Time to blow this Popsicle Stand!

After 15 nights in this parking lot, I’m ready to go!  I had a knock on my door this morning as I was preparing to head out on another scenic byway.  The new levelers had just been delivered from Wisconsin.  To heck with the scenic byway!  I told them I’d have the rig packed up and ready to move to the repair bay in half an hour, and I did it!  That was not an easy feat, as I’d been here for two weeks and had quite a lot of stuff to stow.  Emma looked befuddled as I rushed around pulling in slides, and getting everything road ready.  I hadn’t expected the parts to come in for another couple of days, so you know how that goes.  I had stuff scattered all over.  I think that’s the fastest I’ve ever gotten everything ready to go, both inside and out.  :)  I didn’t have time to do the dishes, so I just crammed them in under the sink cover.
As they worked on the rig, Emma and I spent a good portion of the day, once again, out at the picnic table.  It was a little brisk to begin with as we had a frost last night, but at least the sun was shining, and I was pretty well bundled up. 

It took them well into the afternoon to get things done, and as I tried leveling the rig after they returned it, there was still a problem.  :(  I went back to get the technician to come to the rig, and after some time everything was resolved.  To make a long story short, it turned out that I knew a few things about the levelers and the fluids that the the technician did not.  Imagine that!  I made sure to point that out as they began to work on my bill.  Since it was about 3:00 by that time, I decided to remain for one more night, and head out tomorrow morning. 
My plan is to pull out of here by 9:00 tomorrow morning, so I hope they have the paperwork done by then! 
The overnight shipping charge for the new levelers that they told me about was ridiculous, so I’ll see if that can be resolved tomorrow.
Emma and I took one last evening stroll around the parking lot tonight, and noticed the changes in the foliage during our stay here.  It’s definitely time to move on!

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

Yellow fever?

Even though the sun was shining when I got up today, I decided to spend the day at the rig.  That was a good decision, as it turned out, because my intestinal fortitude wasn’t up to snuff.  :(  (I know, TMI!)  So, I spent most of my time today on the computer. 

One of the things I did was download the Guest Ticket Booklet for my upcoming repositioning cruise from Barcelona, Spain, to Galveston, Texas.  That little booklet was 26 pages long!  I haven’t read all of it yet, but as it was printing, I noticed something about immunizations.  They suggested possibly getting a yellow fever shot.  I know I’ve never had one of those.  I remember having a small pox vaccination before I went to college that was very unpleasant, but yellow fever?  I’ve never been on a cruise before or gone to Europe.  Does anyone know if this is a real danger?  I asked the person setting everything up for the cruise, but her only comment was to check with my physician.  My doctor is in Minnesota, I’m stuck in Boise, and will be heading for Texas soon, I hope.  What a dilemma. 
Get a load of the problems with this rig that has been here for about a week.  It left today, but with the front looking the same.  Kind of makes me glad I’m just waiting for levelers!  I don’t know what it is they fixed, but it sure wasn’t cosmetic surgery.  :)

I’ve been spending quite a bit of time lately mulling over my future plans.  Everything’s taken care of for this winter, but what about next summer?  I’ve been volunteering pretty solidly since I hit the road in 2006, but this summer outside of Yellowstone made me appreciate the fact that I am retired!  I’ve also felt a tug inside to become better acquainted with my five grandchildren.  They’re all under the age of five, but growing up, I remember how important my grandmothers were to me.  They were both gone by the time I was 12, but I still cherish their memory.  So, I’ve just about decided to purchase a site at the Woodhaven Lakes RV Resort in Sublette, Il.  That would put me fairly close to all of them during the summers, and within two hours of my sister and brothers.  I’ve been offered a pretty sweet deal on a site thanks to my daughter Robyn’s in-laws.  So I spent this afternoon surfing the web about what there is to see and do in Northwest Illinois.  I’m thinking this could be a good plan for me, and if it doesn’t work out, I can always sell the site and move on.  :)
I’m not sure this plant or bug will be around tomorrow, as the forecast is for a frost tonight.  I just hope I get out of here before that white stuff starts falling down out of the skies!  :)

