Be Safe Out There…

Tuesday night we got a whole lot of rain in Bandera. We went to bed, not thinking much about it except that I was pleased that the residents might get some relief from the drought, only to awaken to the sound of someone knocking on our door. When I went to the door, our next door neighbor said the sheriff had ordered that the park be evacuated, due to the rising river. Yikes !! I hadn’t even had time to look outside to see how the river looked but I hollered at Linda that we needed to start breaking camp to leave. It’s not until one is faced with dire, immediate circumstances that we find out how fast we can truly move ! We got everything packed up and unhooked in about 10-15 minutes. As we were finishing up, the same neighbor (and her husband) came by and said that the river was going down so sit tight. Linda and I walked down to the river and couldn’t believe how high it was. Turns out that the lower end of the park had been awakened at 4:30 and told to evacuate so they went to the top of the hill to a vacant lot and sat till the sheriff told them they could come back. Down at the other RV park, where we had been up until Saturday, they had to evacuate the lower level of campers. Luckily they had enough sites empty up on the main level so they moved them up there. Sure scary how fast the river can come up. The thought fleetingly went through my head as I was dozing off that maybe we might need to keep a watch on the river but sleep overtook me and that thought vanished. Thank goodness for neighbors that look out for each other.

We left Bandera Wednesday afternoon and hit the road for our next assignment in Oklahoma. We were originally going to leave Thursday morning but knowing that we need to get our rig looked at, due to the power issue, hastened our departure. We started noticing that something was askew last Saturday when our radios would flash, lights would dim, slide out wouldn’t come in, etc. It has continued with lights going out, etc. and when I called the Thor factory, “Bill” said it sounded like either the transfer relay switch or the converter or both. Our power monitor, when plugged in, shows minimal power but once we get on the road, the alternator brings the power back to normal levels. We hustled to get to McClain’s RV Superstore, in Oklahoma City to get things checked out and repaired. We arrived about 2:30 today and they got our rig right in. Turns out that it’s the converter. Although our transfer switch is humming quite loud, they think that is only cause the converter is bad. They will see if Thor will approve the replacement in the morning and see if they can get the part locally. We also need to get the microwave turntable checked out. We had the whole unit replaced on March 2 and after a week, the turntable stopped turning. They may pull it out and get it repaired locally….they apparently have a person in the area who works on them. We are plugged in and have water on site at McClain’s. They are super nice here and have really taken a shine to Boomer.

