It's been a while...

The question needs an answer so, yes... Biker Dude still rides a bike. The thing is, he works at a bike shop.
So? What's the deal about that?
Well, the thing is... when the weather is just right for bike riding, people bring their bikes to a bike shop, or else they go to one to buy stuff, or a new bike, or to get theirs serviced. This makes the bike store busiest during when..? During bike riding season. Therefore, it's ironic that people who work at bike shops don't actually ride, or get to ride, as much as people think they do.
So to compensate for that phenomenon, biker dude rides his bike to work. On days when the weather allows of course.
But where before it was a 30 mile ride to, and then 30 from work, 60 total, now it's an 11 1/2 there and 11 1/2 back.
Not as much time and distance for there to be as many stories to tell. Plus, now it's more of a city ride. Dealing with cars, and the ummmm, to put it nicely, unpleasant and dipshit brained people who drive them. Fill in as many four letter words as you can come up with and I'm sure they are all appropriate.
Getting behind the wheel of a car turns at least 50% of the humans who do so into the most impatient, angry, me first selfish clueless ignorant and inconsiderate jerks on the planet. Again, fill in with your imagination any four letter words you can think of.
But who wants to hear stories like that?
There's enough of them on the news.
So till something worth telling comes up, or comes to mind, hang in there and be patient.
Stories are coming.

Requiem For a Racoon...

A couple of days ago, after all the snow was melted and dried up, Biker Dude looked out the kitchen window into the yard.

"Hmmmmm... what IS that out there under the bench?" he thought.

He decided it was just an old grocery bag that had blown into the yard.

Today, he looked out the window again.


"Hmmm... that so called 'grocery bag' hasn't moved in two days. Weird."

He went out there to take a look.

And there it was. A dead raccoon.

No blood... no signs of injury... no flies.. no bad smell... it just lay there peacefully, like it was taking a nap.

But it was as solid as a block of ice.

Maybe it forgot to check that the weather was going to be close to zero degrees back in December.

Biker Dude bowed his head for a half moment of silence. He never liked it when an innocent animal died. Not even a not so innocent one. But at least this time, Biker Dude didn't personally bring about its demise, unlike the skunk he accidentally ran over last year. He could still see the shape rising up in the dark and feel the thump thump of the tires and the feeling that it was something alive as he ran it over.

And like with the possum under his girlfriend's deck last summer, Biker Dude won't say how he got rid of the mortal remains. Some people would consider that too much information. But this racoon's last ride was set for the following day.

On the next best thing to a requiem that Biker Dude could give him; Racoon Heaven on wheels...

A garbage truck.