The Harley really IS gone

The guy who bought the Harley came yesterday afternoon and got it. That is the only time anyone other than John has driven it, with the exception of the guys at the dealership when he's taken it in for servicing. It was SO sad to see it, and then to hear it, go.

John had been talking to Katy when the guy called to say he was almost here, so after they left, he called Katy back. He was telling her he'd sold it and he said that he nearly cried. In the time I've known John, he has cried twice--once when his dad died and once when Roy Watts died--both very important and influential men in his life.

This feels like one chapter in our lives has closed. It was a chapter that was full of freedom and adventure. Anyone who has never ridden motorcycles wouldn't understand. It is something riders can't explain. You either "get it" or you don't. We'll start the next chapter, and I know that it will be just as much fun and adventurous.

Happy Birthday, Ali!

Today is Ali's first birthday! It is so hard to believe that a year ago, I just happened to look on Nichole's website and saw that a brand new litter of pups had been born that very morning, AND they were chocolates!! I had decided that Bama needed a sister, and I wanted a chocolate or a blue, so this must've been meant to be. John wasn't as keen on adding another puppy to our household, but as soon as he got home, I made him look at the sweet babies on her site. I think he knew it was hopeless at that point. hahaha We talked about the two females in the litter. I had picked out the runt, but John liked the other one better because her blaze was more centered on her face. He said I could call Nichole to see about getting her. Well, that one was already on hold, but the other female was still available. I told her to put HOLD on her and that I'd be there in about 15 minutes to make the deposit.

Nichole always names her puppies herself, and since the momma and the daddy of this litter were Cocoa and Candy, all the puppies had candy/cookie names. I THINK Ali's might have been Oreo, but I had already decided on Ali, so from the minute I saw her, she was Ali.

She was absolutely the tiniest thing! Nichole got the other female to show me the comparison. Ali was half the size. Because she was so tiny, Nichole said that if she didn't make it, I could have first choice out of the next litter. I had no doubt that this little girl was going to make it. I could just tell that she was a fighter. I would call or email Nichole about once a week, and I would go to her house about every couple of weeks to see her. She stayed tiny, but she just thrived! The first time I got to hold her, she gave me sweet little puppy kisses (and she hasn't stopped yet!!)

We didn't actually bring her home until she was 8 weeks old. Those were some long weeks! The minute she walked into the house, she knew she was home. She ran over to John, jumped up in his lap, and kissed him. Then she began her job as tormentor to her brother. :) Bama wasn't too sure about her, and even now he acts like she's just something he HAS to deal with, but he gets just as much enjoyment out of her as we get out of them. Yes, she aggravates the snot out of him, but he does his fair share of instigating.

So a year later, how does John feel about having two pups in the house? HA He is 100% smitten with both of them. He tells them he loves them all the time. He pretends to be the big tough "daddy" but that is so not the case. He spoils them rotten!

Ali Bug, happy, happy birthday!! We love you!

The Harley is gone :(

John decided a few weeks ago that he wanted to list the Harley again. I put off listing it, because I wanted to make sure that was what he really and truly wanted to do. Several times, he told me I needed to put an ad in the paper, so I did last week. He's had 4 calls about it, and one man even came by to look at it. He got the same thing--"I need to think about it." He got the 4th call last night. After hanging up, he said he didn't think this guy would buy it and that he sounded like Larry. Not being able to recall a Larry, I gave him a puzzled look and said, "The cable guy?" He said, "No, Larry from the safety class." Ohhhhh. (This is one of those "you had to be there" things. They sent Larry home from the class after the morning riding session.)

I got to work this morning and checked all my emails, and "Larry" (not his real name) had sent a reply. He was serious, and he wanted to know if John could meet him tomorrow so he could bring a certified check! I called John and told him I was forwarding the email to him.

John just called me and said it's sold. He sounds like he has lost his best friend in the entire world (which is me, by the way. tee hee) When I told him how he sounded, he said he has lost his best bike. I told him that if he really doesn't want to sell, don't! Since he hasn't gotten to ride much in the last couple of years, he said he would go through with the sell, but it is still so sad! I'm even wondering if this is the right thing to do!

The Harley motto will always be one that I love: It isn't the destination; it's the journey. We've had lots of great journeys, and I know we will miss having the bike. It's like John said, though--he can always get a new one.

Am I therapeutic?

Almost every morning, Karen, one of my dear friends, walks over to my room, or I walk over to hers and we just chat about everything and nothing. One of the disadvantages of being a teacher is that during the day, we don't get much "adult" conversation, so we take advantage of any opportunity to be around other adults. Even though I teach seniors for the majority of the day, and even though they are considered young adults, their focus and mine are vastly different. That isn't to say that I haven't had wonderful conversations with my students, but some things you just don't discuss with them!

Anyway, back to Karen. She has been one of my many sounding boards and support providers over the last few months This morning, our conversation drifted around to several different topics: summer plans, parents, kids, among others. As we discussed one of the others, Karen suggested that I am actually being therapeutic. When a person is faced with grief, there are the five stages of acceptance: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Not everyone experiences grief in the same way or for the same lengths of time. At the anger stage, one sometimes "transfers" his or her anger to someone outside the situation--a scapegoat, if you will. Karen feels that has happened to me, and I can see where she might be right. Maybe I am actually helping someone through these stages. I will admit that I am not totally in the right in the overall situation, but I know that I am not totally wrong, either.

Woo Hoo!

This post is from my NEW LAPTOP! When we adopted new grammar books at the end of last year, we got to choose a "freebie." Most of us wanted laptops. We waited and we waited and we waited. It has been a YEAR since we made the adoption, and we just got the freebies on Friday. Of course, I couldn't post over the weekend because we don't have phone service (yet) at the lake, and when we got home last night, I just didn't feel like hooking it up to the phone line. We will be getting a wireless router for the house soon. :) It's going to be SO nice to be able to work on tests and to research material while sitting in the den with John instead of having to be off in another room.