Last night we stopped at a picnic area for the night. We came off the road about 6 and saw that a 5th wheel and truck came in shortly after we did. There were several state troopers at the far end of the lot that had a speed trap set up and they would zip out to catch a speeder and then come back a short time later. A little after nine, Linda and I sat down to play dominoes. We had drawn the curtain around the front of the rig and I was up there getting something when I saw a truck or SUV pull in front of our rig. It seemed odd to me that they were backed up so close to the front of our rig but walked back to the dinette to resume our game. It was pitch black outside and we only had the light on over the dinette and over the sink. Someone knocked on our door several times, startling both of us. We’ve heard enough stories to know not to open the door late at night to an unknown person. I opened the window over the sink and said “What do you want ?“ A male voice, in the darkness said something about needing help, mother on life support, something about Fort Hood, needing $5 for gas…blah blah. About a million things were going through my own head and Linda was talking to me, in whispers behind me, so my head was spinning. I could tell she was scared….I was more annoyed that someone would come out in the dark to seek help or money and that we were on the receiving end of that request. I briefly had a “WWJD” moment but thought there were too many calamities in one sentence to make the whole thing legit. I told him I didn’t have any money but if he went up to the far end of the lot and asked the state police there, they could probably help him. With that, he got in his vehicle and pulled away. Linda dialed “911” and started talking to the operator while I looked out the front window. I could see that he had driven up to the vicinity of the other RV’ers and parked. Linda finished with the police, hung up and then my phone rung. A woman trooper asked me what happened and after telling her, she said she was about a minute away and would check it out. She then said another report had just come in….apparently from the other RV’ers. The trooper drove through the parking area and you could tell she was checking for the guy. We saw her come through several times. Linda was really upset and wanted to move….afraid he would come back. We saw that the other RV’ers had started their vehicle…we could see the running lights were lit. We decided to move up closer to them and be in the middle of the parking area, instead of at the end where we thought it would be quieter to sleep. We drove up and parked directly across from the other rig. I got out and saw that the man and woman were in their truck. I waved my arms and announced myself in case he had a gun. He rolled down his window and we swapped stories. Same thing…guy looking for money. This guy told him he was calling the cops and that he had a gun (he did) and he took off. He asked me if we had a gun…I said no. He said we should get one but that’s not something I would really consider. I can certainly handle them, having hunted as a youngster but I don’t like the thoughts of a gun in the rig. Now a taser type of device certainly crossed my mind as I could hear this guy talking through the kitchen window and how it would knock him on his A** if I zapped him with it. The guy’s wife was really upset but said she would stay if we were going to stay there. We all went back to our respective rigs and went to bed. I’m still annoyed. If this guy truly needed gas money, there are better ways to get it than knock on RV’ers doors in the middle of the night. If he truly needed help, I hope that he found it. To our RV’ing friends…Be safe out there. We’ve never had a situation like this occur before, in the five years we’ve been on the road. We won’t let this detract from our experience. It just reinforces that we all need to be aware of our surroundings and keep ourselves out of harm’s way.

Hoping that our rig gets fixed in the morning so we can get to our park to get set up. It’s a state park that is first come – first serve so no reservation. It’s spring break time here, from local schools, so we have a feeling we might have to boondock or take a less than ideal site till Sunday. We’ll see what happens and take it one day at a time !

Water Day

Something that is so easy to take for granted but is such a luxury to many in the world….

Did you know that even in a developed country, like the US that there are 670,986 households or 1.7 million people in the US still lack basic plumbing facilities ? This is typically the poor, elderly and those in rural areas. That is just not right….I believe a fundamental right to anyone is the ability to have access to clean drinking water.

More Family….

Got word last night that Linda’s niece had her baby. She had a baby girl…Ava Louise came into the world after a lengthy period of labor. Baby and mom are doing great. Jen and Barb (Ava’s parents) currently live in NYC but travel all over the world for Barb’s work. What a cutie Ava is !

We went into San Antonio this afternoon to spend more time with Linda’s cousin, Rob and his wife Karen and their kids. We have such a good time with them. Karen and Rob grilled up a great supper. We ate on the back patio…perfect weather for time outside. Boomer had a great time outside. He and Foster (Rob and Karen’s dog) had some territorial issues but also got a couple of romps in while they hung out in the back yard. Foster is deaf and recently lost his best buddy….Beemer. I think he’s still mourning the loss of his buddy. It was good to see him run and be happy for a while. Being deaf he must feel really alone and sort of lost since Beemer was his guide in this world. Not sure Boomer knew any of this, unless they had a doggie chat about his situation. We could sense that Boomer felt bad for him. What a pretty area they have to enjoy out back of their house. We had a great time out there till it started to sprinkle and then we moved inside. Looking forward to coming back next year and spending more time with them.

 

On Saturday we went on the Wild Hog Explosion motorcycle ride that benefited the local library. It was a good day for a ride….warm temps and a couple of hours on the bike. We have two coupons good for a free serving of apple ice cream at the Apple Store and it just so happens that we have to go there tomorrow. Hmmm….guess what we’ll be getting. When we got back from the ride, the wild hog catch was going on so we went into the grandstands and watched for a while. There were various age group classifications and what fun. Those pigs could sure run ! I wonder if they were wild hogs cause they sure looked different than the pigs back home and they could outrun 90% of the kids in the arena.

