Halfway through this five-week run, the desolate drives were long enough for plenty of time to worry about imagined things. The engine light never appeared on the minivan instrumental panel, just in my mind when a noon appointment was overcautiously arranged at an Idaho dealership for a speculated leak. I left at 5AM for the four hundred miles ahead. It was rainy & stayed dark while negotiating mostly with semis on the winding interstate. I arrived early & reserved a nearby room, expecting the worst.
By noon, the inspection was done. Miraculously, they found no leak. I cancelled the room & just kept moving west, like I’d gotten away with something &’d better keep going. The sky opened.
Three hundred miles later, I arrived in eastern Washington for an evening off.
Too late for the Fest, I checked into a downtown two-star & walked to a nearby pull-tab bar & grill.