March 31, 2010

We were in Louisiana rolling along when the "check engine" light came on and the engine died. Chuck was able to get the RV off the road, where we placed a call to our Good Sam roadside assistance. Eventually..... the tow truck appeared. It's quite a process to get the RV set up to tow and that poor guy was on the ground with traffic whizzing by...not the safest job in the world. Once he was done, we climbed up into his truck; it had so many instrument dials that it looked like a cockpit to me. Apparently there aren't that many shops here that work on Cummings Diesel engines so we're off to Lake Charles.

We arrived in the late afternoon and they can't get us in. The only thing left to do was to crack open a bottle of White Zin. Fortunately, we were able to hook up to electric but we'll have to use as little water as possible - no showers. If the black water tank fills up, we'll either have to pee in the sink or the parking lot. The first indication we have of the type of neighborhood we're in was the sound of several gun shots. Have another sip of WZ. The rest of the night passed without incident.

They're closed on Saturday but we're able to locate a nice mechanic who came in to do some extra work. Unfortunately, his buddy had taken the diagnostic equipment on a job and then home. At a minimum, we're stuck until Monday. At least Chuck and I can take the tow car off and go out for a nice dinner...except that when we try to leave, every single gate is closed and locked. Back to the RV where pickings are slim.

By Sunday, I'm ready to take action and take the bike out in search of groceries. The GPS says there is a grocery store a mile away. Fortunately, Chuck decides this is not an adventure he should let me take on my own. Down comes his bike - which hasn't seen any action since it went up. We're off.

The first thing we pass is a burned out area of grass across the street - guess that's what the fire truck was doing here yesterday. Then there is the street guy pushing his belongings in a grocery cart. The path we travel is uneven. Sometimes there is a bit of sidewalk, sometimes not. We pass a police officer and check our directions. I can see the question in his eyes - what the heck are you two old geezers doing out here?

On the way, we pass a lovely old cemetery. They elevate the graves and cover the full length of the body with stone here. Interesting. Reminds me of the trip I made with my folks to Louisiana as a kid. I believe that something good comes out of almost every adversity. The best part of our little adventure is that I got Chuck on the bicycle.....the exercise felt great.

Monday morning FINALLY arrived. Greasy hair is driving both of us nuts. The diagnostic equipment has been returned but it isn't working right. Chuck is on the computer and the phone trying to buy the Cummings Diesel program himself so that we can get the heck out of here. In the meantime, we notice a flat tire on the tow car...which they don't fix here. Right. They make a call for us - tire repair is on its way. Not soon but hey....

Late Monday, they have finally diagnosed our problem. The serpentine belt is off and hanging. I don't know what this means but its an easy fix so that's good. The thing is that we had total maintenance 200 miles away, including air con....during which, they either put the belt back on wrong or should have seen the problem with this stupid belt. ARRRGGGHH.

We're operational again. On the way, we passed over "Crawfish Bayou" and a Crawfish Farm. Who knew they had such things? Once in Texas, we start singing "Deep in the Heart of Texas" but we only know one verse so it doesn't last long. I look up the lyrics on the computer and we start making up our own...we're so hard up for entertainment. I'm on the lookout for "little doggies" and we finally see some. Even saw some little "little doggies." Chuck expounds on animal husbandry...he's a font of informaion.

Finally we start to see swathes of the beautiful blue bonnets - the Texas state flower. Interspersed are other, unknown flowers - in tangerine, a few pink and crimson. Texas is alive and beautiful at this time of year - highlighted by frequent US and Lone Star Flags along the way. Even the Lone Star RV park is one of the nicest we've encountered and Chuck will stay here for a week while I'm at Paul Smith's CRV class. Mufon's Research and Development guy, Robert, lives in Austin so it will be great for them to spend some time together.

All our best -

Vicki and Chuck