Challenges in The Old Gray Goose

     I have had a couple challenging days. I left Needles in overcast skies and sporadic rain, but at least it was cool. Barstow to Bakersfield is long and boring. It looks a lot like the back way to Casa Grande through Coolidge—lots of groves, green only through irrigation. I couldn’t recognize the trees until I saw a sign that said ‘pistachios.’ Why don’t all the farmers put up identification signs?  Other than that, it’s the same old dry desert and dust. I keep reminding myself that it was once the bottom of the ocean. That makes it more tolerable for a minute or two. I stopped for groceries at a Stater Brothers store in Barstow and found everything I was looking for, then had a sub from a shop next door. Back on the road.
     Bakersfield looks like Phoenix from the Durango Curve, all tired old businesses in peeling metal buildings. There’s even an exit for University of Phoenix.              
     North on I-5 was when boring turned to awful. Traffic started to get heavy and I needed gas. I pulled into a Valero station in Kettleman City. I waited in line for gas for 20 minutes or more while cars cut in line and backed up to the pumps in front of me. Finally I could ease all 34 foot of me to the pump. Suddenly a man was banging on the RV. Apparently he had pulled in the other way and parked so close to me that when I eased forward, I put a three-foot scratch on the side of his pick up!  We exchanged insurance information. I got gas and pulled to the back of the station to calm down only to discover the passenger side mirror was hanging off the side, held only by the wires! Who can I get on a holiday evening to make repairs?
     I pulled out my tool box. I did not have any screws that would work. I went back to the gas station and bought some longer sheet metal screws and started back to the RV. A couple in a pickup pulled up. “You need help?” the driver called. “Yes, I do", I replied. Together we cut some concrete anchors to stuff in the holes and I held the mirror while he used a power screwdriver to put the longer screws in. I offered him $20 to buy dinner, but he said, “No, just pay if forward.”
     Adrenaline pumping, I drove for miles and finally pulled into a rest stop near Los Banos for the night. I walked Gracie and was grateful that I had made a cold chicken casserole (canned chicken, pineapple, green onion, red pepper, napolitos, and bulgur) the day before. Yogurt and my emergency York peppermint patty (I deserved it) for a treat. I slept fitfully, although it was cool and relatively quiet. First thing this morning I called the insurance company and filed a claim, then called the “victim” and gave him the claim number and the adjuster’s name.
     I can’t tell you the exact route after I-5. I set the GPS (I’ve named her Gypsy) and just followed her instructions. I ran into a massive traffic jam around Livermore, and went over a bridge at San Rafael that provided the first glimpse and smell of the Pacific Ocean. I started to calm down. I stopped for gas in Petaluma (the awning looked low, so I pulled at an angle so I could reach the hose to the tank without actually going under the awning), then stopped for lunch at a County Park, parked under the trees so Gracie and I could be outside. I checked the RV park guide and found a campground nearby at the fairgrounds in Santa Rosa. For $22.50 for the night I have water, electricity, shade and most importantly, a shower. So yesterday I travelled 430 miles and today 199, for a total of 976 so far.  
     I hooked up by myself (no, I’m not tackling the awning), but now the slide won’t come out. It might be a blown fuse. Tonight I don’t care. That’s a challenge for another day. I finally named my motorhome. She’s the Old Gray Goose, as in “The old gray goose she ain’t what she used to be.”