The trip to San Diego is postponed late Thursday (12/6) night. Instead a meeting will be held at Cal State LA on Sunday at 11am. This makes things easier though I was looking forward to the San Diego trip.
I leave work a bit early and go for a bicycle ride down the LA river. Today feels like the very first day of my "Practice Retirement" back in October - it's a sunny day, I'm out cycling on the river, I'm cresting a hill, and I pop another spoke. The bicycle dealer is really going to hear about this one.
I go to the International Motorcycle Show on Friday (12/7) night
and wander around looking at the new models and accessories.
I'm rounding a corner and I see it - I recognize it from the
carbon fire front disk rotor. It is chained off, but I reach
over the chain, stretch as far as I can, and touch it. There
is a frown from somebody nearby, but it doesn't matter now
because I touched it. And I fall to my knees and give
thanks. And now my life starts to sound like a MasterCard
commercial:
Valentino Rossi's all conquering, ill-suited for mere mortals,
fastest motorcycle in the universe, carbon fibre everything,
two stroke Honda NSR 500 motorcycle: $1,000,000 plus!
Touching Rossi's motorcycle: Priceless!
The feelings that I get from touching the motorcycle are on par with touching the Renault RE40 twin turbo F1 car (one lap 1500 horsepower from 1500cc hand grenade at 6 atmospheres of boost) in 1983 and with touching the Stanley Cup in 1993.
The next few days are a blur. There is a meeting with Person D on Saturday, two club visits on Saturday night, a meeting with Person T on Sunday, and the "moved" San Diego meeting at Cal State LA (which has been moved again to Monterey Park).
Saturday night sees Despairugus and Suzanne Somer's Thighs playing at Nirvanarama. After both groups finish, and I rid myself of the mediocre performances, I head over to RedDragon at the El Rey. Some of the trance/techno music is actually passable though I just space out and "lose myself" in the music. I don't speak to anyone because there is really nothing to say.
I am in bed by 3am Sunday morning and out the door for a (cold) 30 mile bicycle ride by 7:30am. It is refreshing to get into a rythym and crank!
The meeting in Monterey Park, originally to be with Chinese and Singaporan people with money, has been changed. Now the Thais want to get involved. Though I don't find out about this until I arrive. I make the best of the situation.
We conclude the meeting and the Thai people want me to fly to Thailand and visit in Chaing Mai. (Chaing Mai is in the northern region of Thailand - in the mountains.) I agree to fly to the northern region of Thailand but only if they will get me into and out of Burma (which is only about 200 km away at that point). There are many looks of disbelief on a number of people's faces as well as the usual comments about Dr. Manning being as adventurous with his own life as he is with artificial life.
I'm flying (more or less) down the 710 freeway for home
when the Dead Kennedy's "Holiday in Cambodia" comes on.
This is just what I needed. My life is coming around
quite nicely!
"It's time to taste what you most fear"
"Well you'll work harder
With a gun in your back
For a bowl of rice a day
Slave for soldiers
'Til you starve
Then your head is skewered on a stake."
By Sunday night I am running out of steam. I am in bed and asleep by 8:30pm. But I'm up again on Monday morning at 5:30 am to go out for a run. It is cold. It is very cold! But it is a good run and a great start to this very chaotic and busy week.