Because the Navi was low on water, I decided to go on a reconnaissance mission around Boulder in search of a source. This is another reason why I'm now so careful with it now.  It's a pain to have to find it when you're living in a hundred foot square foot box on wheels.  

Greg had offered to let me use the water from his garden hose but the parking at the Gold Run Condos is quite tight and he was in Longmont investigating aquaponics with 2 other community members. So, I stowed everything away as I do before I take off. Inevitably there is something I forget to tie down or stow away and I have to put the Navi in park and remedy. I suppose I should make myself a checklist.

But this time seemed to be different. I slowly pulled out of the parking lot and nothing banged against the wall or bounced onto the hardwood floor.  So, I felt good about my ever improving RV driving abilities as I pulled up to the first intersection. A young girl pulled up next to me and was honking--at me.   Startled and a bit perturbed, I rolled down the window to see what she wanted. She said, “you're dragging your bike behind you”. O-M-G, how could I have forgotten that? After my bike ride around town, I parked it behind the Navi on it's kick-stand and locked it to the ladder for security.

Embarrassed, I rounded the corner driving ever so slowly and pulled in to a parking lot to size up the damage. Amazingly, the rubber handle bar grip seemed to be the only sustained damage. I unlocked the lock and freed my poor bike and gently placed it in the bike rack hoping that when I ride it next, I didn't discover more problems.  Then, I continued my search for water hoping there would be no self-inflicted problems.

There is an RV repair shop in Boulder that is known to have water but they were closed. I called and left a message on Greg's phone and while I waited, I decided to treat myself with a mani/pedi. When he got home, he called to give me instructions on where to park and where to find the water before he took an afternoon nap.

As I was walking out of the nail salon at 6pm, it was raining and Greg and Kimberlee and I had agreed to meet at 6:30 at Greg's so we could drive up to the Wild Sage co-housing community north of Boulder for a happy hour, networking session with the FIC board members who were meeting there.

I had to get water, so I put on my Columbia, all weather jacket and squeezed the Navi into the Gold Run complex and hooked up for water. As I finished, Kimberlee walked up looking cheery, and clean and nicely made up. I, on the other hand, didn't. It was 6:30 and they were ready to go. So I quickly drove the Navi back to her spot behind the Millennium and changed into something more presentable than my bumming around clothes when Greg and Kimberlee drove by to pick me up.

It was a great opportunity to meet and get to know the FIC board members and explain that I hoped to visit their communities on my RV journey. One member in particular, Aurora D. from a community in NY said she had been contemplating traveling the US to visit communities as the new development director. We agreed to meet up before she left on Monday to discuss possibilities then Greg and Kimberlee and I left in search of food for dinner. I was starved. I hadn't eaten since breakfast at the Boxcar coffee house.

Here's a photo of the bunged up bike re-attached to it's bike rack behind the Navi.

Bicycle contusion

I was going to try to do a re-enactment but the idea of it was too painful. Did anyone else watch Chevy Chase in the movie Vacation where he forgot that he tied his great aunt's dog to the bumper and took off?  Thankfully, in my situation, it was only my well-used bike.