Flip Flop Vector

Reveal V 1.0

2013-04-21T15:38:00.001-07:00

Whew. Three weeks into our home re-do, I officially feel sorry for house flippers. Why the rush, who knows.

The kitchen and dining room are at 95% completion lacking only a bit more decor. Our theme--"Go Bold or Grow Old".

BEFORE:

AFTER:

BEFORE:

AFTER:

The wall color is Valspar's "Tidal Teal". Or what I call "Cancun On A Budget". The time killer--every door/window trim and base board was brown and the ceiling required 3 coats of white paint sans popcorn.

Here is the link for you DIY'ers for the farm table. This thing was so easy it did not make "Carpentry for Dummies", more like "Lumber for the Dumber". If I can make one and still count ten fingers, anyone can do it. Simple yes, but still about 8 hours of labor.

Only a few alterations we made: 1) White-washed it, essentially rubbing white paint on it with a rag to give it a rustic appearancce and then topped with 3 coats of PolyCrylic. 2) Legs are 4x4s rather than suggested 2x4s to give it a more robust look. 3) Length was changed to 7ft. The 8 ft. recommended was big enough to feed Uncle Si and all of his Vietnam veteran friends.

The five chairs found at 3 different garage sales, all originally simple wood. The two on the right await seat cushions, hence the bottom-less photo.

The curtains are from Ikea. What is it with that place--like a NASCAR for shopping carts with no pit area. Oh, and also put it on your "Places To Never Go To On A Sunday" list. The lime green shelf is from Teri's grandma on her mom's side.

In other news:

This is Teri's new car. The manufacturer calls it a Mazda 2 hatchback, I call it a Hybrid--a cross between a metro pickup and a comfortable ATV. I was nervous bringing home four 80 lb. bags of QuikCrete in it. Yes, the used pickup hunt is still on and has reached desperation stage. It's hard to walk home 8 foot sections of lumber that I need for the chicken coop.

Our house has a walking score of 100%. (Teri is in to teal. I kid.)

Hardware store: 4 mins 30 secs
El Rancho Mexican Restaurant: 4 mins 30 secs
HEB grocery store: 5 mins
Whataburger: 5 mins 30 secs
Library: 9 mins (for Teri, I don't read anything printed on paper)

The RV has yet to sell. Arrgghh.

The Vector in Flip Flop Vector is alive and well. Totally enjoyed volunteering for two days last weekend at the Bluebonnet Festival Airshow in our hometown with a B17 the star of the show.

Next reveal: Living Room.It's about 80% complete. Til next time...oh, and the new King size bed--a dream machine!

Quirky

2013-04-07T05:43:00.001-07:00

The strangest thing happened a week ago--we slept amidst a rain storm and the house did not shake and the roof did not sound as if it was being assailed by missiles. YUP, we are in our new to us forty year old brickalow! The RV has been relegated to storage at the KOA campground lot and they are consigning it for us as their location is much more central to metro Austin.

The first 7 days has pretty much been nothing but a paintathon. After paying (some things are worth having someone else do) a very fair rate to have half of our home's popcorn ceiling removed, we broke out 5 gallons of white paint to repaint the ceiling as well as cover up the dark wood of the 70s that adorned our base boards, shelves, door and window trim. Thirty hours later, our labor of love, Phase 1, is complete. Now time to splash on the COLOR!

While I have manned the paint brush, Teri spent the majority of the week being Mrs. Clean. Our previous owners were in their mid-80s and bless their hearts, but the only thing they may have kept clean were their Depends. The original kitchen hardware was still in place and Teri finally just gave up trying to de-gunk--off to Amazon's website and 2 days later courtesy of Prime and free shipping, all new knobs and pulls have been installed. Yes, our first new friends have been the FedEx and UPS delivery drivers.

As we did with the RV, we will have a big reveal moment, or two. Not sure if we will wait til it's all complete or roll it out room by room. Stay tuned.

As to the home's character and quirkiness, I have had many "what were they thinking" moments as I explore our new address. Let's take a tour of them.

Male visitors, please present your Urinal Marksmanship score card before entering our bathroom.

It's called being resourceful--watering your yard with your washing machine drain line. Honestly, the appliance dude who brought over our machine said "Best durn 'maters you will ever have if you plant your garden right there". Gotta luv the small town folk. Yes, line burial is on the To Do list.

Don't you love it when they remove 99% of the tree, but leave behind 1% that represents 99% of the weight. Somewhere on Pinterest I hope they have an idea of what to do with leftover tree trunks.

Spring is in the ~~air~~ bathroom. Hideous.

and thus Building Codes were born...

Hey, when you get the discounted dishwasher, the whole thing tips forward when you pull it out. The owners put in new Corian style countertops, but did not resecure the 2 brackets that hold it in place. While I will show some rarely seen grace as you don't simply insert screws into solid surface counters, I don't know how they tolerated this huge inconvenience for as long as they did.

