Thursday, December 7, 2017

Brisket, Blues & Boiling Radiators

 Tuesday morning found Suzanne at her laptop...


 ...and me heading out in the car to do some grocery shopping. The Piggly Wiggly that Google  claimed was the closest grocery store to my location turned out to be no longer in existence so I crossed Elvis Presley Blvd to see what Aldi had to offer. I had to insert a quarter into a device on the handle of my shopping cart to release it from the chain that attached it to the next cart - the first time I've encountered such a contraption.  It was kind of a sketchy part of town (a good portion of Memphis is kinda sketchy) so I'm guessing shopping carts here have a habit of walking away.
   Aldi turned out to be a bust - a small store with a poor selection. Wanting to have something to show for my $.25 investment, I threw a bunch of bananas and some chicken into my cart but returned them to stock when I saw there was a single register open with half a dozen people waiting in line. On the way to the Walmart Supercenter I spotted a Kroger that looked promising... and it turned out to be just the ticket.
   I practiced my guitar for a couple of hours in the afternoon and went for a 4 mile run with Travis.  He was a good boy and didn't lollygag even a little. On our way back into the RV park I spotted this sign...

                                    We're literally staying down at the end of lonely street!

   We wanted to sample some genuine Memphis barbecue. Our RV park host recommended Marlowe's - about a two mile drive from Graceland RV Park. We both ordered the brisket and it was delicious! There are leftovers in the fridge.




  From Marlowe's we headed for downtown Memphis and Beale Street.  It was a very cool place. The section of Beale where all the hot blues clubs are located was blocked off for automobile traffic. We parked and went into the first bar we came upon, Rum Boogie Cafe.  The entertainment for this particular night was Vince Johnson and The Plantation Allstars - a good band and fun to listen to.


After enjoying a couple hours of music and libations we strolled along Beale - pausing occasionally to listen to the music coming from almost every door we passed.



Then we retrieved the car and headed back to G.L. RV Park... and here's where the story gets interesting...

    As we were pulling into the RV park (a nine mile trip) Suzanne realized she had forgotten her purse at the bar. We called RBC and were told they had found it and that it would be waiting for us behind the bar. I had to use the bathroom so I ran into the coach, took care of business and decided to take Travis along for the ride into town and back. About 3/4 of the way there I came to a stop light and noticed steam coming from under the hood.  We were in another VERY sketchy part of town but I had no choice but to pull into the Yummy BBQ & gas station across the intersection and call AAA. I went inside to ask the attendant the address so I could relay the info to AAA - he was sitting behind inch thick bullet-proof glass. Wonderful.
     Having placed the call to AAA I went back out to the car and opened the hood to see what I could see and there was no obvious break in a hose. I then crawled underneath to have a look and still couldn't locate the problem.  We decided it would be best to call for a lyft ride for Suzanne back to Rum Boogie to get her purse and then back to the RV park. Travis and I hitched a ride with the ramp truck driver as the garage we decided to take the car to was about a mile beyond the RV park.
    There must be an adrenaline rush that accompanies situations like this because lifting my 85 lb Golden Retriever 6' up into the cab of the ramp truck didn't seem all that difficult. He was a little anxious during the ride home though.
    Anyway, long story short, I got a call from the repair facility a couple hours ago and it was apparently just low on coolant. They're going to do a flush and refill.  I had visions of head gaskets dancing in my head. Bullet dodged.
 
  The adventure continues...


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