Solo road trips...
...and other glorious adventures
I made an 8-hour, solo, round trip recently in our KIA Wind EV 6 (all electric), chuckling frequently knowing my missing partner would be going a bit nuts by my whim of a route, lack of concern for finding a charging station, and the volume and content played on the radio.
I believe marriage counseling should include an honest evaluation of a couple’s taste in music. For example, if Opera is the only thing one of the partners listens to, and the other doesn’t like it, I’d give the marriage five years tops.
Fortunately, Richard and I have enough overlapping taste, we can go a far distance sharing the tight quarters of a motorized vehicle.
When I set out for the second leg of my journey home, I decided to make a detour and roam around the Lake Panorama area. It has been decades since I’ve been there and I’ve been curious to see what it’s like these days. Why not stop? Indeed. Dudley had fun.
Our spontaneous adventure likely would not have happened had Richard been in the car. I can hear him say: “Let’s just get home.”
Now, much ado is made of the range an electric vehicle has. I’ve not found it to be an issue, and I’ve been driving an EV for almost four years.
But, there’s always a first time, right?
After sight-seeing, I plugged my destination into the GPS and did a search for charging stations. Luckily, the Hy-Vee in Jefferson was listed as having two Chargepoint options.
I backed in to the EV parking spot, rolled the windows partially down for Dudley, grabbed my phone and started the process of plugging in the vehicle. My app and account was recognized, I heard the little whirrrr of the machine signaling the welcome voice from inside the car would soon say, “Charging Started,” but instead got a ‘failure to connect’ prompt.
I tried again. And again. Then called the 888 customer service number, and was told the charger was out of service.
Damn.
Again, I chuckled thinking how Richard might react to this predicament.
Well, since we were in a grocery store parking lot, I might as well grab something for Dudley and me to eat. I entered the store, moving fast, knowing the dog in the car would raise quite a ruckus over my absence.
I ordered what I thought would be the fastest item made from the deli, and waited. Too long, I waited.
Over the loudspeaker came the announcement:
“There is a dog loose in the parking lot.”
Dashing away from the counter, and heading out the door, there was a smiling doodle and a smiling man with tattoos up and down his arms, holding the end of Dudley’s sailboat leash.
I wish I’d snapped a picture.
The passenger window of the car was rolled all the way down. He could have done that with his paws, actually—we have tried multiple dog car seats. None have worked, so far. Suggestions welcome.
Back at the wheel, I had 87 miles left on the battery to find a charge. I chuckled again, knowing how anxious my first-born, super responsible husband would be faced with this reality.
Turns out, the Caseys General Store in the town of Early has a great fast charger. It was 71 miles away.
In the three phone conversations Richard and I had during this mini-road trip, each time he asked:
“How many miles do you have left on the charge?” perhaps expecting me to be oblivious.
I just read what I’ve written here so far to Richard and he said: “I come off kind of controlling.”
To which I responded, “Well….”
The truth is in the interpretation.
I choose to interpret his questions, comments and reaction to our different approaches to life as caring and loving, not controlling. Interpretation is often the key to a happy marriage.
After all, one of these days he just might be right.
Smile.
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Casey's at Early is one of my frequent pitstops. Although I subscribe to the Storm Lake Times-Pilot, I always buy an issue at Early. Tactical reading maneuver. The podcasts of Down Ballot, Monday Potluck, etc are my ride time listening. All thanks to Julie, Richard, and the Writers' Collaborative my travels across Iowa are easier and more enlightening.
I have a similar experience. I had just purchased an EV, and decided to take it to Fairfield on a cold February day so that my wife and I could do some work on my late mothers home and her estate. We arrived with 17 miles of charge left, but I had done my research (sort of) and knew that there were 4 chargers in town. I dropped Shirley off, stopped at a local business, then headed to the charger. It was there I discovered that this was not a quick charger. It helpfully told me that it would take 14 hours to charge. There was a snowstorm coming in, and we did not have 14 hours. I tried all four stations (including one at MIU that was powered by solar) before parking behind a Kum and Go and connecting to the last option. This charger increased my range .2 miles every 10 minutes. I sat there 4 hours to get enough charge to make it to HyVee in Oskaloosa. Once I got there I discovered that the chargers would not work. I found a charger at the local ford dealer that charged at .4 miles every 10 minutes. I had 4 miles of range left. I drove without heat to get that extra few miles that I needed. It was now nearly 10:00 pm. We sat there long enough to get to Knoxville, which DID have working high speed chargers. We drove the rest of the way to West Des Moines with heat, and arrived home at 1:30 am. We were supposed to be back at 3:30 pm. It was quite a lesson.