Heading west with no GPS

Goodbye Hastings.  On Saturday, August 8^th, after cleaning, fixing, and loading the “new” RV with food, we left Hastings Michigan heading west without a definite plan.   A new tradition was established.. honk at the entrance to every new state.  Bye Michigan, hello Indiana…. Goodbye Indiana, hello Illinois. 

Scott, my brother, turned 40 that day and we were meeting him off the highway in Illinois. We learned quickly to try to avoid toll roads.  With 3 axles, we had to take out a small mortgage to pay the toll taker.   Entering downtown Chicago,  the Express lane sign read, “no trucks”.  Our we now a truck… with 3 seconds to decide, survey yes, “YES”   After getting his first ticket in 20 years, Marc was extra sensitive to being a law abiding citizen in our new Tropi-cal RV.  So, onto the “local” lane we merged.   The first adventure of the trip occurred. ;
Black smoke was billowing in the right lane and cars were screeching to a halt.   With a car on fire in the far right lane, cars were slipping by in the left lane.   Just as we were getting by… WHAM, the impressive Chicago Fire Department showed up in force, parking their fire truck right in front us, cutting off the lane.   By now, the car was in full blown inferno with Marc saying… get a picture.  Chicago’s finest parked their fire truck in front of our perfect Eye Witness News photo.  I’ve never been the eye witness in Eye Witness News and now the picture was lost.. but I got the smoke and the firefighters in action.

We were so close, we got to chat with the firefighters and see the business man with his briefcase watching his car go up in flames.  One of the firefighters gave Parker a comment about playing his DS vs. watching the action.  New DS rules were put in place and within 20 minutes, we were on our way.