A few of the teams were lucky enough to get a hold of them and get them to the finish line but the majority of the teams were running around and around, chasing these pigs. The fastest team that we saw was around 14 seconds…yeehaw ! Lots of good clean fun. Town should be quiet again tomorrow, with the bikers gone and the events all finished. At the end of the month, there’s another bike ride called Thunder in the Hills….a ride even more popular than this one. Hill Country sure is a great place to ride. Lots of twists and turns…. Looking forward to coming back next year. More riding….More Family..

Family Fun

 

 

 

 

 

One of the “events” that any visitor to Bandera needs to take in, is Wednesday Night Steak Night at the 11th St. Cowboy Bar. It’s legendary among the Winter Texans. Linda’s cousin, Rob and his family came up from San Antonio and went with us.

Behind these simple bar fronts, is a huge party scene. For $6 you get a huge baked potato and tossed salad with a fixin’ bar for each. You bring your own meat and grill it on the huge drums they have set up. They have a whole line-up of seasonings for your steak. Rob was the designated griller for the night and he had large juicy steaks for his family and Linda and I had taken veggie burgers. Our burgers probably felt pretty intimidated surrounded by all the brawny steaks on those grills. Our burgers tasted great though. For any future partakers of this event, if you’re going to take a steak to cook, it would be best to take real silverware and a steak knife to eat it with. The puny plastic silverware, that they provide,  just don’t “cut it”.

The band got fired up and was really quite good for a country band. When in Texas everyone two steps so the dance floor filled up once everyone got done eating. Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages are available for sale but it looked like lots of people brought their own wine or whiskey. There’s no cover charge so the $6 covers the sides and the entertainment for the night. It’s a good time and something to see. The courtyard area, that opens up behind these store fronts is huge….could easily hold several hundred people. Something to check out if you ever come through Bandera. We’ve had a great time hanging out with Linda’s family in nearby San Antonio and getting to know them. Looking forward to coming back next year to see them again.

 

During the week, when I was visiting a client in downtown Bandera, a really long load came through town…under escort. It was trying to get  around the corner and through the traffic light in the middle of town. It looked like a blade off a windmill. The truck had to go really slow and up over the sidewalk area on the one side of the street to make the corner. In the time that we sat in town, three of them went through town.

On another day this week, we had to drive to the area around Medina dam. The dam is having some repairs done so we couldn’t get a good look at it. I think the area where all the construction vehicles were, is where the viewing area typically is. That would be my guess as most dams have areas where you can stop to see it. We had to peek over the construction fence to get a glimpse. On the roads around the dam, we got to see some of the pretty wild flowers that Texas is known for. Very pretty and out so much earlier than normal, as we’ve been told. It was like a breath of springtime and reminded Linda of the flower beds I used to have at the house. I imagine that as warm as its been back home that the crocus bed is in full bloom and the tulips will be right behind them. Funny but I don’t miss them…I can go to Lowes and take a walk through the greenhouse area and get my fill of the colors without all of the work.

Tomorrow we are going to the Wild Hog Explosion, here in Bandera. No, they don’t throw dynamite at feral hogs as they run by. It’s a fundraiser for the local library and it includes a motorcycle ride through hill country, a greased pig chase (Linda tried to enlist her cousins to form a team), church on Sunday (open air style) and a pie ride to the Apple Store (our favorite place). We have to move to the other RV park , in the morning, so we will do that around 8 so we have enough time to get set up, unload the bike and head out. Jam packed weekend with lots of fun in store…..

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Apple Store Revisited

Yesterday we decided to have lunch at The Apple Store, since we didn’t have the opportunity the last time we went there. Ordered the veggie burger on the jalapeno bun with jalapeno mustard and grilled peppers and onions. Oh my, it was so good ! The bun tasted home-made but in talking to Jeannie, the tour lady, they get artisan bread from a bakery. I was worried that the bun and mustard would be spicy hot (since it’s called jalapeno) but not at all. The mustard was sweet and added an amazing flavor to the whole sandwich. It was to die for ! The picture doesn’t show it but you get a slice on apple in your basket, along with a pickle spear and a bag of chips. They have neat menu items like sandwiches with applewood bacon on them, etc. All sorts of “apple”  enhanced items.

