Being politically active gets results

So about two weeks ago I was reading an article from the January issue (starting on page 42) of American Motorcyclist magazine about the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, also known as the Lead Law, that restricts the amount of lead that can be in products intended to be sold for/to children under the age of 12.  This law was passed last year and sounds like a good thing, right?  Well, it is, for the most part.  We don’t want kids eating toys with lead in them.

The problem is that it wasn’t thought through, like so many other laws we have passed anymore.  This law has the unfortunate side effect of making basically all youth-model motorcycles and ATVs illegal to sell due to the amount of lead used in the construction of motorcycle engines (amongst other parts).  Here’s the real kicker.  When this issue was brought up, Congress acknowledged that this was an unintended consequence and issued a year long exemption from the law to see if something could be done about it in a more permanent fashion.  So the American Motorcyclist Association took the fight to the people in charge of the council that would be able to change this.  Guess who that is?  West Virginia’s senators, Rockefeller and Byrd.  Guess what the AMA was told by Rockefeller when they had their appointment?  That he didn’t think children should be riding motorcycles anyway.  How much bull $hit is that?!

Obviously I got fired up.  I don’t even have kids, but I sure as there is a Heaven want any future ones to be able to ride a dirt-bike that is appropriately sized for them if they should want to!  So I wrote my governor, Joe Manchin III, who happens to be an avid motorcyclist, a letter to see if there is anything his office is doing or can do to try and help get this changed.  Then I went onto the AMA’s Facebook page and told them I was a West Virginian and was disappointed that my senators were the ones responsible for not letting an exemption be made and that I had written my governor a letter about it.  A few days later I get a Facebook friend request from someone I’ve never heard of.  So, doing the responsible thing, I clicked his name to see his profile.  It said his name was Bill Kresnak and he works for the AMA magazine as Government Affairs Editor.  Being surprised and curious, I confirmed his friend request.  A few minutes later I had a message from him that read as follows:

We want to use the comment you left on the AMA facebook page and your photo in [the March issue of] American Motorcyclist magazine.  Do we have your permission to do so?  Thanks.

I of course gave him my permission and am very excited to see my little facebook pic and quote in the March issue.  That’ll make two publications I’ve been quoted in now!  Woo hoo!

A day or so after this, AMA sent out an email with a link that auto-generates a letter to your appropriate representatives based on what zip code you enter.  I filled it out and sent additional emails to both of these senators (since I’m from  WV) and congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito.  Well guess what?  Two days ago I got a letter back from Congresswoman Capito!  It wasn’t a stamped signature either, it was hand signed.  WV bikers, let it be known that Shelley is concerned with the future of motorsports in this state and has cosponsored legislation to exempt off-highway vehicles (dirt bikes and such) and all-terrain vehicles (4-wheelers) from the Lead Law!  How cool is that?!  I haven’t written a thank you letter yet, but I will be.

I do urge you readers, regardless of what state you live in, to click the links above, read the article, enter your zip code and contact info, and send your representatives a letter stating that an exemption needs to be made.  We need YOUR voices to help ensure that our children and future children can enjoy these sports.  Even if they don’t compete in tournaments, how many families would like to go out into the woods on dirt bikes or 4-wheelers together with everyone on their own vehicle?  Think about it.  I hope you’ll see my point. Make your voice heard.  Together we can make a difference.

Keep the rubber side down, and your powder dry.

She’s a whole new woman!

Well, I picked up my motorcycle from Evel Speed yesterday evening after work.  I had Travis over at Bucky’s Ltd. do the paint job, and Dwain at Evel Speed put her back together.  Man oh man does she look sweet!  I don’t have any pics  yet on account of the crummy weather we’ve been having, but as soon as a sunny day rolls around, you can bet I’m gonna be snapping a bunch!  Travis did awesome taking my idea from my girlfriend’s mock-up and bumping it up to the next level!  The rest of her may still be stock (for now…), but she is definitely no run-of-the-mill Warrior anymore!  She’s a great reflection of my ideals.  For those who aren’t familiar with the Gadsden Flag and why it so adequately and accurately portrayed the spirit of the American people at the time of its inception, here’s some light reading.

