Our last destination on the road was Minneapolis, where my extended family resides. We stayed in a nice campground in a distant suburb. Which causes me to wonder…
Why are there no RV Parks nearby ANY city?
My father, urban-planner extraordinaire ‘splained me part of the reason: RVer’s are well known to be undesirable sorts!?
While that may be true in our case, the demographics of the folks we have met on the road are anything but. Generally retired. Often travelling in RVs that exceed the cost of the median home. Towing a car that is also above average in cost and below average in age. We may be (proudly) “Trailer Trash,” but we have disposable funds and the inclination to spend them. Seems like a business opportunity to me!!!
Some medical challenges facing my niece, who’s grace under pressure was and is truly inspiring. Liz and I were absolutely awed with her attitude and excellent spirits. We did what we could for a couple weeks to help relieve boredom. This included delivering 17 DQ Blizzards for her birthday (her snap-chat name for me is ”DQ HOG”, but she can hold her own).
We also did a little bit of her math homework together. Let’s just say that I wasn’t much of a mathematician back in the day, and a bout with Vector Arithmetic did not have it “all coming back to me.” As we struggled with the concepts, she asked me several times, “How am I ever gonna use this in my life?” Generally never at a lost for words, I struggled to answer that one. Best I could do was a theoretical “practical” application:
Assume Uncle Dan wants to launch 17 blizzards towards you from Chicago (Vector specified). Assume the wind was out of the North-East (vector Specified). Given the velocities of the launch and the wind, what actual launch vector should be used to compensate for wind and ensure the blizzards land at the appropriate location.
If my niece manages to solve this problem, she will either work for NASA plotting paths for rockets, or for Google Delivery. Or if not, she can have a long and successful ART CAREER. Hopefully she will still talk to Uncle Dan.
Before leaving MPLS, Liz learned to make a new cookie from our niece…the BEST COOKIE EVER. Cannot share the recipe (which she invented from whole cloth), as this may be her college fund in the making. But I can share a surprising ingredient…MILK DUDS.
Also before leaving Minneapolis, B-In-Law David tried out the Clown Car. David is 7’+. He fits!
Leaving Minneapolis, we headed back towards Chicago and a few weeks at “home.” Along the way, we had a minor bus repair done at a Caterpillar dealer in Bloomington, MN. Good to know that ANY CAT Dealer will gladly work on the old 3208 engine. Gives us lots of options. Anyway, needed replacement of the cooling system thermostat, and a quick look-over the cooling and power steering system.
A GOOD DAY in bus maintenance is when a mechanic’s bill is less than 4-digits. This was a VERY good day!