New York April Nyc Meet-up

A bird **** on me this morning in Madhattan.

Oddly this is suppose to be a sign of good luck, and I will play Lotto, the Powerball, and Mega-Millions.

I mentioned to "Maggie" that the Vintage Shop in Peekskill is a good idea, but it would mean her weekends would be tied up in the store. So that idea died fast. LOL.

I figured out that my tire pressure on my mountain bike was a bit high at 30 psi. I likely should go down to 28 rear and maybe 24/25 front with a 2.35 wide tire. I forgot that I'm a skinny bitch.

Somehow I got a 10% off tires at Schwable and they are closing out last year's leftover stock in sales. Looking into sets of Magic Mary's in 2.35 and even 2.6 widths.

On my Basso (rebranded Ti Litespeed) I can take a step towards a fat tire bike. The Magic Mary's I'm interested in on sale are downhill tires with very tacky rubber, but with rather high rolling resistance, so I will pay for traction and grip in exchange for more effort climbing and loss of momentum. Of course downhill tires are not the lightest in weight.

I have other tires coming in for cross country that are lighter and have low rolling resistance.

Seems my road bike is rather limited and restricted into remaining a road bike. Gravel bikes with wider tires are kinda specialized. Don't tell Maggie but I need a new bike.

Cal
 
Calzone said:
A bird **** on me this morning in Madhattan.

Oddly this is suppose to be a sign of good luck, and I will play Lotto, the Powerball, and Mega-Millions.

Cal
Click to expand...

That has happened to me so many times, I can ensure you that it has nothing to do with good luck. I've wanted to punch people that claimed that I was 'blessed'.
One time I was dive-bombed by a seagull with d***ia in my lunch break. I had to hand wash my shirt multiple times in the bathroom to get the smell out. The rest of the afternoon I was freezing in the AC with a wet shirt. Not fun.
 
Inner tubes were delivered yesterday. I await new wider tires.

Should get another ride/field trial in this weekend, and with fatter tires I will be able to drop the air pressure more.

Did a lot of number crunching last night. New York is not so bad to retire in if you are in my situation. There are tax exemptions for private pensions of the first $20K, there is another $20K tax exemption for IRA's or 403B's, and Social Security is not taxed.

They say, "Nobody ever got rich paying taxes."

Of course no matter where you live, even in another country, you still have to pay taxes to the FED's.

But say you make a meager $15K working, boy do you get a haircut that makes it a great disincentive to work. Pretty much the tax laws kinda target people that don't have enough savings to retire, and also they kinda target the wealthy that have abundance.

Somehow I'm able to work and game the system where I would not say I evade taxes which is breaking the law and is illegal, but somehow I live in the sweet spot where I can maintain my standard of living, live below my means, and save money to keep up with inflation.

"Maggie" is an anxious Nevious Nelly who did not understand how lucky we are. In 3 more years she will retire, right now she still has income from all her social media, and as a hedge she also is involved working on some grant.

So being a lazy-slacker is hard for some people because they want to be busy all the time and their identity and self worth is closely related to work.

I did play the Lotto, Powerball and Mega-Millions...

So it seems getting dumped on by birds is pretty common, but how many of you have had "bird-strikes" where a bird flew into you?

I had a pigeon crash into my legs on Broadway. "I was just walking along minding my own business..."

My fishing buddy Bob and I were "Pinhookers" while not commercial fishermen our catch was sold. Kinda like being a commercial fishermen without a license or official business.

Bob had a beach house in Kismet on Fire Island, and he had a deal with the restaurant in Kismet that he could dock his boat at the restaurant in exchange for a supply of fresh fish.

Bob also sold enough fish to residents, beach house renters, and other communities on Fire Island that pretty much the earned money paid for the boat and expenses.

So Saturdays and Sundays from sun-up to noon we would kill mucho fish and load up the boat. Dave was another Pin-hooker in our crew and the Dave and I of us fished two rods each, one in each hand; but Bob fished three rods, one a "dead-stick."

Our secret was the chum slick I would set up. Basically all the fish would gather right under the boat.

So early in the season we would load up on Flounders bottom fishing, and then troll Fire Island inlet with "Gorilla-Rigs" which are "Umbrella" rigs except with six arms instead of just four with the twist of two spoons on leaders so it looked like perhaps a small fish feeding on baitfish.

We used wire line that worked like a linear sinker to get depth. So when we hooked up we would have 3-7 fish on at a time, so it was pretty easy to load the boat. Most of the fish were Blues (schoolies 5-7 pounds each), but we at times hooked into Weakfish and even Striped Bass.

So this is one reason why my arms are so muscular. This was hard work, but I always got to take home as much fish as I wanted.

We were kinda famous as the "Sharpies."

So back to the bird stories. Bob had this wild Herring Gull that knew to come around noon to get fed when Bob cleaned and gutted the catch of the day. This one gull defended his territory and would get really close to Bob.

Bob reported that the gull would eat so much that he tried to fly off the picnic table, but because of over eating he crashed and was no longer flight worthy. LOL.

Also know that I built custom rods. In my right hand I would hold a spinning rod, and in my left a bait casting rod. I was really good casting with a conventional reel. Most people don't have the skill to avoid backlashes and making rat's nests of tangles. I used dacron line for lack of stretch and enhanced sensitivity.

Also I was kinda sporty and used light tackle really made for fresh water fishing. On the spinning rod I only used 5 pound test line. The advantage is that I could go with lighter sinkers for better feel and sensitivity.

