Bellingham, computer, and car.

I have another post in the process of being written that covers events up till I arrived in bellingham but I want to write about events in Bellingham before they get so distant that I forget it all. First thing of note is that my very good friend, Keith, has offered me a car. It is quite doubtful that I will keep it because of having the bike and not wishing to support both right now; besides, I can only drive one at a time. Cars are very cost prohibitive. Of course, motorcycles aren't the cheapest things either. (The price was right in getting this one...and in getting it repaired.) I am so grateful for the generousity of the Universe and my friends. Which leads me to my next bit of news....

My computer has completely died. When attempting to use the self-diagnostic tool, it tells me in red letter, "Replace hard drive." No portion of the computer works beyond the start up screen before windows kicks in. Not even the appearance mouse pointer. So, I'm asking the Universe to provide me with a small Apple laptop to use. It has to be small so that it doesn't take up much room on the bike. I lost quite a bit of information with the death of the hard drive, and some of that info was contact information. So, if you don't hear from me, it may be due to the fact that I've lost your contact information. The death of the hard drive took with it the lastest work on my book. The backups I have are very old now. As a friend pointed out, this may be a good time for a rewrite... That's perfectly fine with me, but doing it on this tablet is NOT going to work, I don't think. So, if anyone has an intense feeling of compassion and generousity (and the resources to back it up) let me know and I'll be happy to provide you with an address. Additionally, I'll overjoyed to share with you one of the first copies of any book I happen to write while using your gift.

I have often said that doing balloons could be a 6 figure income if worked as a business. I've never been much of  businessman, but I'm getting to watch the process in action here in the Bellingham area.  I'm not going to write down here the method by which it's being done, but I'm feeling the effects of the process. I now have lots more compassion for small business owners when a Wal-Mart moves into the neighborhood. I've basically found myself pushed out of twisting at every fair, festival and farmer's market in the area. The result being that income is hard to come by, in the traditional ways I've done it in the past, at least.

I've gotten to visit my daughter a few days so far and visit with a few friends. The bike is running...ok. I killed the battery twice yesterday.  I'm wondering how many times I can jumpstart a new battery from a car before it causes significant damage to either the battery or the bike. The bike isn't pulling smoothly in the lower gears. I'm wondering if it might be the start of the fuel pump needing some TLC.

Montana 'biking.

I get my days and posts mixed up sometimes. I suspect I ought to read what I've written before. Ah, well. Yesterday was a tough ride. The sun was so strong that I got a burn through my clothes. Didn't know that was possible. It was so hot that it made the heat melt. At least, that's what it felt like to me. I made it into Montana, a very interesting state! Lots of unusual landscapes and rock formations. Very beautiful...and any place humans reside in numbers is many, many miles apart. But it isn't empty space, plenty of bugs to coat the front of the bike while riding or every square inch of skin when coming to a stop. I feel for the bugs. It must be a hard life with so many competitors for food. Must be what it's like to live in China or India.

The bike ran well, very strong. I even got it up to (don't read this, Mom!) 105 mph for a second. I wanted to see if it could break 100. I might've been able to get a couple more MPHs out of it, but I learned what I needed to and I want to continue to exist in physical form for a while. It apparently sucked a lot of gas because that tank only gave me 29mpg. The next tank, I kept it between 70-75 and was able to coax 39 mpg out of it.I stopped for the night in Miles City, Montana. A waitress suggested that I go to this particular boat dock to camp. It was right on the Yellowstone River. Beautiful...as I discovered this morning. I didn't sleep long and was up before the sun was in the sky.

I rode on to Billings and stopped for breakfast at a Perkins. As I got off the bike, I realized that I was running quite low on funds so I said, "Ok, Universe. We're getting low on funds. Let's make this a money-making restaurant, ok?" And then I went in. The balloons were well received. One couple, celebrating their 4th year anniversary, tipped me $40. I had a line of kids and adults coming to the table to get balloons. The manager bought my breakfast. And a guy gifted me $10 while I was standing by the bike..., "...because I'm jealous." (Of the fact of my riding the bike as much as I am--he's traveling on business so couldn't bring one of his two bikes.)

I have to say, I SO love the faces of the people who get the balloons. And when I can say something that obviously makes a difference to someone, it is the most fulfilling experience I can have as a "me." So, tonight, I'm thinking I will head out to the next bigger town, Bozeman. Not sure if I'll be camping (if so, it'll be where there's a shower!) or staying in a hotel. The hotels are pretty pricy along through here.

Much more to write, but getting tired and I don't think Billings is where I due to sleep tonight. I'm being pulled to continue the ride. Om shanti, my friends.

