Digging the 2011 Kawasaki Ninja

What a great bike! The seat is a little uncomfortable... but other than that, it is a well put together machine. It handles beautifully. So far I have put 160 miles on it. My boyfriend, who has a Suzuki Bandit 1250, and I rode up to Furlong, PA Friday night. I was able to show the bike off to a couple fellow rider friends of ours, Chris & Joe. They love the bike.... How could someone not?

Today Andy and I rode up through New Hope. That is where we met this young chickie who sounded great as she sang and played the guitar. Her name is Corey Hite.. keep your eyes out for her! She was very good.

That is me on the bike the day I picked it up. I had a lot of fun that afternoon with the guys from Bucks County Kawasaki. They were so friendly and helpful.




I was mailed a Contour GPS Video Camera that I am having some problems with... but I am sure I will work out the bugs.

I will probably ride this beautiful machine, who I have taken the liberty of naming "Thor" a half dozen or so times to work. The more I ride it the more I like it... and wow, does it ever sound mean.

I'll be tweeting about my experience as well as blogging and updating my Facebook status.

Stay tuned for more action!

Darlene Steelman 0527

Darlene Steelman 0527

Wordle

This is my first attempt at a Wordle. I like this concept. This one I did in a couple minutes, only because I am on the tail end of my lunch here at the office. No playing on company time! he he....

I plan on doing a much more indepth one later on in the week with much more color.

Happy Wednesday!

Ride To New Hope Equals Trains and a Parking Ticket

Andy, Chris, Brittany (Chris's daughter) and myself decided to get breakfast at Back To The 50's diner in Furlong, PA. A small place plastered with pink, James Dean and Marilyn Monroe, they have great food. I recommend it to anyone traveling through the Bucks County area.

We then rode up to New Hope. We parked our bikes outside the old Lulu's (we used to get breakfast there - but it is no longer Lulu's), put a few quarters in the parking meters and hiked up the road for coffee.

After going to Starbucks and waiting in a ridiculous line for over priced coffee we decided to ditch the old SB and head across the way to Dunkin' Donuts. Good call.

There was this little street by an old vintage store on the corner there and we walked up and made a right to go past the train station and back by the old rail cars.

I love old stuff. I am not sure why... but it stirs me. Old houses, old cemeteries, old rail cars. There was even a gentleman dressed as a conductor from the 30's or 40's. He didn't want me to take his picture.

Where this train is, we were able to walk all the way back into an old rail yard. There was a tow path back there and some really neat looking old trains.

After all the train hullabaloo, we went back to New Hope to hop on our gas-filled steeds and head home. As we approached, we noticed all of the motorcycles - roughly fifteen including our three - had little yellow papers on them. At fist I thought it might be some sort of flyer for a new fangled clothing boutique in New Hope.

Unfortunately, it was a parking ticket for an expired meter! Now, the way the parking for motorcycles is in New Hope, about four cycles can fit in a spot. And it is customary for each biker to put at least one quarter in the meter. We all put a quarter in, but I guess none of the other bikers did.

Oh well, we all got a $20 ticket. At 15 bikers, That is $300!

It was still a great day. I had a blast. I have chalked the parking ticket up as parking in an overpriced parking garage. Next time I'll make sure I have way more quarters!

Stay tuned for an update on the Cycle World Ninja 1000 Experience. I should be getting the bike any day now... :)

Slim Jims and No Water

Okay.......... stop me if you've heard this one before: The world is going to end. The good will be saved and the evil will go through hell. You have heard it? Ahhh.. so I'm not crazy.

Me thinks all the peeps in on this Rapture thing and the Myan Calendar and all this stuff need to get on the same page. Right now I am watching CNBC and the show is talking about the Myan Calendar and how it depicts the end of the world. Apparently a guy named Michael tied some books together and the calendar.

Oh, and let's not forget the guy who says we're living in a computer program. This guy is going to jump off a rock at 11:11 AM into a hole on 122112. I guess if he is right he is a genius. If he is wrong, well, he's dead.

I'm really hoping that I do not have to hole up in my abode because I am totally unprepared. I have no bottled water. I do, however, have Slim Jims. How long can a human being live with a stockpile of Slim Jims sans water?

As I sit here and am pretty sure that the whole "Rapture" day will come and go without a hitch (mainly because I am not living my dream yet). Yes. Didn't you know that everything is all about me?

