A Flat and Friends

The day started out with a trial.  Traveling from Tucson to Casa Grande, we experienced our first tire issue-a blowout on one of the coach tires.  Luckily it was one of the rear tires and we were able to slow down and stop without further incident after hearing the “bang” sound a blowout produces.  But because it was an inside tire on the driver’s side (and that’s on the traffic side of the Interstate emergency lane) we could not really tell what had happened.  Luckily we were only half a mile from an exit and we were able to drive the coach off the Interstate and into a parking lot safely where we identified the problem.  We contacted a repair service and within an hour we were the proud owners of a new tire and alas relieved of several hundred dollars.  But to have experienced this without serious consequences is a good thing.  And for that we are grateful.  One of the greatest dangers it seems in driving a vehicle of this size is losing a front tire that can lead to being turned over on the side of the road.  We definitely don’t want to go through something like that. 

The day ended with a treasure-the treasure of friendship.  Spending a couple of hours with our friends at Ironwood was the highlight of the day.  Friendships forged over the three years we lived there are just as meaningful as ever and it feels like coming home again to be with our former neighbors.  It is awesome to see the community looking great and friends looking well.  At our collective ages, it is a relief to see so many who have not changed in our absence.  The only regret elicited during this delightful evening is that it had to come to an end.   But life moves on and so do we toward California and the beginning of our repeat adventure there.  I wish I had captured a photo of everyone there this evening, but we did not think of photos until long after almost everyone had left.  I suspect that too will prove to be a pleasure as we slip into familiar territory and then explore new roads to the north in Idaho.  Life is good and sure because we have friends and because we can still claim a growing edge in our lives.  And for all of this, we feel blessed.