“Oh Lord, stuck in Lodi again…”

Well, today has been a real up and down day. The day started up, went to tour the Alamo, spent the
morning there, had a small lunch while the local western wear store cleaned and blocked my felt
cowboy hat. Left in time to get to Houston right at rush hour, so I wandered into a mall for a couple
of hours, to eat supper and wait out the mess. Hit the road headed east to Beaumont, when my battery
light came on, and found that the battery was draining as I drove. I coaxed it, and thought once or twice
that it was recovering, but as I got a little ways past Beaumont, the power practically went dead. Almost
no headlights, other lights started coming on as the onboard computers stopped getting enough power.
Worst of all, I drove into a storm in this condition, and had almost no power to run the windshield wipers.
Finally, as the car was dying, I made it to a town called Vidor, near the Texas-Louisiana border, and
pulled into a little roadside hotel. Almost didn’t make it, but thankfully Texas has these service roads
that run parallel to the Interstate, and I could limp along with no worries about hitting or being hit, but
I had a moment of panic when I found that the hotel was on the other side of I-10, and there was no
bridge visible! I kept on the service road, finally seeing a sign showing a way to turn and go under
the Interstate, so I could go back to the hotel. That’s where I am as I write this, and I am anxiously
waiting until morning, to contact a local garage to see if they can fix my car. I’m hoping it’s just the
battery, but if it’s something else, I may be here for a while.

Well, I wanted an adventure! Thank God I don’t have to spend the night in my car somewhere along
the Interstate. At least I have cable TV and Internet access!

Tagged . Bookmark the permalink.

6 Responses to “Oh Lord, stuck in Lodi again…”

  1. Lucky grasshopper…

    Car trouble in a rainstorm and in the Middle Of Nowhere Texas and the lucky grasshopper *still* manages to find himself a hotel with broadband and cable tv!

    Just imagine what he would have gotten if he had rigidly planned this trip like us ants!

  2. Anonymous says:

    As speaker2animals said, only somebody named Captain Nerd would find a “No Tell Motel” on I-10 with cable TV and Internet in the middle of a car breakdown. The name of this place has got to be the Dew Drop Inn – am I right?

    Cowboy hat? Custom made or did you buy a Stetson? Straight crown or creased? What style? Color? Details – I want details.

    Not to mention a picture. ~~ snicker ~~

    From the description of your problem, I have to think that it is probably the alternator. Or perhaps a loose/missing belt. Anyway, good luck with that.

    In Vidor, TX.

    Somewhere on I-10.

    Sounds like an X-File. If the manager of the place is named Scully and the Desk Clerk Muldar – RUN!!!

    I’m enjoying the journal Cap – good luck.

    Hoping for the best…

    Tom

    • Captain Nerd says:

      Yep, busted alternator…

      And the managers were a nice South Asian (Indian or Pakistani) family. And no aliens, mutant farmhands, or psychopathic auto mechanics anywhere!

      • Anonymous says:

        Re: Yep, busted alternator…

        As it happens, I know a little about this – they are Indian and are all part of an extended family who purchase and own motels all over the southern part of the United States. They are all related to one guy who bought the first one.

        Glad to see you are up and running.

        Good luck.

        Tom

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *