On Sunday Mike and I took the opportunity for a bike run to Kilmarnock-ish where the Ayr Classic Motorcycle club were holding a bit of a do. I am not the biggest fan of classic bikes, but I'm trying to train myself to like them the way I successfully did with whisky and risotto.
The stereotype of the biker is still alive and well. Huge bellied, bearded and bullish men, wearing enough leather to drown a horse, clutch tiny polystyrene cups of tea while pointing knowingly at featherbed frames and discussing whether that colour was the original 1964 or later 1965 hue. I didn't really fit in, not having the heritage, and I sort of scampered off every time it looked like someone was about to engage me in conversation. I feared an Invasion of the Body Snatcher type response. Think of a fat, baldy Donald Sutherland with a rollup.
The best fun was possibly looking at how other people had maintained, customised or ruined their bikes in the parking area outside. Scary bikes, small bikes, bike bikes, gay bikes, they were all there and revving up an assortment of (mostly illegal) exhausts. At £5 it was good value entertainment but I'll really need to do some homework before next time. Of course, it's the same dozen classic bikes which attend all the Scottish events so memorising them shouldn't be too hard, and then I too can say things like "Aye, that's a 74 like, tell by the caliper housing."
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Glad to see you back in Blogistan. Twitter is for Twits (and stupid idiots).
ReplyDeleteI'm intrigued by your decision to read to sick kids - motivation? Some kind of reaction to what wur auld pal Milan Kundera calls "the unbearable lightness of being" or are you plotting a Ricky Gervais style "it's ok to laugh at sick kids too" posting in the near future?
It's sort of witchcraft, karma, talisman stuff...if I go and read to them while things are fine for me then I can ward off ever having to visit the place on personal business...if you see........
ReplyDeleteAnd it's actually fun - kids who are pleased to see you rather than rolling their eyes because they know a spelling test is coming.
I've heard you spout this type of stuff before about warding off bad luck. Freaky, man.
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