I leave early tomorrow morning for Idaho. I’ve never ventured into the potato state, so I am geeked.
Before I go, there’s one more thing from Oregon: The Astoria Column in Astor Park.
The column depicts 14 different scenes in Northwestern history. The column is cool, but the views from the park are incredible.
Lewis and Clark forever!
Greg
I’m staying at the Cannery Pier Hotel in Astoria, OR. Every room has water views of the Columbia River. It’s hella sweet!
The Astoria-Megler Bridge from my room’s balcony.
This bridge spans the mouth of the Columbia River. It’s a biggun.
Lovingeveryminuteofit,
Gregory
However, I’m finding some time to enjoy myself.
I found my way to Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock on the Oregon coast.
It was most gratifying to walk in the ocean and take in a sunset.
Ahhhhhhhh,
Gregory
I was only in Portland for 30 minutes and I pulled together this scene…
Diggin it,
G
Firstly, I’m currently in the Minneapolis Saint Paul airport typing this on my cell phone. I’m on my way to Portland, OR for customer visits in OR and ID.
Secondmost, I seriously need to trade in this phone for another. Pressing the “o” button results in a “p” on the screen far tpp many times. See.
Third and trimost, I’m feeling pretty OK in the ribs and other areas. I appear to be healing. This feels good….physically (obviously), mentally and emotionally.
Fourthish, Friday (July 4th) was our nation’s 232nd birthday. Happy Belated Birthday, USA. I just — on the plane ride “just” — listened to a speaker who came to my church a while back. One subject he talked about was freedom. It struck a chord given our recent celebration of Independence Day.
He talked about the message he got from watching a movie (not sure which one) was this, “Freedom is like oxygen. Those who have it barely seem to notice it. Those who don’t are dying for lack of it.” Though I many times take it for granted, I’m grateful for my freedom.
Fiver, yesterday was the three year anniversary of my moving to New Hampshire. I do like it here. It’s a great place to live. Outside magazine thinks so. Portsmouth was just rated #4 of 20 “Best Towns 2008.” Word.
More later. Typing on this phone is killing me 
Much love,
Gregory
It’s late and I’m tired, but I owe you peeps an update. It’s been a while…
+ I took the entire week off from work. It was good to rest, when I could sleep.
+ I have taken to sleeping on an inflated queen-size air mattress on top of my bed. It seems to work in an I’m-not-having-so-much-pain kind of way, so I’m going to stick with it.
+ My ribs are feeling better. They started feeling better on the day I started taking the herbal stuff. Coincidence? I think not.
+ The bike is at Seacoast Harley-Davidson. They are saying it will cost over $2,500 to restore the bike to pre-accident condition. The appraiser from my insurance company should be there tomorow to approve/deny/whatever he does.
+ The NH State Trooper is not going to cite the kid who cut me off. The kid says he didn’t see an accident. Regardless, my insurance company should be going after his insurance company once we get the police report. That could take some time.
That’s it. Too much yawning.
G’night,
G
I heard from my insurance company appraiser. He finally made it out to see the bike. His initial estimate — which he knows is light — is at $1,000 (the exact amount of my motorcycle insurance policy deductible). Of course, it’s going to cost more than this and I expected to spend much more than my deductible. The Harley dealer said it’s going to be up to 50% more than the appraiser’s estimate. Whatever it takes to restore the bike to its previously minty condition.
I looked into my medical benefits and talked to the hospital on Monday. My health insurance deductible is $1,500, then I’m paying 10% of the costs up to my out-of-pocket maximum. According to the Portsmouth Regional Hospital ER, my bill is well over $8,000 from my Thursday night visit. My out-of-pocket maximum is $3,000. Blah, blah, blah…numbers. Whatever it takes to restore my body to its previously flabby condition.
