Chapter Twenty-Four
Supergluing the Car
May 12, 2009—Kanopolis to Arrow Rock: We once again woke up in a NASA wind tunnel, and had to keep the breakfast fire small although there was plenty of free firewood at the site. Also, the wind kept most of the heat from getting up to the grating, so I held the disposable frying pan with the eggs right down on the fire, and we had a tasty breakfast.
Today was fix-it day, and I started by gluing the trim over the Echo’s front tire.
Second fixit task: Airbed. My overly sensitive hearing is usually a disadvantage, but it pays off in the leak-finding department, and I was able to locate the pinprick leak hiding on the side of the airbed. I'm not sure what made the hole, but the PVC cement and duct tape repaired it in short order.
The next item on the agenda was to visit Lindsborg, Kansas, a town devoted to Swedish stuff. Lena had been looking forward to this ever since a bike forumite recommended it. Unfortunately, the place was a little depressing because, due to the recession, it was a ghost town. It reminded me of a science fiction movie in which all the residents of the town have mysteriously disappeared. Lena proclaimed the food 70% authentic, but it was good in any case.
The stretch to our next stop, Arrow Rock, Kansas, was slow because of the ferocious side wind. We love our Echo, but note that Consumer Reports magazine used the word “tilt-a-whirl” in describing it. The rain began ten miles short of Arrow Rock, and Lena was starting to use the "M" word ("Motel"). The rain stopped, but we could feel a huge storm in the air.
Arriving at the campground, I wanted to set up the tent immediately while Lena registered with the camp host. The problem was that the host talked exactly like Larry the Cable Guy, and he and Lena couldn't understand one another. So I had to translate.
Things turned out fine, and I got the tent up quickly. The awaited rain never came.
This peaceful campground had lush grass and free showers, with only two other campers. After eating our Subway sandwich and reading our books, we fell asleep expecting a symphony of thunder that never came. And the airbed stayed inflated. Yay!