New tires, fuel filter, computer and cool weather

I left Folsom, CA, taking the scenic route up Hwy. 65, then 70 then 99 and finally merging onto I-5 near Red Bluff. I stopped at a rest stop just north of Red Bluff and while walking my dogs I heard a loud bang. My first thought was that it sounded like an exploding tire. My dogs and I got back into the truck, merged back onto I-5 and traveled about 1/4 of a mile before seeing smoke coming from my trailer. I pulled over to the right and discovered a shredded trailer tire. I guess it was my tire that exploded at the rest stop. Gee, I guess I should have checked the tires at the rest stop then I wouldn't have had to wait on the side of the highway for road service. About 1 1/2 hours later I was back on my way, looking for a tire shop where I could replace my space tire which was now on the ground, working. I made it to Weed, CA and decided that since the weather was about 10 degrees cooler there Weed would be a good place to spend some time at a tire shop. Another 1 1/2 hours later I was on my way with 4 new tires and lots of peace of mind, but several hundred dollars poorer.

Twelve days earlier I easily whizzed up the steep, challenging Cajon Pass in Southern California, but on July 3 the 4310 ft. Siskiyou Pass gave me lots of trouble. After a few phone calls to friends I decided it was probably water in my diesel fuel filter. I found a wonderful, small, mom and pop auto repair shop where I was able to get the fuel filter replaced at 5:45 on Tuesday evening, July 3rd, the day before the 4th of July Holiday. I felt very fortunate to have found this shop. My truck performed flawlessly for about an hour, then started acting up again. I was past the worst of the hills on I-5 and I managed to roll into a delightful rest stop about 20 miles north of Grants Pass, where I spent the night. The next day I rolled into Independence, OR to meet up with my friend Marlene. She had found a quiet, out of the way cul-du-sac in a new neighborhood where we parked for several days. No one bothered us, and we didn't bother anyone either. We took in the Independence, OR 4th of July parade, then later in the evening we watched the fireworks.
Independence, OR isn't the All-American town it sounds like it should be. I would say half the population speaks a foreign language.

On July 5th I bought a new computer, after being without a computer, email or the Internet for two whole weeks!! Boy was it rough!! I haven't figured out how to post pictures yet with my new computer, but I'll be working on it soon.

Marlene and I are now on the Oregon coast enjoying the cool weather and all the sights of the area.