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Borrego Springs, CA

Friday, April 19, 2013

New shoes? Eek!

I pretty much just collapsed from my three days of driving, and took yesterday off.  Billy Thibodeaux, the owner of Premiere RV, came inside to measure the two windows to order the MCD shades for me, and we discussed the other maintenance/repair items I had on my list.  Billy recently had quadruple heart bypass surgery, so is slowly returning to work.  It’s hard to keep a good man down I guess.  He and his wife, Helen, were off in their rig to visit friends in Dallas after my shade order was placed.  It generally takes about a week for those custom shades to arrive and be installed, so I knew I’d be here for a number of days.

The tires on my rig were manufactured in 2006, so it’s been seven years.  They may not look bad, but I knew it was time to replace them before I had the trauma of blow outs while driving.  Billy gave me the name of a reliable establishment to provide new tires for me, and told me who to ask for and to mention his name.  So that’s what I did first thing this morning.  The price of six new shoes for the rig is right around $4000!  That more than takes care of my tax refund for this year, Crying face but it’s a necessary expense and I’d rather be safe than sorry.  I’m sticking to the same Michelin tires that have served me so well on this rig.  I’ll be having them installed next week in between my appointments here.

After that little expected shock to my pocketbook, I decided Emma and I should go for a drive to revive our spirits.  So, we headed off to Kaplan, LA, to enjoy a delicious shrimp po-boy at Suire’s Grocery and Restaurant.

56 On the way to Mississippi

I’m thinking this is my third trip to this little out in the middle of nowhere place, and it was as tasty as ever.  I haven’t gotten the guts yet to try the Cajun Pickled Quail Eggs, but maybe next time. 

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After lunch, we took another drive on the Creole Nature Trail National Scenic Byway.  I usually drive it each time I’m having work done on the rig, but today I saw more wildlife than I have in the past.  One huge oak tree had a nice  mixture of roseate spoonbills and egrets on its limbs.

It’s about a 200 mile loop drive that also includes a visit to the Cameron Prairie NWR.  Once again, Emma and I walked the Pintail boardwalk, and drove the wildlife loop.

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72 On the way to Tamarac NWR, MN 2013

After the cold front moved through last night, the temps were cool and the winds were really blowing.  That didn’t keep us from seeing lots of wildlife along the drive.

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I had a couple of favorites though.  There were lots of white-faced ibis along the way, and this was the first time I’ve ever seen the white on their face.  It’s only there during breeding season. 

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The last time I was here, I got great pictures of a green heron at this spot.  Today, a king rail made an appearance instead.  That was pretty exciting for me.

After we returned to the rig, I was hoping maybe the hot water check valve had been replaced, but it was not to be.  What’s a few more days without hot water?  I couldn’t take a shower for several weeks after surgery, and now two weeks without hot water since the check valve went out makes me think perhaps in my youth I could have made it in the armed forces.  I heat water in a pot each night to bathe in my bathroom sink.  It’s about the same size as a military helmet, so I guess it could be considered a marine shower? Surprised smile  I know, they are asked to do so much more…  The biggest challenge is washing my hair under the kitchen faucet with cold water.  Talk about a brain freeze!

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                                                                                THE END!!

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

30 comments:

  1. sometimes when I am camping in the boonies I fill four one gallon jugs of warm water (heat on propane stove)and have the most wonderful shower..one gallon to get wet all over before shampoo and soap and three gallons to rinse. You could do that in your shower maybe..

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  2. OUCH! That's a big expense for tires but like you say, better safe than sorry. I sure enjoyed all your wildlife pictures tonight.

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  3. That's quite a price for some new shoes:-). Great pictures as usual. You should try those pickled eggs. They might surprise you.

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  4. We rarely have used the hot water in our motorhome. We have a solar hot water bag that we put outside to heat up for our dishes once a day and if we are staying at an RV park then we use their shower otherwise like you we heat up a pot of water in the evening to wash ourselves with.

    Love the beautiful pictures of the wildlife and birds that you take.

    Ruth
    www.travelwithkevinandruth.com

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  5. That was some day....I sure enjoyed the wildlife you encountered on your drive. That's pretty neat about the white-faces. How long did you wait to get both those ducks with bottomsup? Way cute!

    Glad you're making some progress on things to be done in, on, and under the MH.

