Rough spots in the road

For a lifestyle that some building dwellers warned would be fraught with peril, my nomad life has been mostly smooth going. There was the cancer thing, but that had nothing to do with living in a van. And it worked out well, considering.

Now I have a significant van repair keeping me off the road and stuck in a Motel 6. The power steering pump and steering gear have rolled their last mile. Or to put it in the mechanic’s technical terms, “They’re puking fluid.” 

This isn’t the first steering system repair. There were the pitman and idler arms. Then the tie rod ends. And the stabilizer bar, twice. The power brake booster, which runs off pressure from the power steering pump, was also replaced. With my rudimentary mechanical understanding, I’ve come to believe the steering system breakdowns are the result of rough roads. The rocks, ruts and potholes try to make the wheels steer in directions other than the one I’m pointing them. Those forces get transmitted to the various steering components, causing stress and wear that shorten their lives. Sort of like with people. Except machines don’t regenerate themselves with rest and proper diet.

While I enjoy having plumbing, climate control and free wifi, I don’t want to be here. And I don’t want to spend the money. But, fortunately, luckily, and with generous assistance from my readers, the financial hit is survivable.

The Rolling Steel Tent should be fixed by late tomorrow. Or the next day. As of lunch today there were five others in line ahead of me. Then I’m out of here, off to new vistas and adventures. However, I’ll be cutting back on the amount of driving I do on nasty roads.