Bonneville America Forums Forums Off Topic Discussion Forums Lounge I'm Back !!!!!

Hello everyone, hardly know where the past three months have gone.

I know this I have missed the summer riding season in CT. and stopped checking the Rides and Rallies as it was getting depressing I sure miss you guy's.

We have moved, bought a house unpacked, started my new job and Lynn broke both her ankles all in the space of three months.

We have moved to Marietta, GA. and we really like it here despite the near death accident she had almost got run over by a car. When he jumped back her feet got caught up in a storm drain and when she fell they snapped.

What have I learned about the south in a month?

1: Men take their hats off in stores.

2: The use of the F word in public is taboo

3: You have to fight the girls at the food stores who insist on carrying your bags to the car.

4: Everyone says hello and smiles

5: College Football is a religion

6: Friday is High School football night and it is a big deal

7: NASCAR and Country music go hand in hand

It would appear they still do all the little things we stopped doing in the North decades ago. The quality of life is just so much richer here.

The only draw back so far is the number of cars and the traffic I would take 4:30 downtown NY traffic on a Friday afternoon anytime over this.

I'm talking bumper to bumper stop and go traffic at 5:30 in the morning on a 6 lane highway it is incredible.

Riding a bike is a whole new adventure the biggest problem are the intersections they are huge and have cars turning and entering from so many directions its hard to keep track of them all.

The weather is absolutely beautiful here loaded Lynn in the car and went to Helen, GA. this past weekend Oktoberfest. Helen, GA. is a Bavarian style town and there must have been a several hundred bikes there. We could not get out and walk around but I saw a Rocket that had the trike conversion done and a super charger hanging of the front end and two speedies but mostly HD’s and Yamaha’s.

Well just wanted to let you guys know we are still kicking and enjoying or decision to make the move.

John

Welcome Back! Some day I hope to travel in that direction.

Hope Lynn is healing up well and quickly.

Soren

Welcome back John!!

Oh great more transplants lol... Glad ot have ya, even tho I dont live in GA I may be moving to Savannah soon.. Kind of funny you said going to Helen GA,, my parents are leaving at 6am to spend the weekend there... Maybe you will see them lol.. Hope the wife gets better soon, broken ankles suck have had both of mine broken a few times, but not both at once.

Great hearin' from ya, John. Sounds like other than Lynn's unfortunate mishap(and that gosh darn traffic), you guys are doin' great! Good news!


Say hello to Lynn and Brett for me.

(and other than those darn Bosox o' yours sweepin' my Angels out of the playoffs, I'm been doin' pretty well myself)

Interesting observations about the south John. Gotta love the attitude. I've always appreciated the whole 'southern hospitality' thing.

Congrats and welcome back John. You're missing GREAT bike weather here "back home" in Connecticut. Yesterday drizzly, downpouring and foggy all day, and today more New England Sunshine (RAIN) and about 50 something outside. I guess Fall is firmly here.... OH, also, while you're gone, they've decided to repeal all personal property taxes on vehicles and lower property taxes on homes by 60%...

NOT!!

Enjoy the South, I know I did (but was too stupid to realize it!)

This is one thing that amazes me about you folks in the US. You can move across country and it is like a whole new world, must be great.

Really not all that far when you put it in perspective. I thought that way too until I had my horizons adjusted the other night while watching CNN. They were talking about Sudan (Darfur), and that it is the size of the entire eastern half of the United States in size (from the Mississippi). WTF?! Now, I'm not that bad with Geography (I didn't think so), but when I think about some of these countries in Africa and stuff, for some reason, I think small countries, maybe like Germany or England in size, not bigger than the Louisiana Purchase!!! CRIPES! SO, see, moving halfway across the country here is only like going a third of the way across an African country or maybe a little further than across Queensland or the Northern Territories, so really just a short jaunt...

Yep Dave! Greg's right, alright!

In fact, just yesterday I happened to ride through East Los Angeles, and it was just like I suddenly took a vacation to Mexico City!!!

(and mind you, we're talkin' about being within the very same state here...CITY even...and I didn't even have to cross the border, dude!)

I am just thinking for us in SA all our areas are mostly alike the weather may vary a bit from place to place. It is not like there where you can basically live in a hot climate or a very cold climate with all the frill that go with it. You also seem to have quite a cultural change from state to state or am I wrong in thinking this. Remember I am just a dumb African

You don't even have to go state to state to see the cultural changes, go from a major city to a rural area of the same state and there's a huge difference.

