Going down the road today and I hear some impacts on the body.  I look
around and don't see anything of note so I keep going.  Another minute or
so and I've got some imbalance in the steering wheel -- something has gone
wrong with the wheel - bet I lost a wheel weight.

I get to the store and pull in - look at the front tire.  Darn thing is
half flat.  Then, i spot it....a big chunk of the sidewall is gone.  The
missing chuck was half the size of my fist!  The wheels are not pointed
straight ahead and I needed to change it for sure so I hopped in the truck
- turned on the engine and spun the steering wheel straight.  The stress
of turning the wheel while stopped way just too much for the old tire.  It
blew and went all the way flat.

I count my blessings.....midday sun, flat parking lot, good weather, got
an inflated spare, jack and all tools (including flashlight).  I unpack the
jack, spare and tool set and start jacking up the front end. I get 3/4 of
the necessary height and the crimped rod that operates the jack starts
free wheeling. Sheesh.

Looked over the tools and as it turns out, the lug wrench has a tire iron
on the opposite end that fits in the jack slot.  I slid the rachet over the
tire iron and used that to raise the jack the rest of the way.

You folks might want to check your spare tire and especially the rod that
operates the jack.  You never know when you may need to use it.