If someone has seen the PVC Jolly Green Giant, I do believe we have found his walker.

There you have it, our week in review--sleep, eat, paint. Time to get back to the brush.

All Kinds of Candles!

2013-03-26T18:46:00.002-07:00

...or to us, our one year anniRVersary! We made it surviving together in 185 square feet.

One year ago today, this was my birthday present. Clyde the Ride sold yesterday to it's first looker, another couple our age just joining the RV ranks. They drove over 175 miles just to grab him. The 2008 Jayco Eagle awaits a buyer-- S T I L L.

Today, this square is driving a Nissan Cube, a rental car until we find a new to us ride.

An excellent birthday cake substitute--from GiGis Cupcakes, a nice, healthy dose of chocolate and caramel. Not to worry about the calorie intake, for the 13th straight year, I was able to finish a 5k course. But man, the love handles bouncing off the asphalt really does produce some serious chafing.

The number of folks who have found it over here in the past year, cheers!

Guess what returns to the grocery shopping list in 3 days...

Three final days in the aluminum shack---with temps 20 degrees below normal. Of course.Thanks for stopping by.

Closer

2013-03-21T12:13:00.002-07:00

Well, one week from today, we hope to be writing out that large check for larger living. Other than it burning down, appears to be no obstacle to getting to closing in our fine small town of Burnet, TX, population 6,000.

How do you know when you are in a small town--when the online newspaper has a tab indicating "Obits" and when you select it, the drop-down option indicates "Pets". You can verify for yourself here.Would love to see a tribute like "In remembrance of Muffy, the family reminds you not to leave the bag of chocolate Oreo cookies next to the counter".

You can lay any doubt to rest that we will be moving near a couple sizable bodies of water. Above is a Craigslist link my adorable wife sent me as a hint. Maybe this will replace the RV adventure.

Speaking of Craigslist, we have loaded up in one week's time--dryer, dresser, lawn mower, king-size bed frame, two couches (story forthcoming), side chair, 2 side tables, kitchen table (no chairs, more fun sitting on floor) and a coffee table. Yes, we are the Upscale-R-Us storage unit.

Let's go to this week's Craigslist Missing Brain Cells' Listings of the Week:

Listed as "Chester Drawers". Glad to see he has stopped his molesting behavior.

The only thing in the listing "Mens New Asics Tennis Shoes". Apparently, the seller had never heard the phrase "size matters".

Titled: guys coffee table top extends out - $100 (central austin) Very informative as I never knew how to tell the difference in sexes of coffee tables.

Unwanted Belly Fat? - Research Study

Is there any other kind?

Once you get the agreement on an offer, then you have to battle this via text messaging:

Me: "Thanks. Let me know a day, time and address where I can pick it up".

Response: "Work til 5".

What I wanted to reply: "I now have a 1st Place Trophy inscribed with MOST VAGUE CRAIGSLIST RESPONSE-2013 that I will bring over to you".

Perhaps brain-cell loss is contagious. Nothing like buying 2 full-sized couches in 2 days and not being able to sell the first one. The 2nd one was way more eclectic ( I will spot you "lime green", you will have to wait for the reveal) so we decided to keep it and sell this one.

Guess who gets to play electrician the day we move in? Yup, dryer bought is 4 prong, older house is 3 prong. Yes, you can work on my obit "In remembrance of Dave, the family asks that you seek a professional electrician when working around 220 volts".

The bathtub countdown continues: 7 days. My wife is hoping this is the dude that jumps out of the tub. Hummm, maybe that is why she bought the extra couch-- for me. She is thoughtful that way.

One journey nears an end, a new one about to begin...

Meeting Camerixans....

2013-03-15T12:11:00.003-07:00

We have followed their journey for quite awhile, now we finally got to meet our virtual RV friends from Camerixco who host a blog called A Life Made Simple! Canada is their native land, Mexico has been their most current adventure and now they are back in America, all be it we think of Texas as our own country.

Teresa is as sweet as Texas tea. Cassia is their 3 year old whose blue eyes could melt the Texas sun. And then there is Derek, the Mountain Dew incarnate. He may be the first recipient of a caffeinated pace maker. What energy and cheers to a Libertarian!

This is their motel on wheels. I SHAN'T ever complain that we in our 185 sq ft castle do not have enough room. They found such an abundance of space they decided to haul a cat and their large breed dog with them. Hey, that's one way to create a tight family.

They leave the madness of Austin, Tx. (whose idea was it to have SouthxSouthwest, the Travis County rodeo and Spring break the same week) on a slow northward trek back to Canada crossing the border just as their green card reaches its final tick-tock. But, as 1,000 new daily arrivals into Austin will testify, they are enamored with this town and yearn to come back next year! Great meeting these fun folks and hearing about their journey through Mexico these past few months and comparing all three country's cultures. VERY INTERESTING! Blessings and safe travel.

