Y'all Be Careful Out There, You Hear!

We are blogging as a team today.  Davy is driving in west Texas and Kelly Jo is typing.  I mentioned yesterday morning that we would flip a coin to decide the direction we were going.  I dreaded driving through the high winds that were predicted along I-40.  

The winds ultimately decided.  I flipped the quarter and the wind took it away.  I have no idea where it landed.  I figured that meant we needed to go the direction with no wind.  

We saw some interesting signs several times yesterday.  They were giving instructions as what to do in a major dust storm.  

In A Dust Storm

Pull Off Roadway

Turn Vehicle Off

Foot Off Brakes

It is good to know what they advise to do in the event of a dust storm on the interstate.  However, I am a little uncomfortable with a couple of the directions.

Evidently the guy installing signs has some reservations about the instructions as well.  I think he decided at the last moment to put up one more sign.

Stay Buckled Up

Y'all be careful out there, you hear!

Davy and Kelly Jo

Which Way Do I Go?

We plan to leave later this morning and begin the long drive home. I am not sure which route we are taking yet. I have been over and over and over the options. I may have to flip a coin to decide.

The route across I-40 to OKC and then I-44 to St. Louis and then I-70 home is the shortest route at about 1890 miles. 



I would like to go that route because of the length and I need to stop in Carthage, Missouri at Colaw RV parts.

There are two problems with that route this week. First, the overnight temperatures are forecast to be pretty cold. Secondly, there are winds at 20 MPH all the way to OKC. That could make for miserable driving for sure!

The second option from here is interstates 10, 20, 30 and 40 to Nashville and then I-65 north. 



That route is 160 miles farther but warmer temperatures and no high winds in the forecast. The  2 1/2 hours to drive the 160 extra miles would be worth it to miss the cold nights and especially the windy days of driving.

The bigger negative of that route is missing Colaw RV Parts. I need a few parts that I know I can get there and I have been planning to stop there for weeks.

There is some rain forecast for both routes so the clean BoggsMobile is not going to make it to Ohio clean.

I will need to make a decision in the next hour or two. Bring me a quarter, Kelly Jo.

Thanks for reading today.

Davy

Deep Thinking At The Dentist

While the dentist was reaching for a different tool, pulling, tugging, gripping, drilling, cutting then rinsing and repeating, I was trying to get my mind to take me some where far, far away. Me and my little mind ended up back at the BoggsMobile working on some mechanical project.

That was not exactly the place I expected or wanted my mind to take me, but beggars can't be choosers, right?

Nevertheless, there we were back at the BoggsMobile. I was thinking about trying to access hard to reach places. My mind was drifting to occasions when I was attempting to remove a part that I could not see and I could barely get my hands on. 

I was remembering times when I have worked and worked and worked to get a bolt loose. I spray it with PB Blaster and wait. I try a wrench, a pair of channel-locks, vice-grips and a ratchet and socket. Some times I tap it with a hammer and try to get a saw of some kind on it.

My mind was busy keeping me away from the dentist office by trying to loosen all the bolts in our past. I recalled how that some times I have put the tools down, leaned back in a chair and stared at the bolt for a while. I do not know why, but staring at the problem seems to help me.

Some days I give it a longer break and go eat lunch. A burrito or a few tacos with lots of good salsa works wonders for my mechanical abilities. There are bolts that require a completely fresh approach, so I put all the tools away, go about my day, preach that night and then try again in the morning.

Then my mind threw me a curve ball. While the dentist was reaching for a different tool, pulling, tugging, gripping, drilling, cutting then rinsing and repeating, I began wondering, is the dentist ever tempted to do what I do? He had tried about 30 different tools and I think he had even leaned back in his chair and stared at my tooth for a while under the pretense of changing a tool or examining the X-ray.

Was he considering how a burrito could help the whole process? 

While he was wiggling that tooth around in big enough circles that he could have easily added ornately carved horses, corny music and screaming children; was he shuffling patients in his mind trying to figure how he could allow me to remain in that room all day so he could come back every few minutes to try again?

Was he contemplating asking the night cleaning crew to skip my exam room so that I could rest peacefully? That would give him a chance to go home, eat a nice dinner, sleep on the difficulties of the problem and have a fresh start in the morning?

The fact of the matter is the dentist kept right on working, reaching for a different tool, pulling, tugging, gripping, drilling, cutting then rinsing and repeating until all the pieces of what has been my lower right back molar for 40+ years were removed.

No breaks, no lunch, no burritos and no overnight stay required. I "may" even live to blog again. As for eating again, I am not so sure.

Thank you for checking in today.

Davy