HJC Symax

Four years I've been wearing the same helmet, I replaced the helmet liner once, it's been a good helmet. The strap started fraying on the end, and it shows signs of wear. It's an HJC Symax. Well, I met my friend Phil for dinner on the way home... and the helmet opened fine when I got off the bike to meet him. But when it came time to leave, it was locked and wouldn't open. I had to take my glasses off and wear it like a regular full face. Putting my glasses on with the visor open. When I got home, I finally got it open... but one of the latch pins had locked permanently and broken. I guess that's not bad for four years of wear. However, this leaves me with only one helmet, a Shoei full face a friend gifted me. I don't trust the HJC to work right with only one side latched, so I had to break down and get a new one. Almost $200.00 for one in Pearl White like my old one. The HJC Symax II is out, but it's almost $300.00, has silver colored vents. The Symax has had improvements over the one I had, but doesn't have the Symax II internal sun visor but I've read it adds a lot of weight and the visor has to roll up into the shell which makes me wonder if it would mess with the foam in the helmet. So I went and got the same model as before, but it has the new super vent. My semi-new helmet liner will work in the new one when I need it, and my visor, and smaller parts will work as spares on the new helmet. The old one will be confined to it's bag on a shelf in the garage for when I need spare parts.

Frustation and letters in the shredder

When was the last time you wrote an honest to goodness, hand written letter? On nice paper, with a decent pen. Taking time to think the words through, to write something akin to something from another century, another time? Not very long ago for me, or well, I started one. I've learned people can disappoint you in life. People closest to you, people you trust explicitly will do things for all the wrong reasons and betray your trust. I'm too trusting at times, I give everyone a good helping of trust when I meet them... they gain more through their actions and character.

In the Seven Habits class though, they say that's called making a deposit. One withdrawal though can equal several deposits. Too many withdrawals and your trust is gone forever. I decided to write a friend a letter today, someone out of state. Just to revive that letter writing tradition, see if it could be done. When I got home though, they'd made a withdrawal which caused me to shred the half written letter. I think this electronic medium, has led us to be too impatient. Texting one another back and forth can grate on each others nerves. If someone doesn't like chatting with texting, or is busy then it can drive you or them nuts!

We're so used to instant communication, always on connections. I find myself sometimes wishing for a wireless laptop with anywhere internet access so I can stay connected to my friends, but how connected are you really?

It's all just superficial when you think about it. A phone call is better, a letter is tangible, and being able to touch wood at the same table over a cup of coffee is extremely valuable We're becoming digital hermits I am afraid. Stuck at home, chatting... or stuck in traffic, texting... When does it break, when do we have patience again. When do we take the kind of care with our friendships like we should again? I know that true friends will stick when it comes to separating the wheat from the chaff but I still find it annoying that I really like some of the chaff that has been separated out and wish things could be different.

Letter writing is a dead art, hand written ones anyway. Why revive it though when disappointment in someone's actions can cause you to shred what you put so much love into crafting? When the words seem hollow because a friend made a decision that didn't seem right.

Indiana Jones

Well, I went and saw Indiana Jones. I was supposed to go see Prince Caspian with my friend Martene, but she knew I really wanted to see Indiana Jones so that's what happened. It was awesome. I love Harrison Ford, they tied up a lot of the old stories and tied things back to Raiders too which was awesome... and Indiana now has a successor. Some of it was way over the top. A couple of scenes in fact... Indy's successor is a motorcyclist BTW and there are a lot of scenes featuring his bike. I figure any future films will feature that. I'll get it on DVD when it comes out for sure.

I had no clue that they were gonna make a new Indy Movie last year when I finally bit and bought myself some fedoras. I've really enjoyed having them, and seeing Indy wearing a Brown Fedora with a Black Gosgrain ribbon in the new movie made me happy I went with the Jaxon Crushable Safari II in the same color. My black fedora is just as nice and the summer fedoras I bought are really cool. I like the white one the best though for summer wear.

$3.84 a gallon

Yesterday gas was $3.84 a gallon in Maumelle, for regular. Premium was well over $4.00!

An article in the New York Times says that speculators are responsible for a $30.00 markup on a barrel of oil from a study a few years ago. OPEC claims that refiners are not buying oil, they're limiting the supply of gas to push the cost up.

All I know is that what used to cost me $40.00 a week for groceries is now costing me $60.00 a week for groceries.

Inflation on the cost of fuel and food has steadily been outpacing pay increases for most Americans.

I may have said this before, but I feel like my dad did in the 80's. Politicians are no good, they're working for special interests and those interests aren't necessarily working for the good of our economy or the country. I'm really ticked off about how little congress and the president are doing. They are so out of touch with reality that I think they must all be insane.