The following letter was published in the Pennsylvania Journal on December 27, 1775. It was signed by “An American Guesser,” recently identified as Benjamin Franklin. Written after the Revolution began but before the Declaration of Independence was signed, it offers a unique glimpse into Franklin’s observant mind.

The Rattlesnake as a Symbol of America

I observed on one of the drums belonging to the marines now raising, there was painted a Rattle-Snake, with this modest motto under it, “Don’t tread on me.” As I know it is the custom to have some device on the arms of every country, I supposed this may have been intended for the arms of America; and as I have nothing to do with public affairs, and as my time is perfectly my own, in order to divert an idle hour, I sat down to guess what could have been intended by this uncommon device — I took care, however, to consult on this occasion a person who is acquainted with heraldry, from whom I learned, that it is a rule among the learned of that science “That the worthy properties of the animal, in the crest-born, shall be considered,” and, “That the base ones cannot have been intended;” he likewise informed me that the ancients considered the serpent as an emblem of wisdom, and in a certain attitude of endless duration — both which circumstances I suppose may have been had in view. Having gained this intelligence, and recollecting that countries are sometimes represented by animals peculiar to them, it occurred to me that the Rattle-Snake is found in no other quarter of the world besides America, and may therefore have been chosen, on that account, to represent her.

But then “the worldly properties” of a Snake I judged would be hard to point out. This rather raised than suppressed my curiosity, and having frequently seen the Rattle-Snake, I ran over in my mind every property by which she was distinguished, not only from other animals, but from those of the same genus or class of animals, endeavoring to fix some meaning to each, not wholly inconsistent with common sense.

I recollected that her eye excelled in brightness, that of any other animal, and that she has no eye-lids. She may therefore be esteemed an emblem of vigilance. She never begins an attack, nor, when once engaged, ever surrenders: She is therefore an emblem of magnanimity and true courage. As if anxious to prevent all pretensions of quarreling with her, the weapons with which nature has furnished her, she conceals in the roof of her mouth, so that, to those who are unacquainted with her, she appears to be a most defenseless animal; and even when those weapons are shown and extended for her defense, they appear weak and contemptible; but their wounds however small, are decisive and fatal. Conscious of this, she never wounds ’till she has generously given notice, even to her enemy, and cautioned him against the danger of treading on her.

Was I wrong, Sir, in thinking this a strong picture of the temper and conduct of America? The poison of her teeth is the necessary means of digesting her food, and at the same time is certain destruction to her enemies. This may be understood to intimate that those things which are destructive to our enemies, may be to us not only harmless, but absolutely necessary to our existence. I confess I was wholly at a loss what to make of the rattles, ’till I went back and counted them and found them just thirteen, exactly the number of the Colonies united in America; and I recollected too that this was the only part of the Snake which increased in numbers. Perhaps it might be only fancy, but, I conceited the painter had shown a half formed additional rattle, which, I suppose, may have been intended to represent the province of Canada.

‘Tis curious and amazing to observe how distinct and independent of each other the rattles of this animal are, and yet how firmly they are united together, so as never to be separated but by breaking them to pieces. One of those rattles singly, is incapable of producing sound, but the ringing of thirteen together, is sufficient to alarm the boldest man living.

The Rattle-Snake is solitary, and associates with her kind only when it is necessary for their preservation. In winter, the warmth of a number together will preserve their lives, while singly, they would probably perish. The power of fascination attributed to her, by a generous construction, may be understood to mean, that those who consider the liberty and blessings which America affords, and once come over to her, never afterwards leave her, but spend their lives with her. She strongly resembles America in this, that she is beautiful in youth and her beauty increaseth with her age, “her tongue also is blue and forked as the lightning, and her abode is among impenetrable rocks.”

An American Guesser

Keep your powder dry.

So much pain…

So this past Tuesday I started re-taking Tae Kwon Do at my old Karate school, Quenzel’s Karate, here in Martinsburg.  It’s actually the Moo Duk Kwan style of TKD.  I achieved my last ranking/belt in 2001 and stopped taking shortly thereafter due to moving out of the area (college).  I have wanted to start back up again for years, though.  Being stationed in South Korea where my art was born only helped fuel that fire.  Unfortunately I wasn’t able to take while in Korea due to my knee injury and a limiting physical profile.