At our last visit, we had seen the calico cat that hangs out there.  Calli became Linda’s best friend. She took up residency on her lap and didn’t leave until we left. It was a really chilly day and the little wood stove, in the dining area, was having a hard time keeping up with the 47 degree temps outside. Linda had her own personal lap warmer while she ate.

 

We wanted to go to the Lost Maples Park but it was raining all day so we’ve left that trip for another  day. We moved a mile down the road on Saturday morning and are now at Pioneer River Resort, a nice walking distance to everything in town. On our way back to Bandera, from the The Apple Store, we drove through Skyline Ranch to see if there were still a lot of rigs there for the Good Sam rally. Yep, they sure are. There are rigs all over the place. Linda got to chatting with a woman at The Apple Store that conducts tours and does marketing for the store and she had given a talk that morning to 40 RV’ers from the rally. She told us how crazy busy they got after the piece aired on the Food Network years ago. They had to install extra phone lines because the phone was ringing off the hook. They baked 200 pies a day to keep up with the orders that were coming in. That’s a whole bunch of apple peeling !

We’re just chillin out today, watching the race. Last Monday I had a mole removed that got suspicious looking in a real big hurry and we’ve been holding our breath, waiting for the pathology report to come back. On Friday the receptionist called and everything is ok. This morning Linda took two of the three stitches out but the third is embedded under the skin so she might have to do some digging to get it out. Might have to get liquored up before that happens. LOL

Tomorrow we’ll take the rig to a local repair shop to get the front steps fixed. The part was supposed to arrive here on Thursday and did sort of. Apparently someone at Lippert was in such a big hurry to mail it out that they forgot to put the bolt in the envelope. The package arrived empty. Lippert was called and they overnighted it. Speaking of warranty repairs….remember we had our microwave replaced two weeks ago because it made a really loud buzzing noise when it was running. Well now the turntable won’t rotate. It worked for about a week and then it conked out. Can you believe it ? Guess you can’t have it all…quiet and operational.

Linda’s got her eye on registering for the Wild Hog Explosion motorcycle ride next Saturday. All sorts of shenanigans going on next weekend. We’ll let you know what’s in store. Should be a good time. This park is filled with bikers. Lots of toyhaulers here. Hopefully they aren’t the partying kind but more like the mature, mellow….in bed by nine type…ha ha…us included. We’ll fit right in….

No Pink Please….

We were appalled the other night when we saw the piece on ABC news about “pink slime” in ground beef that is sold in stores. It’s a rare occurrence, you might say, but sadly no…another report on it last night that pink slime is in 70% of the ground beef sold in stores today. Can we have a collective Ewwwww?  What is pink slime you say ? It’s cheap filler or BLBT…boneless lean beef trimmings. In a nut shell, it’s stuff that used to be used only by dog food suppliers and cooking oil suppliers but now it’s made its’ way into our food. It’s gelatin like trimmings that are disinfected with ammonia and then added to ground beef to stretch it. Sounds yummy, eh ? A whistle blower for BPI, who brought this little secret out of the dark, says it sort of resembles Play Doh. I love play doh ! Love the way it smells and feels when you create cute little things out of it. But dang I don’t want to eat it (well there was that time in the 2nd grade….never mind) nor do I want it in my food. I know what you’re thinking….Surely the USDA must be outraged by this. Ahhh, not so much. Here’s there take on it. “The low-grade trimmings come from the parts of the cow most susceptible to contamination, often close to the hide, which is highly exposed to fecal matter. But because of BPI’s treatment of the trimmings — simmering them in low heat, separating fat and tissue using a centrifuge and spraying them with ammonia gas to kill germs — the United States Department of Agriculture says it’s safe to eat.” Double Ewwwww…