So one day I feel a nible and because my rods are so wimpy I kinda hade to violently set the hook, and in this particular moment I hooked into a Blackfish.

So Blackfish are powerful so the rod bent in half as if to snap, and the trick with Blackfish is you have to get them off the bottom right away or they will snag your line. So because I had only 5 pound test line the fish in its tug of war was stripping line, and I had to keep him off the bottom.

So this is going back and forth for a while, but eventually I won and we netted my trophy Blackfish that was about 6-7 pounds. I caught him in a flounder hook, no easy feat because Blackfish also have leathery mouths.

Blackfish when filleted and baked perfectly have this firm flesh and texture that is like eating lobster without the shell. What a feast he made.

So now I want to go do my Hemmingway's and do "The Old Man And The Sea" adventures again.

Cal
 
So what is more important to you: time; or money?

For more than 40 years money was important to me, but now time is more important, only because I have enough money as a resource.

I believe I have enough, meaning more than I need, to be sustainable and that was my point in showing "Maggie" last night that there is more to life than making money.

So now it looks like I could have 40 years where time is the most important focus of my life.

The key to the plan is not to waste either time or money.

Augie
 
Phil_F_NM said:
Cal,
Have you considered having new wheels built and going tubeless?
You could run your tires down to 17psi and they would not pinch flat.

Phil Forrest
Click to expand...

Phil,

I was mucho happy running pink latex tubes for their light weight and less rotating mass, but of course latex tubes for mountain bikes are extinct.

While I could not run as low a pressure the latex Tubes were as lite as going tubeless when you account for weight of the sealant.

I already have a matching pair of Mavic front wheels that are UST ready for tubeless. For the two IBIS Mountain Trials bikes I own the 24 inch rear wheels are a bit limited, but I'm considering trying to go tubeless on retro rims that are not specifically made/designed for tubeless.

The thought does come to mind though for the Ti Basso (Litespeed) because it has 26 inch wheels. I only have 3x8 speed, but know that because of Covid White Industries is all back up and it could take 5-6 weeks to get just the hub to go XTR 11 speed.

Because of you and your advice I loaded up the truck on 9 speed dura ace and 11 Speed XTR right before the came out with 12 speed. I also bought mucho Deore 11-40 cassettes when they were blowing them out at clearance sale prices.

So as I preach, "Spend your money once," I say, but I'm still obsessing over the details.

Discovered that building out my Ti Basso Road (Litespeed Classic that has been bead blasted and has a blue fade in Imaron by Rainbow Cycles) has limitations also and can't be really adapted into a gravel bike.

So the ideal bike for Blue Mountain Preserve is really a 29'er with perhaps a full suspension. Where rock gardens are boulder fields the level of rocks is pretty severe.

Sometime this week I expect a set of Schwable Hans Dampf's to be delivered that are 26x2.35. For now I think these will allow me to use the Ti Basso with better gearing.

I never-ever had a pinch flat, perhaps because I used soft latex tubes, I tended to favor less rolling resistance over traction and cush, but then again I was riding on deer trails in pine barrens that were not so rocky.

Cal
 
Following Devil Christian's advice I have been carrying a camera to shoot on my commute, and today I took some interesting shots of the misty rain and moody twilight. Some involve interesting motion blur that abstracts the images.

The camera is a "free" Lumix that was "Maggie" X-S that I rescued, salvaged, and am recycling.

Last night I went outside to add some kitchen scraps to my mulch pile. Upon exiting the kitchen door I hear this drone, and then by the garage I recognize the chorus of frogs, but it is as loud as when the other day I was all the way in the back of the back-backyard.

So when I finally get to the rear corner of the fenced in area (my property extends another 25-26 feet beyond the fence) the sound is deafening. Them frogs are noisy neighbors. Kinda crazy how loud they were in the drizzling rain.

So for people in other parts of the country and the world, the entire northeast is expected to get over run with Cicadas sometime this summer as they play out their 17 year life cycle and mate.

So it seems I have noisy neighbors. LOL.

Cal
 
robert blu said:
Perhaps you could buy a couple of good earphones and listen to some louder music LOL
Click to expand...

Robert,

When I lived in the Southside of Williamsburg I lived in a loft.

Eventually this kid who had two Pit Bulls who lived on his trust fund and never worked moved in in the loft right above mine.

This kid loved this death metal music and would play it loud.

So one day I had enough, and I plug in one of my bass guitars into my 200 watt tube amp and start rattling the building. Of course his dogs did not like it and I could here him yelling at them. Animals tend to be able to predict earthquakes you know.

After that I never had a problem.

"Maggie" at times calls me, "Evil Calvin."

Kinda funny how people are afraid of crazy people. LOL.

Evil Calvin
 
Calzone said:
Robert,
...
So one day I had enough, and I plug in one of my bass guitars into my 200 watt tube amp and start rattling the building. Of course his dogs did not like it and I could here him yelling at them. Animals tend to be able to predict earthquakes you know.

After that I never had a problem.
...

Evil Calvin
Click to expand...

Love the story! Not sure it could work with frogs and cicadas LOL
 
robert blu said:
Love the story! Not sure it could work with frogs and cicadas LOL
Click to expand...

Robert,

I'm not so crazy. I only fight when I know I can win.

Also frogs and cicadas are cool. This kid was not. I was not kidding about the trust fund.

Also people have a sense of who not to mess with. BTW my landlord, an old Brooklyn tough guy, gave me a compliment and called me "a scary guy." LOL.

Some of my friends say that I'm worse than a woman when I go hysterical when I have one of my hussy fits. LOL.

Cal
 
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