Back to Bloggin'

Helen and I arrived back in LV yesterday about 2:30 p.m. after 9.5 hours of driving.

Dad's funeral service went smoothly and after a couple of days of visiting with friends and family, we headed west on Monday morning about 7 a.m. The first day we drove south into Illinois where we had a tire mishap that slowed us for an hour. We were about 40 miles north of Springfield when a message appeared on the speedometer "Check Right Rear Tire Pressure."

I pulled over and checked the tire, which looked OK but I did see a 1/2 inch chunk of metal in the treads. We limped about 7 miles into the nearest town - Lincoln -and found a repair shop where the owners Kevin and his Dad Ivan pulled out the metal - a 3-inch chunk - and plugged the hole. They said we were lucky that the metal didnt damage the tire's steel belt. Could have had a blowout or at least need a new tire, they said. A $30 payment and we were back on the road.

We spent the first night in Lebanon, Mo. where dinner was a couple of Quizno's subs. Then we were on the road Tuesday about 630 a.m. and drove all day through Mo., OK, Texas until we reached Moriarty, NM, about a half hour east of Albuerqueque. Dinner was a couple of chicken quesadillas delivered to our room by a local restaurant.

Yesterday's drive from NM to LV was uneventful and we were glad to be back in the apartment. I had 10 days of mail and emails to catch up on, along with paying some bills. I mustered the energy to make dinner - bowtie pasta al fredo with ice cream for dessert. A hot shower, a few rerun episodes of "The Office" and we called it a night.

Today I need to hit the post office (never fun here in LV) and hope to play a little poker and maybe make a hoops bet on the NCAA tourney. I have real concerns about MSU's chances without Lucas. Northern Iowa is a tough little squad that I've been keeping an eye on all season. Don't be surprised if the Spartans come up short tomorrow.

And so our adventure continues...