This family makes number four of RV'ing bloggers we have met and they join the list which includes Jerry and Kim at Creating the Life, Scott and Debbie at Great Escape From New Jersey and Derek and Monica from Roadmap to Nomad!

As to the house with bricks, the inspection passed yesterday, well except for the 28 deficiencies, it is simply awesome! Gotta love the 70 year old country boy inspector who arrived 15 minutes before we did greeting us with "Buying yourself a fixer-upper, are ya?". HUH! I mean in 25 years of marriage, the only thing ever fixed up in our house was Teri's hair and face back when she worked outside of the home.

The difficulty is a home inspector is tasked with grading a 40 year old home against current code. I think we concluded once the report was done we would each just take 12 hour shifts to make sure we didn't sense the roof was about to cave in, the electric panel wasn't about to become a BBQ pit and the foundation wasn't going to spill into a sink hole. Might just see if Lassie is available for a part-time gig. Ah heck, insurance is awesome. Moving in two weeks!

Spent all morning at garage sales. No one wanted to sell theirs.

Replacement vehicle hunting also continues, now almost 3 months. This was the truck I almost bought until the seller said it came with a flame thrower, but it wasn't hooked up. I thought I could solve the distracted cell phone driver issue that irks me. Oh well..

And finally, our RV and Truck made it onto Craigslist last night. Time to go study Nigerian shipping rates and the intricacies of Western Union payments.

The RV journey continues.

Eggscuse Me!

2013-03-11T14:32:00.002-07:00

Well, after 3 months of mastering fickleness, we have decided the concrete jungle was not to our liking. With a growth rate of 1,000 new residents a day arriving to the Austin metroplex, it was time for us to reevaluate. We have decided our straw hats have requested we return to the country. YEE-HAW. As of today, we have signed a contract to purchase a home just on the outskirts of Burnet, TX., a sleepy town of 6,000 denim wearers and about a 45 minute drive to the northwest of the capital city.

The only tease for now: it sits on an acre and has one of these---with 50 amps! Not for us, but for you readers who want get a taste of BBQ-ville.

Yup, our sellers are RV'ers, as well. Teri commented several times on our journey "wouldn't it be cool if we ended up in a house that came with an RV pad". Ask. Receive. OH WAIT--STOP THE BLOG PRESSES. We were within a nano-second of having all 9 parties involved in this transaction finalized, including this blog draft started 1hr prior to our realtor sending us over the HOA details. Seeing they were "voluntary" and $35 per year, I decided to peruse them. "No poultry"--that's right, 1 acre in the country, and feathered lay-dies are not allowed--are you kidding? We waddled away probably leaving the other 7 players in disbelief. So, we opted for a 1/4 acre property in town where hens are permitted. Made an offer, they accepted, we close in a few weeks, probably just a few days shy of our 1 year anniRVersary.

Sorry RV'ers, you can put your RV in storage and come sleep with us for a couple of nights. We will probably have to charge you for hot water use that extends beyond 3 minutes as we don't want you to overstay your visit.

The house is mid-70s in awesome condition, including a glittered-sprinkled popcorn ceiling, something I am very satisfied with as searching "disco ball" on Craigslist was fruitless. As RV'ers who sold it all, we have begun our search of replenishing. We picked up 3 furniture pieces yesterday from the Travolta collection. The ONLY thing we will buy new is our king sized bed. No worries visitors, we will have our exterminator shoot a lil spray on the guest bedroom mattress before you arrive. We are caring like that.

We close in less than 3 weeks and I am already working on my swan dive technique into a hot soaking bath tub. Teri also posted more details today HERE. We will share before/after here in the next six weeks or so.

I guess since I now have a permanent address, I can now search for a local job. Even though I don't "have to-have to" go back to work, I "want to-want to". My wife wants me to, also, cause she wants me to be happy. Or something.I don't want to say she is rushing me, but I think she is quietly Pinning "Husband Work Lunches".

As to specific work type, I thought I was pretty open minded, so I began scanning Craigslist. Here are some opportunities that arose:

Semen donor- I think I am too old for the Navy
Egg donor- I will have a chat with our hens
Diarrhea/IBS Clinical Research Participants- Pooping on command not a forte'
Lice Removal Technician- It's been posted a few times, possibly little interest
European Wax Center Assistant- sounded more to my liking. I enjoy detailing my cars and what could be more fun than polishing up the Euro likes of BMWs, Mercedes and Lamborghini. HUH? Hair removal? THERE? WHY? Maybe if the Lice Salon can’t solve it, the Wax Center can--now there is a franchise idea.

So, I remain funemployed.

