Was That Bumper with Me When I Got Here???

The first few days driving have been short ones. First the snow; then the wind; and then the rain. I pulled off a little early. I had driven enough hours, and I was tired of driving in the rain. I set up shop in a truck stop, and was curious what New Year's Eve in a truck stop would be. I checked out the travel center and restaurant, but saw no balloons and noise-makers, no signs about a party later. In fact people weren't even wishing each other Happy New Year. Just another day. Skittles and I retired early, but I warned her to be ready for a cacophony of truck horns (Never thought I'd use that word in a sentence) at midnight. The next morning she looked at me like, "Fool. Absolutely nothing happened." Ah well.

The next night we stayed in a truck stop also. I'm in Tennessee, but it still registers in the 30s on the thermometer. Chilly! Both Skittles and I are ready for some warm weather.

I stopped about midday for lunch. When I got back to my rig, the corner bumper was missing on the driver's side. It didn't look like anyone had hit me, and I hadn't hit anything (this time), so I assumed it was vandalism. It looked like someone had ripped it off. I went back into the restaurant to report it, and get the address, etc. The Manager recommended I make a police report, and called the police for me. The Officer who came wasn't convinced this was vandalism. He thought maybe the bumper fell off, even on the highway. We walked around the rig, and I explained every scratch and rip. I told him with what I had connected, when and where. And then we did the car too. Luckily I didn't have to mention blowing up the engine.

The Officer then wanted to check the security video at the restaurant to see if it caught me, and if he could determine whether the fender was attached when I arrived in the parking lot. So he went back to the Manager's office, but they barred me from going with him. Drat! I was looking forward to seeing me driving around and the culprit ripping off my fender. The camera only showed the front of the place. They could see me drive off the exit and turn on to the street, but that was it. So he wrote up an incident report indicating this was the first time the missing fender was noticed.

The more I think about it, the more I think the fender fell off. Why would a vandal pull off a fender, when he could whack the rig with a bat, or throw a stone? But then, why would the fender just fall off?? 'Tis a puzzlement!!

The Officer then recommended a campground, and Skittles and I have settled in for the evening, and turned on the heat.

Wind, wind, go away

I pulled off the road again, even earlier than yesterday. The wind was battering me about. Once I noticed the grooves in the steering wheel at 10:00 and 2:00, and realized cars were passing me hugging the yellow line on their left side, I called it a day.

The wind is still battering us, securely snugged in a campground. Skittles cried to go out, and 1 minute later cried to come in. We'll wait out the "winter warning" until tomorrow."The sun will come out Tomorrow...Tomorrow! Tomorrow!....."

Snow, snow, go away.

I'm back on the road, and feeling good. Nice to be back in the rolling home.

I took some trips this summer, but didn't write about them. Went to Gloucester for a couple weeks, during the St. ???? Festival. It was fun - went on a sailboat cruise, a lighthouse cruise, got together with friends and a niece, and enjoyed a garden tour. Also went to CT/RI with a grandniece and grandnephew. The kids love the ocean like I did when I was their ages. We saw the aquarium in Mystic too. Worth a visit. I spent time in Maine - up at Moosehead where we stalked a moose, and down at the shore in the south. There we sampled clam chowder at every place we went.

This week I was trying to leave home before any snow came. I was targeting the 27th, but decided to stay another day because of the storm. So then I targeted the 28th, but didn't get everything ready in time, so I took off today, the 29th. I figured I would leave before the snow started at home, and hoped I would get ahead of the storm, since it was brewing in the ocean. I got into New Jersey before I was inundated with those BEAUTIFUL, but ANNOYING white flakes. I went by a couple accidents, and felt the driving was not the best.

I pulled into a truck stop. I'll be staying here for the night. But, of course, it's only the afternoon.  I decided to write this, and then play my games, and read. Skittles is bored. She slept all the way down. She'll go back to sleep when she decides she wants to be warmer and climbs under the covers.

Home Again

Just to close out my trip. I stopped in Hershey, PA, and took the visitor center tour. I had been there in the 70s, but it was very different. It made me think of Disney Land.

