Damage Control

Not sure if I already read J A Jance's Joanna Brady series novel, Damage Control. Parts of the novel seemed familiar, but could not find it listed on library history, nor anywhere I still have mentions of books read.

A family is left homeless due to a fire. They are given a voucher to stay at a motel with kitchenette for five days. It is rather seedy, but allows dogs, so they could keep their pet. Church groups help gather town support in way of clothes, food and voucher for gas.

A man travelling up a narrow mountain road thinks about line of vehicles behind him: "Too bad." "You're not going up this damned mountain any faster than we are, so take an old cold tater and wait." Was not too long ago I wrote about that song on this blog.

Reading the part about driving up the mountain road, and also about washes, reminded me of when I first drove across the country to California. Thought in my head: if I am going to end up homeless, I would rather be homeless in a warm climate. At the time I did not understand about the gullies and sudden flooding.

The Pocono Mountains are in no way like the mountains I drove over ~ no guard rails, I pictured going over the edge, making me a nervous, likely too slow driver for anyone unlucky enough to be following me. I had a harrowing experience in California, when the car stalled going downhill. When I got down off the mountain, I did not want to drive up, over and down another. Study of the map showed I had no choice.

I did not care for Damage Control, other than enjoying the parts about the mountains and gullies.