This could be long or short – I’m just winging it. It’s kind of a mood thing. If I start writing, brain rambling, it could be lengthy as hell…

I got up on Monday, the 21st,with the thought of hitching up and heading out of the panhandle. That’s exactly the way it went. By 1:30 p.m., I was heading South. My goal was to make Missoula by nightfall and spend the night there. That went as planned too. The only time schedule I had was to be at Wheeler RV on Thursday at 7:30 a.m.

My last post spoke of spending the night at a Wal*Mart on the south side of Salt Lake City. That was on Tuesday night, way past the time that I wanted to be settled in. Somewhere around 1 a.m., I was finally falling off to sleep in the coach. And managed to awaken at 5:30 a.m. and misread the clock, thinking it read 7:30 a.m. so I bailed out, cranked up the generator, made coffee, and then really looked at the clock. Kee-rist! Too late now, coffee was waiting to be drank. When I hit the road, I was about 377 miles from Las Vegas. Somewhere around 10 a.m., I stopped for a nap at truck stop. By noon I was back on the road. Hey…this taking your home with you is the stone nuts. I made Vegas by 5:30ish and rather than go to my space in the RV park, I headed for Hyman Place. I spent the night in front of my house, just like days of old, and made sure the alarm went off in time for me to make Wheeler RV by 7:30 a.m.

It’s a long and boring story. I need to write about it because I’m me. New guy (that used to work at Wheeler RV and came back), greeted me at 7:30. I wasn’t on the appointment list. Why not? I was given an appointment on Monday – by phone – when I spoke with the new service manager. We visited for a few moments, Ron, nice guy! But nice guys aren’t accomplishing the results I need to have peace of mind. I left the coach for the day and headed for the city. I called the new service manager at Wheeler and got voice mail…left a message. Back to the business at hand – I had papers to drop off at the credit union – and a new card to order for the one that was cancelled – a prescription to pick up, and after all that business, I called Carole for lunch. After we ‘caught up’ with life, and grazed, I headed back out to Wheeler.

I called the service manager again, more voice mail. Just after hanging up, I received a voice message from Ron (the service writer that had filled out my paper work in the a.m.) and he stated that he had been waiting for a call back from Newmar. Now Newmar was considering adding an additional motor – putting one on each jack – and both motors would be larger, able to carry a heavier load. In other words, the coach had not been repaired. *heavy sigh* And they had removed the second motor a few weeks ago and were now considering putting another one back on. I don’t get it! But I’m just a poker dealer.

When I arrived at Wheeler, we had a three way chat, they were waiting for word from Newmar and the company that makes the jacks/motors. I was stranded. I could take the coach home for the night, but why? I left it. I wasn’t even in shock, I expected it to go like this. Which brings up a question, does my expecting it make it so? Should I be optomistic and would that perhaps change the outcome? Or would I just be highly disappointed when it didn’t work out? Too damn many questions.

I’m now homeless, except I own a home and a fifth wheel…kee-rist!

*****

The tale of the Edgewater Bar – Sandpoint Idaho – 36 years ago is the next tale to be told. It’s a tomorrow tale. Check back.