Wondering if you are buying from the 30% that doesn’t have this crap in it ? Go here to see which stores are carrying which types of ground beef. Does any of this surprise me ? Nope. In my 30+ years in food service, I’ve seen a sharp decline in the quality of the foods available. It’s really scary to see all of the processed foods that take up shelf space in the stores but even scarier to see the adulteration of basic ingredients like ground beef, chicken breasts, etc I’ve heard horror stories from the food supply reps I’ve had over the years about conditions in processing plants and what animals are fed in mass feed lots before being slaughtered. It’s really sad and discouraging when you want to make meals from scratch and even the basic ingredients are crap. I loved working with local farmers to bring wholesome foods to the table when I was at the college. You know the “path” that your food took to your doorstep and that it was not adulterated on the way there. You were of a similar mindset with the farmer on how food should be raised and all benefit….the producer of the product and the recipient of it. It’s encouraging to see “Buy local” campaigns flourishing but more needs to happen sooner to fight off the disgusting tactics of corporate farms and the crap they produce that they call “food”.

Buy Local….know where your food came from and what went into it. Ask questions and get involved. After all, it’s your life at stake.

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The Apple Store…such a cool place !

Today I had to go to the small town of Medina to call on The Apple Store. We had driven by it on our bike ride last weekend so I knew what it  looked like on the outside but was certainly surprised when I walked inside. Wow, as soon as you walk through the door you smell the aroma of freshly baked apple pie. Oh MY ! I didn’t realize it until I just grabbed the URL to attach here but The Apple Store was featured on The Food Network several years ago….on Food Finds. In the front area, of this old house turned gift shop, there are lots of neat little rooms full of gifts and such…most all with an apple spin to them in some shape or manner. In the back is the bakery and patio cafe. They have a soft service machine serving, what else, apple ice cream. They have apple bread with pecans and pumpkin, apple and buttermilk, apple strudel, jumbo cookies and of coarse their famous apple pie. They boast that there are five pounds of apples in every pie. Look at this monster piece of pie ! Now my mom makes a pretty mean apple pie but this was delicious. I’ve never seen a huge dome of a crust that wasn’t hollow underneath. Their pies are jam packed with sliced apples. Wash it down with some apple strudel coffee. Yum !

Ok, now for the fun part. There is a set of double doors that exits out the back of the building into this enclosed courtyard area. They have created this fairy tale wonderland area with this enclosure that is so creative. The side of a walk-in cooler, painted with a cool mural frames one side of the enclosure while the cook shack sits at the opposite end of the area. Simple picnic tables for seating and a wood burning stove in the middle for heat. A great menu of eclectic sandwiches and today’s special was catfish (we were too full from the pie to eat anything more but will definitely go back for a meal). Neat boards all around with tidbits of information that is interesting and intriguing. We talked to one of the employees and learned a lot of cool stuff. Just a really fun place to look around, eat yourself silly and buy some neat items. We bought a book, written and signed by a local Tarpley resident, some of that delicious Apple Strudel ground coffee, piece of pie and a cup of coffee to have with our pie. The Apple Store is a must see if you are even close to Bandera ! I’m tired and headed off to bed but next time I’ll try to remember to tell you about the “Lost” Maples.

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Rain Rain Please Come This Way…..

Holding our breath that we get some of the rain that might be coming through the area this weekend. Weather.com says that some areas may get as much as 7” of rain. Boy, wouldn’t that be great here where they are down 54’. Several people have told me that it could come back in one good rainfall. Wish I knew a rain dance…let’s see the next best thing is to wash the rig or car. Always works for me so might need to wash both tomorrow to give the area a good soaking.

The park is really filling up. They have a Good Sam rally going on (or about to start). Trying to squeeze 75 rigs into the park. They are parked in places I didn’t even know there were sites ! The Wild Hog Explosion event is coming around next weekend, which involves pig wrestling, poker run for the bikers and a rodeo. I bet the town will be hopping with all the extra people around. Not sure how long the rally people will be here.

