Getting Stung By A Bee While Riding A Motorcycle, Kind Of Sucks.

     Where to begin. I guess I should start with Friday, since I had it off. I woke up reasonably early, and made a quick breakfast, because I wanted to hit the road on Saki. A co-worker had told me about the ride going south on A1A to Ft. Pierce. He told of extravagant houses and scenes from the Caribbean. Lush vegetation that just screamed of a different place and time.

     It wasn't all that, and I kind of wonder where exactly he saw all of this, but he does have a history of embellishing things. It was a pretty ride, and it was nice and casual, but I never felt like I entered a Caribbean paradise, or saw the massive structures of the mansions he mentioned. All in all, I was just happy to be riding, and that is really all that mattered. I did get stuck by the drawbridge going over the Intracoastal.

     On my way back home, I had a bit of a painful adventure. It is not uncommon to get hit by large bugs when riding a motorcycle, but what is uncommon, is what happened to me. I was at the halfway point, when I was struck in the neck by a large insect. It stung, so I had to rub my neck a bit. I didn't think much about it after that, until several minutes later, when I felt a stinging on my stomach. It turns out, that what had hit my neck, was a bee. It was knocked out cold by the impact, and managed to fall into my jacket, which I had slightly unzipped to get a little air, because it was rather hot. When the bee regained consciousness, it was of course confused by it's confined surroundings, and did what was natural. It started stinging me like crazy. I began to do the only thing that came natural to me, and that was start punching myself in the stomach while going down the highway at, let's say, close to the speed limit. I had gotten it, but there was still an occasional sting here and there, because the bee carcass was trapped inside my jacket. I actually thought that it was in my shirt. I still had another half hour to go before I was going to stop. I toughed it out, and headed to Red Robin. I was going to get another one of those great burgers.

     I finally pulled into the mall parking lot where Red Robins was and parked. I unzipped my jacket, and there was mister bee, stuck to my shirt. I brushed it off, and began the process of getting my gear off to go inside, and eat. I made a mistake however. In the same parking lot are several restaurants. I was so distracted by the bee and the pain in my stomach, that I actually pulled into BJ's Brewhouse. I didn't realize I was in the wrong place until I was inside. I decided to stay. I don't drink on the bike, but I will occasionally allow myself one pint, with plenty of water and food. That is what I did. I got a Fat Tire, with a water back, and a BJ's Brewhouse Burger. It was a good burger, even though I was looking forward to Red Robin. I paid my tab, and hit the road, so that I could get home, and see the damage the bee had caused to me.

     There was a swollen area in the upper center area of my stomach, with some redness, but it would be fine. My day was over. I had a good long ride, a tasty burger, and some excitement with a bee.

     The next morning I woke up to rain. That was a bummer. It meant that I wasn't going to get to ride Saki, but then the mail came, and I got a package from England. It was my new helmet cover.

     Pretty cool right? I had to find some time to ride. I began checking the news, and the weather apps, to see if there would be a break in the storm. Finally around 4 in the afternoon, the rain stopped. I got the cover on my Arai helmet (it actually fit), and took off for a ride. I got a lot of strange looks, but mostly smiles, thumbs ups, and a few honks. Now for a brief review. it does have a little bit of drag, but it is very manageable. I thought, just by the nature of what it was, that it would disrupt ventilation in my helmet, but it didn't at all. Maybe that will be a little different in warmer weather (the rain brought a cold front through), but right now, it ventilates just fine. If you want one of your own, just go to this site Funny Heeds. They change them quite often, I can see just from yesterday that they have sold out of several of them, and added some new ones. So if there isn't one to your liking right now, check back from time to time, and you might see something that tickles your fancy.

     Later that night, I went to my watering hole. I needed a pizza. I hadn't had one for quite some time, and they have in my opinion, the best. With my pizza, I had a few drinks. Nothing unusual for me there, but it seemed different. I'm beginning to feel like I really don't want to drink anymore. It has truly lost it's appeal to me. It's basically a social crutch that I don't think I need anymore. I will just have to see what the future holds with this. I've mentioned quitting before, and I did that little test with not drinking while out with friends. It can be done, but they did get annoyed with me for not drinking. I thought it was kind of funny actually.

     Oh I forgot, before I go into today's ride, I have one more picture that I took when I went on that first ride with the new helmet cover. I just used the phone mount, so it looks a little strange.

     I can't help but chuckle when I see it. I get a glimpse from time to time, in the reflection of my display, and it cracks me up. Today I saw what my shadow looked like, as the morning sun was directly behind me, and I was howling with laughter. Anyway, on to today. I was up really early today, because it was cold here. It was 36 degrees when I woke up. I made breakfast, showered, and then bundled up like the kid in A Christmas Story. I had a tough time moving around. I was layered everywhere., but it kept me warm. When I got Saki out, it was up to 38 degrees with 13 mph winds. That meant that the feels like temperature was probably somewhere around freezing, but that wasn't going to stop me. I was determined. I got on the bike in my Stay Puft Man puffyness, and rode. I found a good spot to pull over and get a picture os Saki, but when I pulled my phone off the mount to take the picture, I found that my phone had died. so that spot will have to wait for another day.

     It was fun riding out there in the cold. I wouldn't do it for a hundred miles, but the 30 I put in today was just fine. It was a good and productive weekend. I learned to always keep my jacket fully sipped up, and that I may just be tired of drinking. Oh, I learned one more thing. A new David Bowie EP was released today, in honor of his birthday. If you get the chance, give it a listen, It's only 4 songs, and they are really good. I'm off so, peace in and goodnight.