Chasing My Tail and Lighting that Sucker Afire!

Too Many Days Like That One... and... KaPOW!

The day started off just fine. I had a long list of stops and errands I had to run. The last was to pick up some remaining plumbing parts to complete the Water Heater replacement on the fifth wheel.

I picked up those parts, without engaging the grey mush twixt my ears. Then, when attempting to assemble those parts into a working water heating system... They FAILED.

I had water leaking where it hadn't been before!

I put the exact same parts (Only fresh ones) into place as Jayco had done eleven years ago when they built the trailer... and had somehow worked for those eleven years... only when I did it... THEY FAILED... JUST AS THEY SHOULD HAVE!

Yup... The morons at Jayco installed COMPRESSION nipples into 1/2" NPT fittings on the water tank. Which... kinda makes me a BIGGER MORON for going to work with my  brain pan in Neutral and repeating their stupidity don't it? Especially considering that THEY made it work? :)

For those not familiar with plumbing; NPT threads are cut on a tapered tube, Compression are the same thread rate but cut into a straight tube... Trying to mix the two is Kinda the proverbial square peg in the round hole sort of a deal. It don't ever work... except for Jayco for the last eleven years... I can't even begin to explain that!

So... once I pulled my head out of that stuffy place where the sun don't shine and got the RIGHT parts (taking two trips for forgotten/overlooked bits)... ~My! Ain't the light bright out here? and the air is so fresh! ;) ~

...I ALMOST got the thing working again... Yeah... Almost. Had to make yet another trip to town to get that one lil' plastic "Tool" that I have around here... somewhere... And just can't find... grrrrr.... to take apart the parts that are designed to come apart easy... and now WON'T... %$#@%#$%% !!!!

In case you aren't aware... that last lil' bit is the international language symbol for Blue Smoke, Bad Names and Dirty Words...

... but now, after three more trips chasing bits and pieces, we've got hot water again... that even stays inside the plumbing!

Well good. Now Z and I can shine the day up ambushing chicken thieving Coons here at my good friends place... as soon as he gets here.

So he arrives with a fancy lil' electronic gizmo the salesman assured him would call in a coon in broad daylight! We turn it on and sit in our comfortable chairs whispering so as not to "Scare" the coons... as this thing squalls and screeches a Racoon Gang Fight across the prairie!

I'd just made the comment that; "Yeah, we'll be sitting here jackin' our jaws and look up and find some big Ol' Boar runnin' past while we're not payin' attention!"

Z stands up and starts walking to his car to get something. He's taken maybe three steps. I glanced at him and caught a movement out of the corner of my eye...

???!!!! Uh... yeah... big Ol' Boar... Runnin' past! Grinnin' and Wavin'... :)  Score is still - Coons 5 Chickens ( I got told they'd taken 5 NOT the 2 I knew about!) and Great White Coon Ambushers? uh... ZERO...

Then Heidi who'd got home from workin' the store, just 'fore Z got here say's; "I'm goin' grocery shopping, see you in a bit."

A few minutes later... I decide; "Maybe I should go get my glasses... so I can actually see the sights of that Marlin!"...

... My feet hit the steps of the Fiver when that ugly, liver quivering sensation goes wiggling through my belly... as the vision of my glasses and MY High Dollar SmartPhone, sitting on the bed of the truck where I'd placed 'em when Z pulled in hits me right twixt the eyes.

OOOOOFFFFFFFFFFF!

I jump on the Raider and go thundering down to Walmart... the way I figured her to go... which of course... WAS NOT! :( and found the truck in the parking lot after failing to find the shattered remains of a smartphone along the road.

Would you believe the water glass that I'd set there beside my glasses and phone was still rolling around on the flatbed?... but No Glasses or Cell Phone.

Well gee... the panic that was runnin' though my system had me in the right place. I mean... when you need clean shorts, Walmart is the place to be... right?

I went in and found herself and she'd not seen a thing... but told me the way she'd come. I searched that as best I could in reverse... No Joy... and I go back dejected and wondering about all the passwords and accounts that might be compromised 'cause of my careless lil' action of layin' that phone down as I did.

Well... maybe twenty minutes later She pulls in and asks; "Why didn't you take your phone with you?"

Huh?

"Why did you put your phone on the seat of the truck?"

"I didn't! I laid it on the BED!"

"Then WHY was it on the seat of the truck when I came out? It wasn't there when I drove down here! I would have been sitting on it!"

You know, we're all conditioned... ME TOO... to think that ever'body is a thieving, rapist bent on hell and destruction. So, we're surprised when somebody comes along and their NORMAL behaviour is to do what's right.

That cell and my glasses made it the FEW MILES bouncing on that flatbed, to the Walmart parking lot. Somebody walking past the truck saw them laying there on the bed... Picked them up... and dropped them through the window of the truck that was down maybe two inches.

I wonder how many the good ones Truly are... and how actually few the dirt bags are? and one last thing... You've seen I'm sure the "People of Walmart" photos?... Well... I'm here to say that SOME of the Folks that patronize Walmart are upstanding and Shiny Individuals!

Wheezing and Groaning (and hoping for a bit less aggravation!)
Brian