Here are some pictures of the critters on the farm. The span on these guys’ horns has to be 5 or 6’ across. Linda went for a ride in Lou’s golf cart (named Gator) today so he could show her something. He said all of his animals are spoiled rotten. They seem to know the minute his hand is on the doorknob to go in his house…they start braying or mooing. He said that he had to have one of the “cows” put down recently. It was 25 years old and quite the fixture here on the farm. He said they typically live to be 30 years old but the cold last winter took its toil on this poor guy. When Linda heard him referred to as a cow, she thought “Wow, that is a long life for a cow”. But for a STEER apparently it’s the typical age.

Moving to the next park on Saturday. Hopefully we’ll time the move in between rain showers. We only have to move about a mile down the road. Today’s temps were around 75 and then as soon as the cold front came through, it had dropped to 46 by suppertime. Brrrr!!! It got freezing cold in a hurry and is supposed to be no warmer than 50 tomorrow. Then back to 80 degrees on Monday. Crazy weather….

 

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Hit the Road Jack….

We’re all settled in at our site, here in Bandera. We absolutely love our site ! We face the pasture where Boomer can watch the steers, donkey and deer grazing. We had the outside TV on this morning, while playing cards, and we don’t have to worry about bothering anyone. We have a pull through site so we can also unload the bike easily. It’s a great site.

Yesterday we got the trike out and hit the road. We left around 11:00 and didn’t get back till close to 5:00. We rode through Rio Medina, Castroville and Hondo. We found Utopia but Nirvana eluded us. Continued on to Kerrville and back to Bandera. We covered over 200 miles on the bike. There is a cute general store in Rio Medina that had lots of antique signs and fixtures that were neat to see. The post office sits in the back corner of the store. Turns out the lady who was working yesterday…her mom is from Gettysburg, PA. She said that the store has been there for 104 years. Neat little place that you wouldn’t really think was much to drive by but cute to go in and poke around in. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I got the bright idea, when we stopped at a McDonald’s and looked at an area map, to take an even longer route to go the rest of the way home. By then, my butt hadn’t started hurting and the twisty, 90 degree turns hadn’t wore me out. That was coming. The Texas “Hill” country is a favorite among motorcycle riders and you see bikers all over the place. The area around Hunt, where the Guadalupe River is, was especially gorgeous. In Castroville, we took the “walking” tour, in 1st gear on the trike. The tour took us past houses from the mid 1800’s. These were the homes of families that came from France, at Mr. Castro’s request, to settle the area. A neat area with an Alsatian heritage. The lilac bushes and poppy patches were in full bloom and so pretty.

It was a great day for a ride. Temps were in the mid 60’s and overnight they went close to freezing. Today is another sun drenched day but the breeze is a little colder. A lazy day overall for us. Watching the race and getting ready to go back to work tomorrow. Hope your day is relaxing and rejuvenating for you as well !

