MAINE: my final frontier. These are the voyages of the Scooter Vespa 250 i.e. Super. Its continuing mission - to explore America's most heavily forested state - to roam the vast coastline, numberless lakes, and mighty mountains. To boldly go where no scooter has gone before!

Thursday, March 22, 2012

One Year on my Vespa

Here I am, standing proudly with my one-year-old Vespa GTS 250 i.e. Super, on the day the marvelous machine and I celebrated one year as a team.


In that year, riding nearly every day, in every month, we shared 8704 miles on Maine's highways and backroads. I am 63 years old, and have made a lot of poor decisions in that time - but buying this scooter was without question the best purchase I've ever made (Best overall decision was asking Kathy to marry me 37 years ago).

I intend to ride until I can't move a muscle - then I'm going to have a rig like this made for me:

 

Mike T. of  http://scooterthefun.blogspot.com/ is using a real camera, with actual film, to record the beauty of Cundy's Harbor. Cool as the new digital stuff is, there's nothing like film. It's like the difference between vinyl and a CD or mp3: close, maybe - but a tad too different for my taste.


This is Cundy's Harbor


 Everything is ready for the summer tourists, including the picnic tables. We like to keep them stacked up so the summer people will go away, but most of them figure out how to get them down.

Summer pest: "Room Service? Please send up a towel."

Mainer: "You'll have to wait - someone else is using it."
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13 comments:

  1. David MasseMarch 23, 2012 at 11:19 AM

    I'll be 60 this coming June and this is my third season commuting. I agree wholeheartedly with you, riding my Vespa to and from work is a true source of happiness.

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  2. Thomas KeeneMarch 23, 2012 at 2:52 PM

    David,

    Even more delightful than scooting to work is being retired and scooting to - wherever!

    Tom

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  3. Martha March 24, 2012 at 10:46 AM

    You Maine folk say more of what you're thinking! I'm not sure Swedes (the majority in my county) have that wicked tongue and twinkle like the Anglish do! Trust me, the humor is so subtle here you don't even notice it...

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    1. Thomas KeeneMarch 25, 2012 at 7:42 PM

      Martha,

      My mother's folks were Swedes; some married Danes and Finns - and one married a Norwegian! No subtlety in our family gatherings.

      You're correct - Downeaster's - as opposed to southern Mainer's - are blunt. Those in the south, especially the newly planted, are loud louts who we don't listen to much.

      Tom

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  4. OrinMarch 24, 2012 at 8:44 PM

    Tom, congratulations on the milestone! Most blogs die after a few posts, and I read somewhere that something like 98% of blogs on the Web have had no page views at all. You're doing way better than the average... keep up the good work!

    __Orin
    Scootin' Old Skool

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    Replies
    1. Thomas KeeneMarch 25, 2012 at 7:44 PM

      Orin,

      I thank you very much for your comments. This new world of scooting and blogging is having a large and dramatic influence on my life.

      Tom

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  5. UnknownMarch 25, 2012 at 1:14 AM

    Thomas:

    I am envious that you are retired. I should be retired too. I am already collecting OAS, I turned 65 last July but it is expensive here in Vancouver, so I have to keep working for a bit longer. Our Spring has been delayed, had to scrape the windows again this morning

    bob
    Riding the Wet Coast

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    1. Thomas KeeneMarch 25, 2012 at 7:49 PM

      Bob,

      I have been able to retire largely because of the wisdom of my parents (save, save, save), my low-maintenance lifestyle, and the grace of my dear wife Kathy.

      As to weather - I packed away my winter stuff when we had 10 days of temps in the 70s and 80s.

      Now we're in a stretch of highs in the low 40s. I refuse to admit that I was wrong, so my recent rides have been brisk and brief.

      Tom

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  6. Keith - Circle BlueMarch 25, 2012 at 9:17 PM

    I add my congratulations on your anniversary. I, too, believe buying a scooter was a watershed in my life. Many have pointed out that my life is B.S., but they are only partly correct. My life has been made up of two eras. There was the B.S. part, but then I bought the scooter. Now everything is recorded in time After Scooter, rather than Before Scooter.

    Ride on, and keep the post coming. I'd miss them if they stopped. I really would, for true, no B.S.
    ~k

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    1. Thomas KeeneMarch 28, 2012 at 6:52 PM

      Thank you - time and the miles fly by when we're having fun!

      Tom

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  7. Martha March 26, 2012 at 9:43 AM

    Here the Swedes and Norwegians are always squabbling. I'm sure all in good nature, but....

    and then there are the Germans (like me)and we are third down the line and then the Belgians (shame that everyone picks on the Belgians). A few Dutch sprinkled in (like me, again). It makes for a lively mix with those unsubtle moments! I don't doubt your family gatherings are lively!

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  8. Mr. VMay 24, 2012 at 3:31 PM

    Thanks for your blog. I too am blissfully retired and finally have more time to read and write, but I also want to be outside. The Vespa GTV 300 came to my attention and I have decided that I am going to make the plunge. Your blog has renewed my resolve!

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  9. Thomas KeeneMay 27, 2012 at 12:43 PM

    Mr. V,

    I'm pleased to be part of getting a fellow retiree out on two wheels. So many of my peers have given up; one guy I went to high school with is in assisted living!

    And frankly, without the Vespa, I'd probably be stuck at home.

    I hope you'll post your rides on Mind Droppings, and please visit here often.

    Tom

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