technical notes #7

okay, it is also time for my technical notes and truck update. this cycle started on october 4th in lancaster, nh. it ended yesterday in virginia beach, va. it lasted 42 days. my miles and miles per gallon have taken a hit because i have done an awful lot of idling while i was stuck in norfolk and city driving in richmond. still things look good.

	current cycle	total trip
miles	1519	11951
gallons	74.1	498.6
dollars	188.8	1297.1
mpg avg	20.5	24
costpg avg	2.54	2.60
days	41	183

the other day, in norfolk, i forgot to mention something. it was when the storm was clearing, after i had been in my truck for more than a day, i was driving slow through water logged streets and all of a sudden i hear a loud POP! sound (like something had fallen off) and then a dragging sound. hazards go on, i slow down and pull over as quick as i could.

i was horrified, i thought "what else could go wrong!" a large part of the city is waterlogged and many places are closed. i have been stuck in my truck for so long and now something is broken. ye gods have looked unfavorably on me. so i got out and looked - i didnt see anything.

so i got back in and kept going. i still hear this dragging sound and am still mortified, i cannot afford for something to be wrong. so i stop again and get out. the ground is soaked, but i cant care about that right now. i have to see what is the problem. my clothes are already wet, but i bet on my hands and knees, then on my stomach and under the truck. i have to find the problem.

and i did. it was a set of balloons that had blown from who knows where to under my truck. the popping sound was them, well, popping. and the dragging sound was the string that had wrapped around something and the spent balloons flapping against something on the underside of my truck.

i was very relieved, i chuckled to myself, but i was also now completely soaked from being under the truck...and i was dirty, so i had to go change my clothes. i meant to add it to the other story as a bit of suspense, but i forgot.

other than that, the truck is taking on water and is slowly deteriorating. but thats to be expected, i think getting south and into warmer/nicer weather will be appreciated by all.