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Greetings, FROM THE ROAD! Hallelujah and praise the RV angels, Das Bus is fixed! The correct part arrived this morning, and Mercedes of Medford popped it in quick as a wink. Get this…the Mercedes dealership offers free massages while you wait; so guess what else I did while I was there! Tracy, their masseuse, is amazing. I tried to stuff her in the RV and take her home with me, but she’s quite strong. James was thrilled I got the massage, it gave him free reign over the RV re-pack. He likes things “just so,” so getting me out of the way so he could unload the garbage bag contents in peace made his life much easier. He calls me his “anti-system,” since he claims I’m  always messing with his systems of efficiency. Ha! Mostly I just like to mess with him. We actually turned on the TV last night in the Royal Regency Inn. There was a show we settled on called “Big Bang Theory,” a sitcom about a bunch of nerdy smart guys living together. Totally reminded me of James.

We just crossed the border into Nevada. The vacation-that-didn’t-happen is now officially over. I’m having all sorts of mixed feelings about this experience. Disappointment? A little, but not really. Amusement? Yeah, I guess some of that. But you know what hits me the most? Appreciation. Not for the experience itself, but for the people we met along the way. People who we would have otherwise never come across in our lifetimes. Starting with Joe, the Klamath Falls gas station attendant when our RV initially broke down who bent over backwards trying to help us get it started. Then Carla from Homewood Suites, who met all our requests…from storing our food and bikes to listening to us vent as new drama unfolded each day. And Scott from Mercedes of Medford worked so hard for us, arranged the free hotel room for us (and the Honeymoon Suite to boot!), and even helped us plan all the fun things we did in the area while we waited.

James’ reaction to getting the repair bill from Scott. (Not really, it was actually cheaper than we thought)

So, to all of you Medford people who we met, we send much thanks for making what could have otherwise been a hell week a pretty cool experience. Isn’t that how life goes? You set expectations on how things should go; heck, you might even put together a binder of what should happen each day, and then BAM! There’s a detour sign. But the thing is, sometimes detours take you past some pretty amazing countryside. “Plan to have your plans change.” Okay. I’m cool with that phrase once again.