Gypsy Jane's Blog

It pays to investigate.

2011-11-18T15:18:00.000-08:00

Last night I spent a lovely evening visiting my daughter, with my motorhome parked in her driveway. When I went out to my motorhome to go to bed, it had gotten quite chilly so I turned on the furnace.

NOTHING HAPPENED!

In the past, lack of ignition has been fixed by various actions:

Turning it off and trying again in five minutes.
Pushing a reset button on the furnace.
Removing the defective thermostat and connecting the wires.
Replacing the thermocouple.
Replacing the circuit board.

The first 3 of these I can do myself with no problem, so I set about troubleshooting. It was cold out, so I decided to skip the reset button and go directly to investigating the thermostat. With the cover off, I operated the lever and found the problem.

During the day, a moth had crawled up into the thermostat and was blocking the contacts. I guess moth corpses don't conduct current very well!

I removed the moth, slid the levers, listened to the satisfying sound of propane ignition, replaced the cover, and went on with my life. Grateful for solutions I can handle.

The moral of the story: before you call a repairman, check out what you can check out yourself.

Freezer Space!

2011-10-14T06:58:00.000-07:00

I just freed up my motor home freezer for ice and ice cream, which is about what it has room for.

I love ice cream - and besides the ice cream maker's bowls there's usually a tub of commercial ice cream because Turkey Hill has it in for me. I also love vegetables, fruits, and having some meat stashed away. All that in a motor home freezer has been a challenge. Until now.

How did I do it, you ask?

I discovered a company that produces high quality natural freeze-dried foods! I tried their green beans first - and was seriously impressed. Freeze-dried food retains the shape, texture and nutrition of the fresh food, removing only the water. When I added hot water to the beans, they became green beans. Ready to eat, right then, in my opinion, although other people might like them cooked more than I cook them. (I'm kind of into fresh, minimally cooked. If you like them cooked to death, go ahead - I'm sure they'll come out just the way you like them.)

Not only were they delicious - the remaining beans in the package will be good to eat for a long time. Just store airtight, dark and dry. They will not get freezer burned. They will not thaw out when my freezer decides to be less than efficient in the heat of the summer. They will not become science experiments in the back of my fridge.

So I looked into the company and decided to become an Independent Shelf Reliance Consultant so I could share this discovery with others.

My kit arrived last night, and I spent the evening checking the shipment and studying the materials and all those things a new Consultant needs to do.

But this morning, I get to play with the food! I already know that the veggies and fruits will be yummy, so I started with some things I was skeptical about. Like Whole Eggs. I'm picky about eggs. In the name of product knowledge, I fixed breakfast.

I am impressed. I reconstituted enough egg powder for 2 eggs and made scrambled eggs. Next time I'll make up more eggs! They were quite yummy!

I had figured they'd be good for baking - but that they are good all by themselves as scrambled eggs was a very pleasant surprise.

Another thing about THRIVE foods is that most of them are available in 3 sizes: #10 cans (gallon), Pantry Cans (5.5" high, 4" diameter), and Mylar Pouch. (a pouch of green beans contains 7 servings). The Pantry Cans are excellent for those of us who live in RVs and have limited storage space. The pouches are great for camping.

If you should decide you would also like to free up your freezer for Ice Cream, please make sure that you see Jane Cassidy's Store in the upper right of the website before you place an order with Shelf Reliance. That way I get credit and you get the best pricing.

Or, email me.

I got interviewed.

2011-10-08T12:04:00.000-07:00

National RV Parks interviewed me - you can read it here: http://nationalrvparks.com/interview-with-jane-cassidy-of-gypsy-janes-blog/

Life Proceeds...

2011-08-29T14:07:00.000-07:00

as my friend Sue says. With ups and downs...
As it was still ugly hot when I left NC, I left the Callicat at her summer home with Aunt Phylis. They love her there too, but I miss her.
I spent the past month or so doing store sets in the Lynchburg area, which meant I could spend weekends - and even a couple of weeks - at the Izaak Walton campground which I've previously posted lots about. One store was so close to the campground that if it hadn't been a night set and long hours, I could have ridden back and forth on my motorscooter. As it was, I used the Escaper for a sports car. It felt like one, after driving the Holiday Rambler. And it needed the exercise.
It also needed a new battery, as did the scooter.

I got some much needed cleaning and sorting done in my storage, hauled a bunch of stuff to Goodwill, and have a few things that are worth my effort to find new homes for posted in my Facebook pictures. I have people that want some of this stuff - the trick is to figure out how to get things to people.
The 2 weeks that I was actually able to stay parked at the Lake and drive the Escaper to work were great: a swim in the lake does wonders for your attitude after a long night at work.

Still - store sets are exhausting and I haven't had any real time off (moving in doesn't count) since the Spring OVPR, last March. I was truly exhausted when we got done with last weeks set, even though it was perhaps the easiest (for me personally) total tear down I've done. So when the options for work this week were Georgia or Philadelphia, I took the week off instead.
I am SO glad I did. Never mind the R&R factor - I wouldn't have made it to work anyway.

I left the Lake Sunday afternoon to drive up to my home driveway, 70 miles north. Heard a noise, pulled over, identified the problem, called road service. (It's really easy to identify the problem when your drive shaft is dragging on the ground!)
The State Trooper who arrived during the phone call said since I was in the road, I had to be towed within a half hour and Road Service couldn't accomplish that so they let him call from his list. So I had to pay for the tow and submit it for reimbursement.
Tow truck came at last, and towed me to a safe location - level, too - and Road Service was to send a mobile mechanic in the morning. (It occurred to me that it was good Callicat's in NC - she HATES tow truck rides with a feline passion!)
Except it took them until noon to find one. This isn't a very populous area. That mechanic called and told me that although Road Service would cover part of his coming out, he was far enough that the rest would be quite pricey and I would be better off calling someone local if I could.
Sheesh - it's NOON now. I fortunately have in my Palm the name of every mechanic that's ever been recommended to me as good and one was 20 miles away. I called and said mechanic was actually just a few miles away, picking something up, and could come right over and look at it. He did, he fixed it, all better now.

This shouldn't have happened. 800 miles ago, when I broke down in NC, the tow truck driver advised me to make sure the mechanics checked my U joint. So I had them check it. When I had a vibration noise going down the road, they checked it again. I SAW the mechanic check it. Perhaps he only checked visually and it looked fine, but the bolts were loose - loose bolts is what both this tow truck driver and this mechanic said caused the failure. So the unidentified vibration that "wasn't the U-Joint" is now fixed. Imagine that.

Today's Yard July 23. 2011

2011-07-23T10:48:00.001-07:00

I stay in the parking lots at work, and stop over places in transit, but I really feel at home when my awning is out and my furniture is set up under it. I got to do this this weekend, visiting my friends Phylis & Jim. I'm here for the weekend and don't have to go anywhere in the rig. Phylis cooked me a birthday breakfast, eggs and biscuits and sausage gravy - yum - then later on Younger Daughter, Son-in-Law, Grandson, came and kidnapped me. We went out for sushi lunch and took the Grandson to see Cars 2. Or maybe he was an excuse for us to see it - there was lots of stuff in it that was in there for the grownups and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

It is still hot as blazes, so the Callicat is still staying here with Aunt Phylis. She's become friends with Phylis' cat and is quite happy with the arrangement.

Repairs and Divine Intervention

2011-07-09T12:06:00.001-07:00

Onion: a bulb with many layers and when you peel them, it brings tears to your eyes. Lately, the Holiday Rambler has been like an onion, with layers of "issues". What I have done since the last post is deal with vehicle repairs. I have been blessed with Logistical Assistance from the Powers That Be. While I am significantly poorer, life is otherwise good.

I was en route to work 2 weeks ago when I heard a horrible noise and my power steering was no longer power steering. I smelled a hot/burning fluid smell and promptly pulled over to the side of the highway. The burning smell lessened, so instead of grabbing the Callicat and running like mad, I went out and looked under the rig - where I saw fluid dripping down. There IS a reason I renew my road service annually. This year it has paid for itself.

Being Sunday evening, it took them a bit of time to find help but they sent me a mechanic in hopes that it would be fixable on site. No such luck: power steering fluid had leaked and caught fire and melted wires and sensors. And gone out on its own! TG! We contacted Road Service and then I waited for the tow truck.

Waiting for a tow truck is much more pleasant in a motor home than in any other sort of vehicle - I was, after all, at home. I had dinner, read, petted the cat... and finally the tow truck arrived.

A P-30 chassis has an Automatic Parking Brake, which must be released before towing. It wouldn't release. That was because it uses the power steering system to function and when there's no fluid, the brake stays on. (The P-30 used this system instead of a parking pawl (see post from several years ago) because it's such a heavy vehicle.) The tow truck drivers therefore disconnected the drive shaft and towed us away.

My Callicat HATES tow truck rides. The lights freak her out.

Advice to drivers: when you talk to your Road Service, make sure they tell you to where you will be towed. Apparently, something was lost in the relay and when we arrived at where the driver had been told to take me, I realized it was not the right place. I called Road Service again and got the correct address and off we went again.

They reattached the drive shaft and left me in a level spot in the parking lot of the Fleet Service company, about midnight. I slept.

In the morning, I drove into a service bay and let me say that I NEVER want to drive that thing again without power steering. If you've been reading this blog from the beginning, you know that I bought my last rig up in NJ and drove it back to Virginia without power steering. That was nothing compared to a 32-foot class A without power steering.

Here's the Divine Intervention part (besides the part about the fire going out and not burning my house up): The following week my team was scheduled to work near Savannah GA - where I know no one! But I wasn't there when this happened, I was in NC - 15 miles from a good friend who came to collect me and put me up while my rig was in the shop and is still cat-sitting my Callicat - and not horribly far from my Son-in-Law who just got a new position, telecommutes, and was able and willing to lend me his car. I only missed one day of work.