I decided at the end of last year, though, that I was going to start back up.  I think the exercise will be good for my knee in the long run, both by increasing strength in those muscles and flexibility in the leg.  I missed the first class of the month, but was told that I can join in both the Beginner and Intermediate classes until I feel like I’m ready to just fully rejoin the Intermediate class (where I belong).

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I remembered from my forms/katas and how to turn properly during exercises.  I fell right back in to that groove easily.  I was striking hard with my punches and kicks, pushing deep stances, everything that I should be doing for a student of my belt. And now I’m paying for it.  I’m soooo sore, even still today.  And I’ve got another class tonight.  Bring on the pain.

Wanna hear something else that’s funny?  My girlfriend is one of my instructors.  Yep.  She pretty much runs the Beginner class by herself, while she assists Master Dave with the Intermediate class.  I of course knew this when I started dating her and thought it was pretty cool.  To paraphrase Hoban “Wash” Washburne, she’s my “warrior woman”. 

Anyways, so if you see me limping around more than usual anytime soon, you now know why.

Keep your powder dry.

I’m not crazy, I just love riding!

So yesterday I jet home at lunch so I can swap out my Subaru for my Warrior.  Mind you, it was somewhere around the mid-thirties yesterday… without windchill added in.  You might ask why I would do such a thing.  Well, it’s twofold really.

The first and primary reason is that I had an appointment at Evel Speed in Inwood after work that day to take my bike and drop her off to have the fenders, tank, and side-covers removed so that I can turn them in for the custom paint job I’m having done.  Could I have arranged it so that the bike was trailered?  Most likely.  But that leads me to the second reason.

I just wanted to ride!  It was a relatively warm day compared to the others we have been having recently.  It also hadn’t snowed or rained in several days, so the roads were nice and clear and mostly free of dirt/salt/debris.  Riding in the cold… at least down into the 20’s (after windchill)… doesn’t bother me too much.  I like to layer my clothing anyway, so adding an extra jacket to the top and making sure there’s a scarf around my neck keeps me nice and toasty.  It’s the wet and cold that I don’t do.  That’s just dumb.

But anyway, you should have seen the looks I was getting from people when they saw me out riding.  I’d just wave and keep going.  They just don’t understand.  I make sure I’m safe about it, but when I get that itch to saddle up, I just gotta go!  Besides, riding along in the brisk winter air is good for you. 

Keep the rubber side down… and your powder dry.

Happy New Year

Let’s do a series of cliff-note updates:

Ooook, so as of the Monday following Christmas, I’m finally divorced!  Our hearing started 30 minutes late, but once we were in there it was seriously only like 5 minutes long.  Everything went off without a hitch and now we are both just waiting for the certificate in the mail… EDITED: …which I received in the mail today!

Total miles rode on my motorcycles in 2009: 6,960 miles.  We’ll see if that’s enough to win the little competition that my riding buddies from the gun range and I have going.  I even managed to go for a ride on New Year’s Eve AND New Year’s Day!  There’s so much I’ve got planned to do on my bikes this year, I can’t wait for the weather to turn nicer again!

I’ve been hanging out with my best friend Keith a lot while he’s home from Harvard.  We are pretty sure we haven’t been able to hang out together this much for about FOUR YEARS.  It’s been nice to finally get to spend some time together.  He even bought me an expresso machine for Christmas, but I really only wanted it for it’s attached milk steamer/frother.  I gotta have me my hot chocolate with a shot of hazelnut and cinnamon syrup and NO whip!

My girlfriend got me a sweet old school high-carbon steel straight shaving razor from Germany for Christmas, along with a hanging strop to keep it honed.  I can’t wait to get the other materials I need to begin using it.  I’m as impressed with the gift as I am the number of hours she spent doing research on which kind was the best to purchase.  Know how they say, “It’s the thought that counts”?, well this gift counts a whole lot!

Why I’m NOT divorced

So, here’s the long story short just so all you curious folk can be appeased.

