Author: Mike

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Driving to Texas

A Summer Road Trip

On the first of June we loaded up our Suburban with three adults and three children for a trip to Sante Fe, Texas. The trip was close to 900 miles each way.

Just before the trip, I serviced the Suburban’s AC. It was blowing nice cold air from the front vents but the rear air just blew hot air. I had not been able to get the line at the rear expansion valve off and I had hoped I would work without flushing, but I guess it did not. So the front seat passengers had to freeze to keep the rear cool. The temperature was near 100 most of the trip.

To keep the younger passengers entertained; we had a variety of electronics on board. We had two inverters running to power the video system, laptop computers, phone chargers and even a Wii. I really can’t imagine making the trip in a vehicle smaller than the Suburban. In fact, I was wishing it was bigger at times.

The big truck is very comfortable to drive on the interstate. We took I75 to I24. Then we took I59 across three states form one end to the other. At the end of I59, we took I12 across Louisiana. We met up with I10 and then took the 18 mile bridge across the swamp. We finally dropped off I10 in Texas and then followed the coast to take the Bolivar ferry.

The ferry was a very interesting ride. The DOT operates ferries 24 hours a day across the Galveston bay. These ferries are huge compared to the ones I have ridden hear on the east coast. They hold about 40 cars each. Once loaded on the ferry, we got out and toured the ship and watched the dolphins play in the water as we crossed the bay. It was a nice break in the trip.

While in Galveston, we visited the beach. Beach parking along the sea wall is parallel parking spaces. This was a challenge for me with the Suburban especially since it was loaded so that I could not see out he back window. The first time I parked, I was lucky enough to find a double spot so I could pull in forward and then back into place.

The next day, I had trouble finding a spot big enough for the Suburban. All I found was a single spot by the toilets that made backing in easier. However backing in from the high traffic Seawall Boulevard was still scary. I needed a spotter to get it not the space completely.

The next trip to the beach, I drove on west of the city and found a place where we could park on the sand for free. There were places on the east side but there was a $8 fee and they were extremely crowded. The place on the west beach was very nice and I was able to back the Suburban right up to the beach so we could access our towels and cooler easily.

The big GMC ran well and got about 16 MPG. It developed a hick up at about 65mph on the way down. I am guessing that the trouble is a dead spot in the throttle position sensor. When it started to hick up, al we had to do was speed up or slow down to get it to smooth out. It also had a similar hiccup when idling in the heat in traffic in Galveston. Sometimes it felt as if it was going to die at traffic lights but it would always keep running.

On the way home, the hiccup smoothed out but after refueling, it would bog down when trying to accelerate back up to interstate speed. It was like some sludge got stirred up refueling and it took a while to settle back out. The Suburban has a 42 gallon tank so it was quite a distance between fuel stops.

We saw some crazy things while driving 2000 miles. The two funniest were the bra on mile marker 110 in Mississippi and the pig snout sticking out of the livestock truck somewhere in Alabama.

We were all missing our Jeeps by the time we got home. But the extra space of the Suburban was really nice on the long road trip.

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Atlas Shrugged

I began reading Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged while on a trip to the beach. I was interested in reading the book because I see it referenced by many business coaches and some politicians. I have always felt left out when people ask “Who is John Galt?”

One the surface the story is of big business struggling to operate in an oppressive political climate. But there is much more to the story. Rather than being a traditional battle between good and evil, it is the battle of moochers and looters versus the producers. I have only made it through part one so far. There are three parts to the book.

It is a very intense book to read and has made me stop and think about how I really feel about things. I found out there is a movie but it is only in limited release. Maybe I can get the DVD when it comes out.

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My new Favorite Meditation

My new Favorite Meditation

I recently decided to return to my study of Taoism. Taoism has always appealed to me because of their scientific approach to philosophy. Lao Tsu and the other writers took a lot of time to study plant and animal life to see what works and what does not. They developed very workable practices that really help maintain a strong and healthy mind and body.

I recently read an interesting article by Michael Winn where he talks about smiling to your internal organs. He explains the Taoist philosophy of acceptance very succinctly with the concept of smiling. By smiling he means that we simply acknowledge that a certain condition exists and we smile with no judgment. A thing or event is neither good nor bad, it just is. I find I can save a lot of mental and spiritual energy when I stop judging things as good or bad and just accept them.

So the meditation I have begun to use based on Winn’s ideas and my previous Taoist studies is to simply talk to my body. I like to carry on a conversation with all my body parts.

Since I have had some pain and discomfort in my right foot lately I usually begin there. The conversation goes something like this:

Hey foot. How are you doing down there? I notice that you are sending a lot of interesting signals lately. I really appreciate how you carry me around and support me. I really appreciate all the little tiny bones that have to intersect just right to do all the amazing task that you accomplish all day long. I am really thankful that I have you to carry me around like you do.