When the work week was over, I picked up the motor home, paid for the repairs (ouch, that was one expensive leaky hose!) and drove it back to my friends' house. My original plan was to drive my SIL's car to the kids' house, visit with them (my other daughter was also visiting), and get a ride back. The more I thought about it, I realized that while I had his car was a good time to check out the "something loose and hitting" noise I'd had for a little while, which seemed to be getting worse. I spent the weekend with the kids anyway and kept the car another week. My company, understanding that I didn't trust the newly repaired rig to go to Savannah, found me an assignment in the area where I already was, Tuesday through Friday due to the Fourth. After work Tuesday I did the vehicle shuffle with my friend so that both vehicles were at the shop and I could leave from there for work Wednesday morning.

At the shop, they were busy and did not get to my rig on Wednesday, my project was overstaffed and my work was cancelled for Thursday and Friday, and I returned to the shop Wednesday night, being there when they opened Thursday. This was financially painful but otherwise more of that Divine Intervention stuff. I really needed to be with the rig more than I needed to be at work, it turned out. I took the mechanic for a ride, as it's much easier to say "that noise, there" than to try to describe it in a note. Yes, it was something loose and hitting. A front brake. Oh, joy.

That afternoon, I left with new front brakes, got almost to my friends' house, turned around and went back to the shop. It still isn't right.

Turns out the rotors were warped and not playing nicely with the new, thicker, not-worn-out pads. Welcome to the Hotel California Garage. ("You can check out any time you like but you can never leave.") As they had the previous week, they let me plug into the electricity and I spent another night.

I have, in the past, encountered garages where you can't stay with your vehicle. Fortunately, at those times I was able to drive away and find a more motor home friendly garage. I am always relieved when the folks at the shop are able and willing to accomodate the fact that the vehicle they're working on is also my HOME.

Friday, the wheels came off again, the rotors went off to be turned if possible - it wasn't - new rotors were ordered and arrived and were the wrong part and a second pair were fetched and installed and we test drove and everything was working ok and I wrote yet another check and called to arrange the weekend.

Here's more of that Divine Intervention stuff. My older daughter, who had originally planned to go back to Virginia on Wednesday, had stayed through Friday. And had been delayed in her planned Friday a.m. departure. And was just loading her car when I called. She would be driving past the shop on her way home so I could take the motor home to the kids', ride with her as far as the shop, and bring my SIL's car back without anyone having to make an extra shuffle run. (45 miles one way, not a quickie run!) The kids were all going out to dinner before she'd be leaving, and as it worked out I could just make it by the time they were meeting for dinner. Woohoo! So dinner with my family, a no-imposition ride back for the other vehicle, and all the vehicles where they were supposed to be.

I'd love to say everything is fixed, but I still have a brake light that comes on when I'm in gear... It's a side-effect of the towing or PS pump replacement - happened the other time too - but we don't know how to make it go away. The brake itself is not on, just the light. And I found out my headlights don't play nice with my signal lights, so I am only able to drive in daylight until I get THAT figured out. (It's not the relay.) Have I mentioned I'm tired of doing repairs? Nevertheless, I am very grateful to be neither a crispy critter nor stranded in some unfamiliar area without resources. Now maybe I can get on with the business of finding interesting stuff and reporting on motor home life. Please?

My thanks to G!, my kids, my friends, the mechanics, for all the assistance.

Pig Pickin'

2011-06-18T08:26:00.000-07:00

Last weekend the Callicat and I went to a Pig Pickin' hosted by my friends Denise & Thurmond. It was well-attended and a good time was had by all. Thurmond makes some wonderful barbecue, and it was a very very hot day in spite of the pond and the shade. I was not only stuffed, but the heat got to me.

Several of us camped on their land in RVs all weekend. Last year when I was there, the wind came up and put my awning up on my roof. This year the wind came up when we were back at camp, and we all closed our awnings. And the storm went away. Rolling up awnings is good anti-storm medicine?

As I said, it was very hot. I had the a/c running, and was plugged in to a circuit that could handle it - but my 30 - 15 adapter could not. When I broke camp I was surprised to find it had MELTED and melted the end of the extension cord (heavy duty but not heavy-duty enough) with it.

I now have a shiny new pigtail adapter which should not have that problem. Normally my 2 RV cords are enough for where I plug in, but D&T's power is further from the rig. I intend to acquire a couple more super-heavy-duty RV cords before next year's Pickin'.

Washing Dishes in a Small Galley

2011-06-18T08:02:00.000-07:00

A few posts ago, I added Counter Space to my RV kitchen. It is not, however, where the sink is. The rig came with a drop-down counter extension next to the sink, but it blocks the door. If it's in use, you can't go in or out. Also, this rig has very small sinks. My old dishpans and dish drain from the Escaper do not fit.

Fortunately, I was able to find these tubs at - I think it was Dollar General - which work very well and stack nicely. I found an absorbent drain mat at WalMart, too. I was originally planning to put it under the dish drain, but then discovered I could simply put the dishes on the mat to drain.

Then, when I'm done, I replace the sink cover over the left sink.

Then I slide the mat, dishes and all, onto that cover. Drop the extension and the door is once again usable.

Added bonus: the drain mat goes in the washer when it gets dirty.

Rudd's Creek Corps of Engineers Campground

2011-06-06T20:06:00.000-07:00

I couldn't have picked a better site. It was almost level, large, with a west facing yard, overlooking the lake.

Paths led from the campsite down to the lake, where boats were pulled up to the shoreline. My campsite's shoreline had a gentle slope into the water.

After spending much of the day sorting stuff in one of my storage bays for more logical storage,

and being taken for walks by the Callicat, I blew up one of my float rafts and went down for a swim. The water was absolutely perfect in temperature and I floated out to where the inlet opened to the main lake, where the "no wake" buoy is. Remember that kayak I want? I still want it!

Later my neighbor in the next campsite over invited me for a ride in his new-to-him boat. It is a very nice motorboat and we zoomed around the lake for a while. It was a blast. It has been way too long since I've been in a power boat. He'd just got this boat, this was its first time out on the lake for him, and then we discovered that when the gas guage says 1/4 tank - it lies.

Up until that point there had been lots of boats on the lake - but just as we ran out of gas, they all vanished. The sun told me we had half an hour of daylight left. No phones on board. Oh no, not another learning experience! We drifted, watching for boats, and finally saw one way off in the distance which seemed to be coming toward us. Did I mention Kerr Reservoir is a BIG lake? I picked up his red towel and waved it as a distress signal hoping the distant boat would see it.

I don't know if they did or not, because a boat we couldn't see due to the sun in our eyes to the west appeared - much closer - and they did see it. That boat turned out to be the neighbor on the other side, and they towed us back to camp. How's that for serendipity?

Being adopted by a cat will definitely change your life.

2011-06-06T19:35:00.000-07:00

Until the Callicat adopted me, my biggest responsibility was the refrigerator. Make sure either it is level, or turn it off. Cats, on the other hand, you can't turn off. Did I mention I work at supermarkets? And the average supermarket parking lot has no shade. So this week with temperatures in the high nineties, we got to experiment with what would keep the motorhome tolerably cool.

This Holiday Rambler is the first RV I've had that has had an onboard generator. In the past, in this sort of heat, I would wet a golf shirt, turn on a fan, and have portable personal air conditioning. Or park and go somewhere interesting with a/c. That doesn't work so well for a cat. (Although, Tuesday when I came out from work and she was hotter than I thought she ought to be, I wet a dish towel and after 3 tries she decided I was right, it really WAS cooler to have that over her.)
I didn't want to run the a/c because one must shut the windows to keep the coolness in, and if it went off, it would become a hot box in there really quickly. But it turned out there was no other way to accomplish acceptable temperatures, so I turned on the genny and the a/c and that worked.

The Callicat, however, was not amused. She HATES the noise of the generator and runs to the opposite end of the rig to be as far from it as possible. Unfortunately, the genny is in a front compartment, and Callicat's litterbox is at the foot of the passenger seat. She let me know in no uncertain terms - if you have cats you understand this - that this was not acceptable to her. Now, when I turn the generator and a/c on, I have to put the litterbox in the back bedroom too.

So far I've been lucky: I've been able (with manager's approval) to open my awning on the job site. I do subscribe to the Parking Etiquette for RVs and before the Callicat, I would never have considered opening my awning in a parking lot. However, her life and health are my responsibility and if that demands some shade to help the a/c cope with the heat, so be it.

Another thing that helps is Reflectix. Basically, bubble wrap with aluminum on both sides. It comes in rolls in the insulation department at Lowe's. I bought a huge roll and have made inserts for all my windows and a cover for the windshield. I put the cover on the outside, partly because it was easier to fit and partly because I had read concerns about trapping heat between the reflectix and the glass. Bungeed in place and held down also by the windshield wipers, it makes a most amazing difference.

$14 at WalMart produced a big box fan which I put in the dinette window. When it's not hot enough to make the a/c an absolute necessity, I can get lots of air flow using this as an exhaust fan. Someday I'll have a Fantastic Fan vent, I'm sure, but it's not in the budget right now.

So that's what I've added this year to my bag of tricks for surviving summer heat. Someday maybe I'll be able to just drive to someplace cool instead.

How DO these things happen???

2011-05-28T09:12:00.001-07:00

I now live in the largest motorhome I ever intend to own. I don't mind storing off-season clothing, favorite books, a reasonable crafts waiting list, or some Rendezvous stuff, but this is ridiculous. So I spent the morning removing stuff. Almost nothing in here is worth the trouble but I don't want to fill the landfill so I'll be doing a yard sale - maybe a yard give . Many days work still in here.

Moving Continues, with Gratitude.

2011-05-14T15:25:00.000-07:00

For a while I was worried. Why wouldn't the contents of a 26 foot rig fit in a 32 foot rig with basement storage??? but toward the end it was getting interesting.

In the end it did actually all fit! I even have some empty spaces! And I can walk around without climbing over things.

For the first time since I moved out of my Travel Trailer, I have enough room for hanging special pictures and other items.

The wolves on barn wood above my Drum were painted by my friend Linda Staab, who also makes awesome jewelry and sells at the City Market in Roanoke VA.

I showed you one of Elder Daughter's counted cross-stitch items last blog. This is another - I started it and cross-stitch isn't my thing. So she finished it for me.

This was the first big counted cross-stitch she gave me.

Of course a dream catcher hangs over the bed - close, anyway.

