Rock You Like a Hurricane

We wanted more rain, and for once our prayers are being answered: Hurricane Odile is moving up Baja California. Heavy rain in Arizona is forecast for Wednesday and Thursday, the first two days of my motorcycle trip.

Not that I’m a pussy (I am a total pussy), but putting the Goldwing on the trailer and towing it to Las Vegas is suddenly back on the table. This is in no way a show-stopper: the main part of the motorcycle trip, the five-day ride with my son Greg to Colorado and back, begins in Las Vegas, and we don’t leave until Friday.

At least I-15 east of Las Vegas is open again, even if it’s only two lanes. Come to think of it, though, it was Hurricane Norbert that washed out part of I-15 just two weeks ago, and Odile’s following the same track. Whatever happens, it’s going to be an adventure.

Our daughter Polly is here to house-sit for us while we’re away. This morning she and I are taking the doggies to the feed store. I’ll probably take them to the dog park this afternoon.

Our older girl Schatzi, who turned nine in August, is beginning to lose her eyesight. She’s doing okay generally, but seems not to be able to see things close up. She’ll chase a ball down the hall, for example, but when the ball comes to rest and she gets within a couple of feet of it, she can’t find it. We don’t see cataracts in her eyes, and I doubt there’s anything we can do for her anyway. She knows the house and back yard well, and at least for now has her distance vision, but I just want to hold her all the time.

I replaced the side burner on our Weber gas grill, a simpler operation than I thought it would be. Weber thoughtfully uses quick-release connections, so it was just a matter of removing four screws, lifting up the old burner and unsnapping the gas line, then snapping it to the new burner and screwing in the cover plate. Here it is, flaming away:

My handyman projects rarely come off without a hitch, so I hope you’ll forgive me for crowing about this one.

Now to get serious about packing for the trip. I’m washing a couple of riding shirts and my favorite pair of riding pants, and I need to find room in the saddlebags for an extra pair of boots in case Odile pushes rain up into Nevada and Utah, which it might.

I love this feeling of anticipatory excitement. I’m like a kid on Christmas Eve. It’s great we can still feel that way when we’re all grown up, isn’t it?