Always Want To Go

Steve and I, as we often do, on the spur of the moment, decided to take a 5-6 day RV trip up to Oklahoma for a surprise visit to my sister. What could possibly go wrong?

We thought we’d just wander north and see where we ended up for a few days, visit my sister, and then wander home. We loaded up our dogs, Tank, and Lilly, and headed north but there is no way we could have foreseen how our first trip day would go. This is Steve’s story to tell and he relates it here.

Steve’s Story

By the grace of God, we were given the love of a dog hero!

What can I say? I feel a loss for those who haven’t shared the love of a dog. I have had many dogs in my lifetime, and each one has a special place in my memories. The only flaw I can find in each one is they were not around as long as I wanted them to be.

Each one stole my heart, and each one broke my heart when I had to say goodbye. Sad or happy, each one has unselfishly been there for me. Each one made me laugh when I needed one. Not a one was perfect or what I would call the smartest dog, but each one was unique in their own way.

It is said, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” and each one was beautiful. A dog’s breed has never been a priority, and each puppy found me by circumstance; I didn’t find them. This is a story about a magical dog named Tank.

Tank has a dry weight of 22 pounds, but he has the heart of a 100-pound bulldog. I say dry weight because he isn’t always dry. He loves a good mud puddle.

His love of strangers can be intrusive. I think he is intelligent but not well-disciplined. He can make a game out of stealing one my socks while I am getting dressed, and in a hurry, and he steals dryer sheets if given a chance. Has the energy of 10 hunting dogs but can snuggle like a teddy bear.

He has one blue eye and one brown eye, and his assigned breed is Shih-Tzu. We discovered, through DNA testing, there was a poodle in the mix three generations back, which accounts for his long legs and disproportionate body. He is a beautiful animal and has a lovely brown and white long fluffy coat.

He doesn’t shed, which is good. He can run and jump above the average for a dog his size. Tank has a short nose, wide mouth, crooked teeth with an overbite, and those different colored eyes. He always appears mischievous, which does match his personality.

If you listen carefully, Tank will attempt to talk to you in a very unusual way. It is almost like he is trying to speak human.

Tank the hero

I am trying to describe a hero. I absolutely believe Tank saved our lives. Debbie and I, along with Tank and his sister, Lilly, struck out on another RV adventure this past week. Our only plan was a short visit with Debbie’s sister in Oklahoma.

We did not have overnight reservations or an exact route to follow to get us to Oklahoma. We have discovered this plan without a plan so often leads us to great adventures and exciting sites.

Our ALL day trip to Buffalo Bayou

We had driven as far as downtown Houston, about 40 miles from home. We were traveling on the elevated portion of Interstate 45 when Tank started barking, trying to climb into my lap, generally acting up.

He had done this a very few times before when he needed a bathroom break, but this was very unusual because Tank was targeting me while I was driving. He had never done that before, and it was very early in the trip for him to want a potty break. We had no choice after several attempts to calm him down but to exit the freeway and stop.

I knew Buffalo Bayou City Park was nearby, just off the highway, and that would possibly provide parking for a 33-foot motorhome. We were indeed fortunate enough to find a perfect parking place that got us out of traffic in front of the park with lots of grassy areas.

As we approached the parking place, I heard the right rear side begin to make a noise and felt a wobble. I stopped the vehicle, got out, inspected the rear tires of the RV, and found to my complete shock and surprise that all the lug nuts on the right rear wheel had sheared off!

It defied all logic as to why I didn’t lose the wheels on the freeway, which could have had a catastrophic and possibly fatal accident on a crowded freeway. The RV was performing flawlessly up until we pulled off the highway, and I had neither felt nor heard any issues. Tank, incidentally, when given the opportunity, did not need a bathroom break at all!

He either heard something or just sensed something wasn’t right. Either way, he was telling me to stop—we credit Tank for saving us from a disaster that day.

We called Good Sam (highly recommended) for roadside assistance. The Good Sam representative sent a wrecker driver who advised us the RV should not be towed. Miraculously though, he was able to refer us to a mobile mechanic who assured us he could repair the RV onsite and would get to our location soon.

This mobile mechanic service was a superb experience. If you own a large truck or RV, A&S Fleet Services, Inc. contact information is handy to have: steven.s@aandsfleetservices.com, 832.503.1972. The mechanic replaced the lugs on the wheel, and we were able to safely be on our way. We endured a mere five-hour delay but were comfortable in the RV’s air conditioning as we waited.

I have added another precheck item to my list before taking off on a road trip, checking all of the wheel lugs for proper torque.

Finally on our way

It took our great mechanic Steven and his co-worker about half an hour to repair the damage to the wheel and lug nuts. Steven assured us our wheel was good to go and that the RV was perfectly safe for travel so we “got back on the horse” and headed north.

What a grand trip we had too! We’ll talk about our adventures in next week’s post.

Me, Tank and Lilly, in the RV

Grandchildren are the best!

Right after we contacted Good Sam to request a wrecker we begin calling family members to come to our rescue. We initially believed the RV would be towed and we would need a ride home.

We were very fortunate that our grandson, Hunter, was able to break away from his workday and drive all the way downtown to help us out. Hunter waited so patiently with us until we were certain the mechanic could fix our problem. We appreciate him dropping everything to help the old folks out!