The padded cornice gives me a way to hang some small special items,

and another displays my pin-back button collection. No special mottoes here, just buttons meaningful to me personally.

My traveling partner, the Callicat, is settling in nicely. She particularly likes napping on the Guitar's Bed stretched out next to the keyboard, now that I'm done moving and creating chaos. During the chaos, she liked hiding under/behind the drivers' seat out of the way. Smart cat.

Here's the Extra Special Gratitude part.

Friday I headed in to town to do some errands and get the part installed that will make my water heater ignite. When I came out of Northern Tool, I saw something under the engine of the rig. The something turned out to be the hose for the left front air bag. Not good. The water heater will wait; I tied up the hose and headed for the truck repair facility.

The hose was taken care of in short order, but it turned out I need new front air bags. In the process of working in the pit under my rig, the mechanic noticed a fluid leak which turned out to be from the transmission. It was falling apart! A bolt missing and the rest of them loose. How DO these things happen? You have no idea how glad I am to have air bag trouble and go to the shop and get the bolt situation corrected and not have my transmission drop out going down the road!

So the air bags are ordered, I have an appointment for installation next week, and I am really hoping that gets done early enough for me to get the water heater done too. However it works out, repairs I can schedule are WAY better than disasters on the road.

What a Busy Weekend!

2011-05-09T06:28:00.000-07:00

When the work week ended, I returned to the Escaper to continue transferring Stuff. Friday was largely taken up with a few more repairs. The furnace board decided it would be a good time to go out - so although I had heat last weekend, I didn't have it Thursday morning. That and the water heater won't ignite. OK, so the furnace is fixed and the valve for the water heater is ordered.

My friend Susan joined me for lunch, and then my other friend Sue came to spend the weekend.

While I was awaiting her arrival, I heard and investigated some rather persistant meowing. I meowed back and was answered - and eventually found the source - a pretty calico. Who promptly hopped into the Holiday Rambler and made herself at home. Sue arrived and we fed the cat hot dogs and tuna, which she devoured like she'd missed a lot of meals. She spent the evening with us, went out sometime during the night, came back in early Saturday morning. She went back out and off into the woods and we didn't see her again all day.

My friend Danny came over to help with alterations. He'd built me a counter for the guitars' bed, which fit in place perfectly.

He brought his saw and cut the ends off my bifold door, which is now Counter Space in the kitchen.

And he made the offending chair go away from my living room. Yay. We also rode over to my storage and picked up the microwave stand before he left.

I hung this picture, too. In the Escaper there was no space to hang it, but it goes quite well in this dinette. This is counted cross stitch (with leather and beads) which Elder Daughter stitched for me some 12 years ago, and it's awesome.

I found out my work schedule had changed and my vacation starts THIS week! Excellent.

Danny called and said he'd passed a small festival on his way home, very close to where we were, that he thought we'd enjoy. So after lunch we went - to New London Day - and found a bunch of our friends from Rendezvous playing music and doing history things. So yes, we enjoyed it very much.

Sue and I took the Holiday Rambler and her truck to Izaak Walton, where I parked in my usual favorite campsite, and enjoyed dinner and a campfire.

Sunday morning after breakfast, we went back and picked up the Escaper. The cat came back and we checked around for possible owners - nope, she's been hanging around for a week or so, no one's come asking for her - so I've been adopted. We added a PetSmart run to our list of errands. The rest of that list involved contact paper and molding to finish the Guitar's Bed project. Had an awful time finding contact paper. I remember when it was easy to get and there was always a really large selection. Now, there are only a few patterns, and the clerk at WalMart looked at us like we were from Mars. (It's in the kitchen gadget section with shelf paper.)

I parked the Escaper near the HR, we had lunch, Sue went home, I went to work on the rig.

Here's the Guitar's Bed as it originally was:

And with the counter Danny built me, I'll be able to stand the guitars and stow a lot of other gear too:

I used the old "headboard" for padding for the heads of the guitar cases.

And with the contact paper and molding applied, it actually looks like furniture:

It has cat approval.

Project completed.

The chair is gone, the stand is in place, and I have an office which does not involve the dinette!

And that counter space issue - The bifold door I salvaged when Jon and Tina moved to Florida is now a sliding counter. Ready for use, it opens to provide counter space and access to kitchen Stuff.

Ready for travel or dinner, the counter part is folded up out of the way, keeping Stuff from wandering.

It can stay back against the window, or slide forward for convenience when doing serious cooking. I still need to arrange some hardware to make it slide easily, but it's functional now.

Road Service: don't drive your home without it.

2011-05-09T05:53:00.001-07:00

Now, just to make life "interesting", I find I have a very flat inner rear tire. The outer tire doesn't like that much. Neither do I. More adventures in Class A ownership. If this were the Escaper, Wal-Mart probably could have fixed it. As it is, I call Good Sam Road Service and hope they can send me someone who fixes tires on location.

That's what they did, and I feel quite lucky: My tire itself is fine. There were dual wheel valve stem extension hoses on the dual wheels, to make it easier to check and fill them. Unfortunately, when these things get old there's a gasket inside that goes away. And then all the air goes away.

The worn out extension hoses are gone, the tire is full, all 7 tires are filled to the same correct psi. Once again, my Road Service plan has paid for itself.

Moving Day

2011-05-09T05:17:00.002-07:00

I took my Maiden Voyage in the Harley last week. Yes, I said IN. My Holiday Rambler is a '92, which is right in the middle of the time when Holiday Rambler was owned by Harley Davidson. So I live IN a Harley :) and I just had to get a Harley decal for it.

This is my 5th RV, not counting the van camper. It is my first Class A. Previous incarnations of "home" have been 2 21' Class C's, a 23' Travel Trailer, and a 26' Class C. This is a 32' Class A. It's BIG. Inside, I think it might almost be big enough. Outside, I think it's too big but what can you do? It's been an interesting experience since the beginning.

I bought this rig last summer and there is a long sad story involving mechanics and obsolete parts and what not. To make it a quicker, more interesting read - I finally started moving into it Saturday.

As I write, I have moved the basics of living (kitchen, bath, bedroom, work tools...) and put them away. I'm loving the lack of clutter and hoping I can adjust the interior to absorb the Stuff required to support my music and crafts habits without cluttering it up too much.

Sunday night, off I went to my jobsite and my first night of actually living in the HR.

There are things I like.

I no longer have to sleep with musical instruments in my bed - they have their own.

All the windows open, and the cross ventilation is wonderful.

The generator works. (It's my first-ever built-in generator. NICE to just push a button and have AC power.) Which leads me to: The air conditioner works.

I like the window curtains class A motorhomes have.

And the driver's and passenger's seats swivel and become part of the living room furniture.

My work tools are in basement storage, so I'm not tripping over them in the house.

The fridge (which I initially thought I would not like) is bigger inside (although the freezer is not).

There are things I don't like.

There could be more counter space.
There could BE counter space. (Who am I kidding? It's a motor home.)

The living room chair has got to go.
And will be replaced with my microwave stand from storage, which will become a printer stand.

I'm debating whether the couch stays or gets replaced by something smaller. It's comfy but takes up lots of space. No rush on that.

My Class C motor homes had 40 gallon gas tanks. I don't know how big this one is because Sheetz / Visa would only let me swipe the card for 2 $100 charges at the pump. I'm in shock. And it's still not full.

There is one thing I vehemently don't like. The oven.
As you can see in the picture, the baking area is too small for anything taller than a tv dinner. My roasting pan won't even begin to fit in there. Magic Chef, you usually do better than that. And I miss the electronic ignition on the stove in the Escaper.

Manual Food Processor

2011-04-23T07:41:00.001-07:00

Since my travels are dictated by where my work is, Younger Daughter wasn't sure when she'd see me next and gave me my Mothers Day gift early. I love it.

You see, my daughter sells Pampered Chef, and what she gave me is their Manual Food Processor. It's only got 3 pieces: bowl, blade, and top. Food goes in, lid goes on, you push the lever and the blades spin. No electricity required. Works in the motor home. Works in tent camp. Yes it will crush ice! Even my wonderful Magic Bullet To Go balks at ice.

Already it has mashed sweet potatoes, made homemade applesauce, scrambled my eggs... and I only just got it.

Thank you, Jocelyn!

Today's Yard, April 21 2011

2011-04-21T17:45:00.001-07:00

The work week being over, I made a beeline for Ebenezer Park. You've seen pics from here before, because it's one of my favorites. Inexpensive, big lake, nice sites. No pool but this is April and I really don't care. Anyway - I figured it would be about half full, this being early in the season and a Thursday. Yeah, right. I got the next to last spot.

After I got hooked up and ate dinner, I took a walk. One of my neighbors has a big Holiday Rambler and a whole lot of 'passengers' in their front window - a bunch of plush Disney characters. The whole gang, looks like.

My other neighbor has something I've not seen before: a stained glass window in their door. Very nice. I've done stained glass, but I don't think I'll do a window - I think I'll call in a promise from Elder Daughter, who does glass etching.

It is nice to be in a calm peaceful campground for a few days and catch up with myself. Last weekend I spent with Younger Daughter and her family - hanging out, visiting, bowling - and I met them again Tuesday night for dinner. All you can eat crab legs at AmberJack in Gastonia NC. Very yummy. They only have the crab leg thing on Tuesday nights, but other nights you can eat other yummy food and still have room for dessert, like my SonInLaw did.

Instead of Blogging

2011-04-09T06:18:00.001-07:00

"In the winter it's too cold to do much blog-worthy stuff. In the summer I'm too busy doing blog-worthy stuff to write about it." Excuses, excuses - the truth is I just haven't been blogging. I hadn't realized it had been so long. Anyway it's spring, so neither excuse applies.

Here are some pictures of what I've been doing instead of blogging.

At the beginning of October I went with my daughters and their families to catch Kathy Mattea in concert in Clover SC. It was, of course, wonderful. Work had me in Florida and Georgia at the time, and I am forever grateful to Dolly & Avery for the ride to and from SC.

When I returned north, I stayed at Ebenezer Park, in Rock Hill SC. This is one of my favorite parks - beautiful, quiet, inexpensive, large lake.

