The Squamidian Report – May 30 / 09
Issue #366
Including:
From Carol & Al
The Ontarion
Hi All,
I seem to be giving the Harley a bath about once for every thousand kilometers I put on. If I had a dollar for every time I’ve washed the bike, I’d have about 34 dollars by now! One thing I know for sure, if I wear it out and have to replace it, it will not be replaced with another BLACK bike, it would be a colour that would not show the dust and dirt so well. We tooted up to Whistler again for breakfast, which makes for a great morning but when we got back I knew it was bike bath time again. Those machines just have to be shinny and clean, no dust or dirt aloud. Didn’t see any bears this time, I think they were all taking the weekend off.
Washing the bike is actually quite a lot of work and if it were not for my bike blow dryer, I probably would put off the whole thing for a much longer period. Unlike a car that has expanses of sheet metal, a bike is all nooks, crannies and corners. Except for tank and fenders, not much else is smooth and easy to do. After a pre-rinse to get the grit off, a good soapy washing with a soft wash mitt removes the rest of the dirt. Then it is a rinse again and then what would be the hard frustrating part…. the drying. Drying by hand with a rag is an exercise in frustration ending in sore fingers from jamming the rag and fingers into all those hard to reach places. So we use those great warm air bike blow dryers. They filter and warm the air before blowing it so the end result is a bike that is clean, dry and free of watermarks.
Now here is where my next secret weapon comes in. I’ve tried all sorts of waxes and polishes. Harley wants us to buy their own name brand cleaning and polishing products at premium prices but there are better products available for a fraction of the price. A couple of times a year I use Nu-Finish or some such thing to remove small surface scratches. But for regular polishing I use good old Lemon Pledge. Yup, the furniture stuff. You can get it anywhere for less than $5 for a spay can and it gives a really good shine that keeps well, and dirt and water just slide right off. Even works on the chrome parts. There is only one small problem with it, don’t use it if there are bees or wasps around if that kind of thing bothers you because they seem to like to check out the lemon smell and the bike does end up smelling a bit like lemons. I think any of the Pledge citrus flavors would do just as well.
*
The wife and I went to see the new Star Trek movie. We had talked about seeing it but she has been out of town a fair amount so it took us a while to get around to it. I didn’t bother to tell her that I’d already seen it, went on a weekday evening with Ryan and a friend of his. But on that occasion we had to sit so close to the screen in the theater that it felt more being IN the movie than being AT the movie.
Anyway, it was pretty good. We both enjoyed it. It was high-powered action on top of good old Star Trek science fiction. The story line was very well handled. The actors did a very good job of portraying young versions of their characters rather than young versions of the actors that played those characters. Story line discrepancies were nicely dealt with by the fact that the future had been altered by the bad guys. So if you haven’t seen it, go see it. You just might find it quite enjoyable.
*
Some of you will remember that 4 years ago this summer was Lorne and Vivyan’s 60th. At the time we celebrated it in Kitchener by having a big party that turned into a family reunion. We then decided to hold a reunion every second year and that second one was 2 years ago in Nova Scotia at Sus’s place. Well, another 2 years have gone by and the 3rd bi-annual reunion in now only 8 short weeks away. It will be held on and around the August long weekend out here in the Coastal Mountains of BC with the get-togethers split between our place and Warren’s. So, if any of you are planning to come who have not yet let us know, we’d like to know so your presence can be included in our planning.
doug
****
As some of you may know Al's father, Donald, is a WW2 veteran. He is a member of the Legion, Branch 396, Chippawa. Last Sunday we went down to Chippawa and picked up Donald from his retirement home to take him to the Legion. Actually it would be more accurate to say we bullied him into putting on his Legion uniform and strong armed him into going to the Legion. Don’s vision isn’t what it once was, his legs are not that steady and he gets confused some times so he feels most comfortable just staying put. The Legion had called us and requested we do our best to bring Don to their annual swearing in of officers and rewards ceremony. As each officer was installed he or she was led forward by the duty sergeant and two flag bearers, with pomp and ceremony. The reason Donald’s presence was so much wanted was this year they were presenting him with his 65 year membership pin and with some bands he should have received before that go on a medal he already has. To Don’s surprise and pleasure they not only ushered him forward with the colour guard but brought in a piper to pipe him forward.
