This weekend I’m preparing to leave for
Watkins Glen for my first DE in over a year. Of course by the time you
are reading this, it will be history for everyone that has participated.
Normally it wouldn’t be such a stressful event for me but since it has
been so long for me since I’ve been on the track, I’m a little apprehensive
about the upcoming two days in upstate NY. I suppose it is a little silly,
since I’ve been there so many times, but I can’t help feeling that my lack
of seat time in my car gives me something to worry about. The logical side
of my brain tells me that if the weather holds out that I will have a great
time. At the moment, the forecast is calling for scattered thunderstorms
in the area for at least one of the days – and if you have ever been to
the Glen when it rains, you know what kind of nastiness that can mean.
My Glen survival kit includes a raft and a lightning rod…
No matter how many times I go to the track
there always seems to be some last minute thing that I need to do that
throws a wrench into the process. As of the night before I have to leave
– I have a trailer light that isn’t functioning. For some reason, this
light has always had problems. I first replaced it two years ago when it
was mysteriously broken while sitting in my driveway. After thoroughly
grilling everyone in my household, it was unanimously determined that aliens
must have landed and backed into it with their saucer. Being a frugal sort,
I made a trip to Wal-Mart and bought a replacement unit very close to the
same design on the other side for not a lot of money. This worked great
for all of last year, but somehow it decided not to function today when
I was checking the trailer brakes. Either the aliens returned to finish
the job or the light was just too good a deal to be true. Since I’ll be
short on time before I go, my solution is probably just going to be yet
another trip to Wal-Mart for a quick fix… I’d rather fix it right, but
there isn’t time right now.
Earlier this month I seriously considered
applying for the club race at WGI. But I had forgotten that I already have
a family event scheduled for later in June and I can’t afford the time
off of my current contract. One of the biggest downsides to being an independent
contractor is that vacation days are unpaid – which makes days at the track
a double whammy in the pocket book.
As usual, I’m writing this article on
a tight deadline. I normally wait until the weekend before everything is
due to the editor to get the process started – preparing the database,
generating the new member list and writing my column, but this month things
of course went all crazy on me with the membership reports. Each month
I receive a list of new members and all kinds of changes (edits, deleted
members, renewals and non renewals) from the national office. This past
month some kind of error occurred with the national database that caused
the may report to be toast! We were given an alternate method to retrieve
new member data, but a lot of the edits that I normally get will be put
off until the new and improved database is put into place. The “new” database
was already in the works so everything should be straightened out by next
month, but I foresee some missed mailings and bad addresses…
One last note before I end – this month
Ron Mann hosted the monthly board meeting (serving a great Mexican dinner
– thanks Ron) and in addition to the usual hosting duties some entertainment
was provided by an uninvited guest. Somehow a bat had gotten into Ron’s
house and was announced by a rather loud shriek from somewhere upstairs
where Mrs. Mann discovered it. Now if you have read any of my other articles
concerning rodents you won’t be too surprised that I consider a bat to
be not much more than a flying rat – so I was heartened by the tenacity
that Mrs. Mann took to dispatching it with a tennis racquet, a rake and
what looked to be a golf chipping net! Very entertaining evening indeed!
So as always, I must run (and get ready
to hit the track), be safe and have fun the season has just begun! |
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