As usual, I attended the fall OVPR Rendezvous. Not as usual, we were visited by a group on horseback.

This year the Southeastern Primitive Rendezvous was held in November, in North Carolina - so I went to that one too. I got to see friends I hadn't seen in years. The site was really nice; I'm glad it will be there again this fall.

Then work sent me up to Pennsylvania. I got to see friends I hadn't seen in even longer. I also stopped by the Daniel Boone Homestead. This is where Daniel Boone was a tiny tot, where his family set off from, before they went to Yadkinville where the Southeastern was held, before he went off further west seeking elbow room...

While I was in Pennsylvania, winter arrived. And stayed. I celebrated the holidays with my kids, fought with ice in and out of my plumbing, camped in snow at the beach - but you saw THOSE pictures...

Work took me to Fayetteville, where I got to visit friends who will be soon moving to Florida. We went to the Airborne & Special Operations Museum in Fayetteville, where I took only lousy pictures.

During one of those visits, I salvaged some floating flooring Jon had removed from his office room and improved my motor home floor. It had been down to chipboard underfloor in the living area due to the interior rain before the new roof (thoroughly blogged), and in the bedroom due to the leak in the hot water heater this winter (thoroughly un-blogworthy). While I didn't have the resources available for a truly proper installation, it looks a lot better now.

Finally Spring came and with it the Spring OVPR. Had a wonderful time, checked the weather report, packed the van on Saturday, stayed for more Rendezvousing and left before the snow came. It wasn't much, but it made packing up less than pleasant for those who were packing on Sunday.

Which brings me up to date, back in Raleigh working, and enjoying my somewhat improved kitchen area.

RV Kitchen Improvement

2011-04-09T05:59:00.000-07:00

The reason I bought the Holiday Rambler - which I'm STILL not moved into - is the Escaper is too small on the inside. There is no counter space at all, so I use the back of the stove and have long since exceeded its capacity. Yesterday I went to The Container Store in Raleigh NC and bought a bit of sanity.

Four wire shelves, on casters. Everything on the top shelf used to be on the stovetop along with everything that is still there. My spices used to be waaaay up over top of the microwave. Now they're on the lower shelves of the wire rack, where I can get at them. They are securely corralled in Clementine boxes, which fit perfectly. Their spot will be taken by the grilling stuff, which makes more sense.

The rack fits perfectly in the tiny space in the kitchen, and rolls out of the way when I want to be where it is. A couple of bungee cords keep it secure for traveling.

Today's Yard, January 22 2011

2011-01-22T12:33:00.000-08:00

This is my yard today. It's been blowing snow - and I do mean BLOWING snow - horizontally - since noon. I really do have this whole campground to myself, but no, I'm not going to go walk around it, or go walk on the beach...

I'm sitting inside my rig, parked on the leeward side of the bath house, as out of the wind as it's possible to get, and enjoying being warm. I made the most delicious soup I have ever made the other day and will be heating it up soon.
Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny. If it makes this white stuff go away, I'll get to walk up to the dunes you can't really see in the picture.

FYI, RVing readers - the visitor's center on Roanoke Island (along Route 64 on the way here from the mainland) has a free dump station.

Today's Yard, January 16, 2011

2011-01-16T05:59:00.001-08:00

State Fair grounds at Raleigh NC.

This is the first time I've camped at a fairgrounds. It will NOT be the last. I was just hunting a hookup and hot showers and was not sure they'd even be open this time of year until I called to confirm - turned out it was one busy place. Don't let the picture mislead you - that was all covered by vehicles yesterday.
Every weekend except when the State Fair is happening, there's a flea market. This weekend there was also a horse event, a racing sale, a cheerleading event, and a gun and knife show. I probably missed something in that list, too.

Campsites are mostly along the perimeter of the fairgrounds. You find a spot or if you're as confused as I was when I arrived, you call the fairgrounds' public safety office and someone will come help you. I'm glad: I didn't want to go blindly exploring in that crowd with a motorhome. I found out it's best to arrive very early or after the days events are over. When I arrived at 2 pm, a lot of event-goers had parked their cars in campsites, limiting the choices. There is water, sewer and electric. The water is underneath metal plates marked "water meter". Lift with a screwdriver and you find the spigots. The shower that is open in the winter is a good hike from most of the campsites. There are no picnic tables. But there are events!

I did the flea market yesterday, which made this one of the most expensive campgrounds I've ever stayed at! But I found some things at amazing prices that I've wanted for a long time.

Today I will do the gun show.

And I will find out where all the fairgrounds that have camping are and check them for interesting events as I travel. If you know of fairgrounds that have camping, please post a comment and let me know.

Today's Yard 1/11/11

2011-01-16T05:58:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was snow. THIS is ice. Lot of ice. This is North Carolina. Why am I not in Mexico?? Paycheck addiction, that's why.

I had an Out-Of-Century Experience in Lakeland GA.

2010-10-10T08:20:00.000-07:00

I had an out of century experience this week. I took the motorhome for gas in Lakeland, Georgia. There was no card reader on the pump, which isn't SO unusual. Then the guy from the gas station came out, put gas in my tank, checked my oil, other fluids, put air in my tires! I started to wonder if I'd slipped back to 1970 or something. He ran the sliding embosser gadget over my debit card and gave me my copy... Haven't seen one of those in a while either. Hmmmm - customer service - what a neat idea. Think it'll catch on?

Lakeland is called The Mural City. It's called that because it's got murals of people, places and scenes from the past painted on the buildings in the historical part of town. Complete with placards explaining who they were.

It's earned its name Lakeland too. I headed out on the scooter after work and found 4 lakes without trying. 3 were small lakes in parks in town. That's a lot of lakes, and a lot of parks, considering the size of the town.

The largest of these was adjacent to a nature trail through the woods where the stream went beyond the dam.

While I was there, I got a good look at the little red antique car belonging to the lady whom I'm told is responsible for arranging the murals.

If you've been reading this blog, you know I like lakes, walks through the woods, antique cars, and interesting oddities. It was a good town.

Then I went just out of town, to the Banks Lake Wildlife Preserve. There, of course, I found my fourth lake. Much bigger, cypress trees growing in it... I took a bunch of pictures and vowed to return when the Outpost was open to rent a boat.

There are a few houses / cabins / dock houses right on the edge of the lake. I'd love to have one - it'd make a great home base.

I did come back, and rented a kayak. I've always canoed, but now I'm hooked on kayaks. It was way fun, and easier on my bod. And I got more pictures.

I'm at Ebenezer Park in Rock Hill SC tonight, with a whole bunch of new pictures to add to the files full of old pictures - because I have been to neat places in the last year - I've just been working too hard to post about most of them. This week the work let up some and I have a few brain cells available for writing a blog post or two. Maybe I should start with this week and work back through the files.

Ebenezer Park's on Lake Wylie. There's quite a lot of Lake Wylie. I want a kayak. Now. Today.

First I have to figure out (a) how to carry one on my motorhome, (b)what kind of kayak I want, and (c) how to pay for the darn thing.

The end of a relationship

2010-09-24T14:14:00.001-07:00

When we first got together, it was blissful. We had 15 good years. Then things changed. When I tried to communicate, I would be reduced to tears.
They say insanity is repeating the same thing, expecting different results. I'm done.
It's over. I will no longer allow you to treat me this way.
Bank of America, I have negotiated your voice response system for the last time. What would take a human being less than 2 minutes to deal with, requires major chunks of time listening to inane menus, selecting the closest inadequate response, and not resolving the issue.
Most recently I spent nearly an hour trying to tell your voice response system that buying propane for my RV is NOT unusual card activity. Eventually, I had to go online, text-chat with a live person who couldn't actually DO anything but who did give me a number where I could reach a live person. Total time: 2 hours.
Does it make sense that I can go online and type to a human but can't call one on the phone???
If you were my boyfriend, this would be an abusive relationship. I don't stay in abusive relationships, so I'm out of here.
So is my money. It's going to another bank which employs actual human customer service people.

A weighty issue

2010-09-22T16:39:00.001-07:00

Space, of course, is at a premium in an RV. Although I have lots of good intentions about getting in shape now that the weather is somewhat cooler, there is not space for a Bowflex, or a weight bench, or a rack of weights... I have a set of exercise bands and a pair of one-pound weights which as the weather cooled I discovered were really too light to accomplish anything. I knew there had to be adjustable weights out there. I'd seen them on the internet - expensive ones...

Sunday evening I stopped at K-Mart and browsed around and found these.

They are WEIDER PowerSwitch 25. Each dumbbell adjusts from 2.5 pounds up to 12.5 pounds by moving a knob, adjusting a slider which keeps varying amounts of weight plates attached to the handle. It's like having a rack of weights in the space of one pair. And they'll keep me busy for quite a while before 25# becomes too light.

National Museum of the Marine Corps

2010-08-14T09:39:00.001-07:00

Last Sunday after I broke camp, I went to the National Museum of the Marine Corps at Quantico VA.
I've been to museums, and museums - but this one is Really Good. The following pictures do not do it justice, but I'll try to give you an idea.

USMC history goes back to the Revolution. Here, colonial era Marines tend to the rigging overhead.

In the Making of a Marine section, you learn about Boot Camp and are screamed at by DI's - drill instructors as they begin to train you to withstand the stress of combat.
Here, a recruit is on the rappel tower.

A look at a Marine's personal articles.

A female Marine in uniform.

Civilians learn of Pearl Harbor on their radio. Ignore the flat screen monitors - those are for us.

A Marine in Viet Nam - I believe the enemy is hiding under there.

Marines in town warfare. Note the Marine comforting the child near the house.

Many of the displays were immersion experiences. I was immersed, so you don't get many pictures of those. Here, we are landing out of the plane and right into combat.

War all around. Dead bodies.

Wounded.

Back in a main area - Marines at work.

I have much increased appreciation for what you Marines do. I salute you.

Blackbeard Festival, Hampton VA

2010-08-14T08:31:00.000-07:00

July 10th - OK, so I'm slow updating the blog - I went to the Blackbeard Festival at Hampton Va. It LOOKS like a Rendevous (except for being in town) but it's a Pirate Festival. With tall ships and all.

