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Monday, September 16, 2013

Are We Going Forward Or Backwards?

Maybe we’ve been sitting still for so long, we’ve lost our long distance traveling mojo.  Yes, we did a good 550 mile PDD yesterday despite the inverter troubles.  Today, we figured we’d have it much easier, only about 280 easy miles to go.

Or so we thought.

We planned our route to go the most direct path.  The price of diesel fuel often drives the direction we travel, even though the Journey’s diesel engine is running extremely well and giving us a consistent 8.5 mpg.

After leaving the interstate for a short cut, and traveling some 25 miles on a back road to cross a bridge over the Mississippi, we arrived to find it closed to large vehicles because of repairs.  Cars only.  We’re not a car, nope, not even close.

So, back the 25 miles to the highway and a longer route that took us right through St. Louis and all its lovely traffic.

We made a Walmart stop to pick up some odds and ends.  I did my usual walk around the Journey before getting back on the road and I found another maintenance issue.

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The fancy chrome tailpipe on the Journey’s exhaust system has gone AWOL.  More fun and games!

As we traveled towards our final destination, the Pin Oak Campground near our son Ryan’s home, we batted ideas back and forth on how we’ll fix our new challenge.

Despite the issues, we had a nice day, about 350 miles covered and we got to spend some time with the granddaughters, who we’ve come to see.

Little Rebekah, only a year old, already demonstrated her prowess with Marti’s iPhone.  She is better at it than I am…

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Big sister Taylor showed how strong she is,

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and Kierra showed off her latest lost tooth.

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The mechanical challenges on the Journey will get taken care of.  I’ve received a few good recommendations from some of our blogging friends (Thank You!).  Our week long visit with the girls will make everything worthwhile.

Thanks for visiting and feel free to leave a comment.

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17 comments:

  1. Sorry about the maintenance issues with the Journey:o( But oh how sweet are those adorable granddaughters!!! Glad you arrived safely. Enjoy every minute with the family:o))

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  2. That little Rebekah is growing up fast! She'll soon be telling you how to blog. Hope all the Journey's issues get fixed soon!

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  3. House maintenance is unfortunately just part of the deal. It gets trickier when the whole thing is ambling down the road.
    I think too many RVers like to gloss over those aspects. It's not all fun and games.
    Just the same, that sucks about the tail pipe! Did some Monkey Boy forget to tighten it up, or did it maybe get hung up on something? Any marks along the bottom of the pipe?
    Have fun with the family.

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  4. Oh you are definitely going forward with the usual bumps in the road. But seeing those grandaughters is the pleasure that makes it all worth while. Sorry you are going to have to spend some of that time on those pesky maintenance bothers.

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  5. There always seems to be at least one thing needing to get fixed. Other than giving those grandkids someone fun to pick on, this will also give them something to help you fix. I'm sure you'll have a fantastic time visiting them.

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  6. Makes you wonder where that tailpipe is, doesn't it?

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  7. At least this maintenance problem should be a minor one and should be an easy fix. Always something going on with house repairs somewhere and we have had our issues as well especially with a 14 year old coach.
    Enjoy the time with your family there, so nice to visit with the grands.

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  8. When my fancy tail pipe fell off the Suncruiser, I ordered a pair from Amazon.
    I was quoted $180 bucks for the original and I ordered a pair of new ones for about $80.

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  9. Breakdowns happen. At least you can keep rolling until it gets fixed. Have a wonderful week with family.

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  10. Glad to see you made it with only the loss of a chrome tailpipe.

    Great pics of Rebekkah, Taylor and Kierra - don't forget the Tooth Fairy!

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  11. Someone needs to kick Murphy to the curb and you are da man to do it.

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  12. I love the smile with the missing tooth ... too cute.

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  13. Oh good grief. Well at least you made it safely, and I imagine the girls are just as happy to see you as you are to see them!

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  14. Uh oh. I seem to recall a blog post dated 8/27/13.
    Not making any accusations here. :0

    I have a feeling that you'll get this one repaired in short order.

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  15. Hmmm. Love JoBeth's suggestion. You can buy almost anything on Amazon :)
    Don't worry about those pesky maintenance issues. Just enjoy those granddaughters!

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  16. Enjoy your visit and leave your cares in the driveway.

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  17. I wonder what happened to that tailpipe. Any unexplained dents in the toad? Those girls are just the sweetest. It's funny how you go from the family with grandsons to the one with granddaughters. Must take some adjusting.

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