A great classic car
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
British Motoring Club
Few things can approach the excitement of roaring down a curvy road on your Harley with the wind blowing in your hair.
However, speeding down the highway in a British motor car with the top down comes close.
Therefore it was with some excitement that I attended the British Motoring Rally in Carthage, Missouri. There around the historic Courthouse Square was line after line of wonderful British motor vehicles all with their bonnets open to exhibit the most intimate details of the motors that provide all that excitement.
It was automotive heaven. The iron clad visitors ranged from the friendly and pert Minis to the wonderful Triumph ranging from the small sleek Spitfires to the TR-3s and TR-4s. There were Austin Healeys and Jaguars. There was a Lotus or two as well. For those seeking the true classic look there were some MG's from the 49-53 era. For the well healed, there was a Rolls Royce. Unfortunately, however, I sought in vain for one of my favorites, the Morgan.
There were MG midgets and MG B's.
HarleyDad in a prior life as a young man owned a Triumph Spitfire fairly similar to the green one above. Mine also was green and it was one of the greatest vehicles I ever owned and outside the Harley, the one that was absolutely the most fun.
It looked like a great car club and fun was had around the square by all.
Above are some pictures for your enjoyment.
However, speeding down the highway in a British motor car with the top down comes close.
Therefore it was with some excitement that I attended the British Motoring Rally in Carthage, Missouri. There around the historic Courthouse Square was line after line of wonderful British motor vehicles all with their bonnets open to exhibit the most intimate details of the motors that provide all that excitement.
It was automotive heaven. The iron clad visitors ranged from the friendly and pert Minis to the wonderful Triumph ranging from the small sleek Spitfires to the TR-3s and TR-4s. There were Austin Healeys and Jaguars. There was a Lotus or two as well. For those seeking the true classic look there were some MG's from the 49-53 era. For the well healed, there was a Rolls Royce. Unfortunately, however, I sought in vain for one of my favorites, the Morgan.
There were MG midgets and MG B's.
HarleyDad in a prior life as a young man owned a Triumph Spitfire fairly similar to the green one above. Mine also was green and it was one of the greatest vehicles I ever owned and outside the Harley, the one that was absolutely the most fun.
It looked like a great car club and fun was had around the square by all.
Above are some pictures for your enjoyment.
Saturday, July 22, 2006
Hezbollah in a Nut Shell
Below is a short summary (nut shell summary) of Hezbollah:
Hezbollah
Hezbollah means the Party of God.
It is made up of Lebanese Shiites and its original purpose was to fight members of the Israeli army occupying southern Lebanon from 1982 to 2000. Hezbollah never disarmed and resisted the Israeli army. After Israel pulled out of southern Lebanon, it continued to oppose Israel and was very popular in Lebanon.
The Shiites are the largest religious group in Lebanon.
The civilian wing of Hezbollah has 18% of the seats in the Lebanese Parliament. It also runs hospitals, news services and educational facilities. Hezbollah is supported financially by Syria and by Iran.
Members of Hezbollah are integrated in the Lebanese army and control certain ministries in the government making it virtually impossible for Lebanon to act without knowledge of the Hezbollah party.
The Lebanese army does not operate in Southern Lebanon and that area is exclusively controlled by the armed wing of Hezbollah.
Hezbollah has continuously attacked Israel and has tried to kidnap Israeli soldiers hoping to trade them for Hezbollah prisoners, supplies and information.
Hezbollah operates a satellite TV station called Al-Manar (the “Lighthouse”) and a radio station, al-Nour (the “Light”). The media outlets encourage hatred against Jews and Israel.
Hezbollah desires an Islamic government similar to the one in Iran. It strongly supports the destruction of Israel and cooperates with other militant Islamic groups, including Hamas. It also opposes any western oriented institutions.
Hezbollah has missiles that can reach into Israel.
The current leader of Hezbollah is Hassan Nasrallah.
Hezbollah
Hezbollah means the Party of God.
It is made up of Lebanese Shiites and its original purpose was to fight members of the Israeli army occupying southern Lebanon from 1982 to 2000. Hezbollah never disarmed and resisted the Israeli army. After Israel pulled out of southern Lebanon, it continued to oppose Israel and was very popular in Lebanon.