If, for some reason, all of this insurance stuff comes back to me, I’m out at least $4,000. I have a call in to the NH State Trooper who is handling my case. I’m open to good news, but not holding my breath. The last time we spoke, he said — in order to be cited, the driver (a kid) would have to admit to leaving the scene of an accident he knows he caused. It would take one special kid (or family) to admit that. We shall see.
Honestly, I don’t care if the kid is cited unless it has a major impact on going after his insurance company for my costs. I really don’t see a reason to shell out $4,000 for something that wasn’t my fault. As an affirmation, I see “the right thing” happening and this will be a wee blip in all of our lives. Hopefully, the kid and I are both more aware.
My insurance agent tells me they (my insurance company) will go after the other insurance company to cover my losses whether the kid is cited or not. There was a third party witness — the other motorcyclist — who saw the whole thing. I’m guessing the objective witness is an integral part to the case the insurance company will build. His info should be in the police report.
That’s what I know today. Oh. I went to The Herbal Path natural pharmacy to get some homeopathic remedies, tinctures and such. Friends have turned me on to things like Arnica Montana (not the kid’s character), Rhus Toxicodendron (not an NFL wide receiver), Boneset, Vegetal Silica and Valerian Root. Who knew these things existed? Certainly, not me.
Personally, I was hoping to find some Skelegro in a dark corner of the herbal store. [Skelegro is a potion from the Harry Potter series which grows bones back to their original state in 24 hours.] Alas, there was no dark corner, nor did I ask.
Finally, I’m feeling pretty OK most of the day. Mornings, however, are rough. I wake up with some pretty good pain. I’ve tried increasing the vicodin. Meh. Sleeping can be rough. I need to find a more comfortable way to sleep…if that’s even possible. People have recommended solutions ranging from a canvas, army-style, frame cot to a recliner to more drugs. I need to find my happy place.
I’ll keep you in the loop as I learn more, peeps.
Much love,
Gregory
[I apologize if you're learning about this here. I don't have the energy to call everyone right now. If you want to call me, that's fine. Really, call away. Hopefully, you don't feel like I'm breaking up with you in a lousy email 
]
First and foremost, I’m mostly fine. I’m just a little banged up. I had an “incident” on Thursday night and got VERY lucky, all things considered. I’ll just come out and say it. I was in a minor motorcycle accident on Thursday night around 11:30pm. Like I said, I’m mostly fine.
I was riding the motorcycle when some bozo cut me off. There was no collision, but I laid the bike down going maybe 30MPH. It wasn’t fun. The driver of the car cut across my lane to an exit ramp just north of the Portsmouth traffic circle on the Route 1 Bypass. He never stopped.
I went down on my left side, broke a few ribs and got some minimal road rash. Pretty lucky. I stood myself up after the fall and was on my own two feet as witnesses called the cops.
Luckily, there was another motorcyclist who saw the whole thing. He was behind the car that cut me off. The other motorcyclist followed the car and got the plate number. Good man! He said he would have followed further, but realized I might need some help.
Portsmouth police officers, a NH State Trooper and EMTs in an ambulance showed up. After talking to the NH State Trooper, I went in the ambulance to the hospital. I left the bike at the scene. It was towed away. (It’s doing pretty OK, too).
If someone was telling me this story and said it all went down around 11:30pm, I would wonder if there was booze involved. There was not. FYI.
I meet with a group of men every Thursday night. After the meeting this Thursday, I went out to ride along the ocean. You know how I like moonlight rides. It was BEAUTIFUL that night. The full moon was huge and bright. The moonlight was reflecting off the ocean. Gorgeous.
The timing of this accident could not have been any worse. I was less than a mile from home and on my way to jump in my car and pick up two friends from the airport. Obviously, I never made it to the airport. My friends had to jump a cab to Portsmouth. Ouch. Our weekend looked a bit different than how we had planned it out.
I was in the hospital until about 3:30am that night. They “scanned my CAT” [Varsity Blues reference] and took some x-rays. The CT scans of my head and chest showed that I hadn’t loosened any screws that weren’t already loose. They released me and my buddies brought me home.
