A Nun is Born

I have named my 2008 Triumph Bonneville T100.

1. The bike is black and white and chrome all over.
2. I refer to my Sunday morning rides as "going to church."
3. I have loved Grace Slick since I first heard her sing.

Therefore I have christened my beloved motorcycle...
The Chrome Nun.

For those of you who are not classic rock geezers like me, "The Chrome Nun" was one of Grace Slick's nicknames and once featured in an album title: Baron Von Tollbooth and the Chrome Nun. I grew up with the Jeffersons (Airplane, Starship, etc.) and have always considered Grace the first lady of rock.

The new monikker suits my T to a T. She's respectable in a disreputable way and she's entirely capable of being unladylike.

And to continue the theme, my next bike will be The Penguin, a euphemism for a nun popularized by The Blues Brothers movie.

The Penguin will be a black Ural Patrol 2-wheel-drive sidecar bike. I'll paint the belly of the sidecar white, like the belly of a penguin. And I'll paint two small white circles on either side of the fuel tank to resemble penguin eyes.

The Penguin will be my winter bike. 2WD Urals do great in the snow and their high-amperage alternators can power electrically-heated riding gear from head to toe.

I won't be able to afford The Penguin for a few years but I'm publishing the idea now to stake my claim on it. I won't have a major cow if someone copies the idea, so long as I'm not accused of copying them.

I'm 56 now. I intend to have my Penguin by the time I'm 60. In the meantime, I'll ride the wheels off The Nun.