We started the day with our first mechanical problem. S’s bike had a check engine light on. The oil was low, so we asked the almighty GPS to find us an auto parts store. Out of the four of us, not a single soul remembered to pack extra oil, even though we were headed out on a 10,000 mile trip.
She added oil, but the “check engine” light was still on. Before the trip, I programmed the GPS with the location of every Harley dealer in the United States and Canada. The closest one was “Roosters HD” that was located 30 miles away. How apropos.
Here’s the back story: L and her brother have this tradition of passing pack and forth a little wooden chicken. Several years ago, their mother insisted on giving this country kitchen chicken statue to L when she was visiting Florida. She was staying with her brother Robert, and she threatened to leave it with him. He gave her grief about rejecting their mother’s gift, and so when L returned home, she left the chicken behind on Robert’s shelf among some awards and knick knacks.
A couple of months later, Robert came to visit and when he left, he hid the chicken in a soup pot. She returned the favor on her next visit to him, putting it in a pocket in the pool table. For years, this chicken has been hidden in golf bags and sock drawers, under car seats and in the back of closets. The final straw was when L rode her motorcycle to Tampa to visit Robert and his family before we were heading out for our first cross country motorcycle trip. He threatened to hide it in her bike, but she told him there was no room. Robert didn’t believe her. He got up in the middle of the night to hide the chicken in her saddle bag, wrapped up in her rain suit.
Well, lemons make lemonade, and all that. We took the chicken across the US and took pictures of it at every tacky roadside attraction we could think of. It became a great conversation starter, and passers by would invariably help by pointing out local photo ops we hadn’t come across yet. For Christmas, we compiled the best photos using snapfish.com to create this fantastic coffee table book of the chicken’s journeys.
Okay, that’s a long setup, but the point is that we once again have the chicken on our trip. And having to stop at “Roosters Harley Davidson” does seem a little fortuitous. L bought a t-shirt for Robert and had it shipped to Tampa. I’ve posted a picture of the actual chicken with the shirt.
Our trip was delayed by 2 hours while S’s motorcycle was repaired. Cha-ching. Unexpected trip expense du jour.
She added oil, but the “check engine” light was still on. Before the trip, I programmed the GPS with the location of every Harley dealer in the United States and Canada. The closest one was “Roosters HD” that was located 30 miles away. How apropos.
Here’s the back story: L and her brother have this tradition of passing pack and forth a little wooden chicken. Several years ago, their mother insisted on giving this country kitchen chicken statue to L when she was visiting Florida. She was staying with her brother Robert, and she threatened to leave it with him. He gave her grief about rejecting their mother’s gift, and so when L returned home, she left the chicken behind on Robert’s shelf among some awards and knick knacks.
A couple of months later, Robert came to visit and when he left, he hid the chicken in a soup pot. She returned the favor on her next visit to him, putting it in a pocket in the pool table. For years, this chicken has been hidden in golf bags and sock drawers, under car seats and in the back of closets. The final straw was when L rode her motorcycle to Tampa to visit Robert and his family before we were heading out for our first cross country motorcycle trip. He threatened to hide it in her bike, but she told him there was no room. Robert didn’t believe her. He got up in the middle of the night to hide the chicken in her saddle bag, wrapped up in her rain suit.
Well, lemons make lemonade, and all that. We took the chicken across the US and took pictures of it at every tacky roadside attraction we could think of. It became a great conversation starter, and passers by would invariably help by pointing out local photo ops we hadn’t come across yet. For Christmas, we compiled the best photos using snapfish.com to create this fantastic coffee table book of the chicken’s journeys.
Okay, that’s a long setup, but the point is that we once again have the chicken on our trip. And having to stop at “Roosters Harley Davidson” does seem a little fortuitous. L bought a t-shirt for Robert and had it shipped to Tampa. I’ve posted a picture of the actual chicken with the shirt.
Our trip was delayed by 2 hours while S’s motorcycle was repaired. Cha-ching. Unexpected trip expense du jour.
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I'm so glad the chicken made the trip. When Rosemary told me about your blog, the first thing I asked her is, "Did they bring the chicken?" When she told me that you had, I died laughing. Love the pics and the fact that you had an album made. Does it have a name, yet?
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