It'd be a lot of fun anyway, but my main motivation for attending was to hear House of Cadarn, which is my daughter and her singing partner.

I parked my motor home and walked toward the event. It was early, and the first open vendor I ran into was a clothing designer. She had a booth full of fun hot-weather clothing and some wonderful oriental-style silk outfits, and great prices. Carol only does festivals and doesn't have a web site or I would post a link. I will certainly be watching for her at future festivals. I bought a neat black silk outfit with purple flowers. She told me she'd sold a similar one the day before to someone who was at the festival and going to do an oriental pirate impression. (One of the first known female pirates was Chinese.) So off I went with my plunder tucked in a bag, to meet up with my daughter.

My daughter, the Chinese Pirate - who had bought HER outfit the day before. Needless to say, we had to go back to Carol's booth to share our amusement.

They sang, I enjoyed, we explored the festival, ate yummy food, explored some more...

Of course, we saw lots of Pirates.

And surprised a few friends from Rendezvous... Time travelers get around.

Today's Yard, August 6 2010

2010-08-06T15:16:00.000-07:00

Sure beats a supermarket parking lot! Spending the weekend in this lovely campground Right By The Pool.

I arrived, leveled, plugged in, and jumped in the pool. Then the rest of the chores.

The odd contraption in the middle of the picture is my inversion table. Since I can't carry a chiropractor with me on the road (darn it!) I carry this instead. It really helps.

Surviving Summer Heat

2010-07-10T17:16:00.001-07:00

108 degrees in Williamsburg VA this past Wednesday. I had hot running water - out of my cold tap. And I do mean hot, not just warm. My 3-day cooler where I keep drinking water holds ice for - maybe 8 hours, not 3 days - in this heat.

After work I went to Barnes & Noble and soaked up their a/c until it closed. The heat is just exhausting, and I am looking forward to a rig with a generator big enough to handle an air conditioner. Probably have it on the road about the time the weather cools off in the fall ;)

I've said it before, but it bears repeating: Air Conditioning is a recent invention but heat has been around a while. Sometimes it breaks down, sometimes you just don't have it. The best method I know for keeping cool without a/c is to get a golf shirt wet with cold water, wring it out and put it on. Golf shirts are thick enough to hold wet for a decent amount of time and they generally look the same wet or dry, which means you can go out in public without getting weird looks.

I have a knee-length roomy tee-shirt fabric sleep shirt which does the same thing for sleeping - put a towel on the bed. Put the fan on. Don't die of heat stroke.

Clutter

2010-07-10T17:06:00.001-07:00

Remember the neat orderly interior of the Escaper when I first bought it? Now, I can't get out of my own way. It's comfy and cleans up nice but it is so not a fulltimer's rig. Not for someone with hobbies and interests and a job with tools. This is why the Holiday Rambler.
I love my little Escaper, though. Hope I can find it a good home.

2010-07-06T18:15:00.000-07:00

MG-T dashboard.

Another dashboard, with right-hand steering.

Red MG-T with wire spoke wheels

Another wire spoke wheeled MG-T

MG - T goes to America

And finally, the third model, with the headlights in the fenders and the slanted back grille. You can see my rig in the background.

Today's Yard July 6

2010-07-06T17:16:00.001-07:00

After work I finished the book I'd been reading, looked up and noticed an antique car drive by and park. I know nothing about antique cars except that I really like them. I popped out of my rig - and found an MG-T club had parked their cool cars right in front of me, drawn apparently by the lure of the adjacent Bruster's Ice Cream parlor.
One of the owners was kind enough to tell me about them. 3 models were represented. The MG-TC have spoke wheels and they steer on the right. Few of them crossed the pond. Then there came the MG-TD, with rack and pinion steering, which drive from the left, made for the American market. The third model, MG-TF, is a bit 'swoopier', with the headlights in the fenders and the grille leaning back.
My personal favorite was the MG-TD.
More pictures will be up soon, next time I'm online with the laptop.

Ths will have to hold you...

2010-07-04T14:18:00.001-07:00

Until I take more.

Really Mine

2010-07-02T15:43:00.000-07:00

The continuing saga of Gypsy Jane's New Home. When we left off last week, I had sent my new rig off to the shop. But I hit a snag: co-owner signature needed, who was out of town. Having run out of weekend, I returned the title and took back my check and said call when you have it. So this weekend I went back to do it all over again. My first stop was the shop, where my rig had responded well to the mechanics' attentions and was now purring. I looked it over, pleased that I still like it as much as I did before. Then back to the seller, where the paperwork was now in order. Then the long wait at DMV for title and tags. Back to the shop to put the tags on the rig. MINE!!!
I have bought vehicles faster. I last ate at breakfast, have been going nonstop all day, and it is now definitely past dinner time.
I stopped for dinner at Flying J, thinking what better place to celebrate, only to find a new and yet-to-open Denny's in place of their old restaurant. On down the road, I found a family restaurant with spinach calzones. Mine is here - see ya!

My new home

2010-06-25T19:56:00.001-07:00

I rode out this morning to look at this rig. I dearly love my Escaper but it's feeling really cramped and it's aging...
After much deliberation and after consultation with HP and an unbiased mechanic, I bought this.
It's a 92 Holiday Rambler, one of my favorite brands. Basement. Straight line kitchen. Twin beds. Coach is amazing. Mechanically, it needs work. So it goes to the shop in the morning and when I see it again it will start, run, steer and stop like it should. Then there will be some modifications in all my spare time so my desk can be aboard. So no, i'm not moving in right away. I want to do everything that needs done before my Stuff starts getting in the way.

Expletive deleted - the rest of the story.

2010-06-13T12:24:00.001-07:00

But there are many worse places for this to happen and few better.

What happened is a quick storm - one of those "isolated thunderstorms" - went by. It mostly missed the pig picking but the wind did this to my awning.

What is really cool is that if it had to happen, it happened when and where it did. Not the previous week when I was alone and getting ready for a long drive to work. Not as part of the rain/thunderstorm that hit later that night. There were guys around who could get it off the roof and rolled up and screw the broken bracket to the rig so I could drive. And yes - no one was hurt.

That was the Attention Getting Event for me this weekend, but most of it I spent having a blast at a pig picking hosted by friends in Emporia. I met lots of neat people and ate lots of good food, swam, rode scooter, rode in their side-by-side... Lots of fun. Actually, I was too busy having fun to take pictures - the awning picture happened because I was taking them for insurance.

Today's yard, June 5, 2010

2010-06-05T12:51:00.001-07:00

At the end of my vacation week, I am finally on vacation, enjoying Lynchburg's best-kept secret, the Izaac Walton park. My rig's in my favorite campsite with the awning out, and I've just returned from my first swim of the year.
Why so late? I don't know. I usually find my way into water sooner than this, but this year there were other things going on. Ranging from excellent weekends with family or time-traveling to staying in town doing vehicle maintenance. This week while I was off the road, my rig got inspected, tranny service, and a modulater valve. Seasonal clothing got swapped out. Other chores in plenty got done. I went to a Rendezvous (another post, coming soon) and a memorial service. And now: it's time to float around in the lovely lake, read a few stories, nibble sweet black cherries, have friends visit this evening, and rest up for work. The weather, I might add, is ideal despite predictions of isolated thunderstorms. Life is good.

My copper pot is copper again!

2010-06-05T06:58:00.000-07:00

I love it when a product does exactly what it is supposed to.
I have a beautiful Westminster Forge coffee pot in my camp. Unfortunately, in my early morning decaffeinated state, when I first got it I didn't think to soap it, so the campfire soot stuck. It has built up over several years of regular coffee brewing.
Last summer I decided I wanted to at least be able to see that it wasn't granite ware under all that black. I tried everything I - or my friend Sue who has every chemical known to man in her pantry - could think of. Including the wire brush on my Dremel. Nothing worked. Nothing even made a dent in the built up blackness.

On my way home from the Shenandoah Longrifles Memorial Day Camp, I stopped at the Shenandoah Heritage Market to stretch my legs and hunt something cold to drink. One of the stores in there is Kitchen Kupboard, which is a very cool kitchen gadget store. I had to browse that - and that's where I found SOKOFF. It ain't cheap but I thought it just might remove my soot. That's what it says it's made for: removing soot and baked on grease.

Yesterday I painted it on my blackened coffee pot. And yes, it IS a copper pot.
Here are the pictures. And yes, this is an UNSOLICITED testimonial. I have lots of friends with sooty stuff, so I must share the find.

Today's yard May 29 1810

2010-05-28T16:42:00.001-07:00

The motorhome is parked at home base. The van, loaded to the gills, carried me 4 hours north and 200 years back. Then all afternoon was spent setting up camp. I am sure I have too much stuff. My back is positive of that. But most everything really does get used.

It is a treat to see old friends, and meet new friends. And sad to miss those who are no longer with us.

We were expecting to get drenched this afternoon but the storm seems to have passed by bringing cooler air but not rain. Yay!

Today's yard, May 26

2010-05-26T02:49:00.001-07:00

Birds singing. Soft gentle breeze. Minimal traffic. Early morning sounds of civilization behind me - compressors, engines? - gearing up... We are all related, even humans are Part of Nature... may we walk in Harmony.

Today's Yard, May 21, 2010

2010-05-21T14:45:00.000-07:00

One of the joys of nomadic life is that I get to visit my daughters more often than I would if I had a stuck-in-one-place lifestyle. It comes in waves. Sometimes we do a lot of stores near Charlotte and I get to visit the younger daughter and her family. Currently we're doing a lot of stores in the Richmond area and I get to visit the older daughter and her family.

Whenever I start fantasizing about a really roomy motorhome, it's all fantasy: I can't consider one that won't fit in this driveway, so that's about a 31 foot limit. The Escaper is 26' so I can go a bit bigger but I'm safe from the 40' monsters. And those trees - here and at several other of my favorite places to visit - the maple at Home Base, for that matter - prevent slide-outs from being tempting.
As I keep eyes open for the next motorhome, a lot of rigs are eliminated by those considerations.

