Paperwork, paperwork, paperwork and inverter!

I think this is the earliest I have ever gotten our tax information to our accountant, due in part to the spreadsheet I created last year (and have ready for next year). I worked on gathering and collating the information over several days - yes, days that I should have been writing. But it had to be done. And since we have two cruises between now and April, I didn't want to wait too long.

Speaking of cruises, we leave on my first (Stu's second) Royal Caribbean cruise the end of this week. We will have a brief visit with family the night before we head to the port - they are much closer to Ft. Lauderdale than we are and we haven't seen them since last winter.

It's a ten day cruise, taking place of the transatlantic we had to cancel last year (or was it the year before?). We've been to all the ports except one so we will keep to our routine. Stu will scuba dive where available and I will be writing. I hope to finish Almost a Touch during the cruise. I'm about 2/3rd done with the first draft.

When we arrive home, we have about ten days before we go on a second cruise on the Carnival Magic. We booked this specifically to see some of the members of the #sixappeal band again. In fact, they asked if we wanted to do an excursion together. We booked zip-lining combined with cave tubing in Belize and three of them are going with us. Should be a blast! They are pretty much the age of our grandkids and we love being around them. Oh, and their music is GREAT!

A week after that cruise we head to our house in Tennessee, stopping along the way for a great car show in Chattanooga. We will stay at the Holiday Travel Park of Chattanooga on Fri and Sat, arriving at the house on Sunday. EXCITED for both events!

Speaking of the house, a HUGE thank you to our good friend (and realtor), Wilma Allen, for removing the forgotten chicken from the refrigerator. Phew, that could have been bad.

Oh, wondering about the inverter? If you have followed our blog for a while, you know our inverter has worked sporadically (VERY sporadically) since we came back from Ecuador. Sometimes clearing the error codes would help but that happened less and less. With the new residential refrigerator, we ended up running the generator while traveling in temps above 70 degrees and we had to stay in campgrounds rather than asphalt parking on our overnights between FL-TN-MD.

Stu finally did some troubleshooting on the issue and found a loose ground wire. That was part of our problem. The other was seven year old AGM batteries that had spent two very cold winters in TN while we were living in Ecuador.

After pricing them out online, we found the same battery for about $269 each. Surprisingly not, that much more expensive than when we got our solar system in 2009. But we found a comparable Duracell battery at Sam's Club for $179 each. So today we picked up four new ones. We currently have six connected but since we no longer do hard core boondocking, we felt four should provide enough power for overnighting when traveling. Tomorrow is the final test - they are charging now. Keeping our fingers crossed!

After that we headed over so I could get a pedicure for the cruise. We tried a new place in Lady Lake, almost across the street from Home Depot (which is beside Sam's Club), Pretty Nails & Spa. I was very pleased and will definitely use them again.

Ciao for now!

A little of this, A little of that

It's been an interesting week. The weather turned cooler and we had trouble starting the pickup (Scooby) on Sunday morning as we headed out to breakfast. Later in the day it was fine. Final errand stop, nada, nope, nothing. Stu walked to the nearby auto parts store and got a couple nuts/washers and a the tool to clean the battery posts. Started just fine. Stu put it on the battery charger overnight, next morning it still wouldn't start.

We had errands to run, when we got back he started working to see if he could figure out if anything else was wrong (battery cables, loose connection, etc) but with the batteries being 4 1/2 years old, we decided to replace them. After pricing at three places (online), he opted to order them from Sam's Club. We had errands to run in the Annapolis area, so that worked.

Errands run, batteries picked up and back home. New batteries in - nothing, nada, nope. Time for more detective work. After pulling the starter, bought new at Pep Boys in Annapolis back on 2012, he found the problem. At installation (by Pep Boys), they had over tightened a connection and it had finally given way. Good news, there was a lifetime warranty on the starter!

In the meantime he had ordered a new backup camera setup for the Freightliner and fifth wheel. We bought this one back in 2008 or 9 and it's served us well. But the monitor was all but dead and we figured the newer technology couldn't hurt. Prices have gone down (a good thing) and he picked a unit with four cameras (back of the Freightliner, back of the RV and the two side ones on the Freightliner for using the directionals).

After looking at the wiring and cables, he feared he might have to completely rewire the setup. Eeep! Good news, after a little finagling, he got the monitor and one camera (on the back of the Freightliner) installed and functioning. Once the starter is installed and Scooby is back in working order (we hope), he will install the one of the back of the fifth wheel. Since this setup doesn't work with the directionals, he will save the other two cameras as backups.

In other news, the medical issues continue to get tested - Stu got an ultrasound of his aorta. He said the good news was he had a heart and he wasn't pregnant. I got my annual mammogram and once again, thank you, the results were good.

