Sioux Falls South Dakota Meet-up?

[Boomer]

The Tolling of Bells

In the latter part of August, planning began for a few members of the B ‘n’ G community to meet up, have dinner, share tales, and spend a relaxing evening just getting to meet a few of the folks that we all chat with from time to time. A lot – ok, all the time! Let’s face it – the B ‘n’ G has become a gathering place for many of us that sometimes feels more like family than a forum. It was to that end that after discussing the trip, my wife and I not only decided to go, but also the gathering would provide a springboard for a further destination afterwards for me and my new Harley. In a lot of ways, the stars began to align for us all, and as we worked through all of the little details, out plan would work out much better than we could have ever hoped.

Our date being set, October 1, 2011, we made all of our preparations, packed, oil changes all around, even went so far as to make sure the house was watched by a couple of inconspicuous friends, in the hopes that our house would not end up Party Central. Also – this would be my first trip on Marilyn of any kind. I had no idea what I was doing, but was eager to learn from the whole bike trip experience. Unfortunately, my wife would only be able to do the meet up, and then would return home, but the trip allowed us a much needed weekend escape. Final preparations taken care of, we set off Friday, anxiously travelling in tandem and using the interstates to make the trip a bit quicker.

Upon arrival, we checked in, and immediately sat down to a modest meal at a local Italian restaurant. We were both thirsty and tired from the trip, which had been largely uneventful, and we needed some time to relax. After a few glasses of wine, and a rather steep tab, we found that the hotel provided fire pits and we spent the rest of the evening enjoying a nice fire and a glass of Macallan. We also enjoyed the company of a younger couple who shared our fire, and some pleasant conversation. We never got their names, but for the first time we had found comfort in the sharing of a simple fire and drink with strangers who had travelled most of the day as well.



Saturday we awoke and found a breakfast meal waiting in the hotel. Deciding to do a little sightseeing, we found a memorial to the USS South Dakota, a World War II battleship that saw action in many of the Pacific naval battles and had suffered tremendous damage at the hands of Japanese dive bombers and kamikaze pilots. As it turned out, the president of the Memorial Association himself had followed us in to the memorial, and we shared our military backgrounds with one another. He had actually served aboard a supply ship during the Vietnam era, and had helped to keep the Memorial updated and maintained. After thanking each other for our military service, he left us to spend the next hour just reading the different placards and taking in some of the artifacts from this great battleship, including one of the 16 inch guns which had been stored in mothballs after her decommissioning. It was a beautiful sunny day, and both my wife and I realized that our B ‘n’ G friends would soon be here, so back to the hotel for a quick shower and wait for their arrival.





At about 3:30 PM, “2Beers” and her husband arrived on their BMW motorcycle. We chatted some in the parking lot, and then I was handed an envelope and a black bag. If you have ever bought a new motorcycle, it is always customary to give a gift of a pewter “bell” to the new owner. The legend goes that the bell rings as you ride along, and keeps the evil spirits from you and your bike. Upon opening the bag, I found that very gift for my new Harley in that bag, and after 2Beers and hubby checked in, he helped mount the bell in its proper place, underneath the bike, so the evil spirits would be properly dealt with. Soon, we would all settle in to our hotel room, and began to share laughs and conversation as if we were indeed family.

The last of our entourage, “Hardware Girl” and “Entre Nous” arrived shortly after 5 PM. Although tired, they were ready for this evening. As we all hugged and shared story and gifts, Hardware Girl entered with a whole cart of gifts. A box of Oregon peaches, Tillamook cheese from Oregon, wine, and a bag of goodies for my cheering of the Oregon Ducks! We continued to hug and be thankful that we all had made the journey safely and ready. Then, almost unsuspectingly, I was handed another black bag. Indeed, another bell! Why wait for just one bell when two make twice the noise for those evil spirits. We spent an hour in conversation, laughing about our experiences, sharing jokes, and coming to be closer as friends.






For dinner, we took a limo ride over to The Carnival Brazilian, a rather interesting place which served different meats and foods that cooked in a South American style. From flank steak, to sausage, to lamb, the skewers of meats we sampled seemed to never end! Each waiter stopping at our table would slice samples of meat off for your plate. Our plates were never empty, and we relished each morsel more than the last! But then something odd. The local hockey team had arrived, and each was dressed in costumes, and some of those were women’s clothes. Apparently every year their custom was to have a night for the team to celebrate the impending season. They were dancing and singing, and looked like were having fun, although I am not sure hockey teams in dresses is my kind of thing. At the end of our dinner, as we were getting up to leave, the manager brought a plate with six glasses on it. Each shot glass contained a unique Caribbean drink that is of his own concoction. Compliments of the house, he wanted to serve us for the festival atmosphere we were bringing to our table. Not sure what was in this, but an excellent finish to our meal for sure.





The rest of the evening we spent around the same fire pit my wife and I had sat around the previous evening. We shared stories, a small measure of Macallan, which I am quite sure is required drinking for the B ‘n’ G crowd. A younger couple with their young daughter was making smores, and that precious angel made one for each of us. Such a simple gesture reminded me of what this evening was really about. Sharing life with friends who cared not for what my income was, or my social standing, nay even what my political or religious inclinations were, but rather only cared for my health and welfare. The people we gathered with that evening shared and gave of themselves unselfishly, and came to this place offering friendship, love, and respect. It was after midnight before we finally realized that we would need to rest for our early morning departure. I honestly do not believe we wanted to go to bed that night, but with our time together being short, we all would need the rest for our travels the next day.

After breakfast the next morning, we each packed, and hugged, and realized this had been a magical weekend. In our travels we met in some distant place to partake of our company, to share in food and drink. Soon Entre Nous left, bound for the airport. 2Beers and her hubby had a lengthy motorcycle ride back home, and left shortly after. The morning was cool, and a bit breezy, but sunny. Perfect conditions for riding. We shared some last hugs, and watched as they pulled out on their motorcycle. Finally we gave our last goodbyes to Hardware Girl. She had singlehandedly set the evening up, made reservations, and gave us all a memorable evening. Finally, I packed up our pickup truck so that my wife could return home. I was anxiously ready for my trip to the Black Hills of South Dakota. She was ready to go home, and after gassing up, we hugged and embraced. For the first time in our lives, I was going on a vacation without her, but knowing that I needed the time away.






And as we pulled onto the highway to go our ways, I could almost hear those bells tolling for each of my newfound friends.

Sioux Falls Pictures