Back on the road, again...again...again...

I don't remember here the last (draft) post ended so I will take up the story from Sunday morning. I loaded my bike to get ready for the road, took leave of Carol and Hans and got on the freeway. The repairs hadn't really been tested so I wanted to stay close to town until I was sure everything was working according to plan. Good thing, too, as it turned out that the carbs needed work. The bike was not running quite right and  since I was about to go across some pretty desolate country, having a reliable ride was crucial. So, I called Jason, hoping it was a fix that I could do...no such luck. Jason said to bring it to his shop.

Before I called him, I had stopped by IHOP for breakfest. I made balloons for lots of folks and the manager snagged my bill to pay for my meal. I don't talk much about why people choose to gift me money, food and other stuff, but they must being seeing some good in what I do...

He was hard at work on another bike but said that he would get to it as soon as he could. I called Hans who came by to hang out a bit. We took a little ride and Hans bought Jason a bag of floor cleaner, which Jason mentioned he was going to go buy. After we got back to the shop, while looking for the number of the local newspaper, I noticed that there was a street fair going on downtown for a few hours. Another Universal blessing as I was getting very low on funds. I asked Hans to gvie me a ride and we zipped to the fair. I was so concentrated on getting to work that I didn't immediately realize that I wouldn't be seeing Hans again before I left, otherwise I would've thanked him more graciously. There's a lesson about staying in the present...

I made about $70, which has been coming in very handy. After the fair ended  (5:00) I met aann older man who offered me a ride back to Jason's: thanks Lavern. The bike wasn't ready yet so I sat down on a tarp to restock the balloon bags. Jason got the bike ready -- cleaned and sync'd the carbs, checked the spark plugs and a few other things. I started putting the plastic back on the bike after he was finished with the mechanical stuff. Talk about feeling inapt! I felt like a first time student in a Master dance class. Jason even found a way to fix the switch to my brake light; the hand brake hadn't operated the brake light since I got it.

After I got the bike all ready for the road, again, I took leave of Jason ad goot on the freeway. I road about 125 miles or so and the bike ran perfectly. Thank you SO much, Jason! The weather was so nice for riding (cool and cloudy) that I wanted to just keep on but got way tired. I stopped in Jamestown, the hometown of my good friend, Keith) and drove around town. I  didn't feel like spending the money on a hotel for just a few hours nor go through the trouble of putting up the tent, so I found  dark corner of the Walmart parking lot and wrapped myself in sleeping bag and tarp.

This morning, I found that I had forgotten to turn off the battery so needed a jump. Thank you, Amy. Back on the road and now in a restaurant in Bismark, ND. Time to get back on the road before the sun comes out and makes it too hot to comfortably ride.

I am in the company of Angels. Or, the story of the bike...thus far.

Earth angels are surrounding me now! This is the most amazing humbling time. I am truly, truly blessed. Jason, a young man who didn't know I existed before yesterday, has offered to fix my bike for free. This is a $2000 job! All I have to pay for is the parts. While sitting in an Applebee's restaurant, making balloons for the kids around me and trying to figure out how to get the money for the parts and where I was going to sleep while the bike was being repaired, I was being watched by another pair of angels, Hans Kresny and his SO, Carol. They wound up offering me a place to stay, food to eat while I've been staying with them, and Hans even wound up volunteering to buy the parts. The bike will be ready to roll by tonight, tomorrow morning at the latest! (Tears in my eyes from gratitude!)

That's the headline version. Many, many more blessings have come over the last few days. I am going to write a book about this journey! What amazing blessings! It makes all the hell I've been through in my life worthwhile...

After I left Barnesville for the "big city" of Fargo, ND, I thought the bike was fixed. As I got to town, I had planned to rent a room for a night to rest (out of the bugs) and to safely leave my stuff as I searched for a place to twist. The cheapest quote I could find would've cost over $60. So I figured I could put up with another night of bugs. I found a local campground and was told that they had only one spot left and that it would cost $28. While standing there thinking about whether I should take it, two couples pulled up on fancy Goldwing/trailer combinations. I figured that was a sign. The guys came in and asked for a spot, since I was already there, I got first dibs and so I took the spot but told the guys they were welcome to share it with me. They each paid $10 and I paid $8.

