Give Me Some Sugah

     We each have our own points of interests in our lives which occupy the rest of our time away from work, or, if you are lucky enough, what you are most passionate about might actually be your line of work. For some people their hobbies may involve the outdoors like fishing, skiing, hiking; others may prefer indoor activities like handicraft making, knitting, reading. Whatever takes up your time enough for you to devote some considerable amount of effort to sustain it is what drives you. 

     I, on the other hand, have many passions. Like all things passionate you can never stop talking and writing about what you love doing the most, right? One of my favorite past time is about cars. My favorite marque is, of course, PORSCHE. After seeing LE MANS ( a 70's film featuring Steve McQueen ) and hearing that famous 917's flat 12 wailing away down the Mulsanne Straight, I fell in love with porsches. My ideal Porsche? That would be a 1969 to 1973 911 ( pre-1969 versions were shorter in wheelbase). Take out the old and tired 2 liter flat 6 and put a 3.6 liter from the 964 911's. Update the brakes, stiffen the chassis a bit with a roll bar and some plates in key areas, change the rear torsion bars, install a bigger diameter sway bar up front and back, and finally cut out the wheel arches in the bask and install 911SC flares. Sounds like a recipe of a clone of another iconic 911, the Carrera RS, right? The funny thing is as you venture on to create your perfect 911 the more and more you tend to veer it towards the Carrera RS. That car was( and still is) that good. You see, I still adhere to the old notion that 911 means air cooled. Call me a heretic but the older 911's are my thing. Easy to work on and modify and rewarding if you know how to throw it around a corner.

     But like most of you car guys, I spend my time sitting in my garage wondering how and where to start in reviving my lowly 1979 Porsche 924, forever regretting not buying the "other" porsche when it presented itself to me in what may seem a millenia ago, a 1970 porsche 911T. I can never forget that and forever I shall regret not buying it. Alas, as fate would have it here I am in my lowly 924,lacking any luster and care. Covered in tarp and smelling like nothing you ever smelled before, I really feel sorry for it. Potential it has in plenty but the effort to extract it not to mention the cost of doing so just doesn't measure up to what I call the "Is it worth it?"  scale. But don't get me wrong, I will make my little 924 a screamer one day. Just as long as I get my head out of the clouds dreaming of that perfect  911. Oh well, maybe someday.  Yup, Someday. Give me some sugah! Mwah! 

     Ah, but enough of cars. Let's talk about the other finer things in life. We will make my little dreamscape charade above our point in case example. Why do we continually wish for things we may never have (or had but already lost them) when we fail to see what we have in front of us? In search for bigger, better, and finer things we set lofty goals in front of us unaware and perhaps even unheeding of the present, the now, the here.    

I'll say it again as I have said it numerous times in my past posts-" There are many things in life we have no power of changing and controlling, BUT of the few things we have power over, we certainly can change them". Make the moment count by being in it, immersing your totality in it, and addressing the needs that accompany it. That goes for just about every area in your life from the way you treat your body ( health), your lifestyle, your relationships, your outlook, your spirituality, etc. The biggest regret that I can think of is when one day you may ask yourself could you have done more. Were you aware at the time that there was more that needed doing? You understand now?

     Going back to my feeble life, yes my little 924 is my darling, after all, it's my first porsche. It wouldn't carry that badge if it wasn't worthy of the marque, I keep saying to myself. Ahh, the possibilities.... Until then, be passionate,love yourself and one another, keep trying to change for the better, and always fight the good fight. JowelMD signing off.

Free and About

     Anyone who has ever ridden a motorcycle know how different the experience really is from being in a car. Exposed to the elements with the wind deafening, hair tugged about every which way the wind preferred, and a panoramic view of anything and everything around you. It is sort of like riding a horse as compared to riding in a carriage. Freedom abound. Danger abound. But we live for danger don't we? It's when we are faced with inherent dangers and overcome them triumphantly do we feel really alive. So why am I writing about motorcycles? Well I am writing about motorcycles because I have yet to see the perfect bike for me. Well, some people prefer japanese,some prefer british,and some prefer american iron. But it doesn't really matter what and which brand you prefer above all else just as long as you can ride it till your butt wears off.

     Call me a hapless romantic but I want my mtorcycle to be as raw as they come, as simple as they come, and as dependable as they come.Yes, I do like choppers, bobbers, cafe racers, and everything beyond that and between but I want my bike to be unassuming, moderate in power, handles like a superbike, and as comfortable as your favorite TV chair. In other words I want a bike I can live with on a day to day basis. My idea of a perfect bike? A custom of course.

     I want my bike to be  zero degrees rake and zero degrees stretch. I want adjustable suspension in the front and rear. I want four piston breaks on both ends. I want a stretched tank. Finally I want a motor somewhere in the neighborhood of 100 to 130 cubic inch. Say I want something in the neighborhood of Sportster-meets-Cafe Racer but not too street fighter looking. Paint? Nothing flashy really, just flat black. Do you see where this is going? Motorcycle enthusiasts ( as what I politically correctly call bikers) can spend hours on end talking about their bikes and the modifications they have done to them. In fact, a whole culture has spawned from this obsession. The aftermarket following of motorcycles brand A to Z is just astounding. 

     So what am I really driving at here? One word-CHOICES. We all have our passions in life and we CHOOSE to pursue them, we CHOOSE to nurture them, and we CHOOSE to live them on a day to day basis, 24-7. So why don't we apply our tenacity with the same aplomb on other areas in our lives like say, our HEALTH,our RELATIONSHIPS, our OUTLOOK. We pursue the things that interests us the most but pay no heed to the things that matter more in the grander scheme of things. I am not saying we are lacking, no we are far from that. I am merely hinting that regardless how perfect your life may look ( if perfect it is) there are still some areas that needed fine-tuning just like that finely tuned Sportster you may have in that garage of yours. An open mind allows us to uncover areas in our lives in need of polishing. A forgiving heart enables us to accept and overcome whatever shortcomings we may encounter along the way. A free spirit enables us to see the world as it really is, beyond all that bling and zing and katching. So,LET 'S RIDE!!