Yesterday was another long day. We were up early getting the fifth wheel ready for travel. It was supposed to go to Al-Ko today. Our repair shop had wanted to get prior approval before making the spring repair. Well, turns out a lot of the shops in Elkhart close for holiday in July---Al-Ko is one of those shops. So, our repair shop decided to just go ahead and take care of us and they will deal with Al-Ko later. As a result, we now have 4 new leaf springs and while they were there my husband had them go ahead and repack the barrings. The photos are the guys working on our rig at RV America and the guy hiding behind the phone book is Ron Green, owner of RV America. They are all very nice and do try very hard to take care of all your needs. We had everything on our list addressed to our satisfaction except for two items. The first, our microwave. When you try and boil water, after about 4 minutes it will shut itself down. It will start right back up, but it should not kick out like that in our opinion. Ron was afraid to replace it because he was afraid the factory would not be able to re-create the issue and then they would refuse to reimburse him for the replacement. It has happened to him before. So, we are going to call the factory directly and try to get this issue resolved. The second, our leaky air mattress. Apparently, we have to call these folks directly and ask that a replacement bladder be sent. Ron did give us some goop to affect a repair. Unfortunately, my husband found out last night that the repair did not hold. I'll keep you updated as things progress on those last two items. We currently are at a campground it Michigan City, IN called Michigan City Campground. We have stayed here before and it is OK, but a little pricey for the amenities in our opinion.
Today was a very long day. The guys at RV America (our repair shop) worked on our fifth wheel all day today. The pups and I hung out in our new screen room. As you can see it did a great job of keeping them contained and comfortable. I had mentioned we purchased this at Wal Mart in an earlier post. The brand name is "First Up".
As to our repairs, they got a lot accomplished today on our "minor" list. They replaced our sound system "control" center, replace the motor in our Shurflo fan, checked out our microwave (they will call the manufacturer tomorrow for solution), in process of replacing tubing for our propane system, and checked out our shower leak. The leak appears to have "healed" itself, but they did double check the connections and made sure all was secure. Tomorrow they are taking our unit over to the folks who installed our leaf springs and axles. Our repair shop wants to make sure that they agree to replace the leaf springs which are under warranty. I have to say we are a little nervous about this, apparently they have had problems getting them to agree to cover repairs in the past. One good thing, Russ Anderson (one of the owners of Americana RV) happens to be here on another project. Hopefully if there is a problem, he can be of assistance in straightening things out.
We finished our evening with a trip to Olive Garden for dinner. Tomorrow promises to be another long day. I let you know how it all turns out..........
Wish I had something exciting to report, but the last couple of days have been pretty mundane. I'm actually excited about our "repair" trip to Elkhart. It will get me out of the house and back into our fifth wheel and that's a good thing. Today will be spent getting things together to take with us. The furballs need a trim and a bath---that always wipes me out. They are both fairly good about it, but it is just such a process. Of course, then there is the laundry to do.
I did have a nice conversation with my son yesterday. He received his Purdue schedule and is so excited to start school in the fall. His only concern is figuring out a part time job, but I told him he needs to focus on school first. I told him I felt confident that something would turn up job wise. That is one thing about Indiana--we are so conservative here---the ups and downs of the national economy are not felt as severely as other parts of the country. Right now, at least, there are still jobs available and homes are still selling. It does help to have all those Purdue students right next door!
As I stated in an earlier post, I will be documenting our repair work. We are going to leave our satellite internet system home, but I have always been able to tap into the repair shops wifi in the past. Hopefully, it is still available.
Today was somewhat interesting. We decided we needed to purchase a "canopy" for me and the dogs to sit under during the repairs on our fifth wheel. The place where the work will be done has absolutely no place for me and the pups to get away from the summer sun. Well, we finally found one at Wal Mart. It is 10x10 and reasonably stable. Then I found that for an extra $30.00 we could purchase a screen to attach to it. I really like that idea--you remember I do not like the bugs! Not only will it protect me from all things "pesky", but the dogs will not have to be on leash the entire time. All together, I think we will spend around $120.00. It is fairly compact, so it should fit nicely in the basement of our fiver. I think we will find it very handy to have around. We will do a trial run before heading to Elkhart with it and I'll snap some photos and include the brand name in a later post. Next, we were off to the hardware store. Hubby needed something for the air compressor, but of course it was no where to be found. Just so the trip was not a total loss, we headed over to Culver's for lunch. If you have never had a "butterburger" you don't know what you are missing. They just melt in your mouth! Leaving Culver's, we got caught in a downpour on our way back to the van . We were just soaked and headed home. Once home and dry we decided to do a little research on some rv parks in Arizona. We are thinking of heading that direction sometime after Thanksgiving. I found one I liked in Yuma, Cocopah Rv Park. Hubby found one that we will definitely have to check out. It is called Good Life Rv Park and it is located in Mesa. It also looked very nice. We are opened to suggestions---please feel free to leave them in the comments section and we will check them out. Last year we "wintered" in Bushnell Florida. We found we really didn't like sitting in one place for so long. I think we have got to get our heads out of that "snowbird" philosophy. We are seriously considering just heading west without any agenda or reservations. That way we can explore as we please, staying a little or longer as the mood strikes us. After all, that is what this lifestyle is supposed to be about. We are just so used to "planning" everything that we are a little scared at the prospect of just heading down the road.
