Learn something new every day

I had some time to spare this morning so I decided to tackle the waste tanks. I got the cap off with no problem and a chunk of ice fell out, so the cap was probably frozen on and why I couldn't get it off yesterday. I hooked everything up and it worked beautifully. I thought, "This is a cakewalk!". I also put a lot of water into the fresh water tank, but now that I've taken a shower I should go and do everything all over again. I took time to chat with my neighbors, twin sons and their mom, who are traveling to visit family in CA for Christmas. We hope to possibly meet up again along the way.

I got on I-20W with no problem. It was foggy and visibility was ok but I was extra careful and left plenty of room. A lot of people were doing that. In a couple of hours the fog burned off and I was surprised to see a cotton field on one side. It still hadn't been picked, but I passed many fields that were harvested. I am always surprised how low to the ground cotton grows. I can't imagine picking it by hand, with a heavy sack thrown over your back and having to lean down that low. I once worked with a woman who had picked cotton as a child and she described the backbreaking work for very little pay.

As I drove on I marveled at the juxtaposition of oil drills on one side of the highway, and hundreds of windmills on the other - fossil fuel and the power of the wind. It went on for miles that way, both the drills and the mills set in among the cotton fields. Further down the road I was stunned to see what looked like ice at the sides of the roadway, and then realized it was all fluffy white cotton that escaped the bailing process.

Further along when a car pulled up alongside me and honked the horn, the man in the passenger seat pointing back to my rig. When I looked closely in the side mirror I saw that my storage compartment door for the waste tanks & hoses had come open. I swear I closed and locked it, but I guess not. I pulled over when I could and got out and secured it. The incident sure stuck a pin in the big balloon I was going to get for doing such a fantastic job of emptying the tanks!

I had planned to stop in Big Spring and in fact, got off the interstate, but never could find the RV park. A couple of calls to the phone # for the park just got me a recorded message. I followed directions from a clerk where I refueled, but after driving through downtown Big Spring for a pretty good distance, and listening to Ms. Garmin's frantic instructions to "turn left and then turn left", I decided to drive on to Midland. I had selected 3 possible parks in Midland, and had written them down with phone numbers, so I phoned the 2nd one and found they had a level pull-thru site, and I gave Ms. Garmin the new information so she could lead me to my destination. Whatta lady!

I didn't realize until I entered the city limits that Midland was the home of George & Laura Bush. It even has a skyline with some tall buildings!

I arrived at the CG at 3 pm and was very glad to shut down and hook up. I only hooked up the electricity and I should go out and do the water before it gets dark. On the other hand, maybe I could wait until my destination of El Paso tomorrow..... The campground is fine with plenty-wide spaces, but the ground is covered in a thick layer of fine dust. My black truck will look awful by the time we leave here, as will my 5th wheel.

It's nice to have free wi-fi again but I probably won't do much more than check out campgrounds for tomorrow night. I drove 6-1/2 hrs today, which is an hour more than I intended, and I can feel the tension seeping out of me.

I will say I am getting adjusted pretty quickly to the life of RV'ing, but it's like being on a balance beam. I do something very well - lean to the right, and then something really dumb - lean to the left. I suppose as long as I keep coming back to center I'll be fine.