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  6. Wow, I think nature is coming out to see you! I can't believe all you've captured via the camera. Simply amazing and thanks! Sorry about the tires, that is an owie. I had to take the sink baths after my last surgery too. I also do that when traveling sometimes too.

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  7. As always great pictures. My goal this year is to capture the bald eagle.

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  8. Tires are so expensive. But like you said - a necessity for safety. You sure do take great bird pictures. I so enjoy them.

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  9. New tires are costly, but it is sure true that safe is always better than sorry!

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  10. That's on my list of birds to see while in Texas--the roseate spoonbill--I might could recognize it??

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  11. Our tires on the MH were 5 years old and didn't look it either, but Paul said he didn't care what they looked like, they were getting replaced. Glad to see you follow the same philosophy.

    I hate washing my hair with cold water. I did that a few times when we were boondocking at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. I felt like I couldn't get the soap out...yucky feeling.

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  12. Better safe and sorry ... some expenses are simply necessary. Hope your hot water problem is fixed sooner rather than later.

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  13. We volunteered at Cameron Prairie in 2005... before the hurricane practically destroyed the whole complex. Visited there a couple of times since, so it was sure nice to see your photos to see how it looks now. Hey... you're back in the land of oyster po'boys, boudin and all those other delicious Cajun foods... enjoy!

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  14. As much as we would like a bigger motorhome, hearing how much your new tires cost makes us glad we have a Class C with smaller tires.
    Nice photo of the king rail, don't think we've ever seen one before.

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  15. Hey Judy....a quick question. Does the $4000.00 account for mounting and balancing? Joe says it will probably be more like $4800.00 when you are done. We have that in our budget for January 2014. Just curious about how big the final EEEK! will be.....thanks!
    Gay

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  16. A friend just had to buy 6 new tires for his MH and I was shocked when he told me it cost him $4,000 - I'd never given MH tires much thought. Knowing that, sure glad we have a fifth-wheel with 4 much smaller tires.

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  17. Suire's was a highlight of our visit to that area. Best Shrimp Po' Boy I ever ate, well, really, the only one but I am sure it would be hard to beat. Brenda had the Crab stuffed Dinner rolls Deep Fried, and they to were unbeatable although I am still concerned about her arteries.

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  18. Are you a member of FMCA? They have a discount program on Michelins. It's worth the $40 to save at least $100 per tire. We have also been cautioned to beware of Chinese Tires. Good prices, but real junk.

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  19. Envious of your birding adventures, but not your tire doings!

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  20. Wow, you sure wear expensive "shoes"! Much better to be safe and solid than risk a blowout. Glad you have a repair facility you trust and where you can stay. That is a big plus!

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  21. Geez, the cost of new tires is crazy eh? But , as I tell everyone, it is our home so you need a good foundation.

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  22. I soooo loved that pic of all those Spoonbills on the tree..Heck, I was excited at Goose Island State Park to see just ONE!! Great birding post today! FYI, we've had our Martin Hotel up for 3 weeks ...and all we have is Sparrows!!

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  23. Hello. I'm Nikolai.

    I would like to publish a guest post (with one link) on your great blog - travels-with-emma.blogspot.com. Could you please give me the price for the placement of it?

    Thank you and I look forward to your reply.

    Have a nice day.

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  24. Yikes. . .after I read about the $4000. . .I started counting tires. . .10 of those suckers. . .aii yaii yaii. . .

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  25. Great pictures Judy! That NWR has just gone on my list.

    I gasped at $4K for 6 tires. Ours were 7 years old in 2010 so we put new ones on too. Better safe than sorry. We did Winnona's Michelins for $2400 and I thought I was going to pass out. I sure hope your tires are WAY bigger than ours or we may have to mortgage her to put new ones on in another 5 years.

    Hope they surprise you with hot water sooner than you are expecting.

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  26. Smart decision to get new tires. Seven years is a long time on motorhome tires. Now. Go take a hot shower and cool off :).

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  27. Great pics. Sure is nice of you to share. You reminded me of one of the most asked questions at Sacramento NWR - why are those birds called white-faced ibis? That and how to tell the difference between Ross's and snow geese were probably the top two questions on the local birds. It's kind of amazing they are getting so far east while the glossy are expanding west. A couple of years ago, I was on a Christmas count, in Brazos Bend State Park west of Houston, where we got the first glossy ibis ever for that count.

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  28. Everything looks so surreal when you travel to African region, maybe it's because we don't see wildlife normally. keep traveling Emma.

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