We're sitting here at Keystone State Park in Derry PA. Its a fairly small state park with a very pretty lake that is stocked with fish. There are a lot of people fishing, even though the weather has been anything but cooperative. I think we've had about 4 daylight hours that it hasn't been raining, since we got here. We went for a nice walk yesterday but I forgot to bring my camera. If we get a break in the action tomorrow, we'll try to go for another walk. Everyone I talk to has complaints about the weather, wherever they happen to be. After a really lousy winter, the spring has not been much of an improvement.
We're waiting here because we goofed. We've been so busy for the last month or so working out all the details of buying a new truck and trailer, and moving our residence to Texas, that we forgot one detail. I guess that's not too bad, considering all the things we've had to deal with. We are here in Derry to buy a new F450 from the local dealer. Unfortunately, we have not yet received our new Texas title for our truck, so we can't trade it in yet. We have been in contact with the state of Texas, and they have assured us that it should be arriving any day now. Arriving at our mailbox in Livingston TX, that is. Then we'll have to overnight it to the dealer here in PA. We don't have anywhere we have to be until next Thursday, so if we have to sit here for that long, we will. We're not anxious to move this trailer too often. We both feel like we're walking on eggshells, hoping nothing breaks before we trade it in.
Memorial Day weekend is one of those "musical chair" weekends. It's one of the few times that we really need to make a reservation, if we want to be sure of someplace to stay, especially here in the east, where RV parks are fewer and further between. I had already begun researching where we might want to stay but hadn't found anything. We need it to be within 300 miles of Boston, because we have reservations there starting on Memorial Day itself. My dilemma was actually resolved without much effort on my part. There is a couple that we are friends with, although we've never met them, who happen to be in the NY/PA area as well, and we've been keeping an eye one each other's location, to see if we can catch up and finally meet face to face. As it happens, they have booked a campground in NY, about 240 miles from Boston, for Memorial Day weekend, so I quickly called and made reservations at the same park. We will finally get to meet them!
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Friday, May 13, 2011
Are we having fun yet? or.......
A Day From Hell.
That was yesterday. Seemed like everything we touched turned to you know what.
We left Indiana early in the morning because we had to make it to the RV park in Michigan 260 miles away, park the trailer and drive 65 miles to pick up a part for the truck, before the place closed at 3 pm.
The ride was uneventful, except when we pulled over to take a quick break, we saw that the globe to the ceiling fan light had fallen and smashed into a bazillion little shards of glass. Ugh. There was nothing we could do at that point so we waited until we got to the RV park. Problem number 2 happened when we tried to get in the trailer when we arrived in MI. The door wouldn't open. We have keyless entry, which we tried, then we tried the key, etc etc. It took Paul 20 minutes and a pair of pliers to get the door open. Once he did, he told me I wouldn't want to look inside. Apparently the refrigerator in this trailer has a touchy clasp that is difficult to close and yup, it wasn't closed, so as we were driving down the road the refrigerator was spewing its contents all over the floor and carpet. I think the eggs and the pickle juice were the worst.
It was about 87 degrees inside the trailer, so Paul got the AC going as soon as he could. It couldn't keep up though, because I was running the vacuum, creating a lot of heat. Do you know how long it takes to make sure you vacuum up every single little piece of glass, so that the cat won't cut himself? A long time! So long, that we were very close to not being able to get the truck part. When we realized how late it was, we dropped everything, didn't take time to eat, and just drove off to go get the part. Luckily they knew we were coming, so they waited for us. That's when the day took a turn for the better. We did have trouble getting in the trailer again when we got back, but Paul made some adjustments to the lock and he thinks its OK now.
We have some stuff to drop off at our storage locker and a few things to get from it, as well. We'll stick around here until Sunday morning, then take off for Pennsylvania.
That was yesterday. Seemed like everything we touched turned to you know what.
We left Indiana early in the morning because we had to make it to the RV park in Michigan 260 miles away, park the trailer and drive 65 miles to pick up a part for the truck, before the place closed at 3 pm.
The ride was uneventful, except when we pulled over to take a quick break, we saw that the globe to the ceiling fan light had fallen and smashed into a bazillion little shards of glass. Ugh. There was nothing we could do at that point so we waited until we got to the RV park. Problem number 2 happened when we tried to get in the trailer when we arrived in MI. The door wouldn't open. We have keyless entry, which we tried, then we tried the key, etc etc. It took Paul 20 minutes and a pair of pliers to get the door open. Once he did, he told me I wouldn't want to look inside. Apparently the refrigerator in this trailer has a touchy clasp that is difficult to close and yup, it wasn't closed, so as we were driving down the road the refrigerator was spewing its contents all over the floor and carpet. I think the eggs and the pickle juice were the worst.
