The Past Is The Fuel For The Future

I awoke today to find that a friend had tagged me in a post on Facebook.  I laid in bed for a bit trying to muster up the energy and strength to stand up, ignore the pain from my over full bladder, stiff back and break my knees loose enough to move again and finally I hobbled my way to the bathroom.  It's amazing the joy that comes from taking that first epic piss of the day yet I never want to get out of bed to do it.  One day I guess I'll address that with a shrink!  I plopped back in bed, grabbed my phone and took a look at my messages and the things I was tagged in.  One item in particular that really caught my eye was the photo above.  This photo was taken 2 years ago in Sturgis while I was filming an interview, if memory serves me correctly for the Discovery Channel's Road To Sturgis, I think it was one of the final interviews aired on the show.  I can't remember who actually took this photo but I love it.

I love it for the obvious reasons, Sturgis, my knuckle, the world famous Broken Spoke Saloon in the background but I love this memory for so many other reasons that may not be so obvious.  This was the first time Diane made it to Sturgis, I made so many new friends and got to connect again with so many that I've made over the years.  It brought back incredible memories of entertaining people, of massive storms that had the potential of destroying the event and the shows, I got to party my ass off with one of my all time favorite bands and see some of the most intense concerts ever.  I had the tremendous honor to share my thoughts on bikes, bikers and rallies with the world and when you survive 17 hour days for 11 days you come out with a feeling that is second to none.

As we approach rally season again this year and with so many people that I know and love either heading down to Daytona or already there I can't help but think of all the events in the past and smile. It makes me think about how this coming rally season will be and what I can do to make each event better and cause people to leave with giant smiles on their faces and memories that will last a life time. Winter can be a tough time for those of us who count on the joy and freedom of two wheels and believe me, living out west we don't suffer anywhere near the way the rest of the country does but it still sucks the life out of you.  As spring is "springing" here I feel a new energy and excitement for the upcoming year and I can't wait to hit the ground running.  Okay, to be honest, I can't wait to hit the ground riding but I promise I'll run when I get off the bike!  I hope you are all as pumped up about riding season as I am and I look forward to seeing you all out on the road this year!  For those of you in Daytona or on your way, make memories, ride fast, take chances and get home to your families safe and sound!

Till we see each other again,

Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and the Man off your ASS!

Your pal,
Jack Shit

What have I done to deserve this?

There are days that I just can't get over how fortunate Diane and I are to be surrounded by such incredible people.  People who at a moments notice would drop everything to lend a hand when you are in need.  People who will listen to you complain even when they have their own troubles in life to deal with.  People who would give you the shirt off of their backs or the very bikes they ride from under their ass!  They say what you put out in to the world comes back.  For the longest time, we had wondered if this was true and if it was, we were patiently waiting for this to happen.  Over the last few years it has happened with gestures as small as stopping by out of the blue with my favorite desert to gestures as grand as friends giving me their motorcycles to ride when my bike was down!  Some of you may know that my trailer was stolen a few months back now and it really sucks.  I was telling a friend this story when he told me that our mutual friend, Brother Mario, yes, Dirty Sanchez, that Mario had just had his trailer stolen from the one and only Shed in Milwaukee!  I couldn't help but think to myself, why do such bad things happen to such good people?  Well Mario was here this past week for a short trip to AZ before he has to head back to Amsterdam and it was incredible to get to hang out with both him and his lovely wife Pat.  We all went out and had drinks and an unbelievable meal with another set of friends.  We laughed until we damn near cried.  Once again, as we sat there, I could not help but to think how blessed we are.

A few days later, we are on the phone and he tells me "you'll never fucking believe this, but guess what?"  What?  He gets a call from a mutual friend, the one and only Kevin "Teach" Baas.  Teach had received an email from out of the blue telling him that if he did not remove his trailer from where it was parked, that the guy would have no choice but to have it towed.  Teach said, "I don't have a trailer in Wisconsin"!  Can you describe the trailer or send me a pic so I know what you are talking about he asked the guy.  Sure enough, the guy emails him pics and it is Brother Mario's trailer, dumped on some back country road in Wisconsin.  Now why would someone go through the trouble to steal a trailer and then just leave it somewhere?  Because the trailer had this massive BAAS METALCRAFT STICKER on it and no matter how hard they tried, they could not get it off!  Painting over it would not have worked and with all the stickers it was too recognizable so they just dumped it.  That very sticker had Teach's website on it.  So the moral of the story is, BAAS METALCRAFT stickers are good luck!  So I was speaking with Teach about this the very next day and we were laughing.  He told me that I was having trouble with my knuck because it didn't have a sticker on it!  I told him that I was out of Baas stickers and not only that, but I was having a hell of a time trying to find the "CHANGE YOUR LUCK, RIDE A KNUCK" stickers.  He said he would look to see if he had one and if he did, he would send me one when he got a chance.  Today, Diane says, "are you waiting on a package from Teach?"  It took me a second and then it dawned on me.... why yes, yes I am....  I was so excited!  I tore in to that package like a kid at Christmas and boy oh boy was I surprised!  Not only did he hook me up with new Baas stickers but.......... oh hell, I'll show ya!

