Riding Buddy

I've met many people in my life. Some are more memorable than others.

Thirty years ago I started riding motorcycles. At the time I didn't know other bikers so I went out and looked for some. I started hanging out at a biker bar in Valley Stream ("The Clubhouse"). The bar was conspicuously rough and seedy. Patrons engaged in sex in the basement, drunks got rip-roaringly intoxicated every night of the week and pool games sometimes ended in fistfights. I always arrived on my bike wearing motorcycle gear, announcing my enthusiasm for motorcycling. Often I traveled in very cold weather, conveying my commitment to living like a badass. Patrons frequently insisted on going outside to inspect my motorcycle "'cause only a lunatic would ride in the ass of Winter."

Before long I befriended the owners, all of whom belonged to a local motorcycle club. After many late nights drinking, tossing darts and shooting pool I developed good friendships. They, of course, steered me toward their M/C which I joined. After probation (several group rides and club meetings) I was admitted to the club. After the first year I got an award for "Most Enthusiastic Member." Two years later I was elected club President and, the year after that, was re-elected for a second term. 

One of the owners, Rich Culmone, became my closest friend. I enjoyed Rich for his rare combination of social deviance and personal generosity. His background is full of eccentric employments and activities. Rich's demeanor is tough and intimidating, yet he's a sweet guy at heart. If you are his friend, as I am, there is absolutely nothing he won't do for you. Rich will take a bullet -- or shoot one -- to protect you. Plus Rich's girlfriend (later wife) Roberta is cheery and delightful.

Since I was new to motorcycling there was plenty I didn't know. Rich taught me gobs about riding and how to be a biker. By example and through advice he rapidly transformed me from a tyro to an old hand. He taught me about biker culture, outlaw clubs, what "81" means, and how to deal with criminals and low-lifes. This was all new to me.

At the time I rode locally every day but hadn't been on any long trips. My first was initiated by Rich and it was a huge learning experience. Rich was planning to ride by himself from New York to Montana to attend the annual BMW Motorrad rally. I could squeeze eight days off work so I decided to join him, traveling as far west as I could in four days (which turned out to be North Dakota) before turning around and coming home alone. I covered 4,000 miles during those eight days, passing through Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Canada and North Dakota.

The trip was amazing. My first surprise was when we were leaving: Rich said we had to make a quick stop so he could "get some bullets." Bullets?! Rich bought ammo which alerted me to the fact he was "packing" on the trip. 

A second surprise was crossing the longest suspension bridge in the world: the Mackinac Bridge in Michigan. We arrived at the bridge in a windy rainstorm just after the sun had gone down. Minutes later bridge operators lit a sign saying "No Motorcycles" due to the hazardous conditions but we were already on the bridge-span. Wind was so strong that it pushed our bikes sideways toward involuntary lane-changes. I could barely see the road but was aware that the outer guardrail was lower than my motorcycle. Riding with white knuckles I spent eternity wrestling with the likely possibility of being blown off the bridge and falling thousands of feet to a watery death. Later, after getting to the other side, I stopped at a gas station and mentioned this to an old woman at the counter. She said "Yeah, we lose a few cars off the bridge every year."

Riding across the bridge Rich was sure I was gonna die. He worried my family would blame him for putting me, an inexperienced rider, in that dangerous situation. Rich cares for me and would have felt terrible watching me get blown overboard to a watery death but, in truth, there was nothing he could do to prevent it. We were stuck in a real "ride or die" quandary.

After four days on the road with Rich I returned home by myself. The first four days prepared me to solo-ride long distance. I didn't have the guts to do that when we started; Rich gave me the necessary confidence and aplomb. He helped me grow into a long-distance motorcycle rider.

I've stayed friends with Rich ever since then, even after he and Roberta moved to Las Vegas. He returns to New York to visit his daughter and includes seeing me during those visits. A few years ago Rich, like me, started suffering health problems which forced him to give up motorcycling. His charm, however, never disappeared. We joke on the phone and chat about old times, the club and fellow biker-buddies.

Thanks, Rich, for the kindness you've shown me. Keep the rubber side down, buddy.

My Parents

In 1956, seventy years ago, my parents (Ralph & Barbara Jo) got married.

Back then they watched "I Love Lucy" on a small black-and-white television set, listened to Elvis sing on 45 rpm vinyl records, and ate Cheez Whiz and Sloppy Joes. Cooking was adding mayonnaise to something. Dessert was Jell-O in a variety of shapes and colors. 

Like their friends, my parents smoked cigarettes and drank lots of liquor at boisterous parties in "finished basements". Furniture was "mid-century modern"; kitchen counters were easy-to-clean Formica.

My parents bought a house for $15,000 and cars for $1,000. Born into an unstable world in the 1930s, they were fortunate to later live through the greatest period of economic prosperity in our nation's history. They retired in their fifties and lived comfortably down in "sunny Florida" on a civil service pension.

I'm happy they had nice lives.

"The Human Cosmos"

Books, like toys, can be fun or educational.