Those of you who are up on their war history will know that this coming June 6th will be the 65th anniversary of D-day. Donald must have joined the Legion while in England to have received his 65 year pin for that is where he was 65 years ago. He didn’t land on the beaches on D-day, instead he was dropped, by parachute, behind enemy lines the night before. Over 60% of the 1st Canadian Airborne did not make it home. Don was one of the few lucky ones that went on to fight for Holland’s liberation and then cross Germany to meet the Russians at Wismar. Al is proud and grateful of his Dad’s contribution. We are thankful that Dan’s Legion chose to honour him. We are also thankful that Branch 396 is doing a lot to raise money to help the new war veterans coming back injured from Afghanistan. I pray for a world of peace and wish there was no need for soldiers to fight and sacrifice. I also pray for all the veterans, old & new, and their families.
****
Hello
Everyone!
Well, it
happened again and not just once but twice this week! I decided to mow the lawn
on Tuesday and it rained Wednesday and Thursday to make it grow like heck! I
figured it would be dry for a while over the weekend so I cut the grass again
this afternoon and…………..I’ll be darned if we didn’t get another smasher of a
thunder storm again this evening (Friday)! I guess I’ll have to start cutting
the grass at night so the rain gods don’t see me doin’ it! Maybe then I’ll get
a stretch without that growing stuff falling from above and making more work
for me and my mower! LOL! But, I guess that’s what it’s all about isn’t it? I’d
probably be belly achin’ if it was too dry and my grass was dieing off!
*
I guess
it’s my turn to talk about my motorcycle for a change. I know it’s usually Doug
and I NEVER mention mine but this time I just have a quick story to tell you
about it. I decided to take my bike to the dealer in Cambridge on Hwy 8 South
this morning for an oil change. I figured that I’d get them to do this one and
then from then on do them myself. I don’t have a service manual for this
Kawasaki but I’m going to try to find one soon. I called the dealer that I
purchased the bike from a year ago February and asked if he could fit me in
this morning and he said no problem just to bring it on down. Once there I had
to wait for an hour while he changed a tire on another bike. Once he got mine
in the shop I asked if he’d mind my looking on as he did the oil change. He
said no problem just to stand off to one side. I just wanted to see where the
drain plug was, along with the filter and ask how much oil and what type my
bike required. I figured that way once I knew the details I’d be able to change
my own oil next time. Well, I sure am glad I found all that out today. I’ll be
doing my own work from now on when it comes to changing my oil on the bike. The
total bill came to $81.01 for a flippin’ oil change!!! I was almost in cardiac
arrest when his wife handed me the invoice. I didn’t say anything but I’m sure
she could see the shock on my face! When I can take my Jeep Liberty in to a
lube shop and have 4.5 litres of the Heavy Oil required put in and the filter
changed along with a quick check of my tire pressure and lubrication of all my
greasable nipples and other filter etc checked for a mere $25.00 including
taxes this “motorcycle oil change” strikes me as highway robbery! To think that
they only required 2.5 litres of oil for the motorcycle and it cost me over
three times the amount it does to do the Jeep it’s hard to believe they can justify
this charge!
I just
checked the itemized list on my receipt and filter is listed as $15.99. The oil
is listed as $10.99/litre for a total of $27.48 for 2.5 litres and the labor is
$29.99. Heck even if I don’t find the oil or filter any cheaper than that it’ll
still save me over $30.00 if I do it myself from now on. I was shocked to say
the least and all I could think of on my way home was that the Japanese
motorcycle dealers had finally caught on to the fact that there’s money to be
made by the bucket full if they charge the prices that Harley Davidson has
charged for years and so……. Now they do!
Thanks a
lot HARLEY! No wonder a lot of the guys I know that own Harley’s do their own
service work! Sheesh! I’m going to do some shopping around and check prices on
the oil and filter for the bike to see just how much money I can save doing the
changes myself. I’ll bet I can cut it down to close to the cost of having my
Jeep done! I’ll let you know just for interest sake. I’m sure all the ladies of
the Squid group will be waiting to hear this one next week!
Just out
of curiosity, how much does it cost to have an oil change done at the Harley
dealer Doug?
That’s it
for this week folks!
Thanks
for tuning in and I look forward to talking to you all again next week in The
Ontarion Report!
Bye for now.. Greg.
PS:
Something To Think About>
A
goldfish has a memory span of 3 seconds!
Now, who
the hell ever decided to study that one????
****
Have a good one..
the doug
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