Today, my ribs are sore. I’m on heavy ibuprofen and trying to avoid taking the Vicodin. I took one last night to see if it would help me sleep. Meh. I probably need to take two. I’m afraid it will make me waaay loopy, but maybe I deserve a little loopy right now.
Thoughts and prayers for wholeness, healing and good insurance karma are welcome
Much love,
Gregory
PS - If you know anything about NH insurance and laws, please reach out.
I got the bike today and took it out for a first ride. The weather and the ride were both great! I rode up to Laconia — the site of Laconia Motorcycle Week — and along the ocean.
Laconia was/is quite the spectacle. For ten or so days, there are thousands and thousands of motorcycles and bikers in NH. Each day promises thousands and thousands of people. It’s a BIG DEAL. If nothing else, it’s really good for people watching
Along the way, I snapped some photos of the new bike…
Lake Winnipesaukee…
Alton Bay…
Atlantic Ocean…
Ocean again…
Hope you had a GREAT Saturday, too!
Much love,
Gregory
It’s true. In the next couple of days, I will join the ranks of Harley Owners (H.O.). Undoubtedly, I will join Harley Owners Group (H.O.G.) soon thereafter. For the record, I am buying a slightly used 2005 Harley-Davidson Road King Classic from a fellow in Dover, NH. Huzzah! Huzzah!
When I say slightly used, I really mean it. The bike was purchased new in 2005. It has less then 2500 miles on it. (If you remember, I put 1400 miles on my FJR in three days going to Nova Scotia. That was minor league extreme, but it gives you some perspective.)
There are some really nice features to this bike:
(1) It’s a touring bike. It’s engineered to go distances. Heck, this model even has cruise control. Yes, I’m serious.
(2) The windshiled and backrest are detachable. They come off and go on in mere seconds. The look of the bike can change that quickly.
(3) LOUD PIPES SAVE LIVES! They’re not super loud, but I’ve missed being loud. There’s something visceral about a low rumble on a motorcycle.
(4) While expensive, cool accessories are easy to find. Welcome to owning a Harley. I’m going to add a Lindby Linbar engine guard.
I’m sure there’s more. For now, here are the pics from the craigslist posting…
I first became interested in motorcycles thanks to the good people at Harley-Davidson. How cool was Ahhh-nold in Terminator 2 on the Fat Boy? That’s right. He was BADASS! My college buddies and I would talk about owning Harleys. It was a lot of talk back then.
When I learned how to ride a motorcycle, I knew I wouldn’t own a Harley for a while. I needed to get some experience and I wasn’t going to get it on a $15,000 motorcycle. I took some hard knocks. Actually, my 1997 Honda Magna (750cc) took the knocks. It went down twice with me on it. It went down once with my girlfriend on it (she was riding solo).
Next, was my 2002 Yamaha V-Star Classic (1100cc). It was a fun bike and it never went down. Finally, there was my 2005 Yamaha FJR1300 (1300cc). You’ve probably seen pictures of it. The FJR went down once in a grassy area in Nova Scotia. I didn’t think the grass was wet, but I should have known better.
Now, I will own a 2005 Road King Classic (1450cc). [I keep moving up in engine size, though the FJR will smoke nearly any Harley out there when it comes to pure speed.] This purchase brings my motorcycle enthusiasm full circle. I’m no longer a closet Harley fan. I’m embracing the Harley lust.
Closet fan? Yes, it’s true. Sure, I’ve rented a number of Harleys — 1997 Heritage Springer in Vegas, 2006 Road King in Vegas, 2007 Road King in Cincy, 2007 Electra Glide Classic in Florida. I enjoyed every ride. However, I’ve been saying to anyone who will listen, “Any schmuck can buy a Harley and have instant ‘motorcycle cred.’”
While I believe I’ve earned my motorcycle cred, I suppose I’m just one of the schmucks now
Live to Ride,
Gregory
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