We are at a truck stop in Iowa, where they have internet access. We just woke Zak to have him scramble up onto the roof of the bus because we forgot that we had caulked around the toilet vent pipe. I was getting diesel when I noticed it was starting to rain hard, so I parked us under the canopy in the pumping area. It was nice to have a false alarm!
Our bus starting problem this morning was fairly simple: a switch that tells the ignition system that you are in neutral, thus allowing you to start the bus. That way, you don’t accidentally hit a child, presumably. So the mechanic checked it out and it seemed like just maybe a simple wire connection. He made it so that it starts in any gear, so we just have to be careful. We are very used to having it in neutral to start it, so hopefully that will be all we need to do.
Our bus has a Ford engine, which apparently is unusual. Fortunately, the big truck places, which also work on RVs, don’t mind working on ours. The problem is, they don’t stock Ford parts. So it was nice they could do a quick fix for us. They also showed Zak and Dave a special emergency way to start it, should this happen on the road.
Today was hot. The bus really heats up and if we had all the windows open, it wouldn’t be so bad, because you’d have lots of airflow. But where we live, the humidity would really be bad news for the interior of the vehicle. However, one AC doesn’t seem sufficient. We have not yet tried quartering off the back half with blankets or something, so we aren’t blowing cold air back there. That would surely help a bit.
Storage places have been a problem. Lots of the kids cargo (personal items other than clothes) are bagged and stowed in sleeping areas during the day. Clothes are in individual plastic drawers kept on overhead shelving in the sitting area. We have had to make adjustments and everyone doesn’t have lots of legroom. Joanna got to sleep on the middle bunk, deemed the “water-melon-bed” because we brought lots of watermelons with us.
Dave has done most of the driving. Zak has not yet gotten behind the wheel. Tomorrow may be the big day.
We hope to make it up to Rhinelander, Wisconsin by tomorrow afternoon, LORD willing. That would only be if we can drive most of the night, or get up really early. Its nice, because to leave really early, we don’t have to get everyone up and dressed.
Zak did the church bulletin today, and so we stopped here to use the internet and email it back to Alamo, so they can copy it tomorrow morning.
We are still coughing a lot, but not much to speak of. Dave’s cough has improved. He is out gassing up the generator. The bus is diesel, but the generator is gas. It seems like it goes through a tank in several hours. A few times we ran out of gas before we noticed we needed more. It is running GREAT. Another great ebay deal!
The other day, during a possession-sharing opportunity, Noah exclaimed, “Why is it that whenever someone gets something on their birthday, its only THEIRS????”
Very thankful to be rolling, but very tired….the Kleins
No comments:
Post a Comment