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

A hodge-podge of thoughts and doings

It was a chilly, overcast, stay inside kind of day today.  Not a day for sightseeing.  So, I cranked up the heater.  Since this is day 11 in the Camping World parking lot, my mind took to wandering.  MARGIE’S thought provoking post got my mind to thinking about my fulltime lifestyle.  I certainly think my lifestyle is worth it, but maybe a few changes are in my future.  Most of my five grandkids are getting old enough where I can actually have a conversation with them, so I’m thinking maybe next summer I might spend more time around them so they get to know me better, and I get to know them better.  Lots of planning involved there, and I do love  planning.  :)  I enjoyed not having to work (volunteer) this summer, and I didn’t quite go bankrupt, so we’ll see what happens. 
Being inside all day, kind of forced me to accomplish a task I’ve been avoiding.  I bought a printer in July, but hadn’t even unpacked it until this afternoon.  I was dreading setting it up.  As it turned out, things went pretty smoothly, until I tried to print something.  :(  It only printed the first few lines, and then stopped.  I tinkered and tinkered, but to no avail.  Time to use my Google email and “chat” with my oldest son, Daniel, online.  Solving computer problems is his line of work, so in very short order he gave me a suggestion, and it worked!  I’m almost feeling a little geeky about that! (no where near the powers of RICK, but a little more accomplished, anyway.:))  Probably my biggest problem in setting it up was getting the box out of the overhead cabinet I had stored it in.  I finally had to shred the box in order to get it out.  I don’t remember having any difficulties getting it in there, but it sure wouldn’t come out!

Now, I’ll finally be able to print my boarding pass for the cruise in November.  I’m going to tackle that tomorrow, just as soon as I get a mailing address for my luggage tags.  I don’t want them to be sent to SD (my mail service) since my mail is on hold right now.  I’m hoping to have them sent to Anahuac NWR.  I just can’t remember the mailing address there, and it may have changed after all the rebuilding that was going on this year after hurricane Ike.
As I was looking for the printer, I ran across my other traveling companions.  They used to reside on my dashboard, but since Emma took up residence I’ve relocated them to a safer location.  Jiminy Cricket (of “When You Wish Upon a Star” fame) is my favorite, and has been with me since the get go.  The others I’ve accumulated in my travels.
In the late afternoon, the clouds finally dissipated, and Emma and I were able to spend some time outside.  I enjoy watching the mass exodus from the parking lot as the store closes.  It reminds me of Sunday afternoons when I’ve been a camp host in several state parks.  Peace reigns after the ‘rats leave the sinking ship’!   :)

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

Finally, something worked out!

When I headed from Yellowstone to Malheur in August, I had to drive through some construction.  Along the way, a big eighteen wheeler came barreling towards me, kicked up a good sized stone, and it put a chip in the motorhome's windshield.  Ugh!  I’ve had that chip on my mind ever since.  Fast forward to yesterday as I was at the laundromat.  Outside was a man sitting under a canopy with a sign that said free windshield chip repair.  I went out to talk to him which resulted in his saying he would come out to Camping World this evening to fix my chip. 
And sure enough he did!  He was happy that the rig was facing into the sun as he said that was necessary for the resin to set.
He was a little concerned about the oncoming storm, though, so decided to do the repair before calling my insurance company.
It’s a good thing he did, because shortly after he left, the skies opened up and the rain began.  We did contact GMAC, and the repair is covered without any further cost to me.  Sweet!  It’s about time something went as planned.  :) 
I thought I’d include a picture of one section of this Camping World to give you an idea of how many rigs they have for sale here.  That’s a lot of inventory!