We’ve Arrived in Bandera

The warranty repairs were wrapped up on our rig early Wednesday afternoon. Demontrond and Lippert did not agree on how the step should be repaired. Our RV tech said that he has found with this particular repair, that although the bolt sheared off, it isn’t as easy as drilling out the old bolt to replace it. He’s not sure if they use some sort of locktite or what but he’s found that it takes several guys on a wrench, a blow torch and many hours of hard work to get the old one out. After all of that he thinks that it weakens the strength of the metal and may pose a safety hazard. Lippert, on the other hand, won’t replace the steps but is happy to mail out the $2 bolt. Shocking, huh ? Since manufacturers will only mail parts out by “ground”, the bolt wouldn’t arrive in time so it’s being shipped to Bandera and we’ll have it installed here. I’ve alerted Class A RV Repairs that the part is on its’ way. The other items were fixed. Our awning now runs out whisper quiet and doesn’t get hung up. Speaking of whisper quiet….operation of our microwave now doesn’t require turning the TV up full blast. It’s so quiet ! The screen door on the garage entry door doesn’t bind and actually latches. The ramp door bracket has new bolts and the screws were replaced on the slide out arms so they actually bite into the wood. Great stuff that we are glad to have done !
We left the repair place to head to Tommie Vaughn Ford for the safety recall. By the way, in Texas, there is a $200 fine if you are caught talking on your cell phone. I can totally appreciate that situation as being a major distraction when driving. I think a law enforcement officer might have frowned upon my actions and found fault with what happened as I was leaving the RV lot. You remember that we had purchased a new storage cart that holds our printer. It does have locking casters but when you drive across something that closely resembles a ditch, the laws of gravity take their toll on something perched on wheels. Like a lunge from an outfielder trying to catch a ball going over the fence, I saw the stand and printer from the corner of my eye as I tried to cross the “ditch”. Over it went and I managed to catch it while still navigating the rig into three lanes of traffic. I wasn’t sure what to do with the whole monstrosity I was holding in my right arm so I laid it against the table that had been propped up against the front of the unit….in hopes of preventing such an accident (obviously it didn’t work). The stand looked like it was frozen in mid-air….drawers half way out….leaning against the table. Printer was on its side…wedged between the table and the couch. I left it there until we got to the Ford dealership. I needed my arm back so I could steer the rig. The entry into their lot wasn’t any better ! Linda was ahead of me and looking back in the rear view mirror she thought the rig was going to tip over when I drove up into the lot. The steep drainage things they put along the sides of the streets, that vehicles have to cross, is ridiculous ! Once I parked at Tommie Vaughn’s, we discovered that we had forgotten to secure another storage cabinet in the garage. It was surely a day for messes.
Philip came out and gathered the VIN #  and mileage and went to check into the safety recall. When he returned he said he was sorry but it was still too soon. Parts have not been shipped to dealers yet and the letters are just going out to owners. He said that usually recalls entail a “look and see” approach, to see if there might be a problem and IF they need to replace a part. This is a definite replacement recall but he feels confident that we won’t have any problems till it can be replaced. We’ll probably wait till we head to Oklahoma City and get it done then. If the indicator cable broke, it only impacts me knowing what gear I’m in. I will still be able to shift between “Park”, “Drive”, “Neutral”, etc.I just won’t be able to see that when I look at that display. It doesn’t affect the cable going to the transmission. No sweat…..now I know what to expect if it did do something.
So we left the Ford dealership and started out for Bandera….4.5 hours away. By this time, it was 3:30 or so. We were tired and hungry so we drove a little while till we got to a Flying J. We filled up on gas, got propane and ate dinner at their Denny’s and used the 29% off coupon for their Leap Day special. It took some “discussion” with the manager to get the discount since he insisted we print the coupon and we told him that since it was a mobile app, why would there be a requirement to print it. It doesn’t make sense. After some more “discussion”, he made it happen.
We left Denny’s and drove about an hour and then stopped at a rest stop for the night. It was a very warm night and also a very noisy one. The noise level in the loft bedroom is quite a bit more than we ever experienced in the 5th wheel bedroom. Neither of us slept very well and we’ll rethink a rest stop for future night stopovers. Further down the road, when we left this morning, we saw those picnic areas off the road and realized those would be a much better option. The parking is end to end and not side by side. We’d only have to deal with the engine noise from one rig to keep us awake and if we were lucky enough to be at the tail end, it would be quiet. Note to self: in some instances, it’s good to be in last place.
We arrived in Bandera about 11:30, had lunch, got showers, dressed and hit the road selling. It was a beautiful day today, in the 70’s. Boomer is in his glory with our camp site. We are parked right alongside the donkey and steer pasture. We ate supper to the sounds of the steers mooing and the donkeys braying. He loves it ! He will certainly enjoy himself while we are here.