And then this happened ...

          A smidgen less than 2 miles from our Medford home the U-Haul trailer carrying our RAV4 developed a flat tire. The sidewall portion spontaneously disassembled allowing the tread to wander about independent of the wheel.

          After nearly one thousand six hundred miles of driving I was stranded as Linda drove the RAV4 to our long anticipated destination. About 99.9% of the trip was trouble free but that last 0.1% destroyed me as I was forced to endure the scenery of the Rogue River Valley while waiting an hour for roadside assistance to put it all right. Yep, it's always the 0.1% that screw it up for the rest of us.


Flat Tire
The tread of the front right tire should be hidden from view.

          May all your trials and travails be so trivial and pleasant. At last, I am home at last.

RIP

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Fighting for democratic principles,... well, since forever

inconvenienced. It could have been much worse.

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"Religion is what keeps the poor from murdering the rich."--Napoleon

PriceRip's picture

@dkmich

          ... when I said to her, "This is not exactly the way I intended to get to know you." I thought I might be able to make it to the U-Haul center, but it was rush hour traffic and with the blown wheel 20 mph was the max I could travel. So, as she opined, "I can't let you move this vehicle."

Smile

          So, my charmed life is still working and I have made a couple of more connections.

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riverlover's picture

Bad things always happen en route. I am glad to hear all is well, save one tire.

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Hey! my dear friends or soon-to-be's, JtC could use the donations to keep this site functioning for those of us who can still see the life preserver or flotsam in the water.

thanatokephaloides's picture

.... come off the car I was driving once, at freeway speed.

Needless to say, non commendo!

Glad you're now home and OK!

Smile

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"US govt/military = bad. Russian govt/military = bad. Any politician wanting power = bad. Anyone wielding power = bad." --Shahryar

"All power corrupts absolutely!" -- thanatokephaloides

PriceRip's picture

@thanatokephaloides

          While driving down a long winding mountain road my dad laughed as he saw a wheel roll by exclaiming, "Some poor bastard lost a wheel!" Moments later as he turned a corner his car tilted and the back bumper hit the pavement with many sparks and much excitement ensued.

          While traveling along I-80N (now known as I-84) my friend's station wagon lost both rear wheels in quick succession. As the car scrapped along the pavement Gordon managed to steer it off the roadway after it had spun around and was traveling backward for a time.

          This trip was so very smooth, particularly when you factor in that we passed very close to the tornado activity in Wyoming and Nebraska a few days ago.

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Get there tired, and soon the cold (cough and sinus) for a couple of weeks. Some just travel well Smile Lucky you! Had to leave a fully loaded trailer behind to get to the destination on time to start a job and sign the lease, then had to travel 1/2 way across the US to get the trailer later Blum 3 The tires on one side decided to leap off the trailer axle on a narrow highway at altitude. Thankfully, I no longer own that beast and am settled Smile

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Fighting for democratic principles,... well, since forever

PriceRip's picture

@fight2bfree

          From time to time someone will say, "It's all in your head." as though it's not really real. I have been fortunate that my driving experiences are mostly very relaxing. Even the near death experiences have turned out to be mostly simply exhilarating. I should have been a long haul driver. Easy peasy, no big deal. Just cruising down the highway ... sometimes slip-sliding away ...

[video:http://youtu.be/4Dx5QQfWRuU?t=20]

          For me it's the death stress by a thousand cuts decisions as we are getting everything ready. This last packing up routine was particularly difficult in ways that are hard to fathom or even describe.

          Being settled and no longer dealing with "that beast" sounds sweet. All the best,

RIP

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@PriceRip
the part that's all in our heads.

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The earth is a multibillion-year-old sphere.
The Nazis killed millions of Jews.
On 9/11/01 a Boeing 757 (AA77) flew into the Pentagon.
AGCC is happening.
If you cannot accept these facts, I cannot fake an interest in any of your opinions.

and at home at last. Peace and Long Life.

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Unabashed Liberal's picture

no one was injured. Should be quite a change; hope you share some of your impressions as you adjust to another region of the country.

Good luck!

Mollie


"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage."--Lao Tzu

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Everyone thinks they have the best dog, and none of them are wrong.

PriceRip's picture

@Unabashed Liberal @Unabashed Liberal

          Oh Yeah, I tend to "over-share" at times. The people here are quite different here in the Bear Creek Valley at least in one respect. Driving in rush hour traffic is so much better (as in nicer) here than in central Nebraska.

