Mar. 13
The front brake pads and rotors needed replacing, so we had that done around mid-day when the parts arrived. It was diagnosed yesterday afternoon, but there wasn’t enough time to do the work before the close of business. Since the coach was up on blocks, with the wheels off, we couldn’t drive it anywhere. So they let us stay there overnight in it, in one of the work bays behind the business. It was absolutely fine, as the whole property was fenced and gated. The mechanic emphasized that once they left and locked up, we would not be able to get out until morning. No problem. We had everything we needed in the coach. (Lorraine says she had “more than she needed”, and I think that may have been a reference to me.)
There was also a leak from the grey water tank, which they are going to fix this afternoon. And we saw some anti-freeze leaking the other day, so they are going to check that out too. By the time everything is done, I think we will have lost another day as well as my Social Security check from this month. So for now, we remain in Las Cruces. At least the weather is beautiful - 80’s and sunny. We went for a walk today while they were doing the work and found a place where we got some really good barbeque for lunch.

Mar. 14
I’ve been reading a book that I’m really enjoying. It is called “The War for Late Night” by Bill Carter. It is about the time in 2009 when Conan O’Brien took over the Tonight Show from Jay Leno, and then Jay Leno took it back again 7 months later. I remember being fascinated by the whole business at the time, and convinced that Jay made it impossible for Conan to succeed by not going away quietly, as any decent retiree would. (Let the record show that I have not made the same mistake.) The machinations that went on are explored in great detail, and I find the details riveting, even though I know I am not going to like the ending when I get there, because Jay wins. The book keeps saying that Jay appeals more to the Baby Boomers, while Conan appeals to the younger viewers. Personally, I never cared much for Jay. Conan seems to me to be more in the Letterman mold, which I much prefer.
The TV stations that we are able to get on our TV in the RV are all broadcast channels that come in via the antenna on the roof of the rig. It varies widely from night to night what we can get; depending largely on how close we are to a city. Last night interestingly, most (though not all) of the stations were Spanish-language stations. After Lorraine fell asleep, I happened upon one that was showing a “Police” reunion concert from 2007. I had heard about the tour when it was happening, but it was one of those big deals with extremely high-ticket prices, so I never got to see them. In the televised concert, they were playing in some South American venue, and Sting spoke to the crowd briefly a few times in Spanish. But the entire concert was sung in English. So I got to see a concert by a band I really like in English on a Spanish station, in my RV (on a nice flat screen that my friend Barry Pavesi installed), without Lorraine insisting that we change the channel to watch “Dancing With the Stars”, or some such thing. Life is good.