We all rode back to the site and found a slab with tiny patch of grass just big enough for my tent. They set up their trailers while I put up the tent. I went to see about the local big fair and they went out to eat. The fair was too big to work--big fairs work through committees and getting permission to work them is VERY difficult. I've never been able to do it while the fair is active. So, the Universe will present the next place for me to twist when I get there, though perhaps I will get a hint before I get there; that'd be nice. :-)

They were asleep by the time I got back to the site. In the morning, we passed each other a few times, exchanging pleasantries and briefly visiting. I made the ladies a couple little balloons and one gent tucked a tip into my pocket, $20. I gathered my dirty clothes and headed off to the laundromat. When I got back to the site, they were gone. I broke camp and loaded up and as I picked up the last thing, a bottle of oil, I found a $5 bill under it. Joy! Then, fully loaded, I hopped on the bike and started 'er up....well, pressed the right buttons at least. Got nothing but a click for my efforts. The brand new, $100 battery had died. Oh, Boy...

Well, there was an older couple in the RV next to me and they came out to see what was the matter. I was starting to unpack everything so that I could get to the charger. I plugged it in and told them the story of the last few days. They were retired teachers. He had an multimeter with which we were able to determine that the battery wasn't getting the charge it needed to continue to run. (By this time, it was after checkout time. The manager of the park said I could stay till I got it started. "The people who have the space reserved are arriving in a big RV, they can wait if needed." Very nice woman!) We finally got the bike started by jumping it. It ran for a minute and then died. So, now knowing that the bike could start, I got ready to leave and planned where I would go -- a bike shop 2 miles away called Lone Wolf. It had several other shops fairly close by in case I wasn't able to find help there. I made the woman a balloon and she tipped me a few  dollars. The man gave my bike a jump and shook my hand with a $20 in it and blessed my journey. (Second time in 3 days! My new mantra seems to be working."The Universe LOVES to give me money.")

I tried to make it to the bike shop, but the bike stalled 200 yards from the shop at a stop sign. I pushed it the rest of the way. Whew! Pushing a fully loaded, 1000 pound motorcycle such a distance is a chore! When I got there, the shop was closed while they did some errands. While I waited, I looked around the area to see if I could find where I could unroll the sleeping bag when dark came. I had a sense that it was the stator that had gone out. Not good!.Along came the father of the fellow who owned the shop. They didn't work on Goldwings, especially older models. He was extremely nice and called around, looking for someone who did. After an hour or two, he tracked down a young man named Jason who agreed to come over to check out the situation.

Jason is amazing! He is a virtuoso with older engines. A true artist. He swept in (with his lady friend) and immediately got to the job of diagnosing the bike. He worked with the bike with the familiarity of a consummate professional who loves his work.  He quickly got to the root of the problem, but then realized he needed a part with which to test some mysterious (to me) thing. He took off back to his shop to get it. Meanwhile, a family with 3 little girls showed up next door. Heaven for me! Here is where I get to do my thing. I grabbed my balloons and headed over. While twisting for them, I was told the youngest (4) was "shy". I knelt down and twisted a kitty for her, got a smile in return! Then, when I started drawing the face on the balloon I'd made for the middle sister (6), I suddenly felt a warm little weight on my back: it was the tiny one hugging my neck and looking over my shoulder to see what I was doing. I choked up! That, right there, was reason enough for the breakdown. By the time I had made the oldest sister (9) a balloon, these 3 had adopted me, and Jason had gotten back. He continued his testing only to find that it was the stator.

Even though I had suspected it, the fact of it let the wind out of my sails. I was thrown for a loop, not having a clue what to do next. I thought that I would have to let it all go and just walk away, but the Universe had other plans. Jason wouldn't take my money for the diagnosis and even offered to do the labor of fixing the bike for free. Talk about being floored! The forums say that replacing the stator is a $1500 jobs, at least! He got the bike started and I followed him to his garage. He rents two old one-car garages to work out of. I want to point out that this is not a man who is rolling in the dough. His story is pretty bleak which makes the fact of his generosity so much more powerful.We dropped of the bike and he gave me a ride about a mile down the road to Applebee's. (I hadn't eaten yet.)

I went in and was seated close to the door. I had told the young host that I was a traveling balloon entertainer and so he told one little boy to come get a balloon. I was very happy to be twisting, not just because it kept my mind occupied with joy instead of worry. He sat a number of families close to me and at one point, I had 5 of the employees gathered around the table, including the manager. I had noticed a table of two ladies and a gentleman a few tables away and wondered if my twisting was bothering them, but they looked amused and interested. I didn't make any money while at the restaurant, but the host wound up paying for my meal and then vanishing so I couldn't thank him. :-)

Well, remember the table with the two women and the gentleman? They turned out to be Earth Angels. They stopped by and wished me well on the way out. I appreciated it and went on with what I was doing.A few minutes later, he came back in, looking for his wallet. I have a flashlight on my cell phone so got up to help him look under the table. We couldn't find it so he gave the manager his info and left. A moment later, he came back to say that if I needed a place to stay and was ready to go, I was welcome at his house. Wow. That's when I learned about my meal having been paid for by the host.