Then we went home, arriving March 20th. I walked in the house and got the flu. I must have been infected at Hershey with all those kids.

I'm better now, and happy to be home for a while. But I'm disappointed that the wild turkeys haven't come calling yet.

Drinking on the Tour

I went to the Jack Daniels Distillery to make sure their facilities were clean and well-organized. It was a very interesting trip. They talk about processes which make their whiskey better than others: (1) the use of spring water filtered through the natural limestone, and containing no iron; (2) the charcoal they make and filter their whiskey through; and(3) the barrels they make themselves, to ensure the quality. They have a master distiller, who tastes every barrel. He must have some pretty discerning taste buds, since he decides what barrel goes where, when the whiskey is ready, when the charcoal needs to be changed, etc. Sounds like a pretty good job, huh? You'd wonder how he could make it home after work, but, of course, he can't swallow the product - must spit it out. But still, how much tasting can you do in one day? He must have some minors in the background, being trained and picking up the slack.

The tour guide billowed the top of a huge vat, and 25 tourists wobbled down the corridor. We had to grab the railing to get down the stairs. And we didn't even put the product in our mouths.
 

I also tried to go through the Saturn plant, which is close to Nashville. When I got there I was told the tours were not being held, since there is no current production (not for 3 years). I guess the Saturn was discontinued. They are being retooled to start production in fall, 2012, on, I think, the Chevrolet Equinox, which has not been able to meet demand.

Skittles and I are pretty much driving home now. I doubt we'll stay for a more than a day until we roll into Sturbridge.

"These boots are made for walking..."

I stayed in Dallas until my car was ready for the 2nd time. Then I drove down, picked it up and went to Manahans to see their sand park. It reminded me of the dunes right off the road to Race Point, Cape Cod. I remember running and rolling down them when a kid. These dunes are great in that you can play as much as you want in them. In fact you can even rent discs to slide down the hills. I didn't get too far into them. The more I walked, the less distance I made.Then I returned to Dallas for a couple nights, driving past a number of oil fields again. 

I had a new water hose delivered to my cousins' house, and was delighted with my purchase. It has taken all the hassle out of connecting the water hose. After 3 trips to Dallas to stay with my cousins, over a period of 3 weeks, I finally said goodbye. Kind of sad. I enjoy spending time with them so much!! While I was in Dallas, I bought cowgirl boots -

exactly what I wanted - and handcrafted in the U.S.of A.

My next stop was Hope, Arkansas - first house of Bill Clinton. It was fun seeing all the pictures, and hearing the stories. His hero as a kid was Hopalong Cassidy. He stayed with his grandparents when his widowed mother left to be educated for a profession. His grandmother told his mother that, if he was going to be President, he needed a desk. I doubt he brought this one to Washington with him. He also was born a Blythe, but legally changed his name to Clinton (stepfather's name) in high school. He went to the courthouse to do it on his own. They had to call his mother to get approval. She knew nothing about it.

The next day I went up to Little Rock to see the Clinton library. I was so impressed. Of course, I really liked Clinton as the president. I felt he did a great job for our country.  The tour of the library begins with a film narrated by Clinton, and I found myself getting emotional - surprise!, surprise! They have an exact replica of the oval office, and the cabinet room. As I passed the cabinet room there were some high school kids sitting there solving the world's problems, or at least the problems with the Arkansas education system. There were alcove exhibits showing life in the White House as well as action taken in different areas - health, sciences, world relations, economy, etc. Clinton did a pretty good job - balanced the budget, brought about welfare reform, health care reform, Middle East negotiations, started a domestic "Peace Corps," passed the Brady Bill, and more and more. Like I said, I was impressed. I bought the 2 book series of his life, and am plowing through them.