Serendipity at the Flying J

2010-05-20T20:02:00.001-07:00

It was a very long workday at the end of a week of long days. No way could I reach my planned weekend parking - at my daughter's, near next week's job - at a reasonable hour. I talked with her when I pulled into Flying J. She was staying up waiting for me. I said, "Go to bed. I'll stop over here and drive the rest of the way in the morning." Then I pulled up to the gas pump. Just then a Winnebago finished fueling and went to park. 'Nice rig,' I thought. 'Looks like my friends' rig. Hey, I KNOW that dog!'
Yes, it was my friends, with their big dog riding shotgun. They do the same work I do, but on another team. Their set had finished similarly late and we could not have timed it better on purpose. A delicious dinner in good company was a delightful way to wrap up the day.

Portable generator tent

2010-05-19T15:00:00.001-07:00

Remember I bought a Honda generator last year? Handy little thing. But the weather that makes me want to stay inside and run the computer off it for hours on end is the same weather that the manual says not to have it out in. What to do?
I normally put the generator on the scooter's floorboard and lock it up. No one will swipe it easily and if I had to drive away in a hurry, it wouldn't fall off. So for drizzly weather like this week, a framework of PVC pipe supports a tarp tent over the whole thing. No puddles, no drizzles.

Today's Yard May 18, 2010

2010-05-19T14:51:00.001-07:00

At the edge of the store's lot, mowed grass, honeysuckle, birds singing. It was a rainy week with long work hours, so I didn't get to sit outside much but the peace came in, enabling me to work on a website and create a necklace for a gift. It has quit raining now, so I will enjoy Outside even though it is chilly.

Swimming vs Surfing

2010-05-04T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is a gravesite - here lies the Wildwood Pool.

The sign says:
Wildwood Pool, 1929-1964
For thirty-six years, a swimming pool provided Radford with water recreation at this location in Wildwood Park, to give a place "in which to avoid bad habits". The opening of the pool and a dance on Independence Day in 1929 attracted over 10,000 people from Radford and surrounding area.
The pool was 200 feet long and for a while received its water, described as "always cold", directly from Connelly's Run. The complex also featured a bathhouse, concession stand, ticket booth and a parking area. The pool was filled in and closed in 1964. Portions of the west wall can be seen beyond this marker.

I've commented on this before. There are so many places today where swimming is not permitted.

So many pools gone.

And so many swimming places under-utilized, like my own beloved Izaak Walton park.

I suppose instead of swimming, people today spend all their summer indoors, with a/c, surfing the internet.

Rather a shame.

Of course, sometimes there's a good reason not to swim.
This pavillion at Santee State Park in South Carolina indicates that swimming used to be popular there.
But I'm not even tempted to feed the 'gators.

Last Month's Yard - Wildwood Park, Radford

2010-05-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

Last month when I parked at Wildwood Park in Radford, I said I would post more pictures.

I walked through the woods at Wildwood Park.

Then through the tunnel which connects it with Bisset Park and the River Walk.

Wildwood is woods and meadows. Bisset is grassy parkland.

The walkway goes quite a ways up (down?) the river. I was back a couple of weeks ago and parked along the river walk to enjoy some spring sunshine.

Here's another shot of the rock face at the Wildwood Park parking area, and a movie too.

2010-04-30T22:00:00.000-07:00

Usually, it's what's cool about a particular town (although I confess I've been really bad about blogging regularly lately). This time, it's what's cool in my tiny RV kitchen. One cool thing is my Bullet-To-Go. This is what I mix my breakfast shake in, or scramble eggs, or... so you know I use it daily. (and no, this is not an affiliate link.)
You've seen the Magic Bullet on TV, certainly - and you can get them in retail stores - but the existence of the Bullet-To-Go is not so widely known. I'm not really sure why they aren't advertising it in RV magazines.
The truth is I'm not overly fond of their website. It's kind of As Seen On TV hype-ish, and I prefer to just be given straight-forward information and ordering... but the product itself makes up for it. The blender parts and cups and lids are the same as the regular plug-in version, but it comes with a battery base and charger. It holds its charge quite a long while and is easy to use. And it's LOTS more versatile than the smoothie blender I used to use.

The other cool thing I have is a SodaStream. It's a sleek gadget that carbonates water. They sell flavor concentrates for different flavor sodas, but I like to mix up my own carbonated drinks with real juice. I've talked about it on my Sweet Enough Already blog but I just realized I probably hadn't mentioned it here - even though I bought my SodaStream at Camping World over a year ago. I've given some as gifts, too - to people who love theirs as much as I love mine - and they've turned other people on to it also. If you like to drink sparkling water, cola, root beer, your own healthy mix... and not carry cans, you might like this.
Yes I have - had? - an affiliate link - I think it's expired and I have to do something to put up a new ad to get credit - which I haven't done - but that's not the point. I want both these companies to do lots of business so when I wear mine out eventually they are still in business and I can replace them.

Today's yard, April 6

2010-04-06T18:05:00.001-07:00

It's way too hot and sunny and early to park at tomorrow's store, so I go looking for a park. Nothing nearby. BUT - right up from the job-site is a vacant building with a flat lot - shade - a lovely lawn for my temporary yard, decorated with wisteria. The evening breeze carries the scent of blooming flowers. I sit outside in complete privacy, eat supper, play guitar, catch up on email...

Today's Yard, March 30

2010-03-31T14:04:00.001-07:00

I am leaning on my coach door where I'm parked in Wildwood Park's parking lot, Radford VA. Here in the sunshine I watch as the dripping water builds formations on the rock that would in a cave become stalagmites and stalagtites.
Yesterday I spent after-work with friends in Copper Hill, near Floyd VA. This is one of the things I love about this life: Friends in lots of neat places and opportunities to visit with them.
Today is sunny, warm, calm, a perfect day to dust off winter's cobwebs and walk a couple - three miles. Radford has a river walk/bikeway which passes through this park and Bisset park. I went in both directions, through light woods and meadowland and through civilized park / playground / etc. I saw a sign for canoe rental. I would have followed that arrow if it were earlier in the day.
A few miles away on Route 8 there is a buffalo restaurant / store, Buffalo And More, which sells locally raised buffalo meat. 4141 Riner Rd., Riner VA. I stopped by on my way here to get some meat for my freezer, and found work friends already there enjoying a burger.
More pictures soon, from the laptop. This is from the phone.

Today's yard March 19

2010-03-19T06:12:00.001-07:00

Today's yard is circa 1810, not 2010. Time traveling: loads of fun. Curious? http://buffalo-woman.com

Spring??? In today's yard!

2010-03-06T10:29:00.001-08:00

It's actually WARM! Not just not freezing. Birds singing. Sun shining. If I were a bit younger i'd have done cartwheels this morning!
Now maybe I can write about something other than snow!

Today's Yard, March 2nd....

2010-03-02T12:57:00.001-08:00

3rd, 4th.... I'm glad I'm to be at this store the next TWO days because it's forecast to snow for that long and I really don't fancy driving the rig around in it. Yes, it's snowing AGAIN. It's pretty bleak looking out there right now but I expect that to become a pretty, sparkly scene tomorrow or Thursday. I'm glad to have a nice view, not just a parking lot.
I have an 18th century camping trip planned for 2 weeks from now. I might be nuts! Where IS spring, anyway?

Today's Yard, February 6

2010-02-06T11:19:00.001-08:00

The sunlight's sparkling on the icy tree,
There's snow's on everything I see,
But the road is wet and snowflake-free

Time to go to shoveling.

Today's Yard, January 30

2010-01-30T07:55:00.000-08:00

In December it snowed while I was home, and it took my entire week off to shovel that long driveway. I have to go to work tomorrow afternoon so I parked in a more advantageous spot before the current episode of "global warming" began to fall. I will only have maybe 10' of snow between me and the road. Much better.
Estudio español: may need to go seriously south.

Today's yard, January 19 2009

2010-01-19T11:03:00.001-08:00

I am so glad to say goodbye to that cold spell. This week it's warm and the sun is shining and I'm really enjoying it.
I'm sitting at a Statesville NC park 2 miles from tomorrow's workplace, reading Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's latest, Burning Shadows, and soaking up enough sunshine to fry a Vampire.
If you like Vampire stories, check out this series. Her protagonist, Saint Germain, is my all-time favorite vampire.

It's a nice park: a network of walking trails lace through the grounds, so I could walk around the pond 5 times without repeating my route. Benches and swings to sit on while reading and playing guitar. Everything I need to help me keep my new years resolutions. Music? Check. Exercise? Check. Eat healthy? Check. Now, back to that book...

A Valued Business Relationship - NOT!

2009-12-31T18:52:00.000-08:00

I got a check in the mail today, from a company (Company A) whose online catalog I have enjoyed browsing, and from whom I have happily ordered. It was a check for $8.25.
The explanation along with it was that they "valued our relationship" - and therefore had asked an unaffiliated company (Company B) to attempt to rip me off.
OK, that's not exactly the way they put it, but that's what it is.
If I were to cash the check without reading - or perhaps understanding - the information on the back of the page, doing so would enroll me as a member of said unaffiliated company B, for $15 a month for which they would debit my card on file with Company A. The fine print gives permission for Company A to "securely" transfer my information to Company B. And for Company B to debit my card monthly for the $14.99 or the then current rate (wild card!) unless I CALL them to cancel.
For this $160/year, I become eligible to receive 2% refund on all my credit card purchases up to $5,000. Cool - I can get $100 back, if I spend $5,000 on a credit card - if I pay $160 a year for the privelege??? I can do that math! Oh, and get this: it doesn't happen automatically. After a year of membership, you have to gather up all your credit card receipts and send them in. You have a full 90 days to do it. Then they have even more of your information. If you remember to send it in. If they are even still in business by then.

I think if Company A "valued our relationship" they would not have sic'd Company B on me.