Thanks for the comments and the questions and keep um coming. I love hearing from all of you! Several have inquired about our repairs on our Americana. I'm happy to report that we will be taking our unit to Elkhart next Monday. I plan on "blogging" all! Stay tuned for more on that. Today's mail held our check for the items we sent to auction a few weeks back. I was not expecting much and I was not disappointed. The good news is it's gone and it won't be coming back. I know many of you have gone through this process or are soon to be going through it. I get questions all the time of "how I let go" of all that stuff! Well, I guess you have to be ready. I took a good look at all my stuff and realized that it was just STUFF! Some of it I could not even tell you why I kept or had to have in the first place. To me, it has been a rather "freeing" experience. As to the photos and sentimental items (like my son's first shoes), my mother has graciously offered to store them for me. But, I have been careful there too and I have kept those items down to a minimum. When my son arrives home, we will go through some of those "treasures" and see what he is interested in keeping and what we can let go. I'll admit it can all be a little overwhelming at times. That is why after liquidating my business last year I was just "to tired" to start on the house. We saved it for this spring. I now wish that I had not---I was on a roll last year and I should have just kept right on rolling, but that's life. Just take it one day at a time and sooner or later you get through it! I do know one thing. We made the right decision to full time. I love my little home on wheels and I can't wait to get back on the road again!
Not much to report today. I had a doctor's appointment in the am. Nothing major just a check on a small spot on my leg. Turned out to be scar tissue most probably from a bite by those pesky noseems down in Florida. When we were parked next to the water at my Uncle's Marina, they just about ate me alive. I think Florida is one place we have probably ruled out as a permanent home. Too many bugs!! I'm looking forward to trying out Arizona this winter to see how it compares. After my doctor's appointment, hubby and I had a nice lunch at Arni's our favorite pizza place. Next, it was over to Purdue University in West Lafayette. My son, Sam, will be attending there in the fall. He is presently unable to be on campus, so I was elected to go over and sign him up for some classes. It was kinda funny actually. I had made a 2:30 appointment with Sam's counselor. He came out to the waiting room, called my name, and looked down right puzzled as I stood before him. Maybe it was all my gray hair, not your average college student. Anyway, once he got past all that we sat down and figured out Sam's courses for the fall semester. It is so exciting, almost like I'm going back to school. Anyway, hope he is happy with my choices. Well, that was all the excitement for today. The weather here has sure been wonderful. It was so cold and rainy when we arrived home in April. It is currently in the low 70's with low humidity and lots of sunshine----just beautiful. Unfortunately, the heat and the humidity will be back----probably by tomorrow..........
Wow, sorry it has been so long since the last post. We just now have internet. The last park we were at was in Chatham, IL. There is a picture of our camp site at left. It was a very nice park called the Double J Campground.
Unfortunately, they did not have free wifi and we didn't feel like setting up the satellite for one night. We finally arrived back in Indiana on Thursday evening, June 19th. We parked the fiver up at the river lot, packed up a few things and headed to the stick house. We plan on getting the house on the market in the very near future, but right now we have a few rooms to paint and some improvements to finish up. So, we will be staying at the house for the next few weeks to get it ready for sale. Friday, we headed back up to the river and the fiver. Hubby wanted to wash the bugs off and I needed to clean on the inside. I never feel like doing much cleaning when we are in travel mode, so it was good to run the sweeper and such. I also rounded up a few more items to take back to the house. Saturday, we went over to see my folks and help them move some furniture. They are having carpet laid on Monday. Sunday we visited with my son. He is doing well and is looking forward to attending Purdue University this fall. That is pretty much it. As you can see, we have been busy since we arrived here. Tomorrow, hubby will call Americana to make our appointment for our repairs. We have quite a list, mostly small stuff. The big item is our leaf springs and possibly our axle. It will be interesting to see how all is handled and I'll be sure and post as it unfolds. One last issue. As I stated we just got online a little while ago. We have a tripod satellite system. We have no problem setting the thing up and getting it pointed, but sometimes it takes forever to pass the cross pol test. Don't ask me to explain that, it is just part of the procedure you must go through when you set up. Of late, it seems to take forever to get the test to even run let alone pass. After 3 days of trying unsuccessfully, we finally decided to try another satellite coordinate and this time managed to "pass" the test. After passing, you must re align to your assigned satellite. We did and FINALLY we are up and running. I wish there was a better option for us and our internet service. We did our homework and felt that the tripod system was the way we needed to go. Once it is up and running I have no complaints, but I just wish it were a little easier to set up. I guess it is all part of the rv "learning curve"!!
