funny... at least to me


in this stage of my life it was not uncommon for me to wear shirts without sleeves
it was not just an effort to let my air pits breath
there was the notion that I needed a hair band
not like Poison or Whitesnake
but a hair band like a hair tie

shirt sleeves were the fashionable solution
simply cut the sleeves off the t-shirt
WHA-LA!
matching hair band and shirt!

this shot is from a bicycle tour in Europe in 1991 shortly after I graduated from college
did this trip with my buddy Rob Hardesty

this was an era pre-Internet and pre-cell phone
there was a distinct absence of planning and communication

we rolled without the Satellite technology of the GPS
we had this paper thing called a map
along with an outdate American Youth Hostel book that was sorely out of date
that AYH book let us down a multitude of times

there may be previous rants on this adventure
or maybe not
really... it was a "the journey is the destination" sort of trip
chock full of miss and mr adventures

traveling can be high stress
throw in the variable of the bicycle
and well...
there is another set of dynamic variables that can act to bring the travelers together and push them apart

my father does not know much of the details of this trip
but he always loved to tell the story with the simple message
"and then when Rob got home... he sold his bicycle"

when Rob got married a few years ago... I had the honor of being his best man
we are still good friends now
although it has been too long since we have ridden bicycles together
such is adult life with children


quick note...
this was an amusing time for music...
Guns and Roses Appetite for Destruction was infecting the airwaves
then on the underground there was the genesis of what would later be dubbed "grunge"
I brought a Sony Walkman to Europe with a variety of mix tapes...
Soundgarden, Nirvana, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Danzig... what else?

Winger? Bon Jovi? Motley Crue?
these bands were on the turn table or in the cassette player
there was a tongue and cheek appreciation
it was a little bit ironic

after all... who could resist the power of MTV
at this time MTV still played music videos... although it as morphing into something different
as it just started with first season of "the real world" and entertained us with shows like "Remote Control"
we watched tv and played video games... but nothing like the Youth of Today



http://gwadzilla.blogspot.com/search?q=holland
looks like a mention of this trip from 2004
http://gwadzilla.blogspot.com/search?q=dutch

and if you scroll down on this link... there are a few photos from the gathering before the reception at Rob's wedding
http://gwadzilla.blogspot.com/search?q=rob