          I think I am going to really like living in this valley.

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flowerfarmer's picture

@PriceRip My dad lived in Medford for a decade before his death. It is an incredibly beautiful area...and the farmers markets are awesome. There is a butcher , about 1/2 hour north, who specializes in local game, everything from bison, elk and venison and even more obscure meats.
Enjoy the gorgeous air, the friendly neighbors and still wild beauty of the mountains and seashore.

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PriceRip's picture

@flowerfarmer

          Thanks for the heads-up. We were just lamenting that we had to leave behind our outstanding source of Bison bison. Could you be a bit more specific as to where this butcher is located. If not, no problem as I will enjoy the hunt.

Smile

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snoopydawg's picture

I was driving on a very busy freeway and I had no idea that had happened, but drivers that saw it noticed it and I pulled over. After I looked at the tire, I went inside the trailer and saw that it was a good thing that I stopped when I did because it almost started a fire. Inside the trailer it was full of smoke.
This was before I had a cell phone so I walked down the freeway to use a call box. A tow truck took the dawgs and me to get the tire repaired. After he was done fixing it and I went to pay for it, he told me no charge. This happened on Memorial Day so you can imagine the traffic.

I'm glad that you got home in one piece. It's always something, isn't it?

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Which AIPAC/MIC/pharma/bank bought politician are you going to vote for? Don’t be surprised when nothing changes.

orlbucfan's picture

@snoopydawg Yep, and Shi(t)e Happens. Both observations are universal, true, and sum up life. PR, congratulations on returning home. Smile Glad you stayed safe! Many grateful thanks for your help on scenic places to see in OR. Our PNW ride was simply.....magnificent. Your corner of the country is vastly different from mine. It's clean, environmentally lush and green, and folks in both OR and WA are mellow. The legal pot stores (aka head shops) were a hoot!! We did a wide circle so skipped Seattle. We definitely plan on coming back. Rec'd!! Smile

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Inner and Outer Space: the Final Frontiers.

PriceRip's picture

@orlbucfan

          The East-West dimension of Oregon is five centimeters larger now than when we signed our purchase agreement five years ago. As the state is stretched the "vertical" fissures slip allowing adjacent fault blocks to tilt.

          I am happy that you enjoyed your PNW ride and hope you have many more.

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PriceRip's picture

@snoopydawg

          A "pay it forward" kind of moment. There is some good in the world.

          That and the other drivers letting you know something was wrong. We wouldn't have known anything was wrong until someone took a moment to tell us as we rolled to a stop at a light. As many here have said before, the only way we will survive is if we look out for each other.

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Lenzabi's picture

Glad this came to be a tale of humorous proportions and not an accident of the usual kind. At least U-Haul could collect the truck. They are usually good about issues when the trucks fail. But what are the odds it gave out so close to your home? and oh, to be forced to look at that beautiful scenery(sans highway). Blum 3

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So long, and thanks for all the fish

PriceRip's picture

@Lenzabi

          I really dislike the telephone decision tree nonsense, but once I was able to get through to a real live person all went relatively smoothly. You cannot see it for all the trees, buildings, and interstate bridge structures, but the U-Haul center is a line of sight location just to the right of the scene shown. Yep, so close yet so far.

Yes 3

          So, I was able to drop off the (now empty) trailer and drive the fully loaded truck to my home. By the way, if you ever move to Medford, Sallie & Mike Fraioli run the awesome "Sam's Moving" company out of Central Point. Both times we used their service the guys that unloaded our stuff were really into making it a very pleasant process.

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Lenzabi's picture

@PriceRip
I do so miss Oregon!

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So long, and thanks for all the fish

i've never forgotten that one.

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The earth is a multibillion-year-old sphere.
The Nazis killed millions of Jews.
On 9/11/01 a Boeing 757 (AA77) flew into the Pentagon.
AGCC is happening.
If you cannot accept these facts, I cannot fake an interest in any of your opinions.

them.

the one that has baffled me for 30 years is, "An Adventure in Moving".

who the hell wants moving to be an adventure? moving and banking have this one thing in common: both should be as boring as hell to the participants.

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0 users have voted.

The earth is a multibillion-year-old sphere.
The Nazis killed millions of Jews.
On 9/11/01 a Boeing 757 (AA77) flew into the Pentagon.
AGCC is happening.
If you cannot accept these facts, I cannot fake an interest in any of your opinions.