We’re going to intersperse this post with some random close-up photos that we think are neat. The reason is that we haven’t taken the camera out of its cubby in a few days and there’s nothing else to show you. Besides, we all know that pictures make the words worth reading.
Pollen-nation.
We’ve been enjoying our time at various Texas city parks for close to three weeks now. If we had stopped at all of them in this part of the state we would cover well over a months worth of time with free hook-ups and dump station provided. As of late though Annie has begun to remind us that it is time to give her a little attention.
I’m Leaving on a Jet Plane.
As you might remember, back in September we discovered our alternator barely ‘hanging on’ (loose bolt). That was promptly followed by the driver’s side window ceasing to work. A few weeks later, we turned up with a dead battery (still under its pro-rated warranty period thankfully) and so we traded it for a fresh one. It sounds like a lot but in truth all of these are relatively simple fixes that took only a few minutes of our time. Especially the window which miraculously repaired itself at the same time the dashboard lights went out (again).
Fuzzy Was He?
Yes, we have a short somewhere. We’ve had it for a while! In Pennsylvania, Nicole re-wired the radio set-up to eliminate some very old, loose connections. It seemed to set things right for a while and was the longest run that we’ve had with the dash lights working but there’s still a ghost in the machine. We call him Boomer because he can make quite a racquet when he wants to.
Dripping Graffiti.
Truth be told, we find it humorous that we never know what Annie will present us with on any given day in terms of electrical functioning. There are plenty of things that could be done to the van but technically they still work (most of the time). And, that’s the way we roll. If it ain’t really, really broke (versus pretending, as the window obviously was) don’t fix it (yet).
Amber Waves not of Grain.
With patience, most of Annie’s “issues” pan themselves out or are revealed to be simple fixes (and typically free or at least cheaper than we originally thought). What doesn’t pan itself out is basic maintenance such as tire rotation and balance (which we get free from Sears since we bought the tires there), regular tire pressure and fluid checks, oil and filter changes (which we just completed at one of our city park stays), a freshly greased suspension (completed with our handy dandy and very messy grease gun at the time of each oil change) and other simple but important changes such as new air filters (check) and fresh spark plugs (or at least a quick sand and re-gap, if they’re looking only a bit less than sparky).
Shades of Light.
There’s more but you get the point. We’ve occupied ourselves by taking care of our girl lately and so the camera hasn’t even left its cubby. Oh, Nicole did complete two non-Annie tasks. She put some JB Weld on our leaking regulator for the stove (so far so good) and re-strung her guitar with the proper strings!
Music to My Ears.
By the time this is posted, we will have crossed the border into New Mexico.
Be speckled.
So with that we bid a fond adieu to the great state of Texas.
"Chew Tobacco. Chew Tobacco. Chew Tobacco. Spit!"