Looks like a lovely day out on the roads, @Mrs Visor! Beautiful countryside and a nice sunny sky. That Sandwich Bar must be quite popular among bikers as that seems like quite a lot of motorcycles in the parking lot. Glad you had a great day out!
It's always busy!! The location and parking are good, the food and coffee are nothing special but it's somewhere to stop, look at bikes and chat.
Today I rode my Speed Triple to see my aunt and uncle. Each year they come to Arizona from Michigan and live in Saddlebrooke from the beginning of January until the middle of May to escape the snow and gray skies of their home state. I've posted about Saddlebrooke here in the past as it has a nice big loop to ride and is about a 50 mile round trip for me so I ride it fairly regularly. But today I had a destination and it was to spend time with family.. My Aunt Pat and Uncle Ted are 89 and 92 years old respectively and they are wonderful people. Aunt Pat is my father's younger sister. My father passed away 20 years ago this coming June and Pat was his only sibling. So she is really my last direct connection to my dad and to that side of my family. Pat reminds me so much of Dad--her laugh, her smile, her joy. I can see him in her so much. But her health has deteriorated quite a lot in the past few years and neither she nor Uncle Ted are spring chickens anymore. So I am cherishing the time I have with them when they're in Tucson. I think if they were younger, both of them would be asking me how they could learn to ride. Actually, when I arrived at their house, Pat informed me that Ted was at the gym working out and would be home in a little while. Amazingly, today was the first time I'd actually been to Pat and Ted's home in Saddlebrooke. Over the years Steve and I have always met up with them over lunch or dinner or at some activity. It was great fun to get a "home tour". Their house and yard have a wonderful, relaxed vibe. They both said that they could easily just stay in Arizona year round but don't because they have family in Michigan. Their house is situated along the western edge of one of the golf course fairways. Pat said that, amazingly, they never get errant golf balls hitting their windows but they do get plenty of wildlife in their backyard including deer, javelin, and quail and other birds. And they have a fantastic view of the mountains to the east! Uncle Ted told me that he particularly enjoys having a huge kitchen since he does all the cooking these days! The living room has big windows all along the east side of the room that look out over the patio and yard to the golf course and mountains beyond. Uncle Ted took up painting about 15 years ago. He started by taking painting classes at the Saddlebrooke recreation center. Saddlebrooke is a retirement community for the most part. I think it's one of those communities that is designated 55+. Aunt Pat loves to play mahjong with a group of her friends. Ted showed me the area he has set up to paint and then showed me the many paintings that they have displayed throughout the house. Each year their Christmas cards are an image (usually a beautiful bird of some sort) that he has painted. Steve and I are going to dinner with Pat and Ted next Saturday at one of their favorite Tucson restaurants. About a week after that they will be returning to Michigan for the summer, fall, and early winter. At this point, each years in November and December I find myself hoping that they are still healthy enough to return to Tucson again. I made a quick stop off at the bank on my way home to get a bit of cash from the ATM. The temperature around 2:00pm was definitely a bit toastier than at 10:30am when I'd started out. But it's still a far cry from what it will be in a couple of months so for now the riding is excellent. Back in the garage with 49 miles on the odometer and lots of great family visiting "in the tank".
What a fabulous house your Aunt and Uncle have @Sandi T They both look and sound bright as buttons despite failing health, must be all that sunshine! Hope you enjoy your meal with them
Sounds like they have the perfect arrangement, winter sunshine and then leave before the summer heat fully kicks in. Fab house and it’s great that they can still enjoy their independence.
Pat and Ted sound wonderful @Sandi T - living life to the full. I have just lost my grandmother at the age of 101 and up until the last year or so she had always been fiercely independent and grabbed life with both hands like Pat and Ted. Long may they continue to chase the sun!!
Very short ride for me today to a local bike / car meet that is held on the first Sunday of every month near to us - I got soaked on the way back when the heavens opened and as is The Way Of The Striple it threw all the dirt and water up the back of me and the bike so I looked like I'd been off-roading when I got home. So for a total of about 30 minutes' riding I spent about an hour and a half cleaning my kit and the bike . No wonder there were only about four bikes there this morning......
Yes, @Dawsy, my auntie and uncle are "bright as buttons". That's actually a great description of them. They are sharp as can be mentally and are really fun to talk with. While we don't see eye to eye on some things (e.g.,politics), it doesn't really matter. We love each other and have plenty of other things to talk about. I do think the sunshine helps them. It definitely encourages being active compared to staying indoors for 5 to 6 months of nasty winter weather. Thanks for wishing us enjoyment at our dinner next weekend. Steve and I are really looking forward to it. We're never quite sure whether Pat and Ted will come back to Arizona each year due to their age and health so we appreciate the time we do get to spend with them.
My condolences to you on the loss of your grandmother, @Mrs Visor. She sounds like she was an amazing woman! I'll bet that her long life was in large part related to her independent spirit and attitude of "grabbing life with both hands". I have a friend whose mother is 103 and from my friend's descriptions of her mom, she sounds very much the same as your grandmother and my aunt and uncle. Yes, may Pat and Ted long continue to chase the sun!
Sorry about your soaking today, @Mrs Visor. That is one thing about my Harleys as compared to my Speed Triple. Those fenders are a boon in the rain. While the Harleys may take awhile to clean up, at least my jacket and other riding gear isn't a mess. Not so if I'm caught in the rain on Speedy. Hope those 30 minutes were good ones so at least it was worth the clean-up time!
Thank you; she was a tiny but very formidable woman, in every way!!! My parents were half hoping that @Helmut Visor and I would turn up to the funeral a few days ago on our bikes - we had discussed it briefly as it would have appealed to her nature, but I thought better of it as it would NOT have amused my Auntie .
I'll bet that your grandmother somehow knows that you would have ridden the bikes to her funeral but that you opted to be respectful of you auntie's "delicate constitution". Sometimes it is the thought that counts. BTW, I like your new avatar! It is new, isn't it? Or have I just been unobservant?
Thanks; it's new, I have very few pictures but got one of me riding (slowly, in a car park!) into the bike meet I went to the other week so cropped it for my avatar. I really need to get some photos - I don't like my picture taken but equally would like some of me on the bike. I am sure I'll get some at some point .