I was introduced around as I got into the car, Cathy, Carol and Hans. It was Carol's idea to offer to host me, so I was later informed. I was taken to a very beautiful home with genteel decor and given a room and an invitation to whatever food I found. Hans an Carol are not only wonderful hosts, but they have very interesting stories. Both had lost their previous spouses and had met when a mutual friend suggested they email each other. Turns out that they had gotten married on the same day of the same year. Hans, a retired nuclear engineer and published author, has figured out the secret to remaining peaceful through life so we've been having great conversations.

Yesterday, Jason had to get the parts. He decided to do what's known as a "poorboy auto conversion"
on the bike, which means adding an automobile alternator to the bike, thus making the unreliable stator obsolete. I won't have problems with that again for the life of the bike. Plus, this will enable me to add as many lights to the bike as I wish. Jason also surprised me with the knowledge that he was going to tune up the bike before giving it back to me, so it seems the bike will be in much better shape when I get it back. Wow. Just...wow. We went on the "parts run" and Hans decided to buy the parts for me. Gassho, my friend. I had already given Jason my last $90 and they gave it back to me.

After getting the parts, Hans and I hung out watching the Master at work. What a joy to see. Jason REALLY knows what he is doing! I sure hope he gets a shop that is worthy of his skills. One with a bike jack, at the very least. The man is working on the floor with a messed up back and neck. Jason said that he had enlisted a friend who is an expert welder to help with the work and that the bike would likely be done by the end of the night. He stopped all work on other bikes to get mine back on the road as soon as possible. He did say that there was the possibility that it might not be ready until morning, which is what happened. We are now waiting to hear from him.

Truly, I have been blessed with angels. So, if anyone reading this would like to help out someone who really deserves it with either a job as shop-head (in Southern California where his ex-wife ran off to with his daughter) or with funds and/or business, I will post his information in another post. I can attest to his skill and professionalism.

May you feel as blessed as I do. Om Shanti

Earth Angels

What an interesting 24 hours.  First, my bike died while on the on the way to a campground last night. Luckily there was a gas station within bike pushing distance. It was closed for the night. So, I camped in a field next to the store. In the morning, I had to wait until the store opened, only to find that there wasn't anything in it that I could use to fix the bike. So, after trying several things, I got a gentleman who owned a store nearby to give the bike a jump. The bike started but before I could get loaded and ready to roll, it died.  The owner of the gas station offered to fill my tank for me and  when I asked the store owner to jump the bike again, he was agreeable. After he had done so, he shook my haand with $20 in it. ("The Universe loves to give me money.")

I rode the bike to Walmart and bought a small charger. I asked the manager of a Valvoline Oil Change station if I could use his outlet and was given permission. While I was taking the battery off the bike, a guy in an SUV offered to take the battery and charge it at his house and then bring it back. I hung out for 4 or 5 hours waiting for it to charge. When he brought it back, I put it on the bike and...nothing. So I took the battery inside and a sweet woman at customer service told me that the battery was under warranty and I could just go get another one. I did, made the exchange and went out to get it ready.

It was 9:20 by the time I had filled it with acid and the directions said to wait an hour before putting it on a charger. Then it would be about 10 hours before I could use it. I rented a couple movies and sat on a curb while the battery charged. About 2:30 or so, I walked a couple hundred yards to a White  Castle. I found out that they had an outside plug and that I could use it so I made the switch and sat in the restaurant until about 7am. I put the newly charged battery on the bike and it ran fine. I immediately went to a campground and pitched my tent and went to sleep.

A number of blessings happened while I was there, but I'm going to jump to the next day. I woke up to a gray and cloudy day. I checked the radar and saw that there was a major thunder storm barreling down on me. I quickly packed up, knowing I was racing the weather, and made it to a Denny's restaurant just as it began to rain. I half-covered the bike and made it inside just as the skies opened up. I made a balloon for a little girl and found out when I finished eating that the dad had bought my breakfast as he was leaving. Blessings!

I got back on the road and was doing great...for about 115 miles. Then the bike started acting up again. It was so bad that I could barely keep it going at 60 mph. At one point, when I would aactivate the ER flashers, the bike would die in time with the lights activating! I finally found a place to pull off the freeway in a little town called Barnesville. The bike totally did as I pulled into  a DQ parking lot. I was able to plug the battery in and I waited a while. Later, I saw a fellow playing some boys in the driveway of a farm across the street. This man turned out to be another Earth Angel. I went over to ask him if he had a certain tool I could borrow and he took on the bike issue as if it were his own.