The Shiites are the largest religious group in Lebanon.
The civilian wing of Hezbollah has 18% of the seats in the Lebanese Parliament. It also runs hospitals, news services and educational facilities. Hezbollah is supported financially by Syria and by Iran.
Members of Hezbollah are integrated in the Lebanese army and control certain ministries in the government making it virtually impossible for Lebanon to act without knowledge of the Hezbollah party.
The Lebanese army does not operate in Southern Lebanon and that area is exclusively controlled by the armed wing of Hezbollah.
Hezbollah has continuously attacked Israel and has tried to kidnap Israeli soldiers hoping to trade them for Hezbollah prisoners, supplies and information.
Hezbollah operates a satellite TV station called Al-Manar (the “Lighthouse”) and a radio station, al-Nour (the “Light”). The media outlets encourage hatred against Jews and Israel.
Hezbollah desires an Islamic government similar to the one in Iran. It strongly supports the destruction of Israel and cooperates with other militant Islamic groups, including Hamas. It also opposes any western oriented institutions.
Hezbollah has missiles that can reach into Israel.
The current leader of Hezbollah is Hassan Nasrallah.
Friday, July 21, 2006
Harley Fun
It has been one week since I picked up my new Softtail Deluxe. It has a classic look and is much fun. Now I can whiz by the big trucks and stick out my tongue. No more being blown around and airlifted by the 18 wheelers. The only problem is that my tongue has gotten sunburned by being out so much. Now I know what it is like for those great dogs that you see hanging their heads out the widow as cars go speeding down the turnpike.
Fun, fun, fun. I thought it was supposed to be illegal to have this much fun. Whoops, I guess at the speed I am going it is illegal.
Enclosed are a few pictures of me and my new Harley. I am not in Harley gear. It seems that wearing blue jeans, boots and a shirt with the skull and crossbones on it is inappropriate gear for a corporate lawyer. Ah, but a biker reigns in my heart. Avast, I am a corporate pirate after all. Perhaps I need to become an Investment Banker. Then I could be a takeover artist!!
I may wear the boots however. They add a couple of inches to my height and being tall is always a good thing for someone trying to climb the corporate ladder. They are also good for wading through all the s**t that all of us see in trying to do our job. Who knows, may be there will be fear whereever I go and people will think twice about political backstabbing (thankfully, limited where I work) . At any rate, I will wear the boots with my pin-strip suit and hum the Nancy Sinatra son "These Boots are Made for Walking." That should scare them.
I don't smile in the pictures much. I learned a long time ago that I am not photogenic and I have two choices--somber or goofy. I opted for somber. Goofy corporate attorneys don't inspire much confidence but they do have more fun-it is just that their working life is much shorter.
After all, do you want someone somber and mean working for you or someone goofy. Somber and mean is better anyway. Whoever ever saw a shark looking at you with a goofy look.
One of my fellow attorneys who has a Harley said it was much too pretty and called it a "Foo-Foo Bike." Now that is what I call Harley envy. I would show him a thing or two but he is much larger than I am. So I will simply hum my Nancy Sinatra song and cut his salary next year. That will teach him. See, I am someone to be greatly feared.
HarleyDad
Fun, fun, fun. I thought it was supposed to be illegal to have this much fun. Whoops, I guess at the speed I am going it is illegal.
Enclosed are a few pictures of me and my new Harley. I am not in Harley gear. It seems that wearing blue jeans, boots and a shirt with the skull and crossbones on it is inappropriate gear for a corporate lawyer. Ah, but a biker reigns in my heart. Avast, I am a corporate pirate after all. Perhaps I need to become an Investment Banker. Then I could be a takeover artist!!
I may wear the boots however. They add a couple of inches to my height and being tall is always a good thing for someone trying to climb the corporate ladder. They are also good for wading through all the s**t that all of us see in trying to do our job. Who knows, may be there will be fear whereever I go and people will think twice about political backstabbing (thankfully, limited where I work) . At any rate, I will wear the boots with my pin-strip suit and hum the Nancy Sinatra son "These Boots are Made for Walking." That should scare them.
