chris’ blog

so this morning i had booked my scooter in for a service and on the way to there whilst on victoria road, the scooter broke down. there were no waring signs. it was quite odd. i just decided to stop working. it’s only done 11,500 or so kilometres. i hope it’s nothing too hard to fix and that i can pick it up this afternoon. other wise i shall be up the creek without a paddle.

i just got this in an email from the guys i bought my scooter from:

Starting tomorrow… Sunday August 5th we are having scooteria social (coffee) scene.
Every Sunday from 8am – 10am the scooteria family will meet @ JACKIES CAFÉ
@ Cnr of Oxford street and Glenmore Road Paddington
First Coffee is on us.

it’s funny, because people have been asking me how much of me having a scooter is about me trying to perpetuate some sort of image, and really it’s mostly out of necessity - i don’t have a car/license.
i find it all very amusing though. it’s like having a scooter is some sort of taboo. i went into general pants to get a pair of shoes a couple of weeks ago (with my helmet in hand) and these girls (who worked there) swarmed me asking if i needed any help. zac warned me such a thing would happen. yet then the other day, on riding home from work (the city), some tradies yelled out “fag” at me.

it’s like scooter riders are this new entry to the social hierarchy, with their own little private club and a place in the greater pecking order.

trust sydney to have it’s coldest and wettest winter in years, weeks after i get my scooter.

whoa, today certainly was a cold trip to work. my arms were numb from shivering by the time i reached parramatta.

i lost my wallet riding around newtown yesterday. which is an annoying experience, i can tell you. last night, on turning my house upside down, i was praying, you know, the shopping list sort of prayer “God please find my wallet”. during which i realised, you’re not really connecting with God, you’re just sending him one of you pesky little problems, so i calmed down and just spent a moment in his presence. and though the wallet was lost, i didn’t care nearly as much. afterwhich, i didn’t give much of a thought about it. i sort of laughed when i told people last night.. i seem to be learning things the hard way this week. falling off my scooter and having to replace the mirror, then losing my wallet riding..

then this morning, someone from a newtown bottle-o rang me saying they had my wallet. with money still it in. i guess God thought it was better left til the morning.

it restores your faith in people a bit too. jo, mil and i were talking over lunch about stuff they had stolen, and how they hoped the people that took it really needed those things. i certainly didn’t expect my wallet to be return with money and all in newtown, of all places.

man, i should have gotten a scooter years ago. it’s fricken awesome.

unfortunately, zak and i feel off the bike in the city, a few blocks from the dealership. it’s a bit cutting. the right hand mirror is cracked, and i scrapped a few bits and peices on the scooter. talk about baptism of fire. we got straight back and rode home. we didn’t have pillion pegs, and the tires were absolutely fresh. and i lent to far. lucky, it’s not heaps of damage, probably less than my excess. just a tad annoying. i got off pretty much scot free, just a graze on my leg. which is good considering i wasn’t wearing gloves. zak did his knee in. dang it.
meanwhile, i’m shocked at how close every thing is. the world seems so much smaller when you’re not at the mercy of cityrail.

..myself on a motorbike/scooter.

the wheels are turning, albiet small. i bought a scooter on sunday. she looks like this..

i finish the bike course this afternoon. then i get my license (i hope) tomorrow. then i pick this little hotty up on saturday morning. zak’s going to come down with me an i’ll pillion. i’m a little apprehensive about riding it straight out on parramatta road as my maiden voyage.

i had to get a credit card so i could finance the extras (helmet, insurance etc.) and they said i was eligible for a $20,000 limit. that’s a little scary. and dangerous. i went for a much lower limit. banks seem to give out credit cards at the drop of a hat.