It was about 87 degrees inside the trailer, so Paul got the AC going as soon as he could. It couldn't keep up though, because I was running the vacuum, creating a lot of heat. Do you know how long it takes to make sure you vacuum up every single little piece of glass, so that the cat won't cut himself? A long time! So long, that we were very close to not being able to get the truck part. When we realized how late it was, we dropped everything, didn't take time to eat, and just drove off to go get the part. Luckily they knew we were coming, so they waited for us. That's when the day took a turn for the better. We did have trouble getting in the trailer again when we got back, but Paul made some adjustments to the lock and he thinks its OK now.
We have some stuff to drop off at our storage locker and a few things to get from it, as well. We'll stick around here until Sunday morning, then take off for Pennsylvania.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Happy Mother's Day!
So far, it's been a pretty good one for me! Paul cooked breakfast (as usual) and then we went for a 4 mile walk. Afterwards, I spoke to my son on the phone for almost an hour. Can't wait to get to Boston to see him! My daughter and her fiance came over for a late lunch. David is leaving Muncie today. He has finished school and after stopping at his parents in Wisconsin for a bit, will be headed to California for an internship in the film industry.
Paul made it back from Texas with no car issues, after spending a week with his mom. The day he arrived home happened to be Cinco De Mayo, so of course we picked up the kids (in their Lincoln) and headed to the nearest Mexican restaurant for dinner. The Lincoln he brought back with him is an early (very generous!) wedding present for the kids, from Paul's mother-her 2000 Lincoln LS. The kids were tremendously excited about their wedding gift, and I admit, its nice peace of mind for me to know Jess has something reliable to drive! So, thank you Gerry!
I'm not sure where the time went when Paul was gone, but it sure did fly by. I did go for a bike ride the day I planned to, but it was a long short bike ride. It wasn't that many miles but the first half I had a tail wind and on the way back I had a head wind that was so strong and tough to battle that when I put my leg down to stop for a minute, it didn't hold my weight, I was that tired! Ugh. Since that day I've gone walking several times and I am hoping to go for another bike ride tomorrow, IF the weather cooperates, which it really hasn't been doing lately. I must say, after being back in the Midwest for a while, the deserts of the west are growing on me. The constant sunshine, lack of humidity and milder temperatures are fond memories. A lot of my full timing friends are still in the western states, and I admit I am somewhat jealous and can't wait to get back there. All in good time though. I wouldn't give up spending time with the kids for anything.
One of the ways I have kept busy for the last week was by finalizing the specifications for our new Mobile Suite 5th wheel. Call us spoiled, but we have decided to go forward with the purchase of our "new" new trailer, for a lot of reasons, actually (that I am not going to get into here). We ordered it last Tuesday and it should be built by mid-June or so. We'll know the timing better next week. We went back to the factory to look at interior colors and make those choices, and also to discuss some of the customizations we have ordered. I can't even post pictures of existing units and say that's what we are getting because some of the changes we're making are changing the look of the interior. We sort of took one floor plan and substituted in parts that we liked from other floor plans, and then put in some of our own ideas as well.
Now that we've ordered the 5th wheel, we need to buy a new truck to pull it. Ours won't tow that much weight, so we are looking to get a 2011 F450. We've gone round and round on this one- debating 350 vs. 450 and 2011 vs. 2012. It's too late to order one and have it be a 2011, and Paul, after talking to his buddies at Ford, has decided he doesn't want a 2012. They are downsizing the brakes, apparently. Plus, because of the Tsunami in Japan, you can't order one with a navigation system until further notice.
So, we have been searching dealer lots trying to find one that will fit our needs. We finally found one in Pennsylvania, and we're hoping its still there when we head that way next week.
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| David and Jess |
One of the ways I have kept busy for the last week was by finalizing the specifications for our new Mobile Suite 5th wheel. Call us spoiled, but we have decided to go forward with the purchase of our "new" new trailer, for a lot of reasons, actually (that I am not going to get into here). We ordered it last Tuesday and it should be built by mid-June or so. We'll know the timing better next week. We went back to the factory to look at interior colors and make those choices, and also to discuss some of the customizations we have ordered. I can't even post pictures of existing units and say that's what we are getting because some of the changes we're making are changing the look of the interior. We sort of took one floor plan and substituted in parts that we liked from other floor plans, and then put in some of our own ideas as well.
Now that we've ordered the 5th wheel, we need to buy a new truck to pull it. Ours won't tow that much weight, so we are looking to get a 2011 F450. We've gone round and round on this one- debating 350 vs. 450 and 2011 vs. 2012. It's too late to order one and have it be a 2011, and Paul, after talking to his buddies at Ford, has decided he doesn't want a 2012. They are downsizing the brakes, apparently. Plus, because of the Tsunami in Japan, you can't order one with a navigation system until further notice.
So, we have been searching dealer lots trying to find one that will fit our needs. We finally found one in Pennsylvania, and we're hoping its still there when we head that way next week.
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