I don't smile in the pictures much. I learned a long time ago that I am not photogenic and I have two choices--somber or goofy. I opted for somber. Goofy corporate attorneys don't inspire much confidence but they do have more fun-it is just that their working life is much shorter.
After all, do you want someone somber and mean working for you or someone goofy. Somber and mean is better anyway. Whoever ever saw a shark looking at you with a goofy look.
One of my fellow attorneys who has a Harley said it was much too pretty and called it a "Foo-Foo Bike." Now that is what I call Harley envy. I would show him a thing or two but he is much larger than I am. So I will simply hum my Nancy Sinatra song and cut his salary next year. That will teach him. See, I am someone to be greatly feared.
HarleyDad
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
"N" stands for Napoleon
“N” stands for Napoleon. The self-made man. From being the “little corporal” from Corsica, he rose to become a military genius, a leader whose men would gladly die for him, the emperor of France, the ruler of Europe and the creator of the Napoleonic Code. Both military genius and law giver.
Through action great men and women mold the events that surround us. When Napoleon spoke armies moved and his enemies trembled. Napoleon was a “doer”, a self-made man, a person of destiny. Napoleon “made it happen.”
Some of the pictures that I have posted show Napoleon enjoying the fruits of greatness. Dressed in lavish clothing and wearing the golden olive leaf crown much as a Roman general who had successfully vanquished the enemies of Rome. Napoleon was the emperor of a new Rome, a French empire.
In David’s great picture showing the Crowning of Napoleon, you will note that Napoleon has the crown in his own hands. His victories were not to be relegated to honors bestowed by the pope and the church, but victory was brought to him by the strength of his own right hand, and so he crowns himself. It is the picture of the Self-Made Man.
Time, however, stands still for no man or woman. Napoleon despite all of his success meets final defeat at the hands of the British. He is exiled first to the Island of Elba. He returns to Europe and is finally defeated and spends his final days on the Island of St. Helena.
Pushkin wrote of Napoleon”
“Ocean, your image was stamped upon him;
He was created by your spirit;
He is fathomless and potent like you,
Like you by naught to be tamed.”
But he was tamed. He was taken to the Island of St. Helena and there he died probably poisoned with arsenic in his food by the British. He was too dangerous to let live even on the small island of St. Helena.
One writer has pointed out that Napoleon was born on an island-Corsica, exiled to an island-Elba; died on an island-St. Helena and spent his life trying to conquer an island-Great Britain.
Our powers are limited. Even though expansive for a while, they are hemmed in and we find that we are an island unto ourselves.
The story is told of a great leader who learns that he is mortal by being carried to the seaside he learns that he can not command the waves to stop coming in. There are limits to our powers no matter how great they may seem for the moment.
And so at the end of Napoleon’s life he is a simple gardener on the Island of St. Helena in the hands of his enemies. He is pictured as looking out into the sea; perhaps thinking of the glories of the French empire; perhaps realizing that the waves do not obey his commands. He realizes that he who once ruled the world, does not even rule the small island on which he lives.
How different the life of Christ from the life of Napoleon. Christ showed leadership by washing the feet of his disciples. He knew that to live was also to die and to die was also to live. Christ had no place to set his head. “The foxes have their holes, and the birds their nests; but there is no place for the Son of Man to rest his head.” Although they offered to make him King, Jesus said his kingdom was not of this world. At the end of his life, he had his clothes gambled away and he was nailed to a cross. And people who are nailed to a cross know that their fate is no longer in their own hands. Christ was not the self-made man, but the God- made man.
The lessons are there for all of us. Each of us comes to the point, where we come to the end of ourselves. We get there voluntarily or involuntarily, but most of us get there. Age becomes the great leveler and death comes to all. What we have earned through our efforts we can not take with us. Our kingdoms that we have conquered vanish. Our children and loved ones go away. Finally we left at the end of our lives knowing we can take nothing with us and realizing we are lucky if we have a plot of ground in which to be buried. Our kingdom is a small one. Our beauty fades. Our possessions that we have worked so hard to earn go to the relatives or to auctions or to yard sales. We are left at the end of life lucky to control our own bodily functions, much less the world.
And this is the human delimma. Even the Stalins of the earth finally get evicted from their own tombs. The Hitlers end up on a bone box in some Russian archive or hidden away. The applause of the crowd is there no longer.