My foot rarely talks back, but I can tell it responds well to being appreciated. The pain usually goes away quickly as I stop thinking about it and think about the entire task my foot performs for me.

One of the concepts that I really like in Winn’s article was not condemning body parts that don’t work up to our expectations. He even speaks of welcoming and loving malfunctioning parts like tumors and infections. These are part of our bodies and are there for a reason. If we act with malice towards these parts, they respond in kind. However if we act in love toward these parts, they adapt and rejoin the working collective of our body.

I recently had a sinus headache. Normally all I want to do it get rid of the swelling. I have tried all sorts of herbal remedies and then usually resort to pseudoephedrine. But this time I had a loving conversation with my sinuses. It went something like this:

Ok Sinuses, I know you are irritated. I have been irritated at a lot of things lately but I am working to just let them go. I really appreciate the way you try to protect me by filling with fluid. I know the sensation of swelling that I feel is your way of letting me know what is going on. I really appreciate all you do with the filtering of each and every breath. I know that you do a lot of other tasks that I don’t even understand. And I just want you to know that I appreciate all you do. If you feel the need to swell up to protect me, then have at it. If however the threat is over, let’s just relax and let our guards down. I am going to just lie down for a while and let you do what ever you think is best.

In far less time than it would have taken for the sinus medicine to digest, my headache was gone. I never got any real answers form my sinuses, but the pain went away and I felt like my sinuses worked better and felt appreciated.

I am finding a lot of clarity in taking time to sit and talk with my body and its organs. I really like the concept of not condemning body parts but loving all of them no matter what their shape or form. I am working on loving the excess fat around my belly. I am telling it that I really appreciate the protection is giving me. If it feels the need to stick around, that is fine. However if its job is done, then the fat can be redistributed to other places in my body or used up as fuel. But I am leaving the detail up to the belly fat cells to decide. I am appreciating their presence and respecting their right to be there. I am no longer fighting to get them to leave. I simply love them for who they are.

I feel much more at peace with my self and with my body. I don’t feel like I need to struggle anymore.

I think this meditation and coming to peace within my body is going to help me be more at peace with my external world as well. It will be an interesting trial at least.

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Air Conditioner 1995 GMC Suburban

Servicing the Air Conditioner 1995 GMC Suburban

My Ac compressor recently failed in my 1995 GMC Suburban. Changing the compressor is relatively easy. Just three bolts hold it to the cradle. See this previous article on changing the Suburban AC compressor.But servicing the rest of the system after a compressor failure is a bit more of a challenge.

My Suburban has the dual with two evaporators. One is located under the dash and a second one is located in the rear fender. The orifice tube is not in the same palce as in the pickup and the single system SUVs. The orifice tube is located under the battery support.

Removal of the battery tray involves removing several fasteners that hold the complicated tray to the fender and to the front header. It took me a while to locate them all.

With the tray removed, the junction containing the orifice tube can be accessed with wrenches. It took quite a bit of torque to separate the nut from the fitting so a backup wrench was critical. Once the junction was separated; I extracted the old orifice tube with needle nose pliers.

The filter screen was covered in metal shaving from the compressor that had failed. I used a flush solvent to wash out the metal shavings from the lines and the condenser. I used compressed air to clean out the remaining flush solvent.

Next I replaced the valves on both the high and low pressure ports. The low pressure port has a Schrader valve that looks like a tire core. It installs just like attire core as well. The high pressure port screws onto the line as an assembly. I did not have a wrench that fit the flats on the fitting, so I just used Channel Locks.

I was not able to get the lines to separate at the rear of the truck so that I could flush these lines. I am going to take the risk and reassemble the system with out flushing these lines.

I had to make an adapter to connect my old vacuum pump to the 134 type fittings. But it pulled down quickly and held a vacuum just like it was supposed to.

At first, the low pressure switch would not let the compressor run. Even with a hot can of Freon attached to the accumulator. I checked all the wiring just to make sure but it was in fact the low pressure switch holding it out.

I made up a jumper to force the compressor to run. Very quickly it began pulling Freon from the can. Ice formed on the can to let me know it was going down. I removed the jumper periodically to see if the low pressure switch was satisfied. It took one full can before the low pressure switch would let it run at all. Then it would only run a second or two and then kick back off. I continued on with the jumper in place.

The line after the orifice tube began to ice up but the air in the vents was still not cold. I removed the jumper and let the line thaw for a while. I then added the third can. The pressure switch was letting the compressor run a bit longer but I still left the jumper in place. Finally, with the third can in, cooler air came out of the vents. I was out of Freon so I let it sit for the evening.

The next day I got another can and added it to the system. Finally the low pressure switch stayed in and the system began to cool properly.

So far, it is working well. AC will be nice in the record high temps we are having in Tennessee this week.

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