Duct tape, rope and really big rocks !!!

Memorial day week-end - three days without going to work. (not the work that gives you a paycheck, anyway) This week-end Matt and I where able to go to Pocatello, ID. The mission - bring stuff down to people and bring stuff up for storage. The stuff brought down - one mattress for the "Jappy" family - one flat screen TV for Grant and one corn hole game for Grant. The stuff brought home for storage - one queen bed - frame and all - one mans dresser - one desk - one kitchen table (Damon's old one) - one top for the desk and two kitchen chairs. Secondary mission - see boys and have fun!! Third mission - eat at sizzler :)

Loading the few things up to go to Poky was easy - three things and the weather was great! I watched the weather report looked at all the maps and didn't see any clouds in any area. It was 80 degrees on Friday. So we put a couple tarps in the cab of the truck - just in case - everything was tied down and off we went. We actually left on time - 8 a.m.. Eight hours in the truck turned out to be not as nice as eight hours in the Jeep but... About hour 6 we started to notice some very dark clouds. We had the TV wrapped in a blanket and a sleeping bag but the mattress was not covered at all & if it rained hard.... So we pull off the road and under an overpass to tarp the load. We have a few tarp rubbers but there isn't much to tarp - it is a low load. So we put the tarp under the ties and go rock hunting. Using the rocks to hold down the tarp - big rocks - we get everything covered and off we go. We go most of the way without rain and then just outside of Poky we get pored on. The tarp does it's job - mostly. A couple of oops - the mattress got alittle wet and a couple of bags from the corn hole game got wet. But the TV was OK and the mattress just got alittle wet - nothing serious.

It was great to see Darren. We unload the TV - pick up Darren and he leads us to drop off the mattress. Then we find our hotel - a girls tournament is in town. Lots of teenage girls everywhere - but we had a reservation. Check out the hotel room and then off to Sizzler. Mission 3 accomplished. Grant wasn't going to be in town for two more hours and we are hungry now!! Sorry Grant.

We meet up with Grant and head off to wally world - get some plastic and rope for the trip home along with some licorice - old times sake. Then back to the hotel for some corn hole. We find a place in the back of the parking lot and set up teams. First game - kids against parents. OK the kids won but that was just a warm up. I think we got in two more games before the sun was gone but we were not ready to quit - so - we moved the game to the sidewalk by the hotel offices. People where very nice in going around us and we even got a little girl in trouble with her folks - she wanted to watch and they wanted her to come now!! Anyway Grant and I against Matt and Darren. By now we are all warmed up and our last game had to last at least forty minutes or so. We kept matching each other and the score rose very slowly. But Grant and I were the victors! Would I post this story otherwise? Really wish I had some pictures of the games - we had some amazing shots and great victory/happy dances. :) Mission two accomplished.

Well, Matt and I went to bed - old people need their rest and the boys went back to Darren's. The next morning up and 8:30 Poky time and call the boys - they come over and we all go out for breakfast. Then off to load the truck. OK now I remember to take a few pictures. We wrapped the bed in plastic and tarp the whole load. All is tied down and we even take a few of the rocks just in case. Just as we finish it starts raining - that was nice for it to wait. Hugs for everyone and off we go.

I start driving and we decide to start out at 60 mph. Just to see how things go with the tarp. I inch it up to 65 and then back down to 60. The tarp is flapping in the wind - not a good thing - won't last the trip if it is flapping now. I pull over and we try one of the rocks and move a bungee cord. Off again. I drive for an hour or so and pull over again. More adjusting another rock and off we go. We make it to Dillon. Pull in and have lunch/dinner and top off the tank. We buy another tarp, more rope and duct tape. Two of the smallest rolls of duct tape I have ever seen. It is raining pretty good and we have to find a place we can get under for protection from the rain. The gas stations are all busy and we didn't want to have people yelling at us so we drive around the town of Dillon and find an overpass. We retie everything with the new tarp over everything. We take on allot more rocks and now this is going to let us drive faster than 60mph. We thought. We are trying to get up to 60 - but now we are in a real good or bad rain storm. Trees are arching - bill boards are shaking and one wind mill is going 90 miles an hour, we must be in a storm that has wind gusts up to at least 60mph. Not a good combination for us. We drive about 15 minutes and pull over. Get a few more rocks from the side of the road. Good ol' Idaho - always have rocks on the side of the road when you need them. Take off again. After a mile we pull into a rest stop and I am ready to sell the whole load for $25. Matthew finds one very large piece of cement - I can't believe he could lift it and I try this crazy idea with the duct tape. We take off yet again and wait - it is working. The tarp is not flapping like crazy - just a little. Good enough - off we go to home and a blazing speed of 70. We didn't get home till 11 p.m. But we made it.

The truck is still in the garage - I took off the rope, bungee cords and untucked the tarp the best I could. One thing stops me - One very big piece of concrete. George - buddy ol' pal - will you help your favorite mother-in-law? I would really like to empty this truck :)