The Adventures of Me & My Shadow #32 in NE,SD,IA,IL,IN,OH,KY,WV
& VA
5/27/99 1764 miles this trip, odometer now 42424. Total miles
this year 10,989.
From VA, Hi Everyone! I guess you could say that this trip started
out on a good note, headed north to Sioux Falls with a strong
south wind. However, after my doctors appointment in Sioux Falls,
I would be headed south for about three times the distance that
it was to Sioux Falls so I would have been better off with a strong
north wind. It is always an enjoyable experience to visit the
Sioux Valley Hospital (the best hospital in the world), the Doctors
office is in the hospital building. I can't say the same for the
hospital in Salisbury, MD I hope I never have to go there again.
Not only is Sioux Valley the best hospital, it is also the lowest
cost hospital that I know about, prescription drugs dispersed
in the hospital cost only half as much as they cost after I left
the hospital. I have never had a problem finding a place to park
a car and there are six RV parking sites with 30 amp. electrical
service available at no charge. When they checked my defibrillator
I was told that it has fired several times when I have been asleep,
they showed me where it had fired twice within a half hour. Because
of this, the Doc. Is putting me on another pill that is supposed
to improve my hearts performance, I reminded him that getting
behind the wheel of the motorhome is the best medicine of all.
The trip east went well, in KY I went by a sign that pointed to
the left and read "Detour to 1998". Right away I thought
about Gertrude's boss, the lady who doesn't want to get old, she
might want to detour back to 1998, that would be just like backing
the clock up and she would be a year younger. I think I'll tell
the boss lady who doesn't want to live past 50, if she is serious,
to take her skies up to a high mountain on her 50th birthday and
when she's coming down at a high speed to line up with a big tree,
she will no longer have to worry about getting old. I think she
will have second thoughts about it and join the rest of us who
enjoy getting older. 1998 was not one of my better years so I
had no desire to take the detour, I'm having too much fun getting
older. I am also enjoying the price of fuel since I left CA. In
Sioux Falls I paid $1.09 I saw it for $1.04 after I filled my
tanks. Had better luck in IA, In Des Moines at a Flying J Truck
Stop the price on the pump was $1.01 I have a Flying J card that
takes off a penny per gal. so I got it for a buck a gal. I paid
$1.10 in IL and when I was in IN I didn't need fuel but pulled
off to eat lunch an when I saw the price of fuel was $.97 I pulled
over to the pump and put in a little over 20 gal. In the area
around Lynchburg, VA the price was less than a buck a gallon and
one place had it for less than $.90 of course I didn't need fuel
and thought it would be that way all the way to VA Beach, wrong,
as soon as I left The rally and headed east the price fluctuated
from $1.10 to $1.20. I held off and when my tanks were almost
empty I found it for $.97, haven't seen it for less than a buck
since. The rally was great! My first one with the Tidewater Crabs,
good food, a T-bone steak that melted in my mouth, and a lot of
fun, I'm looking forward to the next one. I added some more E-mail
addresses for my adventure story. The last night there we were
sitting around a campfire talking and Gertrude must have found
out where we were, she turned a bad storm loose on us just after
I had gone to bed. It put the fire out and chased those still
up, into the tent. I hate to tell you this but better for me to
tell you than someone else. As we were leaving I was following
Norm & Diane Dubner, and Ned & Roberta Smith were following
me. Diane was driving as Norm is blind, she was going to follow
Ned to the Baltimore area but now she stopped in front of me and
I found out that Ned had a problem with his brakes. He has the
Powermaster Brake system, my coach also has the Powermaster system,
it is an electric over hydraulic system. The electric motor on
Ned's coach would not pump up pressure. I have had lots of experience
fixing mine so I offered to help them fix it. The relay on mine
had failed and this to me, looked like it could be his problem.
It took us awhile to find that this was not his problem. I was
thinking that his electric motor must be defective when Norm suggested
that we check the ground wire for the motor. Remember, Norm can't
see but he is a good thinker and he was right, the ground was
defective. If we had checked that first he could have been underway
in five minuets. We had wasted about two hours checking the relay
and motor, so I'm telling you it pays to have a blind man around
when trouble shooting a problem. The trip to VA Beach went well,
the first thing my sister-in-law did when I showed up was to feed
me. I hadn't found a Subway Sandwich shop so I was hungry. After
resting I went to work on this letter and she had a couple honey-dos
for me to take care of. I also had a couple lights to fix on the
motorhome so it would pass its annual safety inspection, due this
month. After a Birthday party and a choral concert at school,
I was ready to head for the bridge tunnel and the Eastern Shore.
At the toll gate I handed the gal $13. And informed her that I
was only going to pay that much, she looked at my rear wheels
and then at me, I informed her that if she argued with me she
would loose. She opened a drawer, looked at something in it and
said "OK", so it looks like I just about have them seeing
it my way. I stopped in Nassawadox, VA and had lunch with my son
Mark, then drove on up to my daughter Jenny's place, checked in
with her and then went to get the motorhome inspected, it passed
with no problems so that it over for another year. I'll get on
the net and send this letter before going up to my son Jeff &
Alexis' place where I can service and work on the motorhome without
the mosquitoes. feasting on me. The word got out as soon as I
showed up here and they came from all around to suck my blood.
I hate them almost as bad as cold weather.
Till next time, Dallas or Dad if it fits. 5/27/99