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

Doing time in Boise

When I got up this morning, the ice maker was talking to me.  Even though I don’t have a water hook-up here in the parking lot, the ice maker started making noises.  That means it’s definitely time to defrost the freezer.  I have been avoiding this task, but buckled down this morning and got to work.  Later, I loaded up my bag of dirty clothes and headed into Meridian to the nearest laundromat.  Laundromats always seem to be interesting places to do some people watching, and today was no exception.  The skinniest women I have ever seen in my life came into the laundromat this afternoon, loaded four dryers with a ton of clothes, sprayed them with fabreze, and turned them on.  Mind you, she didn’t wash them first.  Her companion just kept bringing clothes out of the back of their pick up truck, and he also brought in about a hundred plastic hangers.  Hmmm, interesting.  While I was there, I went out into the parking lot and talked to a guy about fixing a chip I have in the motorhome windshield.  We’ll see if he shows up tomorrow evening to fix it.
After the laundry was done, I made a stop at the local Walgreen’s to get my flu shot for the year, and of course stocked up on some essentials!  :)  I like Walgreen’s for a couple of reasons.  They have things like Ritz crackers and Oreo cookies in package sizes that you can’t find in a normal grocery store.  I don’t need family sized supplies of these things.  Jean Nate is essential to my well being, and I couldn’t resist two kinds of popcorn.  This is National Popped Popcorn month you know.
Emma and I did our normal patrol of the parking lot just before sunset and encountered this flock of house finches getting ready to roost for the evening.
Overhead were some gulls heading west.
I also found another milkweed plant dispersing it’s seeds as we made our way along the crest of the small hill behind the RV sites.
There’s a barbed wire fence at the top with vines growing along it.  This vine had red berries.  I don’t know what it is.
As we made out way back to the rig it occurred to me that I probably won’t have much to post about in the next week or so.  It’s just a waiting game.  If I find anything exciting going on, I’ll let you know.

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy  

“Mama said there’d be days like this…”

“There’d be days like this, my Mama said…”  Remember that tune from the 60’s?  Well, my Mama never said there would be 10 days like this in a row!  The saga continues…The sealer kits for the levers actually arrived this morning, and the rig was taken off to have the back levelers removed.  The tech told me he’d bring the rig back as soon as he could so I wouldn’t have to sit in the car with Emma while it rained outside.  He could work on installing the new seals without the rig.  I appreciated that.  It’s a lot easier to while away the time in inclement weather inside the rig as opposed to being cooped up in the car.

I spent my time mapping my next stop on my way to Anahuac NWR in Texas.  Along about 2:30, Sean, my contact in the service department, came knocking on my door.  I hopped up to answer fully expecting that he would want to take the rig back to have the levers reinstalled.  It was not to be.  It turns out that the levelers wouldn’t hold a seal because of grooves on the legs.  Okay, so what does that mean?  It means I have to have both levelers replaced.  They don’t make these things ahead of time.  They only manufacture them on an as needed basis, and it takes 7 days to make them at Power Gear in Wisconsin.  OMG, tell me it isn’t so!  So, dear friends, to make a much longer story short, I will continue to reside in the Camping World parking lot for about the next ten days.  To put it bluntly, this sucks big-time! 

However, I have to tell you that these delays have not been the fault of Camping World.  They wanted to order new levelers from the beginning, but the extended warranty folks said no; try the seal kit.  Power Gear was also remiss in not sending out the kits on the day they were ordered, but waited four days!  The folks here at Camping World have been quite accommodating, and not only took the rig to dump the tanks (after being here 8 days), but filled the fresh water tank, and provided me with directions to the nearest laundromat.   I’m sure they would like to see me gone as much as I’d like to be gone.  So, I’ll be looking for more touristy things to do for the next week or so.  At least I’ve got 50 amps and the DISH set up.  :)

There were a couple of comments left on last night’s post that helped to lift my spirits.  JB made me chuckle with his comment about holding the record for being the longest RV visitor to Boise since Idaho became a state.  Well, JB, looks like I might just get there!  MARGIE also gave me the advice to just go out and take some photos to calm down…so, late this afternoon, I did.
I had replied to Margie that there wasn’t anything left to take photos of in this parking lot, but after the further happenings today I thought I’d give it a try anyway.  Hence, the collage of license plates from the parking lot.  :)
I also went back to check on the milkweed pods after two days of rain.  They’re looking a little different now.
Dandelions do seem to carry on through three of the four seasons!  :)
The view of I-84 and beyond from the top of the small rise behind the rig.  There are traffic sounds 24/7, but I don’t hear them much with all the windows closed.
I even found a small marshy area near the road with these maturing cattails.  Thanks, Margie, I’m a little calmer now.  :)

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

Ack!! The parts didn’t come in.

