Unexpected Truck Issues = Stamp Organization Day!

We are almost through Texas, which is not one of our favorites states. Yesterday was going to be our last night there, but... our truck's front brakes started grabbing on I10 while we were cruising along... scary stuff. They smoked and smelled horrible so we thought it would be best to get them inspected and fixed before going any further.

We had not experienced any braking issues until this happened. Our truck is older, and has always been an RV hauler. We have no idea when the brakes were maintained last, but we do have them checked before each major trip, which as we now know means nothing really. Upon visual inspection they looked to be just fine. Of course the location on I10 where we pulled over had no internet service so I brought out my handy Passport America book to look for the closest RV campground. Luckily even though we did not have 4g, we were able to call around to confirm a place to stay.

We decided that the next town ahead was over 35 miles versus a shorter 14 mile trek backwards, so back we went. We took side roads so we could go slow and stop as needed. Texas has "Frontage" roads along its major highways, which we thought was silly, but now not so much! They proved to be very handy for us.

Many Passport America RV parks allow multiple nights at the 50% off rate, and we figured we should be able to get the work done on the truck within three nights. Normally we choose larger RV parks, but in this case location was key. Riverside RV Park in Ingram Texas had one site left and we took it. They were wonderful hosts, I highly recommend them for an overnight or two. 

Riverside was a walkable distance to Hub's chosen brake shop. Because we chose to break our own rule and travel on a weekend, we had to wait until the next day to try to get an appointment. We will be adhering to our no weekend travel rule from now on!

Hub gave me the full update this evening at dinner. He was there around 7:30am and the person who opened the shop said the tech would not be in until 8am and that their next available slot was Thursday...but then Hub luck happened, the tech magically had a cancellation just that AM so our truck was fixed and ready to be picked up by noon! That would NEVER happen for me, but seems to ALWAYS happen to Hub. 

So on Monday while Hub dealt with the truck and got lots of walking in. I worked on my physical sentiment index binder. I have organized it and made a quick video to share. Video length 5 min 2 sec.

It is a rare thing for me to have a combined "stamping AND camping" article.