Initial Report from the Motorcycle Show

It's a little too late at the end of a work day to give the full report now, but here's a quick recap from our trip to this year's motorcycle show in the nation's Capital.

1. We brought home literally 10 pounds of stuff between us. A few small things were purchased, but most takes the form of free literature to meditate over later with the occasional bit of swag. And we didn't even bring home the J & P Cycles uber-huge catalog (the CD version is just fine thank you).


2. Progressive was smart to hand out nice reusable bags for carting home all your new crap instead of plastic ones with the handles that just aren't up to the challenge (see 10 lbs of stuff referenced above).

3. I did not bring home a jacket OR gloves--I think that's a first.

4. Kymco sure made a heck of a lot of scooters this year--not a bad thing.


5. The scooter pavilion was decent. Not fabulous, but decent. It's nice to see different makes and models of scooters in the same place for easy comparison. And we got a free Scoot! Magazine out of deal.


6. I saw, and sat, on a Vectrix electric scooter for the first time.

7. You can buy "motorcycles" that are bigger than Smart Cars. Why, I'm not really sure...

8. Fuel efficiency is still "in" even if gas isn't 4 bucks a gallon anymore (fyi, this stickers was on a motorcycle..my scooters do better...)

9. I may have found the perfect motorcycle for me. Alas, I'd need to sell a scooter or two for it to be a practical addition...

10. My Vino needs one of these.

It's motorcycle show time!

The motorcycle show is coming to D.C. this weekend. Last year Ryan had a rather detailed list of bikes he'd like to sit on. So far, I haven't seen evidence of that this year...but somehow I don't think we'll be bored. My goal is not to bring home a jacket--I make no promises when it comes to gloves.

We saw one of these beauties in person for the first time at last year's show. Wonder what the scooter pavilion has in store for us at this year...

Woot! Woot!

We made Etsy's front page! Guess those last bursts of energy at the end of winter vacation do come in handy.

And thanks to CreativelyTangled2 for including my belt buckle in this lovely treasury.

Meet Ralph

Ralph is a giant sequoia.

Well, he's not so giant now, but give him a few hundred years and he will be!

Of course, it was impossible for me to make a trip to Longwood Gardens and NOT come home with a plant. Since we were on our way to a New Year's party, the small and self contained version of this little giant sequoia was the perfect plant. I dubbed him Ralph on the car trek home New Year's Day.
It's cold outside and he's awfully small just now, so after a proper potting, Ralph joined the houseplant collection. He'll be giant someday.

Playing

As the last few hours of my vacation tick by, I decided stalking a treasury spot on Etsy was a good way to spend my time...thank goodness I was successful.

I started with a lovely canvas by jodiehurt (I have two of her art cards, have gifted another and lust for more) and searched the categories for beautiful items to complement it.

how I spent my winter vacation

I've been home from work for 12 glorious days--my longest non-work stretch in more than a year. There were holiday festivities and family gatherings in the mix, and one mini road trip, so I don't know that it completely qualifies as a "stacation" (i.e. an at-home vacation), but it was pretty darn close I'd think.

After all the holiday hoopla, I had time to put together one of my gifts--the mushroom cottage playset by Fantastic Toys. Good thing you're never too old for a mushroom cottage playset :)

Since both Ryan and I were home for much of our time, we made a point of getting out of the house for some type of excursion each day. Among them: ice skating, duckpin bowling, bike rides, scooter rides and dog walks outside the "usual" route.

Our mini road trip was north for New Year's Eve. We stopped along the way to enjoy the holiday displays at Longwood Gardens.

I was highly amused (it doesn't take much), by the scooter-focused signs throughout the Gardens. I'll leave you to figure out what they were talking about and why I wasn't offended by these scooter regulations.
One of our last excursions was a repeat trip to a local lake. The first trip was with the dogs earlier in the stacation and the second was today with our bicycles.
And in the midst of it all, I finally made something brand new for Polly Scoots.

Scooters on Parade

There's nothing better than scooters on parade. Well, maybe scooters on parade in July would have been a little better--when the wind chill isn't in the teens! But it was the Mayor's Christmas Parade, so what can you really expect?

Spectators along the streets of Hampden (Baltimore, hon) came out to take in the parade wrapped in blankets and clutching beverages (some hot, some cold). Others were pressed against the glass of their neighborhood bar or their neighbo'rs house, taking in the view while sitting inside where it was a little warmer.

Five of us braved the elements--four Vespas, one Vino, two hours or so waiting for division three to step off and maybe another half hour riding down Falls Road and "The Avenue."

And just in case I haven't said it before, my Vino rocks!! This is how it got to Baltimore and back. A few kicks and she started right up. What a bike! And, yes, I know, it's really not a good idea to transport her this way. Desperately cold temperatures call for desperate measures.