Searching For A Power Solution

I never could get pictures from my Apple phone to load on Blogger but we made it back to the Lazy OD Ranch and I have the pictures I wanted to show you from Monday.

Jeff Rowe and Odie

The front steps are nearly finished. Here they are in December in transition from storage to entrance stairs.

This is what they look like on Monday almost finished. They look so much better than I imagined! Wow!

The bus is at Jeff Rowe's for several piddly things but the main event is the generator. It is original to the bus and was built in Ohio in July 1995, It is a 15 KW Martin generator with a Yanmar engine. It has served us well and we hope it will for years to come.

It has given me voltage problems for a few years but we could always work around it. Last spring the problems kicked into overdrive and became insurmountable. We had to work our travel schedule around available campgrounds and that is a travel nightmare for us. Not to mention more expensive.

I am oversimplifying the problem because the herts are unstable too. We think that is the root of it all. But maybe you get the idea.

We spent a few thousand dollars on campgrounds in the northeast alone last summer.. When you add the inconvenience of not finding appropriate campgrounds along our route or near churches, it is a large headache. We had to park over one hour from churches for three straight weeks. Ugh!

Maybe that gives you a glimpse of how important the generator is in our travels. We like to have electricity for a working fridge, hot water and especially air conditioning. Sometimes the generator is the only way to have electricity.

Jeff is elbow-deep into the problem and seems to be close to a solution and we are pulling for him. The nuclear option is replacement and we are ready to investigate that IF necessary but that is a bigger step than we really want to make. We will pull the trigger on that IF the time comes.

We intend to travel in the bus this fall so we are down to the wire. We are praying for the right solution at the right time. Thank you for reading and praying.

Davy

It Is Done! And I Feel Good About It

We made it! By God’s grace the deed is done. The BoggsMobile is now in Vonore Tennessee at Jeff Rowe’s shop in good hands.  

I was up way too early Tuesday morning in anticipation of the day’s events but did not begin preparing until after 6:00. In the mean time I was trying to prepare myself and the Lord was ministering to me. It was a lovely few hours. 🙌🏽

The bus cranked fine, aired up normally, the brakes released completely and we were off like a herd of turtles. KJo and my Dad followed the first 8 miles and then we attached the Jeep and took off in earnest. 

We timed Cincinnati right for a change and had no traffic slowdowns in Cincy, Lexington or Knoxville. Hallelujah! The only traffic glitch was south of Jelico near the Rocky Top exit. We probably lost 30 minutes there due to construction. 

We drove 322 miles and arrived at 3:30 for a total of 6 hours and 40 minutes including a few stops. I felt confident and competent driving the bus with no problems and I am thankful for that. 

My body responded afterward like I expected but we are trusting that gets better with time. I feel about half dead, but at least I’m not twice dead and plucked up by the roots.😂

We are incredibly thankful for the Lord‘s help. This is probably my biggest non-spiritual accomplishment since the stroke🙌🏽🙌🏽 Feeling comfortable driving the bus is a necessary step in moving forward. Thank y’all for praying for us. 

This gives us the confidence to try some more. We believe if we travel shorter distances and allow more time for travel, we may actually swing into something near normal. That is exciting. 

We started home in the Jeep Tuesday evening and finished Wednesday. It is nice to have that trip behind us. Thank you for dropping in.

Davy

Sometimes Duty Comes Due

You may have wondered about the bus being in a different position in Sunday's picture. Of course, there is a reason for that.

Sometimes Duty Comes Due

The bus had not been started since I moved it out of the barn and drove it about 5 miles near the end of March. We need to get it to Jeff Rowe in Vonore, Tennessee this week, so we needed to get it ready to travel. 

That became the focus of our Saturday.  

There are legitimate concerns about a diesel fuel tank sitting too long without any activity. That concern includes condensation adding water to the fuel and also the possibility of fungus growing in the tank. Water in diesel fuel is always bad and the fungus clogs the fuel filters and shuts you down. 

I added the appropriate fuel treatments back in February, but I treated the fuel tank again on Friday. After getting the engine running Saturday I let it run a few hours to make sure the treated fuel was completely circulated. 

Then I pulled up to Odie‘s house, we unloaded some PA equipment there and then I pulled it back down to the parking lot and turned it around. 

Originally, we had planned to take the bus to Tennessee on Monday. However, after a long day of preparation Saturday and knowing our responsibilities for Sunday, we decided to finish some of the work on Monday and make the drive on Tuesday by God’s grace. 

I have driven the BoggsMobile over 240,000 miles so 300 miles is like a walk in the park. But I am a little apprehensive since the bus has been mostly sitting in one place since December 20. 

This has never happened before. Even when I was sick with Covid we took the bus someplace about every 30 days to keep it limbered up. That was not possible this time. Hopefully, prayerfully and carefully we will try. 

Please pray that the bus runs well and the trip goes smoothly. We plan to drive the Jeep back home and leave the bus with Mr. Jeff Rowe a few weeks.

You are probably thinking, what happened to trying to avoid traveling long distances to allow my body to build up strength to do it? That is a completely legitimate question. 

I am not sure the answer is completely legitimate, but it makes sense to us. When we are ready to hit the road, the bus needs to be in the best shape it can be for a 29.5 year old bus. Therefore getting the bus worked on takes preeminence and, unfortunately, it must be done. 

If all goes well, we will arrive in Tennessee this evening and be back home on Wednesday. Either way, I have A Word For Wednesday ready to go tomorrow. 

Thank you for praying for us.

Davy

Tomorrow

The Weekend Dispatch 4/23/24

Tune in tomorrow for A Word For Wednesday.

We will begin the Weekend Dispatch on Thursday. It was a beautiful day so KJo helped me pull the bus out of the barn. Since the weather is nice, the bus will be fine outside and that clears the barn space for things that need to be completed inside over the coming weeks.

Thursday evening we went to Dryden Rd, our home church. Bro Bennie asked me to preach when we arrived. Even though I was road weary, I was glad to try to do as he asked.

Bro. Mike Whitley wearing my suit coat.

Sunday we were scheduled to be in Hillsboro, Ohio to preach for Pastor Danny Morgan, KJo's brother. We had a great time with family and friends Sunday and we enjoyed the Lord helping folks.

Odie captured some great pictures that round out the weekend perfectly. Thank you for dropping by.