Joplin is the place to be

Anything and everything — 66

Fran Spencer — The owner of this great cafe with her old  jute box

Good old time part of the job in Joplin — Stopped traffic for almost 10 minutes 

for a funeral procession to pass and turn the corner — Someone important or just the usual?

My very clean, comfortable Motel 6 in Joplin

This bus in Galena has some special history — It has a whole vacant lot to itself

Nearby Galena seems pretty deserted

Back in Cooper's 66

One theme only

Inside Coopers — All Route 66

Cooper's 66 — Good food and a welcoming visit

Hi  everybody. I'm back on the road, no small thanks to the men from the big rig shop in Cuba, MO. They are Midwest Petroleum —Ambest Service Center. As I think I told you, they spent at least an hour trying to figure out what my transmission problem was. They called around and came to the conclusion that the only people who could help me would be the VW dealer in Springfield. It was getting late and after a discussion with AAA and Steve I settled in out on the "lot" with the big guys for the evening. What a roar those engines produce all night. I guess they get used to it. I'm not sure I would.

So, after dinner in Dottie's diner at the truck stop, and breakfast there too, I went in to see the shop guys to try and figure out the next step. Another man was in charge the next morning so he started out by getting the story from me. He picked it up without batting a eyelash and called Springfield VW to see if I and my rig could appear before them that morning. (140 mile trip actually). Not unlike my experience with the slick shop in Bangor, they wrote me off immediately and said there wasn't anything they could do for me because the Rialta was too big (22 ft.) for them. That was a bummer, but I'm beginning to get used to it. So much for VW dealers.

Then someone suggested that what I should be doing was calling transmission shops. So Warren began looking up transmission shops in that part of Missouri on Angie's List.  He was determined that I not get towed to a place that wouldn't give my problem serious attention. He had customers coming and going but he made the calls himself and handled it all with such grace. Eventually he found an Aamco shop in Rolla, 25 miles down Highway 44/66 from Cuba. They said they would definitely take it on.  Fortunately turned out to be a slow day at that shop in Rolla. I called AAA again and they arranged to have me towed within the hour. Bobby had to stay in the RV while I sat in the tow truck because of the risks for pet sensitive people who might be bothered by his having been in there. Makes sense, actually and he weathered it very well.

He made quick friends with Dave, the saint of very few words who somehow brought my reverse gear mechanism back to life. He performed every test known to man, pondered the electrical system and asked me if I had heard the back up warning sound when the reverse failed. I honestly couldn't remember and he couldn't either since it had been an afterthought. But in summary he decided that there probably was a correlation.  They collected a very reasonable fee and sent me on my way with instructions to try to avoid parking my car where I couldn't drive out in forward motion and to please follow my Route 66 plans and have a good time. He may have been a man of few words, but he is a saint in my book. Just like Andrew, Warren, Tom and Todd at the shop in Cuba. They are the only reason I am here in the nice  Route 66 town (city I think) of Joplin, known for its famous visitors of days gone bye. You hear of Clark Gable a lot.

In a way, it was tempting to return to Cuba  from Rolla and make the drive down again in the Rialta on the side road. But I decided I shouldn't stretch my luck as I did in the back woods escapades of wrong turns. So I continued on to Joplin and I like it here very much. The reason for not wanting to leave the rolling wooded slopes of the Ozarks is that there were many artisans along that road I'd have enjoyed visiting. And I kept hearing of a gigantic rocking chair on display somewhere along that stretch of road. As if I actually had time for that now. I made the right decision by moving on but it gives me a little pang.

The plan for this afternoon after lunch is to drive to Tulsa and perhaps part of the way to Oklahoma City. We'll see how that goes. I had such a good night's sleep, lovely shower and did some washing and catching up on chores last night and this morning that it is tempting to find another Motel 6 out there.  The price for one person is less than many of the campgrounds I visited. Especially that one in New York's Adirondacks that ran $62 before tax. Somehow the 6 thing goes right along with my current travel theme. So we'll see what develops.