This and That

I promised something in the last post that I have failed to deliver.

Here is my new "Russelized" 1975 Honda 400 SuperSport (flanked by my nephews, Ethan and Marcus). When my clutch cable snapped a few months ago, I took the bike to Ross Russell's house. Ross knows a good Honda mechanic.

What I got back was a slick reincarnation of that bike. But it was not easy. Ross' mechanic told him: "Don't bring me anymore 400s." Apparently it was quite an ordeal. I can't thank Ross and Leni enough (but I'll try!).
Motorcycles just evoke these kinds of emotions in boys. What can I say? The look on their faces is how a man's "inner child" feels on a bike!

Here is most of the family (Eric, Missy, Ethan, Marcus, Lily, and Katherine) at the Apple Festival. It was a beautiful day. That means there were people everywhere. I think that's the most crowded the town has been since the elephant hanging.Now for the real excitement...the collapsing stands at Tusculum College, home of the Greeneville Band Battle (or some name such as that). We were sitting on these things, kids and all, when they fell.

I was disappointed in my "spidey-sense" because I felt them sway just a little bit and I dismissed it. I thought, "What would I do if these things collapsed?" Realizing that I wasn't very high in the air, I decided I would just stand up on the seat in front of me and ride it down.

About five minutes later they swayed again, but this time it was clear that they were giving way. I did just what I planned to do, but I hadn't thought about people getting their feet caught between the foot boards and the seats as they collapsed. It pulled Anna's shoe off, but she escaped with only a bruised ankle. My nephew, Marcus, had the worst sprain because his little leg was pinned between the metal pieces while people were trying to get off the thing.
The campus security people were there quickly, but not very helpful. They seemed focused on protecting the collapsed stands from us. When my sister-in-law asked for help in finding her 8-year-old son in the confusion, the campus cop refused--preferring to stand around and watch.

The EMS guys seemed more concerned with Tusculum's liability (and their own, for some unknown reason) than with the twisted ankles, bruises, and fears.

The whole thing was a reminder to me that doing our jobs, and doing them well, is really important. I suspect that whoever put those stands together didn't do it quite right. I suspect the campus cops had forgotten their true purpose (unless they've been instructed by the school to protect and serve the school, not the people who visit). The EMS guys were just afraid to their jobs, as far as I could tell.

My brother and his family came all the way from Indianapolis to watch Meghan in the band competition, they paid $30 to get in. The collapse happened about ten minutes before Science Hill's band took the field, so you can guess how much they got to enjoy that.

Your work is important. Do it well today! Speaking of which ... I had better get to work on my sermon. Peace!