The last 2 months before coming on vacation has seen us spend a lot of time, money and effort to ensure our aging (but well-loved and completely paid off) Expedition was in excellent shape for a cross-country trip. We replaced every single belt and hose, rotated and balanced the tires (had them checked to be sure they were okay and they still have 10k left on them), fixed an AC we didn't know was broken, had the alignment done and the tires balanced a second time. We were more than ready. As we pull out of Asheville, after grocery shopping on the day we're arriving, heading up and down the mountainous terrain, the brakes start to make this stuttering action... GREAT! Well, we've not really left the cabin except to travel within 5 or so miles a couple of times, so we've not worried about it.. till Thursday night.
I took the kids down to the bottom of the mountain and then up a few miles along a road with which I was unfamiliar. It was dark, was raining, there was steam coming up off of the narrow, winding, steeply climbing and falling road and I was on my way to pick up my kids and the brakes were acting up. Being a mom, I naturally began to play out this horrific scenario in my head. (I've spoken to other moms who say they do the same thing, but curiously, never have found a dad who does this.) So, I come home and tell Jethro about my vision of me crashing my car on the way to get the kids... I hadn't brought my cell phone, but it wouldn't have mattered cuz my ICE is Jethro at work and I didn't have my purse so no-one would know who I was.. maybe they would have found my insurance card and then seen the Wolf Laurel security sticker on the windshield and maybe they wouldv'e called WL and how long would all of that have taken?? and what about the kids? sitting there the whole time with strangers? and how would Jethro be able to go and pick them up? and I didn't even have the number to the cabin memorized?!!!
So the next morning, Jethro (who is a dad and doesn't realize that we moms think stuff like this all of the time) gets up and takes the car to get the brakes done. NINE HOURS AND $600 LATER, HE COMES HOME!!! I tell you what! (as my mom says) Boy, isn't THAT the way YOU want to spend an entire day of your vacation?!
Picture is by the Trout Pond where we caught the fish... about 200 steps from our cabin.
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