The judge told my estranged wife and I basically as soon as we sat down that she couldn’t proceed with the divorce due to improperly filled out paperwork. This stunned us both. We really didn’t know how to respond. When we asked about it the judge said that the section declaring the reason for requesting the divorce on her (my wife’s) paperwork was left blank. This almost caused an uproar because it SPECIFICALLY states in the directions for filling out the divorce paperwork that if you are filing “irreconcilable differences” that no box needs checked and to leave that section blank because by default all WV divorces are for that reason. The judge said she was aware of this but that it says somewhere else (show me where!) that it does need checked.

So we ended up being dismissed and it was suggested we just go downstairs to the circuit clerk’s office and file our “amendmended” paperwork. Even the clerk thought this was weird and tried to call the judge about it (she was already in another hearing or just didn’t pick up).

The only good thing that came out of all this is that the judge said she’d try to fit us in sometime soon. She also said she had no idea why it took us since May to get a hearing and that the clerk most have misplaced our paperwork the first time.

I hate govenrment bureacracy so much. I’m so angry about this, you have no idea. Pay attention people, this is where following the directions that the government gives you gets you.

I’m not dead yet

So, I’d say that it’s been a busy couple months, and that’s not exactly a lie. I have, however, just been particularly distracted with everything going on to actually keep up with my blog.  For that, I apologize.  There’s been too much going on to update you on everything, but I can give you a few highlights.

My last official day in the Army was September 11th, and I’ve been a civilian ever since. It’s been great.  I started my new job with HMS Technologies, Inc. here in Martinsburg on the 14th of September.  It’s a great place to work, and my boss is awesome.  I really look forward to going to work.  I’m an accounting assistant.  Didn’t see that one coming years ago, but I’m surprised how much I enjoy working on cost proposals and budgeting spreadsheets.  I’m also probably going to a project manager course in January.  That would let me actually work as a project manager on a future contract that HMS wins, which means more responsibility and a lot more pay! 

Halloween this year was fun.  We didn’t have a party, but did get dressed up and go out to Outback to eat, then had a small campfire back at my girlfriend’s house.  My costume was a big hit.  I was a scarecrow (again), but wore a much more complicated costume.  I wore it to our church Harvest Party this past weekend and I’m pretty sure I scared more adults than kids.  Haha.  The kids were very interested in my mask and wanted to all touch it.

My divorce will be final next Friday.  That’s when the court date is, and it’s my understanding that it should be an in-and-out hearing since neither of us is contesting anything.  I’ve been counting down.  I’m just ready to get on with my life without having this hanging over my head.

My girlfriend and I are still together and getting along just fine. We’ve got a trip coming up to the Outer Banks to go to a friend of her’s wedding. That’s also next weekend.  It’s gonna be a long weekend.  We’ve been dress shopping for her to find a nice dress for my upcoming company Christmas party.  It’ a black & white ball being held in the ballroom of one of the nice hotels in the area.  I’m looking forward to getting to dress up again.  I’m gonna wear my Indy “Temple of Doom” tux and dinner jacket that I wore to the black & white ball I went to in Korea.

I bought a new motorcycle.  “Outrider” stopped running on me while out and about.  Just sputtered and died.  The guys at the shop thought it might have been my starter, so I finally relegated the maroon XJ to just being a parts-bike now.  Anyway, I had been thinking about getting a new bike for a while, and this was just the little extra push I needed.  My local Yamaha shop that does all the work on my bikes had a SWEET ‘06 Yamaha Road Star Warrior for sale.  Long story short, it’s my bike now, and it’s awesome.  Only problem I’ve had since I bought it?  We went down while coming home from church one night.  Don’t worry, I’m fine.  I just tore up my armored denim jacket a little and got some minor road rash.  I was only doing like 20 mph.  I thought it might have been something I did, but the intersection I went down in had (it’s since been re-paved) a reputation for being slick and causing lots of problems.  So now she’s got a pushed-in spot on the left side of the tank and a big scratch to accompany it.  I also scratched the air intake, bent the shifter and rear foot peg, and scratched the rear left blinker.  I’ve replaced the intake and shifter myself, but I’m waiting until there is no good riding weather left to turn the bike in to be re-painted.  Instead of getting it painted the same color, I’m just gonna go head and pay a little extra and have a custom job done.  My theme?  The Gadsden Flag.    My girlfriend is doing a mock-up for me in photoshop.  I think it’s gonna be pretty sweet when it’s all said and done.  I’m going to make sure it’s got “Don’t Tread On Me” since that’s part of the flag, but to go along with it, I’m gonna have “Molon Labe” put on there somewhere, too.  That fits right in with the theme, in my mind.  So for those too lazy to look it up, instead of being red with silver stripes down the tank, my new bike will be a yellow-gold (goldenrod?) color with a rattlesnake coiled around the tank, its head on the font fender and tail/rattle on the rear fender.

