On the road again!

Yesterday, we arose after spending the night at the Super 8 Motel in Shelton, WA and had a leisurely continental breakfast in the motel. We updated our emails and then headed over to Vander Wal's Garage to see what progress had been made on repairing Sadie's brakes.

Marlo, who holds down the fort in the office, told us that Don Vander Wal had stayed until 8:00 PM working on the problem of why the break pedal would not firm up after bleeding the system. He finally discovered that the new master cylinder that was supplied by the auto parts house was defective. Somehow, Don managed to get another master cylinder, and then he came in before opening to install the new one; this on a day when he had to travel on business!

Marlo told us that everything was done except bleeding the system again and that we should be on the road by 2:00 o'clock. We decided to drive out to Hood Canal to the cabin where my brother and his family are vacationing. Shortly after we arrived there (about 12:30 PM, as I recall), Marlo called to say that Sadie was ready.

We went back and paid the tab, thanked all our new friends at Vander Wal's, hooked up Daisy Mae and headed for The Waterfront at Potlatch RV park. Upon arrival we were assigned space #11 and we settled in to enjoy what we came here for in the first place. The weather was glorious, the view spectacular, the fact of having the brake nightmare behind us priceless.

We enjoyed the venue until about 5:00 and then headed over to my brother's place, where we had a sumptuous feast including smoked salmon, filet mignon and pork chops, which had thawed while Sadie's refrigerator was without power. In addition, we had fresh steamer clams and sauteed oysters, shrimp pasta and cole slaw. A little vino completed the repast, which was better than any I have ever had in a restaurant, because it included so many family members and dining al fresco beside the still waters of Hood Canal.

Now that's what I'm talkin' about!

Are you sure this was our vacation plan?

OK. This is not the blog post I had intended to be making, and this is not the date on which I had intended to make it. We left Independence on Sunday, July 18th, for four glorious days on Hood Canal in Washington state. On the way, we picked up Mom in order to deliver her to my brother and his family, who are staying in a cabin a few miles away from The Waterfront at Potlatch RV park.

We made it to within about 15 miles of our destination when Sadie's brake pedal went to the floor, and the brake warning light came on and stayed lit. Fortunately, we were able to stop before anything awful happened. I limped in to Sundance RV and Auto in the outskirts of Shelton. Sundance doesn't have a service department for mechanical problems, but they were very gracious in allowing us to stay on their lot for the night (remember this was Sunday.)

I called Good Sam Emergency Road Service, and they couldn't have been nicer. The first thing Antonio wanted to know was whether we were safe. I assured him we were and proceeded to tell him my tale of woe. He took my phone number and said that, since it was Sunday, he would do some research and see how best to help us. Then, he promised, we would get a call back.

After about half an hour, Veronica called me and said that they had located two possible places that could repair Sadie's brakes, but of course she wouldn't know for sure until morning. She suggested that we be towed to one of them for safe keeping. I assured her we were in a safe place and asked if it might not be better to wait until we found out for sure who could do the repairs. She agreed and promised to call in the morning.

When we woke up on Monday, the coach was cold inside.
We had no AC power for the electric heater, and I didn't want to run
the battery flat by using the propane furnace, which has
a 12V fan. Pogo wrapped up in a blanket to keep warm.

On Monday, which happened to be my birthday, Veronica called a little after 9:00 AM and said that she had located Vander Wal's Garage a mere five miles from us, and she said a tow truck would come to us in two to two and a half hours. About 45 minutes later, Mike from Nisqually Towing showed up. He was very professional, very courteous and very competent. In a matter of minutes he had Sadie hitched up to his tow vehicle. He took us to Vander Wal's, where we were met by Don Vander Wal.

Sadie's link to the Nisqually Towing truck.

Just about ready to tow.

Here's Mike, whom Jill dubbed our "angel of mercy."

Don, too, has been very accommodating, professional and competent. He took Sadie in right away and began working on her. About an hour and a half later, he reported that the master cylinder had failed. He also suggested replacing the flexible brake hoses, which were showing their age. He told us that it was unlikely that Sadie would be ready that same day, but he said we could stay aboard her in the garage yard, behind a locked gate. He even gave us the key to the gate, so we could go to my brother's cabin for a birthday celebration.

Vander Wal's Garage, highly touted among the locals in Shelton.

Don Vander Wal could not be more accommodating.

In spite of everything, we slept like tops, and in the morning we went to McDonald's for breakfast and WiFi. We checked back after a couple of hours and learned that there was a little hiccup in the works. There is a valve in the system that is designed to provide SOME braking, even when the system fails. When it is activated in a failure situation, the valve piston moves so that brakes on at least two wheels give some braking. Thank God for modern technology, even the kind that dates back to 1988.

Poor Sadie jacked up for repairs.

It turns out that when the piston is activated, it has to be deactivated, in order for the brakes to be restored to proper working order. In the case of Sadie, that meant uninstalling and reinstalling it. Once that was done, bleeding the brake system could commence. Unfortunately, that process commenced late in the day and didn't go well. At last, Don told us that we would not be able to leave today.

So, we are currently housed at the Super 8 Motel. We could have stayed in Sadie, but we really wanted to have a long hot shower and TV, which were not options with Sadie in her current state of being propped up on jacks, without electricity. We are hopeful that we will be back on the road tomorrow.

Summing things up: 1) We are incredibly grateful to our Creator that we were saved from disaster when the master brake cylinder failed; 2) we are very grateful to Good Sam Emergency Road Service for prompt and thoughtful service; 3) we are so thankful for Mike and Nisqually Towing... our angel of mercy, as Jill called him; 4) we are very grateful for Don Vander Wal and his crew for their prompt service and professionalism in taking on a difficult and unexpected repair job with no notice and for being so very gracious in giving us a place to stay.

I would be remiss if I didn't also mention the kindness of The Waterfront at Potlatch RV Park in forgiving us for not keeping our reservation. They usually require full payment if there is a cancellation less than a week before the expected arrival in the summer. They forgave the whole thing and told us whenever our coach is fixed, they will find a place for us.

We did get the chance to go to Potlatch State Park
and see what we came to see, if only briefly.

Here's the birthday boy. Not the birthday I would have
planned, but we had fun in spite of our troubles.

Pogo likes to walk on the beach.

This is not the vacation we planned, but it has been so full of blessings, that we would be ungrateful indeed, if we were to pout about the situation. It is great to be alive. We serve an awesome God!!

The Wet Carpet Blues

The Wet Carpet Blues
(Tune up your guitar and strum a blues beat.)

I woke up this morning;
Got outta my bed.
Took me a shower,
And washed my bald head.

I covered my kisser,
With lots of thick suds,
Shaved off my whiskers
And put on my duds.

I went to the bathroom,
To use the fixed throne.
I suddenly noticed the socks on my feet were as dry as an ol' hound dog's bone.

Chorus:
I lost those wet carpet blues;
I lost those wet carpet blues;
I lost those wet carpet blues,
And I no longer have soggy shoes.