Paul in NZ
13th December 2009, 18:35
Its not quite Christmas but if you listen hard you and hear the distant ringing of cash registers in the shopping malls and the smell of greed from the Television adverts, its not here but its close.
I don’t like going out much in the weekend, especially in december. I like to hunker down and hide out at chez pinz and relax but sometimes I get phone calls. Annoyingly they are never from the lotteries commission wondering where I want my millions either. This time it was from a KB’r I know in meatspace. We hook up for a coffee sometimes and fortunately he has yet to discover my dark secrets so hes still friendly and daft enough to ask a grumpy old git like me for a favour ;-)
His lady love is Japanese and this is a story about her friend Hisako who is also Japanese and has lived in NZ for 16 years. Its fair to say that life is not always kind, in fact sometimes it can play decidedly rough and sometimes, nice people get dealt a shitty hand. Lets just say Hisako has not had a good year, its private and not relevant except to explain the back story which has her leaving NZ for Japan on Monday.
While Hisako was here in NZ she noticed all the people on motorcycles out having fun and being an adventurous sort, Hisako decided to get her learners motorcycle license in case she and her Kiwi husband decided to get into bikes (I didn’t fancy his chances of not getting into anything Hisako fancied but I only met her today so most likely that’s unfair :rolleyes: )…. Anywho – the KB’r boyfriend of Hisakos friend heard that to ride over the Rimutakas on a motorcycle was one of her dreams… Unfortunately he was booked on a course in underwater Zen tofu basket weaving all weekend (he is very spiritual) so it fell to me, the person least likely to get a speeding ticket and add further woe to the gentle Hisako while pillioning that got the call… 'This may sound odd but could you....'
Its not often the weather report is frightening but this one would have put Harry Potter into a trance and sent Bruce Willis to the bathroom for a week but the best shot looked like Sunday Morning so details and greetings were exchanged, arrangements were made and I picked her up from Paraparaumu Station at 10:30 this morning (having NEVER met each other before) with the wind not quite at the shrieking level. We had to scurry about for a Helmet as Vickis was a DNF but David up the road had a spare. Hisako had the choice of the 1970 Triumph 650cc TR6C or the Mighty 1980 Moto Guzzi LeMans – as always its form before function and the Triumph won by a landslide vote. Its always been a favourite with the ladies.
A very quick, hold on here, hop off if it stops (no electric start) and whack me if you wanna stop and we were off. Warm up through the hood, a tank full of gas and Paekakareki Hill here we come… The wind was bellowing under leaden skies scudding across the tops but quartered from astern, it pushed us along at a goodly rate and a quick stop at Pauatahanui to check my precious cargo and it was ‘oh Paul my cheeks are hurting from smiling so much this is wonderful’ (that’s funny I thought, my cheeks are hurting from the rock hard seat) but on we ran, upper hutt and through the gathering storm and rain to the top of the Rimutakas where frankly it was hideous. I’ve never seen such a happy face on such a shitty day for a ride, it was rather infectious.
Anyway – we wheeled the dear old trophy about and headed home, down the rain soaked hill, into the battering winds, the bike leaping and lunging in the gale with me with eyes like saucers wondering which way we would get shoved next and Hisako oblivious to it all. Through the mental cases in old Audis (I’ve got a European car dahlink) and back to the Paekak hill where the Trophy is more in scale and sheltered from the wind we had some more fun but not too much as the surface was getting treacherous now and mr rear wheel made a couple of attempts at rebellion under spirited use. I guess it sucks being a rear wheel and just for a bit, it decided it would like to do its own ‘thing’. Fortunately I cracked down pretty hard on the wayward behaviour and it was a very short rebellion. We trump trumped down the drive, greeted by the smell of a fresh spinach and feta quiche (spinach from our vege plot picked as we left) for a spot of lunch. Thanks Vick - I needed that.
Suddenly it was time to get Hisako back to the city and while I offered to drive her she jumped at the chance to get back into soggy bike gear for a rort on the Mighty Moto Guzzler.
It’s a different beast and I think she was smitten by its brutish charms as again we had the wind in our sails and the extra power made short work of the mundane traffic and Hisako was delivered to her door in good time.
Hisako was a bit overwhelmed I think but Vicki and I really took to her. She seems a ‘good’ person and if on her last day here in Gods Own country we helped make her life a little lighter and ticked one more thing off her bucket list then today was one of the VERY best days motorcycling I can remember. Because rather than Vicki and I giving Hisako a gift, the gift came my way. She helped me see what I take for granted through fresh eyes and gave me back the sheer joy of being on the road on a willing bike and damn the weather.
