Clone of Firefighter Boots!

For many years, I have been a fan of Chippewa Firefighter Boots (model 27422 aka “Ruttman”) as my favorite “go-to” boots to wear when riding my Harley.

These boots are very comfortable, durable, and have a “big lug” Vibram 100 sole that provides terrific traction while operating a heavyweight motorcycle.

They are lightweight, flexible, and look great with whatever I choose to wear (denim, leather, or BDUs.) What I like most about these boots (besides safety) is that the boots are great for riding, but also great for walking.

Often on a motorcycle ride, I would arrive at a destination that required walking around. Big heavy boots (such as Wescos) made walking hard because the boot soles were not very flexible, and the boots were really heavy. These 9-inch boots solved the problem.

I was sorely disappointed when…
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Leather Weather is Here!

Finally… after a typical brutally hot summer, we finally saw the heat break right at the start of Autumn. This morning, it was a leather-perfect 46F (8C) at my favorite time of day… dawn.

I was waiting for this day to come for a while so I could “leather up” once again.

I am not attending any leather-oriented events, such as the Folsom Street Fair in San Francisco. That type of thing is far in my past.

But I still enjoy leather and with a closet-full of gear, now that it is appropriately cooler, my favorite combination of gear came on.

What’s my current favorite gear?
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New England Ride

This week, I flew to New Hampshire and rented a Harley Street Glide. My riding buddy “S” met me. “S” lives here. I followed “S” to his home and settled in as “base camp.”

We will ride 5 days throughout some of the U.S. States of New England — New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, and Massachusetts.

Our rides are not aggressive, though the first two days, we rode a total of 371 miles. We saw…
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Cowboy Boots and Suits

After all these years, I still receive inquiries like this:

I am attending a wedding and have to wear a suit. I usually don’t dress up. My job doesn’t have a dress code, so I wear jeans and khakis with cowboy boots. My girlfriend doesn’t want me to wear boots with a suit to the wedding. Since I am not in the wedding party (just a guest), is my girlfriend making too big of a deal about this? I have some nice pairs of dress boots, but as of now, she won’t budge from her opinion against my boots. Signed, Rob

While I am not “Dear Abby,” indeed I do have experience wearing cowboy boots with suits in my lifetime. Read on for my answer…
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Canadian Maritimes

When my husband was sick with cancer, he planned a trip to visit the Canadian Maritime provinces of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. We used planning for that trip as something to look forward to if he got to the other side of harsh chemotherapy.

Unfortunately, he could not tolerate the chemo, and six months after diagnosis with pancreatic cancer, he died peacefully, with me by his side.

For the last 8 days, I fulfilled his dream and added my own twists. Read on…
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Photos From My Favorite Island

I have said often that I love Puerto Rico. This is an island that one has to visit many times and let its charm grow on you. I have been going to Puerto Rico since 1989… muchos años ago.

From 1989 to 2019, 31 of my visits were mostly for work. My work sent me there for many, many weeks or months some times. Other visits were shorter to speak at conferences, to conduct training, and to do site inspections. For the shorter visits, I extended a few of them for a week and invited my husband to join me.

On all these visits, some of which were very hard, long, and challenging…
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Back, Booted, and on the Saddle

I had a great time on my favorite island. However, it was time to come back to my home in Maryland. My return flights were delayed but made it, so I have no complaints.

However, it is a hell of a lot warmer on the mainland than in Puerto Rico!

I have caught up on lost sleep, and today I pulled on a favorite pair of motorcycle boots — Chippewa Harness — and before it got too hot, I…
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State of Bootlessness

I know it has been a while since I wrote anything for this blog. Sorry, my mind isn’t on my boots, or knowledge thereof.

Currently, I am in a state (rather, a U.S. territory) where I am in a state (i.e., condition) of bootlessness.

Huh?
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Transforming a Vision to My Happy Place

While I took somewhat of a break from blogging for a while, it doesn’t mean that I have been sitting around at home wallowing in grief over the death of my husband.

Today I realized completion of a vision that my husband had for our home.

It all began in 2019 when a large deck that my husband and I built on our house was falling apart. We decided that it needed replacement. The deck is 11 feet off the ground, leaving the space under it open.

We had a hot tub under the old deck, but it gave out. My husband and I decided not to replace it, but instead build a “three-season room” where we could relax in a bug-free environment and view our forested back yard.

Last year…
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