Handling Cold Weather

2009-12-29T09:33:00.001-08:00

With all this "global warming" going around, even people in Texas want to know how to stay warm. I wish I WERE in Texas. Cold here in Virginia constitutes sub-freezing weather.
Each winter before that happens, I let the fresh water tank get empty and drain the hot water heater. I use gallon jugs until I'm sure we've had the last hard freeze, because I hate fixing plumbing. Then I don't have to run the furnace when I'm not home, or asleep, just to keep the pipes warm. This makes my batteries last enough longer to be worth the aggravation.
When I have shore power, I preheat the bed with the electric blanket under the bottom sheet. 2 layers of feather comforter over top will keep you warm in most coldness. If it gets cold enough out I'll hook up the portable generator to do the electric blanket thing, but normally I wouldn't go to that much trouble because I wouldn't want to go out to turn it off. Hot water bottles work well for pre-heating cold beds, too.
Another winter comfort trick is, since the bathroom warms up the fastest and gets the warmest, I hang my pj's and tomorrow's clothes in the bathroom. I turn the heat on a bit before I get up in the morning, and by the time it's warm enough to get out of bed I have warm comfy clothes to put on.
While I seek shade in the summer, this time of year I look for sunny spots and try to park so my curb side faces south. Then I have solar heat through the big living room window.
I have a Mr. Heater for supplemental heat, which uses the one pound propane tanks. It's great for not using battery power, and for that "sitting by the fireplace" feeling. Someone tell me why Food Lion charges twice as much as Wal*Mart for those tanks??? I also have a little electric heater on board, but I rarely use it because so many places I plug in, it's too much for the incoming circuit.

I do not have any tricks to make cold stiff electric hookup cords cooperate, though.

Today's Yard Dec. 19th

2009-12-19T06:52:00.001-08:00

It's STILL snowing. First the new-to-me van had mud. Now, snow. Why am I not far south???

Today's Yard 12/19/09

2009-12-18T22:01:00.001-08:00

Snow. I'm at the home base and wondering why am I not in, like, South Texas. Of course, I know why: I'm addicted to paychecks. I'm just glad I don't need to drive in it. No working Christmas Week. I can stay put & stay warm.

Today's Yard, December 14 2009

2009-12-14T11:05:00.000-08:00

Up by the Chamber of Commerce, the old train depot, overlooking Altavista, VA. This is the first warm sunny weather I've seen in a while.
I used to have a job in this town, working nights, and friends and I would walk in the mornings after work at the park in this picture.
Now I'm finished with today's work and headed to NC for tomorrow's. Holiday shopping's done. When this work week is over, I'll decorate the motorhome.

Before

2009-11-25T04:48:00.001-08:00

This is my new-to-me van before its bath. The former owner lived up a long dirt road.
Now I can haul my Rendezvous gear, a tipi (next on my wish list), my canoe... Even a travel trailer if I ever want to do that. (Not as long as I have the Escaper.)
I have really missed having a van, so i'm really excited. Off to DMV I go...

Today's Yard, November 16

2009-11-16T16:01:00.001-08:00

The rain's gone; the sky is blue & clear.
It's break time and warm enough to sit outside and enjoy the weather. Life is good.
This Food Lion just received their shipment of Christmas Trees. Already. Here's where I come out as an old fogey. Can't we wait 'til after Thanksgiving? Sufficient unto the month are the holidays thereof? If we're focused on Christmas now, what about Thanksgiving? Did we observe Veteran's Day with full attention, or were we planning turkey dinners already? Be Here Now or you miss something. Today is a gift. That's why it's called the present.

Today's Yard, 11/10/09

2009-11-10T11:59:00.001-08:00

It's raining, it's pouring,
and I've been ignoring
Paperwork that grows in piles
Which should be put in trash or files.
No hiking trips for me today,
I'll make the piles go away.

I'm parked in Danville, VA, getting rid of accumulated paperwork, taking a break to enjoy the fall colors out the window through the rain and the warmth of my pseudo-fireplace, Mr. Heater. It's a good day to curl up with a good book and I intend to do so right after the last pile goes poof.

Today's Yard Oct. 28

2009-10-28T15:28:00.001-07:00

Working near a friend and fellow buckskinner means dinner around a campfire in her back yard. Puts the world back in proper order.

Today's Yard, October 28

2009-10-28T04:46:00.001-07:00

While I was at Rendezvous, FALL came to Charlottesville VA. That's where I'm working this week. I especially like Charlottesville area assignments because my friend Sue lives near here so we get to visit.
I am parked only a few miles from Monticello. Thomas Jefferson's estate. If you're ever in this area, do visit it!

Rendezvous!

2009-10-25T13:12:00.001-07:00

The weather was perfectly glorious for the Fall OVPR. Good to see everyone. The weekend went waaay too quickly. More later...

Bathroom = Bottomless To-Do List

2009-10-15T12:44:00.000-07:00

I got the new faucet installed in the bathroom, fixed the light switch, replaced some cabinet hardware - then noticed the medicine cabinet was tilted: hanging by ONE screw. More chores.
I thought it might be an opportunity to get a nicer cabinet.
I went online - would you believe you can spend $784.99 on a medicine cabinet??? Not in MY lunch money!
Lowe's, on the other hand, is much more reasonable. I went there to look in person. The one I like is $50, a 3-door 24x24 oak-finished one - but it's a little bit heavier than the one I want to get rid of. I'm going to think about it some. And check the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store. And the weekend's yard sales.
There's a really good chance I'll sand the rusty shelves in the old one, paint it, and put it up with wall anchors. Would you believe, it was NOT put up with wall anchors - just screws, right into the paneling - which has no studs behind it. I'm amazed it was still up there. It is a motor home, after all. Bouncing down the roads on a regular basis.
At least, everything ELSE in there is in working order now.

My new faucet!

2009-10-15T03:48:00.001-07:00

I had an unexpectedly short day of work and found some Round Tuits. Two broken cabinet door latches are replaced, and my new faucet is installed. (Thanks, Danny!) The old one, a traditional lavatory faucet, sat at a bad angle. When anyone washed their hands, the counter got splashed. This faucet, you can wash hands under and the water goes in the sink where it belongs. A chronic minor irritant is GONE! Yay.

Rennaissance

2009-10-04T13:33:00.001-07:00

The rendezvous is over and I'm back where my phone can post. My good camera died so I'm hoping friends will send me good pics from the 'vous. If so I'll post them. After the 'vous I stopped off in Maryland to visit Peter & Karen. Peter & I went to the Maryland Renaissance Festival. Both of us have worked at the fair in the past; it was interesting to go just as public.

Rendezvous

2009-10-02T13:27:00.000-07:00

I'm getting a lesson in flint knapping here. While I may never become a proficient arrow head knapper, I can make some seriously sharp cutting tools for cutting leather. And it's fun.

Rendezvous

2009-10-01T18:05:00.000-07:00

I was having supper with some friends when this pipe player stopped by to explain about the pipes to my friends' sons.

Rendezvous!

2009-09-27T13:21:00.000-07:00

What do you do when it rains at rendezvous? Get wet. Coffee's on the fire. Like me, my neighbors are making breakfast and doing camp chores as was done in the 1700's. It's too wet to set out the trade blankets or wander around much, but it's supposed to clear off soon. This afternoon i'll go to a workshop on brain-tanning. While I haven't done any hides myself in a long time, I certainly haven't lost interest. Then I'll have company over for dinner. Then go do music around a campfire... Life is good.

Rendezvous!

2009-09-25T13:22:00.000-07:00

Well, almost. I stopped 2/3 of the way there to visit Buckskinner friends Chris & Pat, who can't get the time off to go this year. They've got their marquee up in the yard. To make Rendezvous last longer, visit rendezvous friends en route.
I spent the night there, drove the rest of the way supplied with Pat's amazingly yummy tiny tomatoes for road food, and got to camp around lunchtime.

Today's Yard Sept. 19

2009-09-19T09:16:00.001-07:00

Wow - I'm home. I usually get here more often than I have recently. My non-traveling cat Scamper even admits she's glad to see me.
A mountain of mail to go through. Trips to the mechanic . Visits with friends. Summer clothes to take out of the rig, fall clothes & warm fuzzies & Mr. Heater to put in. Preparations to make for the Eastern Rendezvous.
I worked near home last week and will again this week, commuting by car. This is good: I can prepare for the Rendezvous without missing work, and take the time AFTER, to recover. The jet lag from fast-forwarding 200 years is - well, it's hard to go directly back to work.
Saturday: crisp but still pleasantly warm. The first hint of fall, the seeds of October. Riding weather.

We're making beads!

2009-09-12T20:05:00.001-07:00

Like I need another hobby! We're making lampwork beads. You melt the end of a glass rod and wrap it around a mandrill (sp?). Doesn't look like it takes up much space. Much more portable than the stained glass I used to do - and I can make my own focal beads. Time to shop for supplies.

Today's Yard Sept. 12 2009

2009-09-12T04:25:00.001-07:00

"Up at dawn, to greet the sun. I've forgotten what a care or worry means."
I actually had to wait an hour for enough light to take this picture. We had a nice dinner & campfire last night. After my folks left for their climate controlled, wheelless homes, I put everything away, washed dishes, watched the fire dwindle in the peace of the night.
Saturday dawns clear and bright. The peace of the woods meets the anticipation of a wond'rous array of things to do. Music to play, Spanish to learn, trails to hike both literally and otherwise, Later today, friends & family to visit, new people to meet, lampwork beads to learn to make. Cats to cuddle.
Life is good!

Today's Yard, Sept. 11 2009

2009-09-11T19:19:00.001-07:00

The tail end of a dinner party Gypsy Jane style. Got off work, bought groceries, set up camp at McDowell Nature Preserve south of Charlotte NC. Nice pull-thru campsite. I had my daughter, son in law, his folks, and of course the grandbaby, over for dinner so there was lots of cooking, & the good china. And a campfire made of my old broken leveling boards. I'd had some of them longer than I've had this motor home and they burned really well. We had lots of fun and the dishwashing can wait.

