I worked for a shop called Sunrise. The owner of said shop explained that he had chosen that name for a couple of reasons. A) He liked the idea of a beginning. Cycling held a deeper meaning to him than just pedaling to race and he wanted his shop to be an emblem of that. And 2) It was the only shop on the East side of Main Street.

The Spanish word for sunrise is Amanecer. Like all cross language meanings, amanecer has a few. In Chile, where I learned the brown man’s tongue, it was often used in terms of partying. To say, “Amanecimos ayer” meant you partied all night and didn’t stop until the sun came up. This was often used as a way to judge a party. If it didn’t amanecer, it wasn’t worth attending.

The meaning that I was always fascinated by (yes, I am fascinated by word meanings and the nuances that are used through colloquial speech) was the use for an “awakening.” Not that waking up is that cool, but when that meaning is tied to the sunrise it takes on a bit of a different hue. The Sunrise is an Awakening, a break from the day before. A new way of looking at things, an “amanecer.”

Many people like to take the arbitrarily assigned date for the New Year and look back on what was and look forward to their new beginning. I prefer to wait until February or March. For starters, there is no way I am getting up January 1st to go for a jog. It just isn’t going to happen. I don’t like to set myself up for failure. So I wait until the weather has warmed a bit before looking back. It tends to give me a bit more of a happy lookout on life. And if I decide changes are in order it gives those changes more of a chance to succeed. Plus I don’t like arbitrarily assigned dates that I am supposed to live by. If someone is going to arbitrarily assign something to my life, it will be me.

About this time last year, I was in one of the worst funks I think I’ve ever been in. I guess you could call it depression but I think that may be a bit strong of a word. It was a funk, a rut. Nothing I was doing seemed like a good idea and nothing I could do seemed any better. I tried making some changes, they didn’t help until…

I traded a set of wheels that had hung on a road bike in my shed for about 9 months for the crazy blue bike. And then I rode the thing. It brought me right out of the funk as quick as a month of commuting can. I then spent most of the rest of the year cleaning up my messes that I had made for the few months before that.

This past Monday was a stark realization that the demons I have buried under years of alcohol consumption aren’t buried very well. A simple photograph or a memory can bring them raging to the surface and propel me deep into the spaces in between. This past Monday was also a reminder of how important riding my bike is for my mental health. A simple 26 mile ride can bring me back quicker than anything else.

And I guess that is what it is all about, riding. A simple realization that forward motion propelled by one’s own power can be an awakening…

P. L. and R.

Amaneced!

The one above is from a poorly thought out trip from White Pine to Bunch Grass in the snow. The Mighty Green Socks, his uncle and I pushed our bikes up to the top of the climb. Then slid our way down the switch backs into White Pine. After the drop, the snow thinned enough that we could ride fairly well. The stream crossings were quite a bit wider than they usually were and as Green Socks was coming across one of the larger ones, he stalled and then fell over completely soaking himself. Mind you this was about eight miles from the car, we were making super slow progress due to the snow and now we had a soaking wet Brengelman to deal with. What a ride.

The mighty Mooseknuckler Banner that you see at the top of the page is also one of these “old,” “lost” photos. It happens to be from the first SloToJa. Neither myself nor Casey can recall which pass this is on but when we made it we had to take some pictures. My memory doesn’t serve well enough to recall, but this picture may be at the top of the climb that I walked the last mile or so pushing my bike. I rode the tour singlespeed and some of the climbs were a bit long and/or steep.

So what’s the point of the nostalgia? The point is I’ve turned into a great, big pussy. Fat, slow and unmotivated. Hell, I don’t even own a rigid mountain bike any more.

As I have been perusing through these photographs, the desire to “see what is beyond the next turn” has begun to stir within my gut. That desire that we all have to just see if it is possible. Can I turn the crank one more time? Can I do this drop? Why not ride the whole damn thing in the snow, right before sunset? I don’t know the answer to any of these questions, but I think it’s time for me to start asking them again.

For what it’s worth, those are my two cents.

We will be doing a night ride tomorrow. In an effort to drive less than we actually ride, we will be meeting at the Service Center at 7:30 and will ride up to Paradise, do the loop and then return to the service center. I promise to only complain about how retarded the trail is twice. And that was one. If you prefer to drive, you are more than welcome to meet us at the Chuckawala trailhead about 20 minutes later. Remember flashy lights for the road part of the ride.

Now, time to ride into the sunset.

P. L. and R.

I also tend to not ride bikes but tuck myself in front of the fireplace and read/watch anything I can find about revolutions. About the line in the sand and what happens when it is crossed.

Here’s a few I recommend for these wintery months.

