Bikes, beer & Badassness

Well its that time of year! ALGONA IOWA RALLY!!!! YIPPEEEE.... This will be the 4th year in a row that i have gone and love it. It's about 2 1/2-3 hours away and we camp out the whole week and have way to many beers : ) After all this flooding fiasco it will be a good week to relax and beer it up with some great friends.
If you have ever been to a motorcycle rally you understand what i am talking about. It is pretty crazy. If you have never been you pry wouldn't believe half of the stories that i would tell you from years past. You hardly get any sleep because there are people revving their bikes all night long. When you hear one bike rev then another and another. It starts a chain reaction. It is so loud and awesome to hear! There are so many bikes to look at and so many cool and interesting people to meet. Some people will look at bikers and turn up their noses but in reality they are some of the nicest people. Here is an awesome poem to remember on your travels over this holiday weekend:

A VERY POWERFUL BIKER POEM

By Anonymous Biker

But, You Didn't See Me

I saw you,
hug your purse closer to you in the grocery store line.

But, you didn't see me,
put an extra $10.00 in the collection plate last Sunday.

I saw you,
pull your child closer when we passed each other on the sidewalk.

But, you didn't see me,
playing Santa at the local mall.

I saw you,
change your mind about going into the restaurant.

But, you didn't see me,
attending a meeting to raise more money for the hurricane relief.

I saw you,
roll up your window and shake your head when I drove by.

But, you didn't see me,
driving behind you when you flicked your cigarette butt out the car window.

I saw you,
frown at me when I smiled at your children.

But, you didn't see me,
when I took time off from work to run toys to the homeless.

I saw you,
stare at my long hair.

But, you didn't see me,
and my friends cut ten inches off for Locks of Love.

I saw you,
roll your eyes at our leather coats and gloves.

But, you didn't see me,
and my brothers donate our old coats and gloves to those that had none.

I saw you,
look in fright at my tattoos.

But, you didn't see me,
cry as my children where born and have their name written over and in my heart.

I saw you,
change lanes while rushing off to go somewhere.

But, you didn't see me,
going home to be with my family.

I saw you,
complain about how loud and noisy our bikes can be.

But, you didn't see me,
when you were changing the CD and drifted into my lane.

I saw you,
yelling at your kids in the car.

But, you didn't see me,
pat my child's hands, knowing he was safe behind me.

I saw you,
reading the newspaper or map as you drove down the road.

But, you didn't see me,
squeeze my wife's leg when she told me to take the next turn.

I saw you,
race down the road in the rain.

But, you didn't see me,
get soaked to the skin so my son could have the car to go on his date.

I saw you,
run the yellow light just to save a few minutes of time.

But, you didn't see me,
trying to turn right.

I saw you,
cut me off because you needed to be in the lane I was in.

But, you didn't see me,
leave the road.

I saw you,
waiting impatiently for my friends to pass.

But, you didn't see me.
I wasn't there.

I saw you,
go home to your family.

But, you didn't see me.
Because, I died that day you cut me off.

I was just a biker,.....

A person with friends and a family.

BUT, YOU DIDN'T SEE ME

I think times are changing but it sure makes you think... : ) Remember loud pipes save lives, Love you all and have a great 4th of July weekend!!!!

Flooding 2011

Well here in Iowa it is getting crazy! We about to be washed outta our beloved city : ( I don't know if you all have heard but because of some melting snow and lack of releasing damns along the way for months, it is now a disaster and the core of engineers are having to release about 5 damns at once. It is/has destroyed many farms and citys here in Iowa.
My Momma lives on the west end of Council Bluffs and we have been packing up her things from the basement and trying to get it all out so her possessions are not ruined. It is so hard to try to decide what means the most to you. This is my mother's possessions for the last 30 years! I am so very proud of her though she has been getting rid of things and "thinning the heard" so to speak. We have been working at her place for about 3 weeks now. I also have other family members that are being affected by all of this.
Here are some pictures of the area:The picture above is looking towards Omaha, Ne which is a hop across the river from us. You can see the Omaha skyline in the top right hand corner.


This is the Morman bridge that goes over into Omaha, Ne from the Iowa side.
This used to be restaurant many years ago. My family used to live about 5 miles from this place. I still had family that lived out by here and now it is all covered with water & they have had to relocate for now.
This is such a tragedy and please keep the MANY families & friends that are being affected by this in your prayers. So far is hasn't crept into the city but if the rumors are correct it will only be a matter of time : (