Steps Forward, Backwards, Forward

Thank goodness I have this time to prepare. I am needing every day.

Last night in the tent was better but not a success. I got some sleep but by 4:30 I was cold enough to come back inside. Today we exchanged the sleeping bag for one rated down to 20 degrees, the coldest rated they had without paying a whole lot more money. I also bought a set of thermal underwear and I think I’ll keep one of those hand/feet warming packets on hand. We’ll see how it goes tonight. There was frost on the ground this morning and more of the same is expected tonight so it will be a good test. 

I made a beer can stove today and it works fine with the alcohol I bought yesterday. Now all I need is a lightweight pot. Who would think you can make a stove out of a can but it works well, the price is right, and the alcohol is cheap and readily available. If you try this though, use 95% alcohol or the highest you can get. The first time I did this I used 70% and it didn’t work. I have 91% here and it took a couple tries to light but then it did well. 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ui8t3pivqtk  instructions on how to make a stove

This afternoon I figured I’d make a run to Home Depot for a couple things and then stop by the supermarket but when I got out my bike, the rear tire was flat. *sigh*. I just put on those fancy super quality tires and this? So, I proceeded to change the tube and found I couldn’t even begin to get this stiff, new tire off the rim. Plan B – we went to the supermarket in the car. 

I figured I’d enlist the help of my son-in-law later, but my daughter mentioned there must be a way and I shouldn’t give up so quickly. What if this happened on the road? YouTube has help for everything so I did some research and found this http://www.jimlangley.net/wrench/flattiresbyhand.htm. It explains how to change a bike tire without tire levers which I didn’t manage, but it helped enough that I did manage to get the tire off which was great! 

When I saw the tube I realized what happened. There are small depressions on the wheel where the spokes connect, and I have had problems before with the tubes blowing out over these depressions. When you figure my new tires take a lot more pressure than the ones I used to use, I suppose it’s no surprise that this could happen. The bike guy in David fixed my front wheel by wrapping electrical tape around the wheel, and I haven’t had any problems since. So, I did the same to the rear wheel, put in a new tube, and replaced the tire. These stiff new tires are a challenge to get on too. Drew had to help me before and even he found it challenging. YouTube to the rescue again. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TnP6coXzbLY. I used the tire lever as instructed and was so excited when the tire went back on the rim that I almost woke up the baby!

So, that is where things stand today. If tonight goes well and I stay warm enough to sleep, that will be a big problem solved. The other things are only little odds and ends that can be dealt with at any time. One more day closer to liftoff. 

Edited with BlogPad Pro

Advertisement