive-ins, and Dives). Well Guy responded accepting this challenge with this video. Apparently Mario Batali likes to wear orange crocs. And, apparently, Guy owns a big truck!

(Image Source: maineguidesupply.com) Maybe it's because I am approaching the 50 year mark, maybe it is something else, but over the last year, I have begun to assess where I have been over the last 47 years and then started looking ahead. It is almost like De Ja Voues. I can remember enrolling in college all those years ago and wondering what the heck should I take? What the heck am I going to do as a career? What do I want to do with my life? At this point, it starts out more like, "What have I done with my life?" and "What would I like to do different?" I have taken advantage of numerous opportunities over the last 25 years to supplement my education with various courses of study that have continually opened doors along my career path and have prevented me from running into the stonewall of a particular path that was dying away. In the technology world, I have seen that happen multiple times and have been fortunate enough to step over into another path and co...