Taken For A Ride

I have been pondering what to do with the leftover cash I'll have from the sale of Willsmere, and whilst most of my brain is terribly practical ("pay off most of the Rookery"), some of it is dearly missing my heartland of The South Island ("home is where the heart is"), some will be dedicated to the various causes I support. But following the lead of funontheupfield (sometimes he leads and I follow, sometimes it the other way around, either way combined we make a good team), I've decided that some will be spent on something quite new for my lifestyle - a motorbike. I've made arrangements to get training at HART, whose reputation is quite positive among some friends, and hopefully I should be considered legally fit to have a throbbing machine between my legs in no time (ahem). The main objective of such a vehicle, even if it does mean an average reduction in life expectancy of several years, is countryside visits. Willsmere, whilst inner urban, did provide a great sense of closeness to untouched nature and I'm feeling that lack quite strongly in The Rookery. Besides, touring New Zealand by bike is an opportunity I can't miss.

However, being astoundingly ignorant about such things, I take this opportunity to ask the hive-mind what make and model that you would suggest? A few parameters are in place: (a) I don't want a monster machine and, being new to this, it will need to be something that is learner approved, (b) I don't want a scooter, as charming as they are, this will have to be a road bike, and (c) I am prepared to pay extra money for less maintenance; I know more about Zen than the art of motorcycle maintenance (kewpie doll to whoever gets that reference). Bonus question! Do you have a favourite motorcycle piece of music? From the industrial-goth there's a couple that come immediately to mind, "Sex on Wheels" by My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult and "Motorbike" by Sheep on Drugs. Other appropriate mood-music welcome.

Received a visit from Nitul D., and caseopaya on Saturday; the nominal purpose of Nitul's visit was to sort out a bit of Isocracy Network material, but he was invited for dinner and drinks which resulted in a wide-ranging conversation about ethnic politics, economics, and culture. Meanwhile, most of the rest of my time has been taken up with UNHCR fundraising for Ukraine through the sale of my roleplaying collection with a few people per day dropping into The Rookery to collect material (and special thanks to Rade V. and Jay L. for an excellent conversation and advice on various health matters), along with many kilograms being sent across the country via Australia Post. The current effort now stands at $7827, which is pretty damn good for twelve days. Making the lives of others less miserable has always been a primary motivation in my life, even to the point of self-sacrifice, but this to me is a simple task that has a great effect. To put a Daoist spin on it, perhaps this "wu wei" morality (Lao Tzu is often considered an early anarchist). More expert opinion is welcome on that hypothesis.