I Hit the Road Tomorrow

Location: Highway 509 RV Park; Mansfield, Louisiana

I've spent the last few days getting ready to roll on down the road. I think I have taken care of everything needing to be done to both Freedom and Liberty, but after sitting for so long, only time will tell.

Besides being tired from getting things ready, I'm also feeling a combination of excitement and worry about pulling out tomorrow. I've camped at more than 120 campgrounds in the last 18 months but I feel as though it is the first time all over again. I know I mentioned that in the last post but I can't seem to shake the feeling. The tow tomorrow is only about 125 miles to Tyler State Park in Tyler, Texas. It should also be an easy drive with most of it on interstate highways. Oh well, I have the windshield cleaned and ready to snap pictures along the way.


   

I changed the anode rod in the water heater. Looking at the one I took out, I could have waited another 6 months or so. 

I aired up all my tires. I was glad none were really low. I also emptied all three waste tanks and gave them a good flushing using the Flush King. I don't use it very often but it is a good way to flush the tanks. I have a black tank flush on the RV and it works pretty well, but when I have plenty of time and water, the Flush King is the way the go. I also had to throw away one of my sewer hoses since it sprung a leak. It was a good hose and lasted almost 2 years.

I replaced my no-lube disc on the kingpin. I also cleaned the kingpin and re-lubed it with fresh white lithium grease. 

A picture of the living room after getting everything stowed away. All of the floors were mopped, the carpet areas vacuumed, and everything dusted. It was needed. :)

I had a small leak in the plumbing under my sink. After taking the piping apart, I found this set of two keys in the sink trap. I don't recognize them and I haven't missed any keys. I wonder if the workers at the factory are missing some keys. LOL. Oh, by the way, the leak was fixed and shouldn't be a problem again. 

I'm been stationary for a little shy of 3 months. During that time I have seen my son go from being completely paralyzed in his right leg and arm to being able to walk, drive his truck and take care of his personal needs. He will still be going to Physical/Occupational Therapy for a couple months so as to re-connect as many brain connections as possible. During his whole ordeal, he has handled it with honor and determination. So many people would have folded under such pressure. He accepted the reality of what had happened to him and proceeded to adjust and adapt to the new person he was to become. It is like the old story that goes,,, "whenever something major happens in your life, you should not say,,, 'what is going to happen to me now?'; instead you should say 'who am I going to be now?'. Every major event in our lives, both positive and negative, changes who we are. Of course our basic beliefs and core values remain unchanged, since those are the foundation upon which we build our new lives. I'm very proud of the way my son has handled all of the bad cards he has been dealt.

I think it will be good to sleep in a new place tomorrow. I am again reminded of a quote from the movie Shawshank Redemption, which is not one of my favorite movies, but I do like this quote. It is spoken by the character "Red", played by Morgan Freeman. Red is an old man who has spent most of his life in prison but has been recently paroled. He is sitting on a bus that is to take him to where his friend, who escaped from prison, is living. Red is looking out an open window on the bus and thinks to himself,,,"I find I'm so excited that I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it's the excitement only a free man can feel. A free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain.".

Something only a "free man" can feel. Yep. I agree.
That excitement is doubled, because of the "conclusion is uncertain". 

Ya'll take care of each other. I'll Cya down the road.