Can life get any better?

After all the nasty weather we've had lately, and the bottomless driveway and the slick and slimy roads and fields, you can't imagine how good it felt to ride Blue yesterday.

Then today it got better.

The sun came out from behind the clouds. At 8 A.M., the temperature was in the 50's. There was new gravel on our drive, and Cliff said, "I think it's time for a ride."

When Cliff says that, he isn't talking about riding a horse; he means the motorcycle!

I got busy: I made a pot of coffee and poured it into the big thermos. I heated up some of the split pea soup left from yesterday, and filled the small thermos. I put on layers and layers of clothing (50° isn't as warm when you're going 60 MPH in the open air).

Cliff wanted to go northeast to Excelsior Springs; I wanted to go southwest to Higginsville. We ended up going to Higginsville by way of Excelsior Springs, which is the equivalent of going from Missouri to Arkansas VIA Iowa. Hey, on a motorcycle, it's all about the ride; you aren't trying to get anywhere fast.

We found a city park in Excelsior Springs where we enjoyed our lunch.


The roads were a mess, and there was mud all over our bike, as you can see in the picture below; but Cliff had it cleaned up in no time.


It's been a good couple of days.