So that’s enough for now.  There’s plenty going on politically lately, so I’ll try to comment on that stuff sometime soon.  Anyway, as usual…

Keep your powder dry.

Wow, lots happening lately…

So I’ve had a very busy week or so.  Let’s see…

I was run off the road at night after it had rained by a guy who wanted to take a turn wide and drive through my lane.  This resulted in me breaking something around the suspension of my front driver’s side tire.  So my new car is now in the shop. I was less than thrilled about that, and to make matters worse, the cops that came to take my statement (for insurance purposes) were complete jerks.  Before even listening to what happened, they basically accused me of possibly being a liar and a drunk driver.  Add to this my already low opinion of the police (in general) in the area and I didn’t have much reason to be very polite back.  I proudly proclaimed that I had just driven back from Fort Meade that afternoon (in my car), had picked up a friend and had dinner in Winchester (driving my car), and had dropped her back off at her house (in my car) right before this happened.  They sort of stumblefooted around after that and just asked me to write my statement down.

I FINALLY got my orders and picked up my clearing papers yesterday.  I go on terminal leave from the Army as of next Wednesday and will be a free man again on September 11th.  This has me very excited.  I feel like I’m finally going to be able to get my life back to normal.

I’ve got a job already lined up for when I get off of leave.  I’m going to be working for HMS Technologies in Martinsburg.  They’re a small business that’s owned by a disabled vet who specialized in government contracts.  They were given my resume (not by me, mind you) and called me to set up an interview.  I really think this job will be awesome.  Pay is pretty good, benefits are awesome (full medical, dental, and eye care!), and every Friday the owner brings in a masseuse and gives each employee a 10 or 15 minute massage!  Friday is also casual day.  And we get miscellaneous holidays off (the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc…).

Now all I’ve gotta do is find my own place and I’ll be set!  I’ve actually got a meeting with an elderly woman trying to sell her house (at an outrageous price, mind you) next week.  I’m going to try and talk her in to letting me rent it from her while she keeps trying to sell it for crazy money.  I already looked at the house once while going through it with a friend of hers who is doing the reality work for her.  He seemed to like me, so I think that’ll help.

I’ve been hanging out with an old friend from my Tae Kwon Do days lately.  Things are a little different now than they were then… we’re both grown up.  She’s really cool, but that’s all I’m gonna say about that for now.  Let’s just say I’m trying to get use to talking to girls again.  LOL.  And she can kill me with her pinky.

Oh, and I got an iPhone.  I broke down and got one when my contract was up for renewal.  I’m actually pretty glad I did, too.  This thing has been really handy, and I use most of the extra features it has all the time.  My only complaint so far is battery life, but I’ve got like three different chargers for it (wall, USB, and car), so it’s not usually a problem keeping it charged.  Also, if I’m not messing with it a lot, it does just fine.

Anyway, so there’s the life update on me.  It’s been a while coming, but hey, I’ve been busy.  Catch you on the flip side.

Keep your powder dry.

Screw you, Toyota!

This is horrifying to me.  If it can run, it can chase us.  And apparently we will have trouble pushing it over.

Keep your powder dry.

Obamessiah as The Joker?

This is a stretch, even for me.

Posters Spotted Portraying Obama as “The Joker”

I’m curious to hear what you, the people reading this, think about this poster.  What message do you think the artist is trying to get across?

Me personally, I think he’s trying to say that Obama is trying to destroy America using Socialism as his weapon, much like the Joker did to Gotham with Anarchy.

Keep your powder dry.