Last summer, on June 15th, I bought a Honda CB400 motorcycle. I call it CB for short. CB has become like an escape for me. It is a lot of fun to drive. It takes me a lot of places. I don’t think I would have ever spent extra money to make the bike sound louder and more cool, but I am glad one of the previous owners did. A lot of people consider me a quiet person. I stand out in crowd because I am tall and I have blond hair, but I don’t usually try to draw attention to myself. Now with CB, I stand out for another reason, I have a motorcycle that can be quite loud. It’s kind of cool because you can be moving along at a normal volume, but once you hit 6,500 RPMs (half the engine’s power) you will be loud. Hahaha…
Choosing to Stand Out
The bike has V-Tec and it really makes a difference. The volume doubles and both the tachometer and the speedometer go up faster. I didn’t expect this kind of performance from a 400cc bike, but it does give me a sense of pleasure and freedom. I can leave when I want. Go where I want, and drive how I want. I feel like the bike sings for me. It is as though I am learning to play it like an instrument. Sorry if you can’t identify. Let the people look. I already stand out. Why not stand out a little more. There are no rules against accelerating too quickly, making too much noise, or passing too many cars. All of this flies in the face of so many Hong Kong regulations. In the parks the signs read “Keep the noise level down to avoid being a nuisance.” I think at some point people need to find an escape. They need to release their emotions, and not worry about it.
Society Emphasizes Conformity
So much of Hong Kong life is scripted. People are pretty set in their routines. Get up early, dress, eat, get on a bus, go to work, eat, buy this, take care of that, eat, meet with your family, go to bed late, sleep and do it all over again. Do this and don’t do that. Society places a lot of expectations on us. Anyway CB has helped me escape a little bit from these predictable patterns.
Rebellious?
You might think this sounds a bit rebellious, but I think deep down inside many of us want to be rebellious. Increasingly it seems that leaders are asking us to conform to various ways of doing things. Don’t get me wrong, I am not against laws or principles. An orderly society must have laws and principles. Still people need to have space to be different from each other. We shouldn’t have to all look the same, drive the same, or be the same. Variety makes life more interesting and it should not be considered a threat.
Driverless Cars
It bothers me that the cars of the future will probably be driverless. It’s not a question about whether AI can do the job or not. We already know that it can. It’s a matter of what it takes away from us. People need the freedom to do things that are not scripted. They need places where they are allowed and even encouraged to think outside of the box. I think for a lot people driving is a form of self expression. The more rules and regulations we put on drivers the less enjoyable driving will be. Whether it’s driving for work or driving for pleasure, people need more space and less control. If AI takes over driving, driving could become a lost skill, and a lost form of self expression.
Find Your Escape
So what’s your escape? What about you? Where can you stand out and be a more free version of yourself? What do you do to get away from all of the rules, regulations and stress? Do you run? Play a sport? Play video games? There’s no one right answer and your answer may change over time. Whatever it is assuming you aren’t hurting yourself or someone else make time time in your schedule to enjoy it. It might take some planning and coordinating with others to make it work, but it is worth it.
Ride into Town
Below is a video of me riding my CB into town. There’s a section in the middle of the video where I lower the music volume, so you can hear the bike get loud and watch as I pass the cars.
