I don't get it

Why do Republicans think the government makes mistakes everywhere but in the application of the death penalty?

In a similar vein, this from Thomas Friedman, who makes some good arguments in re: hypocrisy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/opinion/sunday/friedman-why-i-am-pro-life.html?src=me&ref=general&_r=0

Ricky Gervais tells the truth

Makes sense to me.

And also, how about those Giants? Special shout out to the die-hard Giants fans that read the blogspace. Win 6 elimination games? I guess, if you want to keep it interesting. Sweep the Tigers, with their awesome pitching and superb sluggers? No problem.

I hope it was as good this time as it was the last time.

48 lbs. of Sweet, Sweet Sugar

 This is Reese. She's going through a rough patch right now after a couple surgeries but it doesn't seem to have affected her mood any. She's still the sweetest dog in the world. She just wants to be close to you so that you can pet her and give her a hug, and also bask in her sweet loveliness. The truth is she is spoiled with love and affection but I wouldn't have it any other way. She's friendly with everyone: dogs, people, cats, kids, whatever. Never an unkind word or deed.

Careful observers will notice that she's flossing a new tacticool Cobra buckle collar in Multicam from Original SOE Gear. Suits her, because she is one tough cookie. The S.O.E gear collar is not inexpensive but, as my girlfriend likes to say, "it's her only accessory".

Back to back bikes!

Been busy and doing some stuff which I will share next week.

In the interim, this is kind of fun. Daniel Craig is my favorite Bond.

Attitude adjustment

Slow

Before I sold the bikes I did track days, mostly at Fontana. Long time readers have seen the photos already. Track days are supposed to be about doing your fastest lap, not racing the other guys. (Racing laps are usually slightly slower because the racing line leaves less room for you to be outbraked and then blocked in a corner; the fastest way around the track is the 'qualifying line', which is your ideal line for a track day run.) Anyway, that's a good idea in theory but as soon as you get geared up and hit the track for your hot laps it pretty much goes out the window; you end up trying to both go as fast as you can and also catch/pass the guy in front of you.

Some backstory for the n00bs: Most track day organizations break riders into groups. Easiest way to describe this is slow, medium, and fast. They're all probably light-years faster than you, but we're speaking in relative terms here. Anyway, you start out with the slows and then you move up through the groups as your lap times come down. Getting bumped (that's the word you use) feels pretty good. You get waved off and they tell you to get a new number and you ride with the faster group. It can only happen twice at any given track / organization so it's a good feeling.

My last (ever?) track day I started in the slow group and was doing pretty well. I was helped by the fact that I had a great bike, good tires, tire warmers and good gear. My lap times were near the top of the sheet for every session and I was passing fools left and right. Since I started out getting passed by everybody on my first track day last year, it felt really good to feel fast. After several sessions the marshal in charge asked me to move to the next group. Awesome, I thought. I got this.

As I was picking up my number and joining the medium group for the first time the guy in front of me was stopped and they told him he was being demoted to the slow group. I thought, ahh, what a chump, can't keep up with the middle group? That's not even fast! Come on man! Get out of the way! I chuckled knowingly to myself.

When I checked out his bike I realized that he had an artificial leg that started above the knee.

He had set up his motorcycle so that he could race with only one good leg. The artificial limb was wedged into the right side of the bike so that he could hold on when cornering, accelerating and braking. Just FYI: on a track day ride you spend almost all your time doing one of those three things. It is exhausting, both mentally and physically.

You can imagine how I felt, sitting on my shiny bike, with all my fancy equipment and my lame attitude. I was humiliated and ashamed. I am ashamed still.

So: life lessons. 

I ended up going out for my session and doing okay there and the rest of the day. No crashes, no issues. It was a great day for the most part. I didn't see the other guy again, but I'll never forget him. As lame as I was, he was the opposite. x1000

That would be awesome

It would be great if climate change deniers applied the same healthy skepticism to their religious beliefs.

Oh nothing. Why do you ask?

Savasanna is my favorite pose

Not much to report. Sure I could write 500 words on election stuff but that's annoying. So, as a placeholder, here's a kitten wrapped up in a yoga mat. It's linked from Alligator Sunglasses so enjoy it while it lasts.

The Ron Swanson Pyramid of Greatness

You know you want it

Been watching a lot of Parks and Recreation with the girl. I think we just finished the first season. I'm not strictly sure. It's basically The Office in a different office. (Full disclosure: I don't watch The Office - I just heard the shows described that way and it sounds right to me.) Parks and Rec is pretty good. I'd say good to great in spots, although occasionally it lands a bit flat so it's not consistently great.

What you need to know is: Ron Swanson ruleth.

Typing of tv, you might also like this article about Cheers, which was one of the best TV shows ever. One (depressing*) sentence from the article:

By 1993, at the end of its eleven-season run, it was earning a now unheard-of 26 million viewers per week.
The top network sitcom today, The Big Bang Theory, averages 18 million; cable sitcoms get by on a few million.

* How is Big Bang Theory the most watched network television program? It's like the McDonald's of television: bland, boring and stupid beyond description. Oh. I just answered my own question.

Sold

Sold the motorcycles. Yes, both of them. Managed to divest myself of the depreciating assets without crashing, which was down mostly to luck in the early going. Later on it was luck with some actual rider skill. But also luck.

Been getting questions from my peeps about why I sold the bikes.  Easy: the rewards of riding no longer outweighed the risks. Track riding got to be too much hassle and expense. Street riding is too hazardous, and riding a superbike on the street is fun for about the first 10 minutes and then it's just a pain in the ass. And hips. And knees. And back. (You get the idea.) On the track the ergonomics make sense. On the street, not so much. If I get another bike someday I will get one that is more street-friendly and comfortable. There's a lot to be said for an upright riding position, so a Vespa or similar may be an option down the road.

Sometimes I miss motorcycles riding. There is nothing like pinning the throttle on a motorcycle and going as fast as you can.

On the other hand, I don't find that I miss motorcycle ownership.