Grateful Alive!

So I have to admit that I missed the Grateful Dead craze.  Musically I sort of fell into an in-between time and as a result my musical tastes are many and varied.  Because I moved from California to Georgia when I was in elementary school and I wanted so much to hold on to my California identity (can you blame me?) I listened to a lot of The Beach Boys.  Then when a bunch of the local boys and I started skateboarding I was really digging the surf scene, since grunge wasn't in yet.



Before I left Georgia for Germany I got into a lot of rock, especially Southern Rock.  Groups like Lynyrd Skynyrd;



Then when I moved to Germany instead of Disco, I found myself listening to groups like Queen;



Aerosmith:



The Kinks;



The Police;




The Ramones;



Pink Floyd;



And because I was living in Germany at the time I got a little into Kraftwerk, this clip is not really from the 70's, its from 1983 but if you watch it you'll know why I chose this song;




And there were many other groups that I listened to at the time that seminally influenced my taste in music but there are some that I notably missed out on - The Beatles (never really heard much of them until the late 80's), mainly because I just didn't have the interest or the exposure;  Bruce Springsteen, because they hadn't heard of him in Germany;  Billy Joel, because when I moved from Germany to Texas not many people listened to him down there - and a host of other popular musicians that people of my generation listened to.

And one of those was the Grateful Dead.  I know that most "baby boomers" spent many hours listening to "The Dead" and many of us are closet "deadheads" but I never really got it.  I guess its because once again, I wasn't really exposed to it and by the time I started choosing my own music it was really more the driving rythms of punk and rock that turned me on.

And another seminal influence from that time period was cycling.  I've written in the past about how I spent most of my time getting around in the summers in Ansbach via my cobbled together bicycles that my friends Ed Trevarrow, Mark Pariseau and I all would put together.  We'd augment them by buying a few parts from the shop in the old city of Ansbach but we'd go traversing all over the countryside in the summers with our toe clips (check out the Kraftwerks clip again) and panniers exploring as long as our parents would let us.

And to be honest, The Grateful Dead scene never really fit into it.  The music, the drugs, the hippy love throw back thing wasn't really us - and personally, I was too grateful being alive than thinking about being dead.  Its kind of stupid to say it now but I think that's one of the things that turned me off about the band.  I would hear about them and think, "what a stupid name for a band!"

And now that I'm older, I find myself grateful for the smaller things that I come across in life as well as the bigger things.  I know that I made a list of things to be grateful for in my last post but in just a week and a half, so many more things have happened to add to the list; big things like my daughter receiving an award from the Long Island chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals;



And little things like my children performing their own rendition of an old Holiday Season favorite but with a slight twist that they like to call "Santa Clause is Stalking You Now";



Or just living in a town where this happens every year;




And I am so grateful for so many things that have been happening on the Connor's Army Ride Across America front.  So much has happened in the last week that I've been dying to share but facebook posts just aren't the right place because I can't add as much detail so for those of you who are keeping up, here goes;

We got a mini van!!!!!!  Yes, I know what you're thinking, "why in the hell would you be grateful for a mini van?!?!"  Well, to be honest, I'm not sure that Amy is.  But it is a necessary evil if I'm going to be able to do this ride supported instead of hauling everything by myself across the country.  It has the DVD player for the kids and the rest of the support team, a trailer hitch for a hitch mounted rack that can carry more than one bicycle, a luggage rack for "the hamburger" and to strap down spare parts, and it was at a price we could afford.  We're going to have to put some money into it and it doesn't have "stow and go" seating but it has everything else.  And its black with tinted windows so it doesn't look quite as dorky.  I'm torn between naming it Vanikin Roadwalker or Vanna Black.  I thought about giving it a Spanish flair and naming it Vanna Negro but I'm sure that's racist and let's not even talk about what I REALLY wanted to name it - The Black Hole, since so much will dissappear in there!  Of course, I could just go with my German experience and name it Vanna Schwartz!

Our Facebook Page has over 1200 likes!!!!!  Now, I know that in itself doesn't seem to be such a big deal but it is.  We're hoping that by gaining some sort of significant exposure on facebook we'll be able to attract some more sponsors to help us with underwriting the cross country event.  We figure we probably need about $5,000 more in sponsorships and we'll be set for whatever evenutality we hit on the road.  But the popular support on facebook is a big step.  For those of you reading this that have liked our page - THANK YOU!!!!!!!  Your support is truly overwhelming to me and I know that because of it a big difference will be made.  Please continue to invite your friends and let's continue to grow!

This blog has over 10,000 views!!!!!!!!  I don't know how its happened but since we debutted this blog way back in June 2009, we have (as of this writing) 10,284 views!!!!!!  A year ago (January 2011) we had about 2800 views but since then it has taken off!  To each and every one of you who has looked at this site, or read these posts I thank you!  You've been following my ramblings (or maybe you're just looking for pictures and videos) and that means I'm reaching more of you.  If you've read this far in this post, please take a minute to go to our facebook page (if you're a facebook member) and add us to your likes - help us spread the word even further.

The Syosset High School Fashion Show!!!!!  And this is HUUUUUGGGGEEEEE!!!!!   After a hiatus of a few years the Fashion Show is making a return to Syosset High School.  Two of the most energetic young ladies I know are instrumental in making sure it happens and they are both counselors at Sunrise Day Camp.  They are going to use the fashion show as a fundraiser for Sunrise with the money going towards the $50,000 we are trying to raise in the Ride Across America.

Sunrise Syosset!!!!!  There is a group of students at SHS who are also counselors at Sunrise Day Camp.  They are going to meet with me on Monday to brainstorm how we can get the other students groups of Syosset High School involved in helping us with raising the money we're trying to raise for the ride.  The idea is that if a good percentage of the student groups at SHS (there's about 100 of them) can do some type of fundraising for the event (we're looking at it as a Team Sunrise event) then we might be able to raise enough at the school to send one child to camp for the summer.  That's $6,000 and for the school to come together to do that would be amazing!  However, if you're reading this and you would like to contribute on your own, you can go here and donate safely and securely!

My back!!!!  A lot of things could have happened when I had the encounter with the car door back in July 2010 but so far I seem to be doing well.  I didn't break anything and the only permanent reminders I seem to have are my scar and my tattoo!  We're not sure what the herniated disc issue is from but the one injection I had seems to be holding steady.  There's a little bit of pain but I'm going to set up another injection soon and with any luck I'll be ready to roll all 3600 miles!

RECycle for Sunrise is taking off!!!!  What started out as a way to try to raise more of the funds I need to underwrite the costs of the cross country trip has started doing so well!  Just today I sold three bicycles and two of those were from people who contacted me.  Folks are donating bikes for the effort (thank you sooooooo much Andrea!) and I know that the bikes are going to great homes so they'll make people doubly happy - those who'll get to ride them and the kids at Sunrise who'll benefit from the sales!  I'm not going to be a bike mechanic full time but I'm learning a lot and I know if something happens on the road I'll be ready for it.

So, its been a week and a half full of great things for Connor's Army and I thank you all my readers for believing in me, reading my words and for supporting something that I truly believe in my heart of hearts will make a difference in the lives of eight children far beyond what we can imagine.

So for now I'll leave you with this cool little picture that I found online.  I just thought it was funny and it shows some of the problems that cyclists face now are nothing new under the sun.  Oh, and if you made it this far, feel free to leave some comments!!!!

Stay well and I'll see you on the road!!!!