Dave  has gone out of his way to be of service. He's let me camp on his property, he's taken me around to find another battery and when we finally did find one, told me that he was going to buy it for me. He called one of his friends, Jerry, who also turned out to be one of the Universe's agents. Jerry came over and has helped me figure out what to do with the battery situation and even surpirsed me by giving me a set of highway platforms, about $60 new. He's had several 'Wings and even let me take his '85 Interstate (a 'Wing almost exactly like mine) for a short ride. Now I know what the bike will feel like when it has full power and what it would sound like if it didn't have an exhaust leak.

Okay, other stuff will have to wait. It is almost 11 and that is when the new battery is due to arrive. I think I have the tools and knowledge to figure out if something other than the battery is the trouble, though if it turns out that it is more than the battery, I don't know what it would be or how to fix it. More later.

My website, insightsoftheheart.com

For those interested,  my site has been canceled. The cost of maintaining it was too great and I have very little evidence that it was doing anyone any good. At some point in the not too far distant future, I'll find a cheap alternative.  In the meantime, if anyone wishes to donate funds, it can be easily done by emailing me via PayPal.  My book, 'Yes, You Can Dance', will be sent to you by request.

May you be blessed.

July 4th...

The big news today (the 5th) is an email from Sharon basically saying goodbye. Not sure if it is a forever goodbye or perhaps just until I can make up my mind. I'm, of course, not happy about her decision, but I can easily understand it. Love for each other has never been our problem.

I had been planning to stay in La Cross, Wi the night before last but couldn't ride that far. It concurred to me that where I worked the 4th didn't matter since no one was expecting me in La Cross,  so I stopped in Milton, Wi. I camped in one of the busiest campgrounds I've ever been in. They wanted $44 for one night of tent camping. I didn't know what the price was and I would have easily been able to leave without paying, but my inner peace is worth a lot more than a few dollars. When I went to pay, they gave me the space for being honest in coming to pay when they didn't even know that I was there.

I twisted at Milton's 4th celebration. Sat down on my little stool at 11am and didn't stand up again until 5, took a 20 minute break and then twisted until 10. Brian, the park manager, gave me permission to set up my tent on-site. I life such an awesome life! This morning, I packed up and went for breakfest. I made a balloon for an incredible little 5 year old who came and hugged me and wanted to stay with me. It was the best gift any child could give to me. I am so happy than I know how to twist balloons....

I made enough money yesterday that I don't feel pressured to work today. I think that I will mosey on down the road and maybe find a park to spend a few hours in. This restaurant,  Ray's, is quite nice.. if you happen to pass through Edgerton,  stop in.

Leaving Ohio, and Sharon

It felt very odd, saying goodbye to Sharon. If she and I don'twind up together, then the Universe had better have an amazing plan for me to make up for the loss; it's hard to imagine anyone could love me more. What an amazing woman... She left the condo first and I tried to be gone before she came back, figuring that it'd be easier all around.  I almost made it, we passed each other on my way to the freeway.

I was planning to go to a new friend's house for a healing session before I left Cincinnati but got caught in a major traffic jam. Since it was much later than I wished and it looked like I would hit rain, I gave up and just headed on to Marion to see my brother. Flirted with rain most of the way. I stopped at the Iron Pony motorcycle accessory store in Columbus and bought something I've wanted for a long time: a phone holder for the handlebars. Usually they are way too expensive, but I got an amazing deal.

I rented a room at a hotel and got a later-than wanted start to go see my brother. I missed getting to see him before count (they count all the inmates several times a day) so had to wait for an hour before he came out. We had a great visit. I'm very happy for my brother; he has found the secret of being free while his body is imprisoned. What a lovely gift!

The ride to Plymouth, In, was uneventful but beautiful. I took Hwy 30 into Indiana and it is a lovely road. I highly recommend it as an alternative if one is traveling from\to Cincinnati or Columbus to\from points northwest. Once arriving to my couchsurfing host's house, I was greeted by Paul in the driveway. A very pleasant man and as we got to the door of the house, I was very enthusiastically greeted by 5 dogs of differing sizes and one loving cat who somehow managed to not get stepped on.Lara, a dog groomer, welcomed me and made a wonderful vegitarian pizza and tasty salad. Had a comfortable rest on the couch and had the joy of watching happy, well-rested dogs greet the morning.

On the road again around 9:30, I think...