But for the Christian, there is hope. We begin with the premise that the world is not our home in the first place. We are citizens of a new and better world. We believe in a physical resurrection and life with Christ in a New Jerusalem. We start from the premise that we are not self-made men and women but we are God-made men and women. We have value because we were purchased with a price, the most rare blood of the perfect and sinless Lamb of God. We become members of the Family of God. Our relatives are Enoch, Moses and Elijah. Our elder Brother is Jesus Christ. He has shown the way and has gone to prepare a place for us with the Father. A place in which God is in control-- not ourselves.
We are the people of Grace. We know that it is not by our works that we are saved but by the works of Jesus Christ. We are the company of those who are led by the Holy Spirit of God. And He it is who will lead us through the desert of this life into a better land that is promised to us all.
We are the people of hope.
And so as we stand on our own personal Elbas and St. Helenas we look to the distance with eyes full of hope knowing that there is an eternal empire and that we are citizens of that empire no matter what our condition or where we happen to be. And what is more, we will be returning to that kingdom shortly.
HarleyDad
Through action great men and women mold the events that surround us. When Napoleon spoke armies moved and his enemies trembled. Napoleon was a “doer”, a self-made man, a person of destiny. Napoleon “made it happen.”
Some of the pictures that I have posted show Napoleon enjoying the fruits of greatness. Dressed in lavish clothing and wearing the golden olive leaf crown much as a Roman general who had successfully vanquished the enemies of Rome. Napoleon was the emperor of a new Rome, a French empire.
In David’s great picture showing the Crowning of Napoleon, you will note that Napoleon has the crown in his own hands. His victories were not to be relegated to honors bestowed by the pope and the church, but victory was brought to him by the strength of his own right hand, and so he crowns himself. It is the picture of the Self-Made Man.
Time, however, stands still for no man or woman. Napoleon despite all of his success meets final defeat at the hands of the British. He is exiled first to the Island of Elba. He returns to Europe and is finally defeated and spends his final days on the Island of St. Helena.
Pushkin wrote of Napoleon”
“Ocean, your image was stamped upon him;
He was created by your spirit;
He is fathomless and potent like you,
Like you by naught to be tamed.”
But he was tamed. He was taken to the Island of St. Helena and there he died probably poisoned with arsenic in his food by the British. He was too dangerous to let live even on the small island of St. Helena.
One writer has pointed out that Napoleon was born on an island-Corsica, exiled to an island-Elba; died on an island-St. Helena and spent his life trying to conquer an island-Great Britain.
Our powers are limited. Even though expansive for a while, they are hemmed in and we find that we are an island unto ourselves.
The story is told of a great leader who learns that he is mortal by being carried to the seaside he learns that he can not command the waves to stop coming in. There are limits to our powers no matter how great they may seem for the moment.
And so at the end of Napoleon’s life he is a simple gardener on the Island of St. Helena in the hands of his enemies. He is pictured as looking out into the sea; perhaps thinking of the glories of the French empire; perhaps realizing that the waves do not obey his commands. He realizes that he who once ruled the world, does not even rule the small island on which he lives.
How different the life of Christ from the life of Napoleon. Christ showed leadership by washing the feet of his disciples. He knew that to live was also to die and to die was also to live. Christ had no place to set his head. “The foxes have their holes, and the birds their nests; but there is no place for the Son of Man to rest his head.” Although they offered to make him King, Jesus said his kingdom was not of this world. At the end of his life, he had his clothes gambled away and he was nailed to a cross. And people who are nailed to a cross know that their fate is no longer in their own hands. Christ was not the self-made man, but the God- made man.
The lessons are there for all of us. Each of us comes to the point, where we come to the end of ourselves. We get there voluntarily or involuntarily, but most of us get there. Age becomes the great leveler and death comes to all. What we have earned through our efforts we can not take with us. Our kingdoms that we have conquered vanish. Our children and loved ones go away. Finally we left at the end of our lives knowing we can take nothing with us and realizing we are lucky if we have a plot of ground in which to be buried. Our kingdom is a small one. Our beauty fades. Our possessions that we have worked so hard to earn go to the relatives or to auctions or to yard sales. We are left at the end of life lucky to control our own bodily functions, much less the world.