So here is what I have so far for the Rapture:

*half assed batteries in size AAA.. AAA batteries are useless. Strike one.

*Sprite, a half gallon of 1/2 & 1/2, cheesesticks... and yes, Slim Jims.

* more windows than we really need. If Zombies are part of this Rapture, we are in a deep load of something that doesn't smell pleasant.

*I do have knives. And no, I don't mean kitchen ones.

Are you prepared for the Rapture aka Zombie apocalypse? Is this another load of dookie?

Feel free to chime in and give me your thoughts. I'd love to hear from you.

First Things First

We all have people in our lives that we care for or answer to. We go to work, get our kids off to school and do a whole lot of other stuff for other people. Now, I know our children depend on us to take care of them.

There comes a point when we just need to stop.

I work with a woman who for some reason thinks she would be a terrible mother if she let her kids (14 and 18) get their own dinner, wash their own clothes or clean their own rooms.

I work two jobs and my fifteen year old daughter will soon be coming to live with me permanently. Andy and I are very excited about this. My daughter will be washing a lot of her own clothes and will probably have to cook a meal or two for herself. This is okay with the both of us. This does not make me a terrible mother. I like to think of it as making me practical.

We have to put our own well being ahead of others more often than we realize. If we don't take care of us, how will we take care of everyone else?

We must learn how to say, "I need some me time!" And yes. I need it right now.

If you are one of those people who feels that the weight of the world is on your shoulders, and you have to do everything for everyone, I suggest rethinking your logic.

Sunday is my day... I need at least one day for me to get in most of my writing and one good nap. So get a day, a night or even an hour. And make sure it is uninterrupted!

First Things First!

To Do List For The Day:

Blog
Food Shopping
Nap
Fold Clothes
More Napping
Write
Snacks!

Believing In Myself.... Changing My Life

I have never been very full of confidence. I exude it at times,however there is always that little voice in the back of my head that sounds like a seven year old once in a while that tries desperately to put me back in my place. It's the voice that tells me "not to bother" or "someone else did it better" or "just not good enough."

I ignored that voice a few weeks ago when I decided to enter a contest for the Cycle World Kawasaki Ninja 1000 Experience. I wrote a quirky little entry, submitted all of my Facebook, Twitter and blog information, and forgot about it.

I was going through my email this past week and I saw a message with the title CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE BEEN SELECTED! RE: The Ninja 1000 Experience. I was blown away. I am not sure how many entrants there were, but ten people were chosen. I am one of those ten. Maybe it was the fact that my blog address is ninjjagal or the fact that my email is ninjagal... Maybe it really was the silly entry I wrote (I did crack myself up in a few spots).

In a nutshell, I get to test-ride the 2011 Kawasaki Ninja 1000 for ninety days. Cycle World is having the bike dropped off at Bucks County Kawasaki in Bristol. I also get a Flip Camera and a $50. gas card. The catch is that for the 90 days I have the bike, I am to tweet, blog, update my status and take videos and upload them. No problem! I already tweet and blog like a maniac anyway. Now I will be bombarding the screen with all kinds of fun goodies... :)

So stay tuned my fine feathered friends!! And those of you without feathers as well. It is going to be a fun ride!

In A Nutshell

Here is a link to my latest article. SHINEDOWN. It has been epic so far as me writing goes... Getting noticed? Well, that is proving to be difficult.

I have a Book In A Month book... I finally came up with a pretty wicked novel idea. Now I have to write down the basics and formulate an outline.
It's gonna be great.

In other news... I am coming up on five years sober. I cannot believe how much I have changed in these last five years. I mean, I am actually a thoughtful human being who puts the needs of others ahead of her own a lot more than I used to. Now, sometimes we all need to be selfish. But hurting someone to get what we need is a different aspect of the game and I play that role no longer. I am currently working on my eighth and ninth steps.. This is the hardest so far.

The weather is breaking...finally. I can get outside and get some much needed sunshine and fresh air.

My daughter is down again this weekend. I really enjoy having her over. I feel so much more like a mother in the past three years then I have ever felt.

I made a commitment to write at least 1,500 words a week regarding my novel. I can't say "a day" because I work two jobs and some days it will be literally impossible to stick to such a goal. This time I am being realistic.

Until net week, my furry friends.... Stay true to yourself and always believe!!