Next week Stu gets vision and hearing done and I get some blood work done (to see about continuing current new meds/dosages). Then we both get our annual dermatology screening for skin cancer. Final test is Thursday - I get a colonoscopy. Not a fan of the prep but it's necessary. Sigh...think of me Wednesday and Thursday. LOL!

I also picked up my new glasses. It's so nice to be able to see more things clearly - I was wearing a pair that had a 3-4 year old prescription. I love the frames we got! Heck, I even like my selfie (and I hate photos of me most of the time...LOL).

Yesterday we headed into Annapolis to pick up the new starter, see a movie and have our Thursday dinner. I'd been having trouble sleeping, so I had slept in and not eaten. We opted to try out the Tilted Kilt at Annapolis Mall. We had seen an episode of Undercover Boss featuring the business and it intrigued us, what with our Scottish heritage and all. ;)

We had a good lunch and enjoyed chatting with our waitress, Sylvia. She is from Bogota, Colombia and moved to the states 18 months ago with her husband. We talked about South America, how good her English was, how different the cultures are, etc. Very enjoyable time and a sweet girl (and good waitress).

 [click any photo for a larger view] 

I especially enjoyed the equal opportunity dress code! Yes, he was wearing a kilt.

Here are a couple more photos - we would definitely go back! They've only been open 2 months, so give them a try if you are in the area. They have indoor and outdoor seating. Oh, and the small gift shop is fun but we had already ordered pint glasses online. Love them!

After splitting a lunch entree, we went to see Deepwater Horizon. OMG!!! Intense, edge of the seat action. I was close to tears more than once. Based on a true story, it was very well done.

In other (author) news, I finally finished the first draft edits (on paper) of my middle school fantasy book. Now to type them in, clean it up and send it out for the next round of edits. Here is the tentative cover...what do you think?

Ciao for now!

Wrapping up at the Escapade

We are not your typical Escapade attendees, at least not anymore. We used to be, back when we still had a lot to learn. Neither of us attended any seminars this time around. I had hoped to go to Chris & Jim Guld's (GeeksOnTour) blogging seminar but ended up sticking around the rig while our new awnings were being put up.

But we did do one thing typical of most attendees - spend money! In our case, quite a bit of money. First was new awnings all the way around as well as new slide toppers. We also added two new window awnings over the garage windows, something Stu wished he had done originally.

We used the folks at Shade Pro RV Awnings (800-328-5100). Ken Thompson did an amazing job! Professional job and we are really pleased. Oh, and our original awnings were brown but had faded to a tacky green color. I love having the brown back!

The next was a tire pressure monitoring system. Based on personal recommendations and previous experience with the vendor we chose, Stu bought a Tire Traker system with sensors for each tire as well as an extender (due to our extreme length). Daryl & Cheri Lawrence know their stuff, stand behind it and encourage you to call anytime if you have issues. That's how they've taken care of our Progressive on-board EMS system, too.

We also had a tech out to get our automatic Directv (rooftop) dish working. We haven't been able to use it since we upgraded to the Genie last September. Poor Stu had to set up a portable dish at every stop. Now I have to remember to power it up and down. LOL!

The final expense was for a CCW (concealed carry weapon) class for Stu. All that is left for him to do is get his fingerprints taken and mail the application, photo (taken in the class), fingerprint card and money to the state of Florida for his non-resident CCW. When we get back to FL, he will do some shooting and purchase his handgun.

What else have we done? Well, we are getting ready for our fourth dinner out with friends. The first night, Monday, we ate with Bill & Dottie (Stu's old partner and his wife). We last saw them in Gettysburg for breakfast. We each drove an hour or so to Montpelier for dinner at Sarducci's. Great Italian restaurant and I got to take some nice flower photos.

We also had a peek-through view of the capital building.

Tuesday we went to dinner with friends Steve & Peri who we first met in Ecuador. They planned to stay forever but health issues forced them back to the US. They bought an RV and headed north to the Escapade, our gain. We had a great dinner chatting about everything, just getting to know each other better.

Then Wednesday we went Italian again, having dinner with our friends Charles & Chris Yust. Tonight we are back to Texas Roadhouse (steak is always good) with our good friends, Chris & Jim Guld.

We also got in a nice motorcycle ride on Sunday, a day off for me since I planned to write as much as possible during the week days. All I wanted was ice cream...and the GPS obliged, dumping us right at Ben & Jerry's. Yum!!!

We've attended one social gathering with the Full-Time Class of 2007. I first met these folks in 2007 at the Goshen, IN Escapade that year. We've decreased in numbers due to death, health and going off the road, but that hasn't slowed our enthusiasm when we're together (especially when food is involved).

