Cold Blooded Bastard

My bike is warming up. As I sit here and write this — I can hear him, the gentle rumble of his idle with the choke out. It’s becoming more and more steady with each passing word I type.
He’s an old man, my bike. Twenty one years old in fact. He has Character. He doesn’t care for cold weather and even now at ten am on clear, bright sunny morning with a temp of 84 degrees, he’s skipping a bit.
I’ve had three different motorcycle guys look him over. No one can figure why he does this. But in about another five minutes or so, he’ll smooth out into that steady idle I love so dearly and we’ll be able to get on our way.
My very dear friend — who has been rebuilding motorcycles since he could hold a screwdriver — made this diagnosis: “Honey, he’s just a Cold Blooded Bastard”. And so it is. A fitting name for my partner in crime.
As I had lived much of my life behind my shields many people thought of me in those same terms. Cold Blooded. I am rational and calm. I am a trained nurse — ICU and OR background — superb in a crisis. I can take my feelings and put them away permanently if need be.
Only a very few people took the time to see Real Ann. It was a litmus test of sorts for me. I used to be more than happy to allow people to think what they chose and accept their first impression if they were shallow enough to live with that.
Cold Blooded is just that way as well. He doesn’t warm up for just anyone. You have to know about his inner workings. If you take him at face value, you miss all the best parts about him. His character ‘flaws’ are actually the gifts of being in his presence. You have to learn him to appreciate him.
Older models come with things the newer models lack. They’re less complicated, easier to fix, and what they might lose in performance they more than make up for in dependability. Less gizmos = less needy.
Riding a motorcycle has taught me a lot about life, owning a motorcycle has taught me a lot about the kind of relationships I want in said life. If you are willing to hang out and appreciate me for who I am, you won’t be disappointed. If you want the bright, shiny, new model fresh off the show room floor — you best just keep right on moving along. Don’t waste your time, or mine.
