The only problem with that much rain is that the roads around here turn to mud. They're like concrete when they're dry, but they're like mush when they're wet!
Wednesday is our usual day for going in to Swift Current to do our weekly grocery shopping. I knew the roads would be bad, but I didn't expect them to be that bad. The little blue car almost didn't make it up the hill from the park!
Thick mud!
Can't believe the little blue car made it through this.
This is why so many people have 4 wheel drive in this part of the country.
The poor little car was covered in clay like mud. Yuck.
A red fox we spotted along the way.
Stopped in at the tire shop and got a good price for Sherman's new tires. Asked them to order them in, and we'll get them installed next Wednesday when we go into town. The two front tires are newest and still in good shape, so I'm going to get them installed on the rear inner, and then have two brand new ones on the front and two brand new ones on the outer rear. Total price including taxes, balancing, new valve stems and changing everything over for $887 CAD ($700 USD) with the four new Firestone Transforce HT tires. Pretty happy with that.
Oh...and I was wrong!
Regarding our upcoming trip to eastern Europe, I had said in a previous post that Romania and Bulgaria are part of the Schengen Visa area, but they are not (yet!). They sure do make it confusing. Friends Bonnie and Dave are currently in Bulgaria and they sent a note saying that I was wrong. So, I did some more research and it turns out that I had misunderstood. Sure enough, Romania and Bulgaria are part of the European Union, but they are not yet part of the Schengen Visa area.
This makes our trip so much easier because we don't need to worry about the amount of time spent in either country because it won't interfere with the maximum 90 days that we're allowed in Spain with our motorhome exchange next January and February.
Nice!
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If you don't yet have a Jackery portable battery for your phone, today is the day to get one. Never seen them this cheap!
And in Canada, an excellent buy on a top quality compact Bosch rechargeable drill. (In fact, it's such a good deal that I just bought one!)
In the good old days, you could stay in each European country for 90 days. This Schengen thing sure has messed that up.
ReplyDeleteWe totally agree with you Peter, they have made this whole Schengen Visa very confusing!
DeleteThe roads there look they have been freshly graded and the rain makes them very yukky, similar to tha back roads around here. Glad you made it through.
ReplyDeleteThis road wasn't freshly grated but it certainly was a mess after the rain. It's a good thing that Kevin is a good driver otherwise we would have been in the ditch.
DeleteThat fox picture is great - he's just chilling.
ReplyDeleteYep, he was just taking it easy and enjoying his surroundings, I think. :-)
DeleteI know what mud is too, Hope we didn't chew it up too bad when we came up. We also saw a herd of Antelope when we got to the top of that hill have a dry day
ReplyDeleteIt was chewed up a bit but it wasn't only from you, plus there was nothing you could have done about it anyways. We are just glad that you were able to make it up the hill and back home safely.
DeleteYuk with the mud, but everything will soon be green and lush
ReplyDeleteYes, everything is greening up nicely now. We really did need the rain.
DeleteI never did completely grasp that whole "Schengen" thing. Too confusing.
ReplyDeleteYep, very confusing! We just have to watch to make sure that Romania an Bulgaria aren't in the Schengen Visa by the time we leave because they have been approved into it, it is just a matter of when it will be legal.
DeleteNice of the fox to give you a sweet smile for the photo. Glad you didn't get stuck!
ReplyDeleteHe was just happily sitting there and watching the world go by. We were glad we didn't get stuck either. :-)
DeleteEven tho we've taken Smartie on some really sketchy roads, I guarantee that our little Smart car would bog down in gunk like that! Good thing you didn't get stuck!
ReplyDeleteI can pretty much guarantee you that Smartie would not have done well on that road. I think if I had been driving our Little Blue Car, it wouldn't have made it either!
DeleteWould you be so kind to give me the reasoning for putting the older tires on the inside on the rear.
ReplyDeleteOn Sherman, the outer rear tires have worn faster than the inner rear tires. So if I'm putting the older front tires on the rear, the inner would be the most logical place to put them.
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