Even though Camping World ordered the two seal kits for the back levelers last week for delivery on Saturday, the parts were still not here this morning.  After checking into it, the service guy found out that they weren’t sent until today.  That means they’ll not arrive until tomorrow.  It probably also means two more nights in the parking lot.  I am not a happy camper.  :(

I  sat around all day, and didn’t learn the reason for the screw up until this afternoon.  I’m trying to take this in stride, but I have to tell you that I’m tired of being here.  And that’s all I have to say about today.

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

There’s a change in the air

For the last week, while I’ve been residing at various repair facilities, the weather has been sunny and hot.  I’ve been lucky to find some shady spots to sit out the time while the rig has been in the shop, but I think things are changing. 
There have been scattered showers today, a nice double rainbow, and the winds have shifted.  Peaceful scene, isn’t it?  You’d never guess that I-84 is just over this little hill behind my rig.  The forecast for tonight and tomorrow is for more rain, and the high for tomorrow will only be in the 60’s instead of close to 90.  I kind of wish it would rain hard enough tonight to wash off the 8,463 bugs that committed suicide on my windshield.  (Yes, I’ve been here long enough to have counted them!)
I’ve also noticed other changes.  The fallen leaves are beginning to pile up in the corners of the RV lot, and…
the milkweed pods have cracked open to disperse their seeds.  The Canada geese have also been honking their way South in the skies each evening.
When I was a child growing up in Chicago and these seeds began floating past on a fall breeze, my mother would tell us to hide our 5 cent allowance.  It seems their real name was Money Stealers, and you had better hold tight to your cash!  Where in the world would an old wives' tale like that come from?  I sure wish I could ask her.  I just love the symmetry of those seeds just waiting for a stiff wind to take them on a journey to fertile ground.

I remarked the other day on how busy this Camping World is.  I incorrectly assumed that because the store is closed on Sunday, it would be very peaceful in the parking lot.
Not so!  This part of the lot was empty when I got up this morning, but by 4:00 this afternoon quite a few rigs had been dropped off for appointments this coming week.  There were also a couple of dozen other rigs that drove in and out of the facility today.  What’s up with that?

With all my thoughts about the season changing today, I sure hope I’ll soon be migrating south myself.  I think I’ve been in Idaho enough for one year.  :)  The Texas Gulf shrimp are calling my name…

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

I think I need another shower :)

Well, I was at the service desk at the crack of 8:00 this morning hoping to get things started.  Along about 9:30, they came and got the rig.  Emma and I spent the morning at the picnic table.  It is astounding how many rigs go in and out of this place everyday!  There are six double bays, and three guys spend their whole days just moving rigs in and out.  It turns out, the technician that fixed the awning (yes it is fixed!) and checked the levelers is not the person who does the oil changes.  So, along about lunchtime they brought the rig back to me since there was a back up at the oil change bay.  I appreciated that since I was getting hungry.  :)

As he dropped off the rig, that technician announced that they don’t have the parts to fix the levelers (needs new seals) so maybe I’d like to continue down the road and get it fixed elsewhere?  Uh, no sir.  I’d likely be told the same thing down the road, so order the parts and I’ll wait.  I’ve got a good spot here with 50 amps, so I’ll just take up knitting or something (not!) until the parts come in. 