My next stop was Nashville, TN. I hadn't been here for 42 years, and thought I should go back. I love Nashville. There is much to do in Music City and around there, and the atmosphere is terrific. I took a tour, walked around the downtown, moseyed into a saloon which had music all day and night. Traveling alone affects my going into places, particularly if I'm going to drink and then drive. There were about 6 people in the place. I sat at the bar and had 1 light beer (MGD 64). The guy singing asked where I was from, and what songs I liked. Of course, not a follower of music, all I could think of was Johnny Cash. I finally had to tell him I just turned on the station and listened, but couldn't tell you what I heard. Kind of embarrassing to say that to a country-western singer. But he called me "Darlin" in that southern drawl, which made it all worth it.

They have some interesting architecture in Nashville. There's the Batman building and beside it,

the R2D2 building. And, of course, being country, you see big guitars (with Minnie Pearl hats on them, selling of course, for $1.98), and big boots.I did check out the Buy 1, get 2 free in the boots, but - you guessed it - made in China.
 

 

In Nashville, on the 100th birthday, they built a replica of the Parthenon. On the 200th birthday, they built a great Bi-Centennial mall and park.There is a huge farmers' market, craft outlet, etc. Across the street they have a very impressive display of history of the area. There are very large columns with years on them, starting BC, but around 1700 the years are pretty steady and state along the wall what happened at that time. Davy Crockett played fiddle in Nashville and was elected to Congress before he volunteered at the Alamo and ended his life there. The Cherokee were forced to emigrate from their lands in the area on the Trail of Tears by 1838. A sad note. Next, I'm touring a couple area businesses.

I gave up trying to align this blog. There's only so much time you want to spend on these things.

Shootin' Them Up in El Paso

It has been forever since I have written. Almost a month. I mentioned before, that I blew out my engine on the tow car. After quite a time, it was finally ready. I was told that each time they had all the parts, and thought they just had to put it together, they uncovered another part needed. Who knows, but once they finished it, they realized the new engine was defective. What!?! The Service Manager said it was under warranty, so I could get it fixed for nothing at home. I said I wanted to leave Texas with a perfectly running car, so get a new engine. I had been staying the last few days at a nice campground, but it was under construction and had no internet. I read all the books I had, including what I had on Kindle, and said I've got to go. So, I went to El Paso. 


I love the "shoot-em-up, cowboy" stuff in Texas, and I found a lot of it in El Paso. I took a tour from an independent tour operator, who knew the history, and told a good story. "He died of lead poisoning - from a 45 in his back." El Paso is separated from Mexico by the Rio Grande. This was per the Guadalupe - Hidalgo Treaty. This treaty between the US and Mexico ended the US - Mexican war, allowed for the purchase of some Mexican land by the US, and "settled" the border disputes. Of course, no one told Mother Nature, so she brought down rain, rain and more rain, changed the route of the Rio Grande, and in so doing, changed the border. How about going to bed a Mexican resident, and waking up living in the US?


 El Paso is built on both sides of the mountain range (actually, the southern part of the Rockies). Going over the mountain range, you look down on Mexico. Down below, with the drought affecting the river, if there isn't a fence you can jump into Mexico. Marty Robbins found love (and death) in El Paso, at Rosa's Cantina. A shot from a fight in Mexico put a bullet hole in El Paso's new City Hall, miles away. But, my favorite stop was the cemetery.
 
There is an enclosure in memory of the Buffalo Soldiers, who are buried in the cemetery. There is also a section for the Chinese, who originally came building the railroads. There are sections for other nationalities. There is also a sign which reminds you, that this is not an ordinary cemetery. One of El Paso's gunfights, which started with an insult, killed 4 men in 5 minutes. They're all buried in this cemetery, along with many of El Paso's famous characters.

In El Paso, I started thinking I should have some cowgirl boots. I checked a few stores, but didn't find any. For one thing, I want them made in the US. Why would I come to Texas, to buy boots made in India or China? Mexico isn't quite as bad, but I want them made in the US!!

I decided to go back to Dallas to stay with my cousins, while I continued to wait for my car. This is my second home. When visiting, I usually stay for a week. This year, it has been 3 weeks. And... they haven't gotten tired of me yet. Or... they're not saying anything. I'm so glad I could go to Dallas. I knew I could have a great time there, and I wouldn't be more than a day's drive away from my car.