Moab, Utah

I am still in Moab, Utah and will be here until probably Tuesday when my medical supplies arrive.  I am in the OK RV Park which is pretty nice. I see the mountains surrounding us. It is really hot, and the only trees are fairly small ones between the campsites, but they don’t really provide shade for the RVs.

Photos of Moab, Utah

Due to the high temp’s, my little air conditioning unit doesn’t work very well. After it runs a while, the compressor shuts off which means it blows warm air until it cools or thaws and then it blows cool air again.  It’s just a fact of life with this type of AC unit which is sort of like a window AC unit in houses, only it runs on electricity or with my generator.  I really don’t like AC much, I prefer the regular air outside. But this high heat is an exception.  So, I let it run for a while when I can and then use a little portable fan to help keep it cool.  At night it does cool down a bit into the mid 70s.  I know it’s hot not just here but in many places around the USA.

As for my transmission, I had a mechanic take the van for a drive yesterday and it seems that the overdrive part of the transmission occasionally doesn’t shift into overdrive.  It works some of the time, but not all of the time. He said that the overdrive unit is a separate part of the transmission, so it can be changed without needing an entire new transmission.  Since this is a small town, it cannot easily be repaired here. I used the GPS feature to located Jimmy’s Transmission repair shop in Cortez, Colorado towards where I will be heading on Tuesday after my package arrives. It’s a 2 hour drive to Cortez, which is about 10 miles west of Mesa Verde National Park. The mechanic in Moab said that Jimmy’s Transmission in Cortez is a reputable repair shop and that they will do a good job with the repair.

I called Jimmys Transmission in Cortez, and spoke with Jim and explained my transmission problem.  He said he can fit me in the middle of next week, so I will head there and have it fixed and hopefully be at Mesa Verde National Park by Friday.  Since it’s Labor Day weekend, I am not sure if I can get a campsite in the park, but if not, there are other RV parks in the area. I also saw there is a Super Walmart, so if all else fails, I can use that parking lot. However, I really want to try and find a campground with electricity and water.

After feeling better having that appointment set up, and the mechanic here saying I am fine driving the van until I get to Cortez, I drove into town which is about 8 miles. I browsed through the little shops, and I found a small place that sells local made ice cream so I bought myself a raspberry chocolate chip ice cream cone which was really good!!! It hit the spot on a hot day. Of course I ate it in the shop.

I then went over to the Hogan Gallery where Cathy works and I got to visit with her and Jahn who also works there.  It was a really nice gallery. They have lots of Native American artwork, jewelry, and sculptures. They also have other items including large metal outdoor sculptures. I really was impressed by the large selection of beautiful pottery in such an amazing variety of colors.  I love pottery and have lots of pieces at home that I use to cook in and eat on.   I resisted temptation and did not buy any… but I did admire so many of them and would have loved to give them a good home.

Shortly after I left the gallery and was walking back to my van, it started to drizzle. The sky was getting dark.  I drove down the street to where there was a meeting and I sat in the van and waited until someone opened the door. While I was waiting, it began to rain really hard. Then the sun peeked out through some clouds and I saw a beautiful double full arc rainbow.  I grabbed my camera and took a picture, but it didn’t come out as vibrant as I was able to see it with my eyes.

I found a woman’s meeting and went, small group just 5 of us. But it was nice meeting new people and sharing our experiences.  While sitting in the meeting, in which we sat on large comfy sofas, I was able to look out the window and watch the rainbow.  What a cool experience to see a rainbow for such a long period of time.  The secondary rainbow was not as bright as the main one, but it still was pretty awesome to see 2 rainbows.

As I was driving back to the campground, it was getting dark and I saw LARGE lightening bolts horizontal to the skyline. I prayed and hoped that I would get back to the campground before it started to really pour so I could plug into the electrical outlet without any worry about being electrocuted.  I told God that I only needed about 10 more minutes to please hold off the rain for me… and God did!!!  I got to the site, it was just about dark. I plugged in, got in the camper, closed the door and the rain came down hard.  I read a book for a while and then went to sleep.

When I woke in the morning, the sky was blue and there were no clouds.  I went and took a shower which really felt good. I paid for 2 more nights, checked online and found out my package most probably will arrive on Tuesday, which is later than I hoped, but it will be okay.  Then I made breakfast and ate at the picnic table next to my camper.

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