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The Adventures of Me & My Shadow # 75 in MD, DE & VA 7/19/02 184 miles this trip, odometer now 24254, total miles this year 28714 From Virginia Beach, VA, Hi Everyone! When I think back to the trip from CA to MD it is hard to believe that I had very good tail winds most of the way. From Southern CA to Boise, ID the wind was very strong in the daytime but went down with the sun. It was the same way from Boise to Prescott, AZ. From Prescott to Sioux Falls, SD it wasn’t too strong but was in the right direction. It was a little stronger going from Sioux Falls to Gladstone, MO and most of the way to Delmarva, MD. As a result, my average MPG of gas was over 10. And I was running 65 to 75 MPH most of the way. This doesn’t happen very often. My luck held out when I was servicing the old GMC and getting it ready for it’s annual VA safety inspection in July. I re-torqued the header bolts and also the oil-pan bolts as it was starting to leak. I also needed two new tires. It should now be ready for another trip or two. My luck ran out when I tried to update my computer operating system Windows ME with Windows XP. I had been having some problems with it and figured XP would make it right. Wrong! I got Windows XP partly installed and the computer hung up and would go no further. I finally took it to a technician, he checked it and told me he found two viruses. I have been using McAfee Anti Virus program and keeping it updated so if the technician is not lying to me it don’t say much for McAfee. He got XP removed but it had messed everything up so he downloaded my genealogy files containing over 12,000 names to a Zip drive and re-formatted the hard drive. I got it back and installed Windows 98 and the Genealogy program. There was some Genealogy files missing so I have to re-enter every one of the names. I am up to 1000+ and it looks like it will take me a few months to finish it. I also lost my E-mail address book, I believe I have restored most of them. So if you hear about this massage from someone else, check my web page (after Billy has time to add this one to it) at; " http://www.dallasjensen.com " and if you didn’t get this message send me a e-mail and I have a Jensen Reunion to go to in Denver on the 3rd & 4th of Aug so I will get this message sent and the old GMC inspected before heading west. The Western States GMC Rally is in Cody, WY Sep 6/11 then the GMC International Rally in TN Sep 15/21. If I can work it in I have some genealogy leads to check out in NE, IA & PA. I have to comment on the report of police brutality in CA that has been in the news for a few days. I have a gut feeling that the kid got what he was asking for. A lot of this young generation has an attitude that no one can tell them what to do. They don’t mind their parents or anyone else trying to tell them to do something. I learned a long time ago that respect is a two way street: when I show respect I receive respect. In my younger days when I always had a long way to go and a short time to get there I had many run-ins with the law and paid a few speeding tickets. I am sure I would have paid many more if I had not showed respect. I always apologized to the officer for doing what I had done, I knew I had done wrong. I told him why I had done it; some times this would get me off the hook with a warning. I never lied to him and it was always "yes sir" and "no sir." After he did what he had to do I would thank him and shake his hand and we would part as friends. I recall one time that I had a hard time, I was in the left lane most of the time looking ahead for cars coming east. The speedometer went to 125 MPH and the needle was past that tucked out of sight behind something. I never looked in the rear view mirror till I got to the mountains and slowed down. The engine with no more carbon was purring like a Swiss watch. I see this flashing red light way back there and I knew who he was after. I thought I could get away but those little voices were saying he might have gotten my license plate number so I pulled over and waited for him. His first question was "how fast was I going" I told him "just as fast as it would go". He asked me why? I told him "I was burning the carbon out of the engine." He told me of all the ways to get the carbon out including taking the heads off and scraping with a knife. He told me "if he wrote me up for over 90 MPH he would have to take me back and lock me up." He gave me the ticket for 90 MPH and we shook hands and parted as friends. I’m sure there will be lawyers who will come up with all kinds of excuses for the kid doing what he did. The video did not show what the kid did that caused the cop to loose his cool. The cop may be fired but down the road I can see the kid in trouble again. He now thinks he can get away with anything. The older I get the more I find computers conspiring against me. I stopped to visit Jenny and to help her try to fix some problems she had with her computer. She finally figured it out without much help from me. I know that computers are for the younger generation. Till next time, Dallas
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