A Peace to end all Peace

A People’s Tragedy

That should keep you busy for about 6 months. I’ll see you then and we will all go for a bike ride.

Out.

Time for work.

I mentioned this idea to the Alliance audience a while back. And then left it alone. There has been a dividing force here that I have decided should be lanced and left to fester on its own. That is my political thoughts, arguments and ideas. For many it is much too extreme to have anything to do with the Alliance because I happen to be an Anarchist.

I also hope to bring cycling to everyone so for the past few little-whiles, I have kept my political rantings out of the blogosphere of the Alliance. In hopes that we may enjoy an increase of visitors and hence, people out riding their bikes. In many ways it has worked. Unfortunately it has left me with an inkling of an in-grown hair that needs to be let out.

With the idea of letting out my wild hair, I have started yet another blog, votingforyou.blogspot.com. I have invited certain individuals to participate, aka rant and post on said blog. The fact of the matter is that there are people who are smarter, wittier and more educated than I am. Recognizing those weaknesses in myself, I have carefully chosen masked individuals to let off some steam as part of my presidential campaign.

Most notably is my little sis, who will tell you that I may have had some influence in her life. But then you realize that not only did she get a scholarship to a law school, she chose to attend and at some point will make money. This tells you two things 1. she is way smarter than I am and 2. doesn’t necessarily see things the same way that I do.

Voting for you, is exactly that. I would vote for you but you happen to be a moron, so I will vote for me. I don’t expect you to think that I am not a moron, so I also don’t expect you to vote for me. I have met few men that could responsibly govern themselves and no man that could govern other men (someone else said that first, I just don’t know who or where. They may have also said it a little bit differently). To that end I will do everything I can so that each and every individual may govern themselves. To that end, please Vote for You!

I hope that the lack of political ranting has made the Alliance experience better for many of you. For those of you who miss my extreme left wing ideology, you now know where to go.

Peace. Love. and Revolution.

Let me take two steps back, one to the side and another forward and attempt to express how disgusted I am with media. How can any democratic society, any person with any semblance of the idea of equality ever watch, worry about, or wake up at 1:30 in the fucking morning to witness live, the marriage of a defunct prince and his bride? Who cares? Didn’t we fight a dozen wars, didn’t a lot of people die so we wouldn’t have to be subject to such bull shit and unwarranted pompous wonderment? And what, every damn outlet for news is covering it like it was the next social revolution.

Hey news people, could you please try and find something interesting to report on instead of some dumb-ass wedding? Thanks…

WTF.

Disgusted.

Out.

I hope this is a wake up call to those of you who still believe that the Republicans are a working class organization or to those of you who vote for them because you think the government should tell us what birth control methods we can use and when and with whom we can have sex. You are voting to eliminate the benefits that have amassed over the last century thanks to labor unions. These bills could set work place conditions and workers’ benefits back a century. That’s what I’ve always looked forward to, working in a sweat shop.

“Democrats and unions see the measure as an attack on workers’ rights and an attempt to cripple union support for Democrats. Union leaders say they would make pension and health care concessions if they can keep their bargaining rights, but Walker has refused to compromise.”

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2011/02/25/business/AP-US-Wisconsin-Budget-Unions.html?_r=1&hp

If you think this is about making sure budgets are met, it isn’t. Walker has consistently said that he will accept no compromise that doesn’t limit the unions collective bargaining rights. This is about the workers’ right to organize themselves and uses the power of numbers against the power of wealth.

As the Great American Hero, Utah Phillips said,

“The state can’t give you freedom, and the state can’t take it away. You’re born with it, like your eyes, like your ears. Freedom is something you assume, then you wait for someone to try to take it away. The degree to which you resist is the degree to which you are free…”

I hope we are truly free and any legislation that is passed to strip us of our rights, we simply ignore. And then fight like hell when the come for us.

Wisconsin is not the only state with this type of bill in the works.

http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=union+protests#q=union+protests&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbo=u&tbs=nws:1&source=og&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wn&bav=on.1,or.&fp=4108eed1f2742a34

P. L. and R.

Workers of the World

I’ve been digging Street Dogs for the past bit, but this song in particular.

I just raises the question of what we are really willing to give…

http://www.iraqbodycount.org/database/

http://www.medialens.org/alerts/07/071003_iraq_body_count.php

http://www.antiwar.com/casualties/

http://projects.washingtonpost.com/fallen/

Dear wealthy Republicans: I don’t generally agree with you, but I understand why you vote the way you do. Dear non-wealthy Republicans: You are idiots!