And this is the human delimma. Even the Stalins of the earth finally get evicted from their own tombs. The Hitlers end up on a bone box in some Russian archive or hidden away. The applause of the crowd is there no longer.
But for the Christian, there is hope. We begin with the premise that the world is not our home in the first place. We are citizens of a new and better world. We believe in a physical resurrection and life with Christ in a New Jerusalem. We start from the premise that we are not self-made men and women but we are God-made men and women. We have value because we were purchased with a price, the most rare blood of the perfect and sinless Lamb of God. We become members of the Family of God. Our relatives are Enoch, Moses and Elijah. Our elder Brother is Jesus Christ. He has shown the way and has gone to prepare a place for us with the Father. A place in which God is in control-- not ourselves.
We are the people of Grace. We know that it is not by our works that we are saved but by the works of Jesus Christ. We are the company of those who are led by the Holy Spirit of God. And He it is who will lead us through the desert of this life into a better land that is promised to us all.
We are the people of hope.
And so as we stand on our own personal Elbas and St. Helenas we look to the distance with eyes full of hope knowing that there is an eternal empire and that we are citizens of that empire no matter what our condition or where we happen to be. And what is more, we will be returning to that kingdom shortly.
HarleyDad
Monday, July 17, 2006
Softtail Deluxe
On Friday, Brokerbelle and I went to Kansas City to pick up the new Softtail Deluxe. The process took several hours; but soon I was testing out the new Harley and it worked fine. Next I proceed around Kansas City, via 435 and drove North to Cameron, Missouri. After spending some time there I headed back to Ozarklandia. By the time I returned home at 10:30 p.m. I had already placed about 325 miles on HarleyDad's new little toy.
Saturday, I accompanied Princessbelle to her Green Belt test. It was rough; but Princessbelle showed fortitude and now is the proud owner of a green belt. In this particular style, belts are not given out easily. There are no paperbelts and sometimes intermediates in the style are known to have success against blackbelts in other styles. All I can say is that it is rough and character building. Her character, of course. HarleyDad walked away emotionally exhausted. Brokerbelle voluntarily abstains from attending after going after a 7th degree blackbelt who was not being nice to Princessbelle during the last test. In fact I noted that several other mothers this time were waiting outside the dojo. At any rate, I was emotionally exhausted after the test and am quite satisfied that Princessbelle is not tested too often.
On Sunday we went to our local B_ _ _ _ _ _ _ church. We want to go to a place that has a good youth group for Princessbelle. For the second time the youth group did not even meet for Sunday School. It looks like we will continue our search elsewhere. Incredible.
Sunday afternoon it was over 100 degrees, but I went for a ride. Roamed about Cartago, visited the monastery and headed home down what is probably the ugliest and longest main street in America. Like a teenager I had to go down the drag with the new bike. Pictures to come soon.
A persistent rumor continues that I have a dear son in Afghanistan. We do not know whether it is true or not; however one person has claimed to have actually spoken with him. His business is secret and so are his pictures; so we can not be certain; but we suspect that he may still be there and we pray for him daily.
HarleyDad
Saturday, I accompanied Princessbelle to her Green Belt test. It was rough; but Princessbelle showed fortitude and now is the proud owner of a green belt. In this particular style, belts are not given out easily. There are no paperbelts and sometimes intermediates in the style are known to have success against blackbelts in other styles. All I can say is that it is rough and character building. Her character, of course. HarleyDad walked away emotionally exhausted. Brokerbelle voluntarily abstains from attending after going after a 7th degree blackbelt who was not being nice to Princessbelle during the last test. In fact I noted that several other mothers this time were waiting outside the dojo. At any rate, I was emotionally exhausted after the test and am quite satisfied that Princessbelle is not tested too often.
On Sunday we went to our local B_ _ _ _ _ _ _ church. We want to go to a place that has a good youth group for Princessbelle. For the second time the youth group did not even meet for Sunday School. It looks like we will continue our search elsewhere. Incredible.
Sunday afternoon it was over 100 degrees, but I went for a ride. Roamed about Cartago, visited the monastery and headed home down what is probably the ugliest and longest main street in America. Like a teenager I had to go down the drag with the new bike. Pictures to come soon.