2009-09-06T16:13:00.000-07:00

Truth in Advertising - Alternative HFCS ad from the folks over at Pay Now Live Later

Today's Yard 9/4

2009-09-04T10:15:00.000-07:00

Today's yard is gonna wait: it's Friday. Friday is cleaning day in the Escaper and it's a chore I can't escape.
My new leveling blocks are neatly stowed in the compartment and on the scooter rack. I need to find a temporary spot for the old broken ones which will become firewood at my next campground.
My stove area got a good scrubbing, right down to the spice jar lids and the burners that never get used: the ones in back.
That slightly battered Revere Ware whistling teapot was the very first piece of kitchen stuff I bought for my very first motor home back in 1995. It has served me well despite numerous unplanned trips to the floor.
Yes, two of the stove knobs are missing. They were carefully put away one day after I turned a back burner on by mistake and cooked the nonslip mat on the stove cover and whatever was sitting on it. I don't ever want to do that again, and with the knobs hidden away no one ever will.
OK Gypsy, enough blogging, go back to cleaning.

Today's Yard, August 31

2009-08-31T09:07:00.001-07:00

It's about as scenic as the rainy grey day it is. But it is a potential budget breaker. That's a Japanese grill & sushi bar right here in the parking lot with me. I love sushi. I just don't like PAYING for sushi. We'll see how long I can resist. It helps that younger daughter and I went to sushi buffet yesterday for lunch and ate all we could eat. I might hold out 'til Thursday.

Today's Yard August 28

2009-08-28T15:16:00.001-07:00

Friday Morning, peace surrounds me. Kings Mountain State Park campground fills up over the weekend but few are here now and they are apparently still sleeping. From my picnic table I can only see one rig: the camp host. Another is behind me, across the road. A scattering of others out of sight.
The weekend is well begun: email's caught up, I've been for a walk & a scoot ride and the new song is down to the minor tweaking stage. It's a genre I never thought i'd write in, musically, but I don't really create songs. More like I give birth to them. So this 59 year old woman gives birth to a rap tune - what's up with that? Not that any gangsta would rap these lyrics.
30 years ago I was giving birth for real - Today is my younger daughter's birthday. I'm blessed with assignments near her all month so later today I'll go there and we'll celebrate.
Life is good. May there be a road!

Today's Yard, August 27

2009-08-27T14:09:00.001-07:00

Same park, different day/site. No problem this time- I could have been level without wood if I'd left the awning rolled up. But there was a tree and pulling forward meant I needed one little board.
Did I mention that last weekend the few boards I had left over were picked up for firewood? I don't know about you, but I wouldn't think of taking wood from an occupied campsite. Probably kids. I should have put it away when I finished leveling.
Anyway, this time the setting up was easy and it's time to kick back and enjoy life... edit the Song In Progress, clean house, grill food, walk the loop, hunt up some small firewood to go with the logs someone left in the site when they left.

Today's Yard, August 24

2009-08-24T15:00:00.001-07:00

I lucked out - I have a nice big 'yard' this week at work, with a big shade tree for aftenoon shade. Works for me :)
Now that work's done for the day, I'm sitting in the doorway sipping SodaStream soda and watching the shoppers - and the medium sized mantid that scooted up the tree a moment ago. Just enjoying the good weather and wishing it were not bad manners to grill in the parking lot.

Today's Yard, August 20 pm

2009-08-21T11:51:00.000-07:00

Gypsy's Rule #3: Pick out a campsite first, THEN go register. I didn't. So they assigned me site 2 at Kings Mountain State Park. I didn't feel all warm and fuzzy about it when I saw it, so I drove the loop hoping to find one to swap for. Found a lovely level pull-through - and it was reserved for tomorrow night. Tried a few others. Tomorrow night this is going to be a happenin' place. Finally I gave up and settled down on site 2. Took a long time and all the wood I carry to get level, and taking the scoot off will be a real challenge. I didn't take it off before because if I couldn't get level I was not staying. Now I'm set up and it's a beautiful day to ride...

Today's Yard August 21

2009-08-21T07:51:00.001-07:00

Parked in front of daughter's house in SC, a feat which requires lots of leveling wood. Visiting & doing chores that require internet, then off to shady state park later today.
This was actually the yard for most of the past week, as the store I worked at was only 10 miles from her house. I got to have dinners with her and see my grandson, and even glimpse my son-in-law occasionally - he's working LOTS of hours. I love it when work schedules me to be near kids and friends - I know from experience that I wouldn't see them nearly as often if I had a stationary job somewhere 2-300 miles away.

Today's Yard August 14 2009

2009-08-14T07:29:00.000-07:00

Now that's more like it: sunny, cool, and not a supermarket in sight. Friday is cleaning day in the Escaper. I am motivated to do it quickly and get back outside.
Gypsy Jane's Rule #1: while coffee is brewing, make the rig drivable - even if you don't plan to drive. You never know when tumbleweed fever will strike.
I'd love to say I always do that! It's a goal, OK?

Today's Yard, August 13th 2009

2009-08-13T13:20:00.000-07:00

After a week in hot humid shadeless West Columbia SC, I'm enjoying a shady campsite across from the lake at Chester State Park, where there's a pleasant breeze.
It's a peaceful spot where I intend to reflect upon a life-changing event in my life 10 years ago today.

Today's Yard, 8/4

2009-08-10T13:09:00.001-07:00

Or thereabouts. I took this pic last week & forgot to post it. I had LOTS of afternoon shade. Not this week, though. It is SO hot and I really wish for a parking spot like that now.

Today's Yard, August 3

2009-08-03T16:45:00.001-07:00

I figure if it's a convenient walk from where I park, it's part of my yard. This community park is less than a mile and a nice reward for getting exercise. After all, I could have driven 2 miles in the other direction to Panera Bread and indulged my Facebook addiction.
When my daughter visited last week she said she couldn't live in such a small space as my motorhome. I told her I don't. I don't live in that small space: mostly I live out here, in the infinite and ever-changing yard.

Today's yard Aug 2

2009-08-02T08:16:00.001-07:00

Goodbye Izaac Walton, 'til next time. I spent the weekend here, as did my friend Sue. We shot archery, took my canoe blackberry hunting, swam, ate...
This morning we broke camp in a steady gentle rain. Cleanup, water chores, dump and drive. Need to be down in NC tonight for work tomorrow. I do love and appreciate my job but it just doesn't compare favorably with a weekend at the lake with friends. And I know I'll not be back here before Labor Day.
Ah but it was fun!

Today's yard July 28

2009-07-28T13:16:00.000-07:00

I had a visitor today.

Today's yard, July 27

2009-07-27T08:44:00.000-07:00

At work again of course. In most of the parking lot, I'd need railroad jacks to get level, but around the side I found a possible spot - and a shade tree. The perennial search for level shady ground!

Today's Yard July 25

2009-07-26T05:09:00.001-07:00

My elder daugter & her SO came out to Izaak Walton to help me celebrate my birthday, so I got out the good china. Seriously: it was my great-grandmother's. I have Corelle to rattle around for every day use, but special occasions call for the good stuff. In preparation for their arrival I rearranged the cabinets so the good china storage bins will be more accessable and got rid of about a cabinet full of miscellaneous kitchen stuff I really don't ever use. We ate, we shot, we swam, and a good time was had by all.

Today's Yard, July 24

2009-07-24T18:22:00.001-07:00

Instead of posting yesterday, I drove home from NC and took the motorhome to the shop. I got lucky: they had a used spring to fit my awning! So it is once again functional. I really missed it after the spring broke last month.
So I'm at Izaak Walton in my favorite campsite, about to feed a friend some dinner.

Today's Yard, July 20

2009-07-21T17:39:00.001-07:00

At work. So the yard for today is the yard for the week. Obviously, some job-site parking is better than other job-site parking. This one, in a still - mostly - unrented newish shopping plaza, gets points for peacefulness and for trees. And I found the one level parking space in the whole lot. Life is good.

Today's Yard, July 19 2009

2009-07-19T07:43:00.001-07:00

Waiting for laundry to dry on the back porch of the laundry room / bathhouse, with sun, shade, rocking chairs. How come the last three weekends, when I had free laundry at my kid's house, I only had one load - this weekend I have THREE. I NEVER have THREE loads!?!
Having just finished a book - if you get a chance, read Name of the Wind - I brought some magazines down. Then again, I might just sit & listen to the birds.

Today's Yard, July 18th

2009-07-18T13:10:00.001-07:00

No, I didn't move the motorhome. This is a view from the canoe. This park has 3 paddle boats and a canoe available for campers to use on the pond. Not one to miss an opportunity to go canoeing, I made a beeline for the water right after lunch.

If you always stay in your comfort zone, it shrinks and strangles you like a boa constrictor. So, although I am not now, nor have I ever been, a dancer, I attended a dancing class this afternoon and now have a basic understanding of the Electric Slide, the Hustle, and the Macarena, and a screaming sciatic nerve. Time to hang like a bat!

Today's Yard, July 17 2009

2009-07-17T16:02:00.001-07:00

Sycamore Lodge, in NC.
I was SO glad to see the pool, after driving up from Santee for 3 hours. This is a private membership campground. I'm here this weekend to take their tour.
The internet access is in the Members' Lodge which is a turn of the (previous) century log lodge, made of huge logs harvested from the land the campground is on. It is large, well-preserved, well-appointed, and comfortable. There's the pool, and a jacuzzi, and a lake complete with boats... A pavillion for entertainment, a game room, another - multi-purpose room? - horseshoes, miniature golf - a doggie park - a playground for kids.
It's a family oriented campground, with lots of kids about and so far they all seem happy and well-behaved.
Life is good.

Oh, yes - the strange contraption in my yard is an INVERSION TABLE. I hang upside down and let gravity be my portable chiropractor. It's great. It really helps. Which is why I allow it to take up space in the motorhome. I want my next motorhome to be a toy hauler so I have room to set it up inside.

Today's Yard, July 16, 2009

2009-07-17T15:00:00.000-07:00

Camped at the Cypress View campground at Santee State Park, during one deluge of a storm. The white spots in the picture are not poor photography, they are raindrops. The thunder was constant and the wind was a'whipping. But it didn't last very long. Water was several inches deep but drained away quickly.

Today's Yard, July 15, 2009

2009-07-17T14:33:00.001-07:00

Same park, different spot.
This is over by the park office, which has WiFi. Nearby are the cabins (which are octagonal), boat access, store, playground. This part of the park has the Cypress View campground also. There is another campground in the other part of the park, where 7/14's picture was taken.