Well, we have been "The Melting Pot Of The World" for some time now, Dave.

And yes, besides the influx of all the different cultures of the word co-mingling here, there are differences even between the people of the same ethnicity who go back many generations on american soil, depending on where in this vast country you were born and bred.

BUT, we do have one thing in common....the continual search for the Almighty Dollar, which ain't such a bad thing, ya know.

(THAT'S the "Great Equalizer" in this experiment...it actually works pretty well, surprisingly)

Well we have huge cultural differences here too but you find them all in most cities. So it is not as if you encounter a huge difference from what you are used too when you move around. I suppose if we were to travel up Africa we would then see a few major differences but as we have most Africans filtering into SA now I think we have em all on our doorsteps by now.

Just don't go barefoot in the south. You'll get the hook worm through your feet and it eventually infilltrates your brain. Thus the cause of the southern drawal. pic

Yep, The Human Migration. I guess people tend to go where there's opportunity. That is, where there's money to be made, and like I said, ain't nothin' wrong with that.

(unless they want to bring their backward ways of living with 'em, that for some reason some of 'em can't seem to understand was the reason for their migration to begin with)

(I better stop here before a riot breaks out, huh?!)

Welcome to the south! I know all about that Marietta traffic. 45 minutes to an hour for a 17 mile commute! Yeah, that's exactly why I moved FROM there! Maybe I'll cross paths with you sometime. Sorry to hear about the wifes ankles. Hurts me just thinking about it!

Geez, I'm a ROYAL DUMBARSE!!!! I need to start looking a LITTLE more closely at where people are from when I reply! For some reason, I got it in my head that you were in AUSTRALIA, not South Africa!!! DOH! Sorry about that!! I guess in that case I don't have to tell you about African Geography, huh?

Eeh! Don't be so hard on yourself, Greg! I'm sure Dave took no offense to your obvious mistake here. Right Dave?

(BTW Dave, this reminds me....when can I expect that promised shipment of kangaroo meat to hit my doorstep, dude?...and ya know, I'm STILL waiting for that diamond shipment from Sandman to arrive here too!!!)

Dave, think of the Unites States as like 50 (or more) different countries rolled into one.

Soren

Dwight, I am fresh out of Roo but I could send you some Polar Bear that I speared down by the river. It was quite a close one as I had to make a run for it when the Tigers showed up



Sorry the wife was a bit nervous when she took this shot so she cut out the bear. I think the Tigers were worrying her

Hey John ., Nice to hear from you again. sorry to hear about Lynns ankles. Holy Crap! Lots of luck to you guys

The one golden opportunity in the US is if you do not like it somewhere just get and go and eventually you will find home no passport or papers needed.

The other thing I have learned about the South is do not mess with "FIRE ANTS" they hurt like ******.

I have three real nice welts on my arm from just two of those little buggers.

John

Diazinon
That'll get'm!

Not a chance Unclecharlie. Fire ants eat that stuff for breakfast and laugh at gasoline!(why do you think they call them Fire Ants) I've tried a few normal ant killers and they thanked me for the snack! They are BAD Mutha Suckers!

No one can claim to be an indigenous Marriettian without making a pilgrimage to THE BIG CHICKEN . Quite an icon here , you must go , Big Poppy . Sorry about the ankles , give her a big hug , and go git her a BISCUIT ! ( the quintessential Southern staple ) .

My master gardener wife tells me to point you to this site for you southern fire ant education Everything you wanted to know about fire ants but were afraid to ask
Get some Adolph's meat tenderizer and use it on those ant bites to mitigate the protein based poison (only works if you use it right away when bitten) and then practrice staying away from ant mounds.

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We have moved to Marietta, GA.

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Wow, another New Englander moves to the south. Glad to have you. I'm up here in Cleveland, Ga. About 1 1/2 hrs. from you. Originally from Boston, then 25 years in Florida, then up here in 93.

So what was the accident? I assume "she" is your wife? How is she doing?

Paw

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and go git her a BISCUIT !

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Biscuit?-------Please don't tell me that "she" is a dog!!!!!!

We have made to trip to the big Chicken, you are right it is a Marietta icon. I heard they were going to tear it down and the city went nuts, ponied up the money retored it and made sure it will remain forevever, when you ask for directions in Marietta it is always from the big chicken.

I had Arrow exterminators come and treat the mound they are all dead today. Nasty little criters.

John