Now if only this package had gotten here two days ago, maybe I would not have to pull the motor out of my 65 year old Knucklehead.....  damn U.S. Postal service!!!!  So not only did he send me the "Change your luck" sticker but also a Knuckleheads Forever Sticker, an old school, Evel style HD sticker, a few Baas MC stickers but he also included a Knuck Motor Patch!  Something so silly as this envelope filled with a few trinkets if you will brought me so much joy and once again hammered home to me just how lucky I have it!  No matter how shitty things get, no matter how broke we are at times, we will always be wealthy because we have people like the ones that I mentioned in this post in our lives!  So look around you, take an inventory of your life and see what you are surrounded with.  If you are surrounded by those who just take and take and take and never give from the heart, no matter what the gesture, it may be time to reevaluate, take stock and clean house!  I do believe in karma, I do believe that what you put out comes back ten fold and I do believe in always doing the right thing at any cost!  So cherish the ones you love, give till it hurts and always trust your gut, it's usually right!

In the next week, I'll be leaving for the one and only Sturgis Motorcycle Rally and while there, I'll be blessed with getting to spend time with people that I love from all around the world and that is the biggest part of my compensation for working the event!  So if you are heading to Sturgis, make sure you come up and see me at the World Famous Broken Spoke Saloon and make my day!

Until we see each other on the road again,

Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ASS!

Your friend,
Jack Shit

They are still out there!

Don't give up hope!  If you allow them to find you and open the door when they knock, there are still exceptional people walking this earth.  I know that with times getting harder and harder each day, the ugly in people is really rising to the top and rearing "its ugly head", so to speak.  With each day that passes, a feeling of sadness lay in the bottom of my gut.  Every day, I hear of another story of some one, formerly a dear friend, who has thrown that away for what seems like next to nothing!  It breaks my heart to hear stories of betrayal, lies and out right deception that people share with me!  Screw me once, shame on you, screw me twice then shame on me, should be the mantra that we go through each day with.  That being said, it is difficult to be that hard nosed, heartless monster that can no longer forgive and forget but what are you supposed to do?  At what point do you draw the line in the sand and cut that person loose?  At what point do you decide that you will no longer allow anyone in your life to hurt you?  AT WHAT POINT? 

I too have gone through periods in my life where betrayal and deceit were so crushing to me that it was hard to acquire the strength the raise my head and get out of bed in the morning.  I pulled up my big boy pants and moved on with each day but could not shake the "why" question that was gnawing at the back of my brain.  You know what?  In nearly every single case, you will never know why people do what they do and that sucks.  For some time, I swore that I was done, that I had enough people in my life that I loved and that loved me and they would never, under any circumstances hurt my family.  The problem for me was simple though, I love people!  I missed meeting new people, I missed hearing new tales around a fire, I missed learning from others mistakes, oh hell, I just missed widening the circle of people that I could give back to and pay it forward!  I answered a few knocks on the door and I can say that I am glad that I did.  In the last few years, opening that door has allowed me to open my heart and in return I have gained some friends that I would not nor could not imagine not having in my life for the rest of it!  Sure, maybe one out of 100 that you meet will be one of those people who remain friends till they hold your hand, or you hold theirs at the side of a death bed!  People ask me if I think it is worth the hassle of going through the 99 and it is no easy answer but I have come to the realization that it is!  How can it be you ask?  Well it has to be, otherwise we would never find that 1 in a 100!

In what is the worst economy and the worse times since the great depression and while so many people break your heart and disappoint you, others will step up and their actions will blow your mind!  I suggest that you give some one the chance to do just that.  You can't find the diamonds without first digging through layers of rock, and dirt and shit and so on and so on, you get my point, but the pay off is, THE DIAMONDS ARE THERE!  So I say do a little mining, the pay off will be worth it.  I also suggest that once you open the mine that you have a security guard there to protect your interests and have him carry a big stick and a reliable pistol!  HEY, YA NEVER KNOW! 

That is just a little JACKSHITLOSOPHY for ya this Friday night!  I hope everyone has a great weekend and stays cool and safe out on those murdersickles.  In life, like respect, friendship is never just given, it is earned, so give some one the chance to earn yours!

In the next day or so, I will be breaking some Sturgis news that will hopefully make us all happy!

Until we see each other on the road,

Keep the wind in your face,
Tits in your back
and The Man off your ass!

Your friend,
Jack Shit