The tail end of summer 2017, and it hasn’t been a great summer so far for me. Too much personal stress, likely a pretty good sign I needed to work on my own self a bit. Ah well, self improvement can wait until the long nights of winter, when there is nothing to distract, and only the endless hours of darkness ahead. For now, enjoy the last month of warmth and sunshine. The back to school flyers are circulating already, reaching out to drag summer bronzed young people back to the stuffy classrooms. I emphasis with their distress, and deal with my own problems in my time tested way.
I ran away. Funny how when the problem is in your head, it tends to follow.
The new (to us) RV had already been tested on a voyage to BC, out to a festival near Hope. I had been holding the RV in a state of mild distrust, fearing the RV gods would demand a mechanical sacrifice. They so often turn their eyes to the festival crowd, cutting down vehicles on the path to an event. Of course, most festival RVs have only a passing encounter with anything resembling regular maintenance, so the rate of attrition was hardly surprising. By the time an RV ends up at a festival, it has usually seen a few years. Our RV (yet to be named to mutual satisfaction) had made it up and over the Coquehalla, and even back again! This mountain pass sees quite a few break downs, and an overheating leading to vehicle fire is not an unusual event. When our RV trundled over the summit and happily down the other side, I had breathed a sigh of relief. A quick visual inspection of the brakes on the other side showed no serious signs of overheating either. I felt my heart open a bit, to allow this new vehicle in. I had accepted it, and was now prepared to shoulder the upkeep. Not uncomplainingly mind you, I reserve the right to bitch at the mechanical trials I endure.
We left Edmonton comically and unsurprisingly much later than anticipated. I find this does actually help me now, as I have lots of time to let my mind wander as I wait. I usually remember the last few things I ought to pack, and my rate of forgotten items is much less than it used to be. A last minute visit with Justin’s family, and we were off into the growing darkness. Eager to put some kms behind us, I had purchased an energy drink, and had a compelling audio book all ready to go. On the highway, I set the cruise control, and sunk into the world that was being described to me. I eagerly set aside my own problems to listen to the struggles and triumphs of the characters in the audio book. All they needed was a magic sword to find their way thru. Ah, escapism.
Rain pattered down on the wide windshield, with the wipers making comically staggered swipes to clear. Ye olde mechanical linkage with leverage points. Less than a smooth effect for wipers, but long lasting and effective. The rain was no doubt dragging the smoke that hung over most of BC down, and I had hopes for a glorious morning. Perhaps I would see it from behind the steering wheel, perhaps just the next day when I woke up. There is a certain freedom to travelling with your bed already set up. Justin dozed on the couch behind the passenger seat. I tried to drive gently, and did a much better job this trip of not hitting the rumble strips. That was never a fun way to wake up. The hours passed, and eventually the stimulants lost the battle. We had made good progress in the night hours, the road mostly empty and nothing to stop me from taking the corners as fast as I dared, other than consideration for my sleeping partner and a healthy dash of fear for top heavy vehicles and their relation to gravity. I pulled the RV into a vacant lot in Blue River in the hours before dawn. Several other RVs had stopped here, all facing the same direction and quiet. A herd of lumbering beasts bedded down for the night, grouped together for protection from predators. In this case, an over zealous park warden was our most likely harasser.
Justin wanted to sleep without moving much more than he felt like driving. I couldn’t blame him, the BC roads had been less than restful. We curled up in the bed, grasping an hour or two before the sun would rise over the mountains we knew surrounded us.
Wherever you are, Be There 