For decades now, I’ve loved adventure, to push my limits. I even created a line, “If you never push your limits, you’ll never realize your true courage and abilities.” But that flows from my innate timidity—yeah, it comes close to my name. So I decided to face and conquer my fears. At 26, I embarked on a 3-month, 13,000 mile, 31 state motorcycle tour of the US. I rappelled down a 190 ft. Rio Grande bridge tower, on a 120 ft. rope. At the age of 70, I did an Iron Butt ride, 1,080 miles in 16 hours on 2 wheels. Yeah, some of us never learn. But…
Read MoreWhen Fear Cost Me a Beer
In God, a Motorcycle, and the Open Road, Chapter 3 told how I pulled into Groton, Connecticut, looking for a bar to view Nixon’s resignation during Watergate. If you have the book, pull out Chapter 3 to get the story in detail, but briefly, this long-haired hippie biker walked into what looked like a redneck bar, realized he better get out of Dodge, reversed course only to be accosted by a burly guy at the other end of the dark hallway, became VERY concerned, only to discover it wasn’t a burly guy, but my own reflection in a mirror. Yeah, one tough biker!
Then…
Read MoreFacing Down Your Fears
Near the end of my frosh year in college, I wrecked my dad’s car. A cherry 1963 Ford Galaxie 500 XL, with a 352 cubic inch, high compression V8. A friend had just been married, and we all decided to follow the new couple to their honeymoon location. The others, especially in my car, wanted us to be right behind, so I peeled out of the church’s parking lot, and even edged out a friend’s Corvette. But that 500 was a heavy beast, and when
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at Cowell State Park
Blasted!
For decades now, I’ve loved adventure, to push my limits. I even created a line, “If you never push your limits, you’ll never realize your true courage and abilities.” But that flows from my innate timidity—yeah, it comes close to my name. So I decided to face and conquer my fear. At 26, I embarked on a 3 month, 13,000 mile, 31 state motorcycle tour of the US. I rappelled down a 190 ft. Rio Grande bridge tower, on a 120 ft. rope. Just last summer, I did an Iron Butt ride, 1,080 miles in 16 hours on 2 wheels. At 70. Yeah, some of us never learn. Then…
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Unexpected Consequences
The pic above of a debate trophy represents a hasty decision I made, one motivated by fear and done without knowledge, one that changed the course of my life. Here’s the backstory. Back in junior high, with knees knocking to produce more sound than my voice, I gave an oral report. It...
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Follow Your Leader?
One entire day last week my wife and I shopped. For lighting fixtures for our bath and kitchen. Then, afternoon rush hour traffic in north San Diego County added a slow hour to our return. Likely one of the most exciting days of my life. So, to celebrate the joy, we mixed a couple of margaritas and relaxed by our waterfall to go over the day. Soon several birds landed on the fence behind the waterfall, and the count grew to seven. Cautious, wanting a bath, but leery of ...
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Masks
Revealing that a favorite song comes from the 60s doesn’t necessarily date me as ancient. One of my high school students also loves “I am a Rock” by Simon and Garfunkel--his parents play it all the time. But for years, my theme was the line, “and a rock feels no pain, and an island never cries.”
The safety of being a rock came from my fear of being known, of being rejected or judged, of being hurt or disappointed. So, I played it safe and let few inside. That verged on sliding into hypocrisy—knowingly and intentionally portraying a person I knew I wasn’t. By the way, that’s why many reject following Jesus. Not that we aren’t perfect, but we pretend to be.
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The same pic as a few months ago, but a VERY different story.
Do the Right Thing
I hopped on the bike and rolled out of West Lafayette, IN, about six in the morning, heading back to my beloved log cabin in Taos. I helped John get married, and yes, we pranked him. I convinced a bridesmaid who had a key to their apartment that I could be trusted, so we removed all the labels from the cans, put Kool Aid in the shower heads, Saran Wrap under the toilet seats—all the typical stuff. But that’s not the key part of the story.
The wide Kansas plains seemed flat and featureless and boring. I confess I broke the law. My Honda 750 cruised easy at 90-100, and out of the 100’s of cars I flew by, I remember two.
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