Day 72: Workin on stuff and gettin ready for the drive home

I wake up pretty early. Like at 8. Not too bad. Maybe I am becoming a morning person... I can't see well without my contacts but I can see there is snow! I check the weather report for Brian Head. A foot of powder and all the lifts are scheduled to open. Hmm. Maybe I will head out for a half day! I get up and get ready. Hmmm only 8:30 and Chris told me 10. I check the report for Brian Head again. Boo. Most of the lifts are put on hold due to wind. I don't see that getting any better through the day. Maybe I won't go.

I ready until it is almost 10 and check the report again. Yup, not lookin any better. I think I will just stay here today. I head over to Chris's. He has been making breakfast. Pancakes, eggs, and bacon. Yum! I don't really like pancakes so much but these are good. They are more brown than normal pancakes. I inquire about them. Technically, they are oatcakes. I guess that explains it.

After breakfast, it is work time!  Chris and I go upstairs to work on his remodel. Rowan comes up and plays with legos. Chris hooks up the stereo that I brought him wires for. (The ones I bought back in Summit) We then pull some wire through the flooring for his future electrical work. We then chop up, set, and screw down plywood over the flooring frame. Now it's safe to walk upstairs!!

It's only the early afternoon when we finish. Time to attend to the truck! The right headlight has a broken bracket and is loose. Ugh!!  I ask Chris for some tools, some self tapping screws, some zip ties, and a metal bracket. I mess with it for a while and finally am able to get it pretty secure. The metal bracket ends up working perfectly. The zipties prove to be useless. The self tapping screws are a lifesaver. Ugh, I hate working between the radiator and the grill. So hard to get tools and y hands in there. Eventually, everything is pretty secure. Much better!  I am eventually just going to replace the headlights but now is not the time for that!  I need some more money before I do that. It is fixed enough for now!!

I check the engine while I have the hood popped. Lookin good!  Other than my battery which has dislodged itself from its stand. It is aftermarket and does not quite fit on the platform. It is propped up on shims and was not tight enough. All of the jostling yesterday must have jarred it loose. I realign everything and tighten the shit out of the bracket. Ok, that should hold! Ok truck should be good to go.

I head inside. The weather has been crazy. Sunny one moment, snowing the next. In the hour I spent messing with my truck, I experienced both. It is cold and not so fun out. I watch some more movies with Rowan and have some delicious lunch. I then have a horrible thought... if the window fluid in my truck is not cold weather, maybe the radiator fluid is not either. I have no engine block heater and it is supposed to go down to negative 10 or so on the way back. At least that's the forecast as of now...

I panic for a bit and ask Chris his thoughts. Uhh, get is flushed on the way?  No, I have to use Toyota fluids! This is one fluid I don't want to mess around with and my forum buddies agree that the chemical mixture in antifreeze is not something you want to mess with. Stick with Toyota. I do some research on my forum. Ok, good, it is a 55/45 mix stock in all Tacomas. Should be good. I just need to check and make sure I have pink fluid and I should be good to go!

With the lack of an engine block heater, Chris suggests putting cardboard over my radiator. I didn't on the way down but T Rex is an Alaskan truck. I think I will for the drive back....

Rowan has now put an old Sesame Street DVD in. Wow, I have not seen these in YEARS. C is for cookie, The Pigeon, Telephone Rock, and all the other old awesome stuff I remember from back in the day.....This is kinda nice to watch!

I notice it is clearing up outside and the sun is setting. Hmmm. Time to head out and check my radiator fluid... And look at the sunset! It is nothing spectacular but I always enjoy them. I check the radiator fluid: pink. Means its Toyota fluid and I should be good to go! Yay!

Dinner is something with chicken and olives and is quite excellent. Hawthorne literally falls asleep as he eats. No no, don't stop chewing! You might choke later. After dinner, Chris and Justine share some final travel tips for my drive through Canada. Time to start the most grueling part of my trip I suppose!  750 miles tomorrow to Helena Montana is the plan.

I head back over to the house I am staying at. Wow, it has really cleared up! The stars are out in force now! I spend some time admiring them. Then back inside I go. Time to sleep and do some rearranging of my packing. I don't want to be dealing with my huge suitcase in Canada. It is mostly full of dirty clothes at this point.... My clothes for the trip are going in a backpack. And my backseat is getting cleaned out in case there is sleeping to be done back there... IT is looking kinda cold for car sleeping on the trip though... still in the negatives in Canadia. Boo!

Now I am just chillin out, getting ready to drive 3200 miles home! I am a little daunted by the thought. Oh well! I was kind of daunted by this trip. It turned out well. It should be a nice drive back and it will be nice to see my own bed again!!