I just finished the most informative book I've read in decades: "The Human Cosmos: Civilization and the Stars" by noted British science writer Jo Marchant (2020). The book, an award-winner, addresses a half-dozen important subjects with a through-line that makes sense. The work deepened my understanding of these topics, including my central obsession: what is reality?

While not a typical "beach read," the beach would be an appropriate place to enjoy this book. Like a sentient grain of sand, you can ponder your place in the colossal cosmos.

Psycho Bunny

Have you heard of Psycho Bunny?

It is, improbably, a hip brand of expensive menswear. Made with high-quality materials and real craftsmanship (100% Pima cotton from Peru), their polo shirts ($120) and t-shirts ($60) are worn by successful young men in middle age (30-40 years old). The brand is obviously irreverent, as shown by its odd name, weird logo and vivid colors. The clothes are edgy and made for "men who march to their own drummer." Hey, I resemble that remark!

There's one Psycho Bunny store on Long Island in the Roosevelt Field mall. I went there today and picked up a tee and polo shirt. Here's the front and back of the t-shirt. What do you think?

Light

It's fascinating to learn about nature because much of it differs from common understanding. For example, what is light? How much light do we see? Are there things we don't see?

These questions are important. Light is electromagnetic radiation that appears on a wide spectrum. There are many regions of light, from radio waves to gamma waves, but what humans see is only a tiny sliver in the middle of the spectrum. If you imagine that spectrum the length of the Brooklyn Bridge, what humans see is only two feet wide. The rest of the spectrum is "invisible" to us.

This is why "black holes", which science recently discovered, are "invisible" -- they project only X-ray light humans can't see. If you look through the world's most powerful telescope, you can't see a black hole. We found them through their effect on other celestial bodies. Using math, we confirmed their existence by noting their gravitational force on other stars. No human can "see" a black hole which is why scientists debated for decades whether they really exist.

Here on Earth there are many animals that see light that's invisible to us. Birds and insects, for instance, see UV light that enables them to find food. Snakes see infrared light which lets them see warm-blooded prey in pitch-black night.

Humans see by having light cells in our eyes that detect color (cones) and intensity (rods). While we have only three types of cones, many animals have four, enabling them to see UV light. They find this handy for locating things to eat. Dogs have only two cones so they can't see colors red and green. Cats too have fewer cones but more rods so they see greater detail in low-light, making them good hunters.

The greatest human fallacy is to believe that if we don't see something, it doesn't exist. That was disproven by the recent discovery of black holes. It's also disproven by animals who possess sensory capabilities we lack; they perceive the world differently and see things we can't. Nature is amazing whether we know it or not.

Fine Art

Melissa Maiello is an artist to admire. Her work is extraordinary. Not only does Melissa have technical talent in several art media, she has unique artistic vision. Her art focuses on nature and conveys that subject's sublime beauty and tantalizing mystery. 

Artists "see" differently from the rest of us. They literally perceive more reality.  In the words of Aldous Huxley, "the doors of [their] perception" are open wider than ours. Melissa's art invites us to join her in a realm more vibrant than our own. Exploring that space can be a transcendent experience.

When I heard Melissa's art is on display this month at a festival in Babylon I jumped into the Batmobile and went there. The festival is outdoors, always a nice place to enjoy art and especially appropriate for Melissa's work. There are pieces by twenty artists in the show. 

The festival is open until Aug. 9th. Go! Look! Expand your horizons!

Blogging

Those of us who've blogged for a while (I started in 2010) know that blogging became popular 10-15 years ago and... then slowly fizzled out. When personal videos became possible and easy (on mobile devices) the masses gravitated toward them and away from static word-and-picture blogs. It was inevitable since most people can't write and don't like to read. Watching videos on TikTok and Instagram is their first choice.

I'm sad about this for a few reasons. First, I love to write so expressing myself here has always been a delight. Second, I like to connect with others so reading blogs, pondering the writer's experiences and being able to comment is always fun. And third, I find most video content to be shallow whereas blog posts are usually deep and more meaningful. Plus, on blogs we can show off our fancy vocabulary. :)

It was sad to see my favorite blogs -- which at one point numbered over 60 -- disappear. Of those, only a small handful exist today. Most evaporated without warning, like water on the patio during Summer.

I plan to remain here forever and will continue to support like-minded souls doing the same work. If you're reading this and have a blog, link it in the comments so I can join your community.

Recently I posted about a fabulous new book ("The Secret of Secrets," by Dan Brown [2025]). The novel has passages which give me hope about a future return to blogging. Here they are:

"Online, I am a bodiless consciousness…". (p. 656)

"It’s an unusual idea, but I’ve come to believe that our current technological explosion is actually part of a spiritual evolution… a kind of training ground for the existence that, in the end, is our ultimate destiny… a consciousness, untethered from the physical world, and yet connected to all things.” (p. 656)

The idea of consciousness outside human bodies is growing in popularity as it explains many odd phenomena (like the paranormal, mystical and metaphysical). Science and philosophy are examining consciousness with fresh originality. Noetics are pushing back against materialism and opening doors to new concepts and thought. Blogs may be training wheels for something much, much bigger.