A persistent rumor continues that I have a dear son in Afghanistan. We do not know whether it is true or not; however one person has claimed to have actually spoken with him. His business is secret and so are his pictures; so we can not be certain; but we suspect that he may still be there and we pray for him daily.
HarleyDad
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Two Harleys are Better than One
HarleyDad has bought a second Harley. I guess if I were a younger man I would have not purchased a second. But as an older individual (should I say more mature) I decided to move ahead with the support of Brokerbelle.
My riding years, unfortunately, are limited and so there is an open riding window and I have decided to drive through that window with a new Harley.
Some people love riding Harleys and I am one of those people. It is does not bother me to ride alone; in fact I enjoy it.
The new Hawg in the House is a Softtail Deluxe. It is Cobalt blue and white. To see a copy on the Harley site go to http://www.harley-davidson.com/PR/MOT/2006/06_template.asp?bmLocale=en_US&family=softail&model=flstn&market=US&modelsection=gallery
I am scheduled to pick it up on Friday.
My 2003 Anniversary Sportster will be kept in good condition at home and ridden regularly. It will be available for guest rides by TexBro when he visits; Mr. Monarch (Prince Consort to HRH, the ImpQueen), the Emerald Prince when he gets out and Sparky if he decides to get a motorcycle license and visits.
It is my hope that the new Softtail Deluxe will be more suitable for multi-state rides outside of theMissouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Kansas areas.
Can a new motorcycle be cost justified or explained? I doubt it. But if you really love riding then perhaps you will understand.
I talked with a friend at work, who asked if I were still playing golf. Now golf is the king of outdoor games in my opinion; however my answer was "No". Riding and boating take up too much time and I do not want to give either up and so golf is probably out until I retire.
Most people retire and do what? I don't know. Some write; some are productive. I fear I have been overly productive (although, not always successful) already; worked too hard and played too little.
Now the little boy who stayed inside to study and be a dutiful son, husband, father, scholar, and church member, seems to be very insistent in sneaking outside to ride freely in the sunshine in the beautiful nature made by the very hand of God. He wants to photograph and write about the beauty of that nature and the glory of a good God's handiwork. He seeks good relationships with all those that God brings into his life.
And lastly he desires to ride fast and free on his Harley. That is why he is HarleyDad.
My riding years, unfortunately, are limited and so there is an open riding window and I have decided to drive through that window with a new Harley.
Some people love riding Harleys and I am one of those people. It is does not bother me to ride alone; in fact I enjoy it.
The new Hawg in the House is a Softtail Deluxe. It is Cobalt blue and white. To see a copy on the Harley site go to http://www.harley-davidson.com/PR/MOT/2006/06_template.asp?bmLocale=en_US&family=softail&model=flstn&market=US&modelsection=gallery
I am scheduled to pick it up on Friday.
My 2003 Anniversary Sportster will be kept in good condition at home and ridden regularly. It will be available for guest rides by TexBro when he visits; Mr. Monarch (Prince Consort to HRH, the ImpQueen), the Emerald Prince when he gets out and Sparky if he decides to get a motorcycle license and visits.
It is my hope that the new Softtail Deluxe will be more suitable for multi-state rides outside of theMissouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Kansas areas.
Can a new motorcycle be cost justified or explained? I doubt it. But if you really love riding then perhaps you will understand.
I talked with a friend at work, who asked if I were still playing golf. Now golf is the king of outdoor games in my opinion; however my answer was "No". Riding and boating take up too much time and I do not want to give either up and so golf is probably out until I retire.
Most people retire and do what? I don't know. Some write; some are productive. I fear I have been overly productive (although, not always successful) already; worked too hard and played too little.
Now the little boy who stayed inside to study and be a dutiful son, husband, father, scholar, and church member, seems to be very insistent in sneaking outside to ride freely in the sunshine in the beautiful nature made by the very hand of God. He wants to photograph and write about the beauty of that nature and the glory of a good God's handiwork. He seeks good relationships with all those that God brings into his life.
And lastly he desires to ride fast and free on his Harley. That is why he is HarleyDad.
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