Episode 2.8 -  If nothing happens, nothing happens.

Hi and welcome back to the Hole in the Head Moto Storytime Podcast
I’m Andy and this episode marks the final installment of my conversations with one of my closest friends and motorcycle accomplices - Blaine Dehmlow.  And as this recurring chat about motorcycles produced an unexpected Moto Morini, why wouldn’t the conversation about its delivery produce an unexpected road trip?

We began recording these conversations in April of 2020, during one of the weirdest times of my life.  I had already spent a year before this point under-employed, pouring all my time and energy into trying to land another job in an industry I didn’t care about, but paid well and had a modicum of perceived prestige.

 And the time of this recording in early June was one of the lowest for me during the pandemic. After more interviews than I can remember and a handful of dream jobs going away for one reason or another, I was diagnosed with a adult-onset asthma and developed an accompanying anxiety disorder.   Seriously?  What I thought I was a mix of charming irritability, faith and stoicism was actually trying to take me out - and it was mostly self-imposed.

Now, I realize that this hasn’t come up in a major way in our recordings so far and I hope it’s not too heavy for a motorcycle podcast, but in this week, it all came together and felt pretty acute. 

Anyway, we started these sessions as a way to bullshit about motorcycles and make fun of BMW guys, but in the end I was reminded how important and cathartic it is to jump into discomfort and persist your way through it.  Whether that’s figuring out how an ignition system works or taking action on a personal passion to see what comes of it.   My experience with finding and fixing old vehicles has been unmistakably tied to different periods of growth my life - or at the very least, it’s more than just an Instagram opportunity.  I can almost hear my wife’s eyes rolling, but I put a lot of value in the relationships and life lessons that have manifested from chasing random classified ads.  It’s a process of being willing, learning new things and trusting my hunches.  And that’s sort of how these conversations become adventures - by taking a chance- calculated or not -and opening up to the possibility of things being amazing, if not lucrative.   Because if nothing happens, nothing happens.



Which brings us to this season’s penultimate episode.  After a fantastic 2-week round of interviews for a job that felt like a perfect fit at a company that I already had history with, I got another rejection.  In the back of my mind, I think I just assumed I knew how the story would turn out - that I would get this job, making a certain amount of money and everything would fall neatly into place - more importantly, it would give the previous 18 months some context - like oh thaaats why I didn’t those other jobs.  Because this is the job I’m supposed to have.  What a tidy little journey that would have been.  And the trip that I was planning with Blaine was going to be a fun little hurrah before I got back to the serious business of being a responsible father and husband.

Well as I’ve said, the only thing that changes is everything.  So our irreverent jaunt to find the best pie in Utah suddenly seemed absurd, but not in a good way.   The only thing that sounded sane was spending time with my daughter and putting some action behind some things that I wished I had more time for - relaunching a podcast, fixing a house we inherited, and of course, going on a ride with my friend Blaine..   Sometimes, the only thing I can change is my perspective - and I could either view this as a professional and physical failure or take the opportunity to focus on what was right in front of me.  I had to ask myself, when at some point in the future, I inevitably look back at this moment, would I be more proud of continuing to beat myself up or loading the truck and taking my daughter on an adventure?  



So here it is - episode 8, I hope you enjoy.
 




So with that I started packing.  
You didn’t think this podcast was just about stupid motorcycles, did you..?

I know I’m not unique in this - millions of people lost their jobs this year. I also know that we are super fortunate to be in the position that we are, given the extreme suck that 2020 has rendered.  And to even be considering driving across the country or buying motorcycles at all right now is a completely privileged position.  But that’s sort of the point.  With this fortune, spending one more day angry and frustrated at what I didn’t have going for me seemed insane.  I could either sit at home and make everyone miserable, or I can venture forth to maybe be of service.

And if you know how a trip is going to turn out, it’s not really an adventure, is it?   And so this conversation has indeed led to an adventure.  In the next episode, I’ll return to the narrative format and deliver the story of my adventure across the country to deliver a Moto Morini and revisit some memories in the form of good, honest work. All while keeping anxiety, contagion and a five year old in check.

So look for the next episode, titled Everything is OK and thank you for listening to the Hole in the Head moto story time podcast.  See you then.