After lunch, I headed back to the service department to talk about the seals, etc.  They will be ordered.  Then, Emma and I went back out to the picnic table and a couple of hours later the guy came to take the rig in for the oil change.  Time began to drag a little, so…
I opened up the book I grabbed at lunchtime, and began to check off all the places listed that I’ve already been to.  Not too exciting for an afternoon, but each time I checked off a location or event with the year I was there, it brought back many sweet memories.  My dates ranged from 1952 (Mammoth Cave) to Sept. 2010 (Malheur NWR).  What a walk down memory lane that provided!  I haven’t covered all of the states and provinces yet, but I think I’ll have time to finish in the next couple of days.  :)

After they finished the oil change, I received more unwelcome news.  While doing the oil check and overall inspection of lubes and liquids, the technician found that my right front wheel has a bearing oil leak.  Uf-dah!  What else can go wrong?  But, as KERI commented, sometimes bad things come in groups of three.  My mother also believed that.  So, water pump, levelers, wheel bearings; I sure hope those are my three things for this trip!

I’m thinking, maybe I should just go out this evening and stand in front of the sprinklers so I can get giddy again when they turn on!  :)

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

PS…While Emma and I spent the day out by the picnic table, I did see two pheasants, three red-tailed hawks, and a bison!  No pictures, however.  :(  Maybe tomorrow.

Good news, bad news, and a shower?

Most of my news today is good.  The folks at Rush Trucking got the new water pump and new belt installed, gave the rig a good workout, and no more overheating!  Hoorah!  The price of all those hours of repair time about made me faint, but I’ve got rolling wheels again.  I knew the delivery of the belt wouldn’t happen until around noon, so I left the motel room shortly after nine and headed for Nampa, ID.  I had several errands to run, and I was familiar with Nampa from my week’s stay in Marsing in August.  I definitely wanted to visit the fresh fruit and vegetable stand again, and I did.  I purchased something I’ve never heard of before.  I bought two Pluots.  They are a fruit that is a cross between a plum and an apricot.  Sounded interesting, so I’ll try a couple.  I also got one of those English cucumbers that are usually a couple of bucks each for 50 cents, and added a tomato, and a purple plum for a total of $1.80!  I wish there was a way to have these fresh tasty items year round.

On the way back to Rush Trucking, I checked out the Camping World lot where I will have the hydraulic lifts fixed.  I’m not too crazy about Camping World doing the repairs, but this is the location that the manufacturer of the levelers recommended.  They do have overnight accommodations for customers on a first come first served basis, so I wanted to check out if there were any sites available and exactly where they were located.  By the time everything got finished and sorted out at Rush, it was 4:30 and right in the middle of rush hour before I could leave and head for Camping World.  Luckily, it was only a 15 mile drive through lots of construction.
I was able to get one of the two sites that had a picnic table.  I chose this site so I could put Emma outside tethered to the table.  Despite the 89* temperature, and the stop and go slow traffic,  the engine heat gauge stayed where it was supposed to.  What a relief that was!
 There are ten sites, and seven of them are filled tonight.  The quarters are tight, but it’s free.  I was sweating bullets by the time I finished unhooking the toad and getting set up.  There are no water hookups, but I do have 50 amps electric tonight so the AC is humming away!
 
So now for the bad news.  It turns out the cost of my night in the motel was not $99, but $134!  I guess I’ve been out of touch with motel rates.  Besides the $20 for Emma, I had to pay two bed use taxes…one for her and one for me!  I guess I should have let her sleep on the second bed!  There were several other taxes besides.  Personally, I think that’s a ridiculous amount of money for a night with a bed and a TV.

The second frustration of the day was dealing with my extended warranty people.  I could just wring their necks!  I did everything according to Hoyle, but they threw up every kind of roadblock you can think of.  I won’t go into the details, but suffice it to say I’m not looking forward to dealing with them tomorrow about the malfunctioning levelers.  :(

After three nerve wracking days, I took out my rocker and sat on the luscious green grass in back of the rig with Emma.  Because we were in back of the rig, it was shady there, and I was able to enjoy this relaxing time until…the automatic sprinklers came on!  OMG!  That water was cold and blasted me full in the face!  All I could do was shout out loud and start laughing uncontrollably!  What a Chinese Fire Drill as I tried to collapse the chair and get Emma and myself out of the multiple cold water jets.  I know I was in need of a shower, but really!  By the time we maneuvered to safety, Emma, I and the chair were dripping wet.  It was a great tension reliever!  :)

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy

My bank account is shrinking!