No idea what Bridget & John Hatch were doing - playing hide & seek?

Co-director of the Escapades, Bob Pinner with Norah Glover on the right, enjoying the food.

Linda Fleeger addressing the group.

The weather has been good other than a big storm on Sunday late and another about an hour ago. Nice enough that I've been able to grab two nice sunset photos.

Today may be closing day here, but we're not done. Tomorrow we go on a HOP (Head Out Program). Our day will consist of maple syrup, cruising Lake Champlain and ice cream. Yum!! Saturday is our rest day before we head back to Twin Ells campground on Sunday.

Life is good!

Ciao for now!

Maintain, Fix and Repair

I am so lucky to have such a mechanically inclined husband - and he enjoys it! Earlier this month he replaced the fuel bowl drain valve on the diesel engine in our F250 pickup, Scooby.

Now he is working on getting the A/C fixed in our Freightliner (Freddie).

He changes the oil in all our vehicles, changes the brakes, and does basic maintenance and repair as well. He has done several on-the-road repairs that still stagger me to think about them. Tire changes on the 41' toy hauler, brakes lines and shackles, too. He's replaced belts on the Freightliner, taken care of fuel filter issues, too. There are many more things but my lazy brain just doesn't remember them all.

Then factor in all the carpentry work he has done - work on our shed and pavilion back in TN as well as outfitting our new cargo trailer for optimum storage.

Say, maybe I should have saved this for a Father's Day tribute. Oops!

Ciao for now!

Hey man, we're COOL! New refrigerator...

First it was the COOL bedspread (which is working out EXTREMELY well - we both like it and I don't have to turn the night-time A/C down so low).

Now it's the COOL refrigerator/freezer! As many of you know, our nice 4-door Norcold refrigerator gave up the ghost. The ice maker leaked so bad, we disconnected it a couple years ago. Then the compressor went (not fun, ammonia smell - ugh! - and Stu was out of town in  Maryland).

Norcold 1210

We planned to have it fixed but after talking to several friends, we opted to install a residential unit instead. We were very fortunate to have Protech RV loan us a small fridge until ours new one was up and running. We bought a Samsung RF18, meaning we went from 12.1 cu ft to 18 cu ft!

The little borrowed fridge under our TV, beside our old fridge (waiting for removal)

Why? Better insulation, more efficient, more storage, longer lasting, lower price than a new RV propane/electric refrigerator. We had been worried about boondocking, but for now, the only real need to do that is for 2-3 nights while running from south to north and vice versa. Everyone that has a residential unit told us it stayed quite cold for up to eight hours of no power. We're keeping our fingers crossed!

Amazingly, Stu managed to get our old fridge out. First removing the doors, bins, etc, then undoing all the screws holding it in and finally using some wood to slide it down onto on old beach towel. He dragged it to the door where, between us, we managed to slide it outside using wood planks on our steps. Phew!

The changeover required the drawer underneath the old refrigerator be removed as well as a little side molding. The new unit was taller than the old one. Once installed, it also required bracing under the front because it stuck out a bit further, even though we got a counter depth unit (24"). We still need to stain the wood we jammed in underneath (screwed once it was wrenched up high enough to let the unit slide).

Taking out the drawer

All cleaned up and waiting for new fridge.
Lower vent/access panel covered with bubble wrap.

The only other somewhat major issue was getting the fridge delivered INSIDE our rig. We bought it at Home Depot and they called the delivery company who assured us that 1) they could bring it inside our RV and 2) they would have the doors off (to fit through our door). Three hours after dropping it in our campsite, another crew finally appeared to bring it inside. Stu ended up taking the doors off. Oh, and we paid $15 to have them them haul the old fridge away (well worth it).

Waiting for crew from Home Depot to carry it inside.

Stu took the doors off and put them on our new COOL bedspread.

Here are a few more key photos of the delivery and Stu's installation - you can see them all in our SmugMug album.

He also created a wooden, felt covered lock to keep the doors from opening when we are moving. Others use velcro on the fridge doors and soft ties attached to the sides (for the freezer). We will see how this works. We already had the scrap wood or it would have been wider. That maybe our weak point. We used self-sticking felt on it.

Here is a peek inside the fridge (more than enough room - oh, and we saved a couple of bins from the old fridge to use. They work great. The big one holds all our yogurt and the smaller one (our old ice maker tray), holds bottles of beer. Important since we now have glass shelves.

The freezer has a top sliding drawer where the ice maker is located (we will never use all this ice!). I also use a large reusable shopping bag to keep the veggies and meats separate. I have another in case I decide to put the meat in one, but for now, this works. And yes, it keeps ice cream - so hard that we have to put it in the fridge for an hour or so before dishing it out!

Ciao for now!