Today was a very good day! Thank you Hisako – and Merry Christmas.
I don’t like going out much in the weekend, especially in december. I like to hunker down and hide out at chez pinz and relax but sometimes I get phone calls. Annoyingly they are never from the lotteries commission wondering where I want my millions either. This time it was from a KB’r I know in meatspace. We hook up for a coffee sometimes and fortunately he has yet to discover my dark secrets so hes still friendly and daft enough to ask a grumpy old git like me for a favour ;-)
His lady love is Japanese and this is a story about her friend Hisako who is also Japanese and has lived in NZ for 16 years. Its fair to say that life is not always kind, in fact sometimes it can play decidedly rough and sometimes, nice people get dealt a shitty hand. Lets just say Hisako has not had a good year, its private and not relevant except to explain the back story which has her leaving NZ for Japan on Monday.
While Hisako was here in NZ she noticed all the people on motorcycles out having fun and being an adventurous sort, Hisako decided to get her learners motorcycle license in case she and her Kiwi husband decided to get into bikes (I didn’t fancy his chances of not getting into anything Hisako fancied but I only met her today so most likely that’s unfair :rolleyes: )…. Anywho – the KB’r boyfriend of Hisakos friend heard that to ride over the Rimutakas on a motorcycle was one of her dreams… Unfortunately he was booked on a course in underwater Zen tofu basket weaving all weekend (he is very spiritual) so it fell to me, the person least likely to get a speeding ticket and add further woe to the gentle Hisako while pillioning that got the call… 'This may sound odd but could you....'
Its not often the weather report is frightening but this one would have put Harry Potter into a trance and sent Bruce Willis to the bathroom for a week but the best shot looked like Sunday Morning so details and greetings were exchanged, arrangements were made and I picked her up from Paraparaumu Station at 10:30 this morning (having NEVER met each other before) with the wind not quite at the shrieking level. We had to scurry about for a Helmet as Vickis was a DNF but David up the road had a spare. Hisako had the choice of the 1970 Triumph 650cc TR6C or the Mighty 1980 Moto Guzzi LeMans – as always its form before function and the Triumph won by a landslide vote. Its always been a favourite with the ladies.
A very quick, hold on here, hop off if it stops (no electric start) and whack me if you wanna stop and we were off. Warm up through the hood, a tank full of gas and Paekakareki Hill here we come… The wind was bellowing under leaden skies scudding across the tops but quartered from astern, it pushed us along at a goodly rate and a quick stop at Pauatahanui to check my precious cargo and it was ‘oh Paul my cheeks are hurting from smiling so much this is wonderful’ (that’s funny I thought, my cheeks are hurting from the rock hard seat) but on we ran, upper hutt and through the gathering storm and rain to the top of the Rimutakas where frankly it was hideous. I’ve never seen such a happy face on such a shitty day for a ride, it was rather infectious.
Anyway – we wheeled the dear old trophy about and headed home, down the rain soaked hill, into the battering winds, the bike leaping and lunging in the gale with me with eyes like saucers wondering which way we would get shoved next and Hisako oblivious to it all. Through the mental cases in old Audis (I’ve got a European car dahlink) and back to the Paekak hill where the Trophy is more in scale and sheltered from the wind we had some more fun but not too much as the surface was getting treacherous now and mr rear wheel made a couple of attempts at rebellion under spirited use. I guess it sucks being a rear wheel and just for a bit, it decided it would like to do its own ‘thing’. Fortunately I cracked down pretty hard on the wayward behaviour and it was a very short rebellion. We trump trumped down the drive, greeted by the smell of a fresh spinach and feta quiche (spinach from our vege plot picked as we left) for a spot of lunch. Thanks Vick - I needed that.
Suddenly it was time to get Hisako back to the city and while I offered to drive her she jumped at the chance to get back into soggy bike gear for a rort on the Mighty Moto Guzzler.
It’s a different beast and I think she was smitten by its brutish charms as again we had the wind in our sails and the extra power made short work of the mundane traffic and Hisako was delivered to her door in good time.
Hisako was a bit overwhelmed I think but Vicki and I really took to her. She seems a ‘good’ person and if on her last day here in Gods Own country we helped make her life a little lighter and ticked one more thing off her bucket list then today was one of the VERY best days motorcycling I can remember. Because rather than Vicki and I giving Hisako a gift, the gift came my way. She helped me see what I take for granted through fresh eyes and gave me back the sheer joy of being on the road on a willing bike and damn the weather.
Today was a very good day! Thank you Hisako – and Merry Christmas.