My Anniversary Gift!

Today is my 31st anniversary. Rose and I got married June 21, 1975. One year later, we were raising funds to go to the mission field, where we spent the next 18 years of our lives. All three kids were born in Chile. We have spent the last 12 years in Joplin, Missouri, but celebrated #30 a year ago in Chile. We'll spend a night in Branson on Friday, kind of celebrating 31 years.

She went to Name Brand Clothing last night with Charissa, and got some excellent buys. I will get my anniversary present in a couple weeks.

I just ordered a Chinese Motor Scooter! For the last several weeks, I have been doing research, thinking about it. Traditional motorcycle shops don't have much good to say about the Chinese vehicles. The one I ordered is a Tank Urban Touring Deluxe, and comes with pretty good reviews. I actually ordered from a dealer in Wichita, KS. The vehicles will arrive in Wichita in about 10 days, after which time, it will be shipped to Joplin. A student of mine has been building/rebuilding/restoring motorcycles for the last 25 years or so, and has volunteered to help me get it ready.

Here is a picture of what it will look like:


One of the things that I did in researching this particular brand was read a rather extensive blog called The Motorscooter Diary. In reading Commuter Steve's blog, I also came across a guy named John Ebberts, who mentioned taking pictures of the step-by-step process of uncrating and assembling his scooter. At first I considered buying the model Commuter Steve purchased, but for the difference in price, Rose thought the larger scooter looked like it was worth the difference. I e-mailed John Ebberts, who had posted on the other blog that a Microsoft Word document detailing the process was about 5MB. I asked him to send it to me. Instead, he pointed me to a spot on the web where it was posted: Assembling and uncrating a Tank Touring 150 Deluxe. Ebberts (who lives in Florida) purchased his from the same dealer in Wichita. So that you can judge the size of the vehicle compared with an automobile, I'll post a Here is a photo of one that is listed on eBay:

I'll need to get a helmet, but I've got some time to get that done while waiting for shipment. I already have a Motorcycle Permit, which will allow me to drive/ride during daytime hours, no passengers allowed. I'll take my road skills test sometime later, to upgrade the license.

We got Kim's Grand Am sold. She will be living at home. She will share my little Hyundai with me (once she masters the 5-speed). On days with nice weather (really most days of the year), I can scoot. My first class is at 7:00 AM, but I like to come in quite a bit earlier than that.

As the gas prices continue to rise, I'll be driving something more economical.

Blessings,

DGF