My plans for today included driving 120 miles to to the nearest Camping World, which is northwest of the Twin Cities.  I had a few things on my list to purchase, but just like going through the grocery store, I ended up with more in my cart than was on my list.  :)  My friend, Susan, gave me a call this morning just as I was about to depart and offered to go with me.  Okay, that meant I had someone to talk to on the long drive up and back.  I couldn't pass up that offer!  We had a great time blabbing away on the drive.  She spent $3, I spent close to $600!  Hmm, I don't get to a Camping World very often, but I did have to get a few pricey items for the new rig.  I re-upped for their President's Club, and that shaved the bill by about $60.  The biggest ticket item was the 50 amp Surge Guard, but I also got some rugs for the steps and hallway that will match the decor, among a few other things.  After all, this will be my new home and I want it to look nice.  :)

After I got back to the rig after about six hours, I took Emma for a walk and then just chilled out in preparation for watching the boys this evening while their parents went out for a dinner at Red Lobster.  My cold was full blown today, so I needed the little rest time before ramping up for several hours with them.  We spent some time playing outside, and then we went inside.  I put on some children's programs on the TV while I cleaned up the kitchen and did the dishes.  By that time, it was close to their bedtime, so I decided a bath would be in order for them before settling down with a popcorn snack before bedtime.  I'm a firm believer in an evening ritual for young kids to settle them down so they can calmly transition to bedtime.  While finishing their baths, their parents came home, so that kind of interrupted my plan.  I did make the popcorn, and then accompanied them up to their room to tuck them in and send them off to dreamland.

The next couple of days will be busy and exciting for me.  I will go to the dealer's tomorrow afternoon to pick up the rig, so tonight I put the Blue Ox hitch in the trunk of the car and detached the extend a stay propane bottle.  Tomorrow morning I'll move the present rig to the other side of the driveway for preparation of bringing the new rig in to transfer all my stuff from one rig to the other.  I'm determined to sleep in my new home tomorrow night.  :)

Now I'm going to try to relax, get a good night's sleep, and awaken to an exciting new day.  I'll be plastering myself with Mentholatum tonight and having a hot toddy before I turn in.  Some times old time remedies work the best.  :)

Thanks for stopping by....talk to you later,  Judy

An ugh kind of day

I woke up with a sore throat this morning to go along with the coughing I’ve experienced for the last day or two.  Ugh!  Then in the late morning, I had a dentist appointment to get my teeth cleaned.  Ugh!  I hate going to the dentist, but luckily this was a pretty quick in and out.

The sneezes and runny nose began in the afternoon.  Ugh!  I haven’t had a cold or anything else distressing in over five years.  Fulltiming seems to be a healthy lifestyle for me, until today.  Ugh!  I think I’ll blame it on all the excitement of getting a new rig and the fact that my grandson, Joseph, has been coughing away since I got here.  :(

I’ve decided to go up to the “cities” (Minneapolis/St. Paul) tomorrow to the Camping World store there to get a 50 amp surge guard.  My 30 amp surge guard has saved my bacon several times over the years, so I want to be prepared for my new rig.

I’d like to thank everyone for their uplifting comments on yesterday’s post.  I’m really excited about picking up the new rig on Friday.  I’m trying to work out the details of getting it into Andy’s driveway alongside my present rig so the transfer of “stuff” will be as efficient as possible.  I’m hoping this upper respiratory distress will be gone by then.  :)
I leave you tonight with this double rainbow scene along the Green River in Dinosaur National Monument.  This was the view out my front window.

Thanks for stopping by….talk to you later,  Judy