It’s always amazed me how easy it has been for the American public to be convinced to consistently act against their own best interests. Case in point was the recent elections where the mostly working class American voted to get tea bagged. Sure, they are in favor of reduced government, less taxes, for the rich, but how do their ideas and policies effect the average working person. Take the current protests and clashes ocurring in Wisconsin. The Tea Party, “Working Class Party,” is attempting to undermine the power of the union and make it illegal for certain unions to negotiate for higher wages.

A. Unions by principle work in favor of the workers, that’s who they are organized by and where they gain their strength. B. Why would we make it illegal for workers to strike/negotiate for higher wages? How does that even make sense?

In the 80′s there was this great little fairy tale invented that convinced many people that the wealthy and the workers best interests were somehow the same. They called it trickle down economics, aka Reaganomics. The myth was that if we allowed the wealthy to become wealthier that they would in turn spend that extra money in the economy and therefore, the working class would benefit by the extra dollars in the market. Looking back we can see how well this worked. The wealthy got wealthier. The rest of us got screwed.

The giant corporations, that keep growing, wield an amazing amount of power. They hold, in certain cases, more economic power than any government and employ more people. Their owners/CEO’s and the like, make astounding amounts of money. Score yourself a CEO position of a Fortune 500 and you realistically only have to work about five years and you can retire and live like a king for the rest of your days. As deregulation has occurred and the unions have lost power, the middle class has consistently shrunk and, when adjusted for inflation, the average worker’s income has declined. All the while, the wealthy continue to be wealthier and more elite.

Despite what the economics tooth fairy may tell you, the working class and the wealthy share no common interests. The working class can only benefit by exerting their power, forming unions and demanding that they are treated fairly. If we want the middle class to return and for the working American to once again be proud of what he is and where he is going, we need more unions, with more power.

So to all you tea baggers out there, wise up! Unless you are making millions now, your policies are only going to screw you.

In other thoughts, it rained. This doesn’t make me very happy because I would really like to ride my bike tomorrow.

I’ve also decided that I will, in fact, be attempting the Grit Epic Bicycle Race styled endeavor that will be happening exactly one week, seven days, after my befday. It gives me a goal, something to work towards. Right now I think I need that.

In other ideas bouncing around my head…

The last time that I participated in electoral politics was the year the Jefe Bush become Boss of the world. At said time, I actually voted for the dumb ass. Since that time, I have felt no desire nor have I voted for anyone. This is for two reasons, 1. I don’t see choosing between a giant douche and a turd sandwich as being a choice. 2. I see elections as a way to pacify the masses.

Lets start with #2. Every two years we are given a choice (see #1) of who we want to be the boss. Every two years we are let down. We vote for change, we vote for new people who are going to make a difference, we vote for hope. And every single time we are let down and the status quo continues. It doesn’t matter who is in power, the system continues to perform the same way it has in the past.

Quick history lesson, speaking of times after Christ, the first government derived their “legal” power from God himself. Whoever was in power, be it the Pope or a king, claimed to be appointed by god and therefore had the right to act in his name, autocratically, of course. As time passed, and knowledge dispersed, the masses began to understand that this wasn’t the case and the modern nation state was born. The nation state, at least the republics, claimed to draw their power directly from the people. By giving them the right to chose who they would like to make decisions, gave those who were chosen the legal right to make decisions and decree to the masses. This served two purposes, first it allowed more people to benefit and usurp power and second, it appeased the masses through the promise that if you don’t like what is happening, you can vote in the next election.

The fact is, elections never change anything. It is in the ruling class’s best interest to maintain the status quo…

Yes, I realize this video was meant to get people to participate in elections. But take notice of how these women made a change. They were not allowed to vote, but through direct action they obtained what they were fighting for without every casting a ballot. The people hold the power, not the ballot. If we truly want to make a change, we don’t vote, we act.

On to #2. We really don’t have a choice. Choosing between a dumb ass and some fucking moron, is not a choice. The system is set up to maintain the status quo, to maintain the balance that allows the elite to be elite. Try getting someone elected without millions in campaign funding. By putting two people in front of us who will do the same basic thing, they are telling us we have a choice but not really giving us one. Fortunately, we do have a choice. We can participate or we can act. If the government draws its legal basis for existing on the fact that the people are giving it power by choosing who will govern, let’s take that power back. If we are not given a real choice, then let us vote for that person who is best suited to govern you, you. That’s right, everyone should vote for you. And not you, as in the person reading this but for themselves. There is a quote somewhere, that someone smarted than I said, that said person had met very few people of adequately governing themselves and not one single individual that was capable of governing others.

So vote for you!

I don’t expect many of you to agree with what I am saying, but I would like to know what you think…

Let’s ride.

P. L. and R.