Gotta run, the mild 3 months of Austin living is about to turn into 3 weeks of a wild transition, including selling an RV and a truck. OH, and have to make a decision on whether to continue blogging. And on what kind of puppy I want. And figuring out how to adjust to uninterrupted Internet. And a privacy fence to work on my waxing techniques.

The journey continues as we mark off our 340th day of full-time RV'ing.

Concrete Vs. Rubber, The Costs of Living Comparison

2013-02-20T06:42:00.002-08:00

Ever been curious which lifestyle is cheaper, Rv'ing or Mortaring? Which one do you have more control of when times get tough? Let's compare our last full month (Jan 2012) in our sticks and bricks house to our 9 month average RV budget which was discussed in detail here including definitions of each line item.

Call me Capt. Obvious, but you will have to apply some common sense to the categories (ie, House has electric bill, RV does not, but would (usually) be part of RV Parks fee). Oh, in neither scenario did we have mortgage/RV financing. Unlike our Federal government, we are debt oppositional.

Again, these were actual expenditure results, not budgeted amounts, for a 1 month basis.

       ITEM                                       STICKS/BRICKS                     RV

1.    Aetna-                                             190                                    190
2.   Samaritan-                                        150                                    150
3.   VSP Eye care-                                     9                                        9
4.   Cell Phone-                                        80                                       80
5.   RV Parks-                                          N/A                                   723
6. Fuel-                                                  88                                  419
7. Veh/"Home" Maintenance-                   75                                      311
8. Groceries-                                          320                                   362
9. Entertainment-                                    159                                 174
10. Incidentals-                                         89                                       84
11. Health-                                               41                                       14
12. Tolls-                                                  15                                       19
13. Laundry-                                           N/A                                      32
14. Veh Insurance-                        101 (had 2 cars)                    41
15. "Home" Insurance-                              62                                  28
16. Property taxes 220                                    N/A
17. Elec/water/trash                                 241                                    N/A
18. Cable/Net/Phone                               123                                    N/A
19. Life Ins.                                               33                                  33
20. Animal care 30    N/A

T O T A L:                                     $2,026                              $2,669

Anyone surprised? Yes, the beast of fuel costs and RV park fees raises its ugly head. That being said, those are the two you have the most flexibility with and can shave down costs by staying longer at one place and paying the discounted monthly rate, not to mention less fuel costs by being parked. In the foundation built home, there is almost no room to minimize overhead--drop the cable (don't touch my Internet), adjust your thermostat up a bit, hang out laundry, shower together--OK, OK, I will stop. But you get the point. You also can work-camp and get your RV park fee paid by the campground. Too bad we can't approach the County tax office to work out such a deal.

Perhaps a true apple-apple comparison would be looking at the RV total costs for the 4 months of this 10 month journey we did not move, August, December, January and February (projected). $1,966-- essentially, a wash if you minimize movement. But what enjoyment would that be? Even more fun, sprinting for shelter when the tornado sirens go off in the campground and sharing 6 gallons of hot water with the love of your life. Good times.

Now, an update from us. We arrived in Austin almost 3 months ago. We had 3 primary goals: 1) Find a house 2) Find a job 3) Find a run-about, economical car. Ninety-days later, we still have the same 3 goals. **Face meets palm**. But our owner-financed house did "close", but monies didn't---yet--another 10 days we are told to see disbursement.

Hey, but we are still happily married--I think. More details on the trifecta hunting in the next post.

Random Acts of RV'ing, Version --Uh, I Lost Count

2013-01-31T14:48:00.000-08:00

Well, we have moved. Oh, not into a sticks and bricks, just a mere 29 miles northwest from southeast Austin to Leander, TX. It was a move of convenience as we wanted to be in the same town as our realtor and not face Austin's quasi-Los Angeles traffic nightmare each time a property surfaced.

Arrived at the KOA in Leander, TX, the fastest growing area in the USA, on Tuesday. How fast--a property surfaced in our price range--had 18 showings. Oh, yes, that would be 18 showings on the first day it was offered for sale. Sold day one.

Yesterday, we headed out to look at 4 properties (as it was the same day we were expecting our monies from our buyer who we financed for one year). Ok, we were not impressed. A homeless family would have opted to remain in their cardboard abode. Stained carpets, cat pee smell, tobacco smoke and wood rot weren't exactly screaming "BUY ME!". Did I miss the sub-division name: HazMat? I may take a pair of my black tank disposable gloves next go around. Never thought our 4 year old Jayco would seem so luxurious.

Turns out God's timing had a role. Returned to the campground and an email from our home buyer indicating her closing had been nixed---date and time unknown. Ruh--roh, Scooby. We feel sorry for her as she has fulfilled all of our requirements. It seems like men with ~~briefcases~~ laptops would be beating down her door to give her a loan as she is only requesting 40% of the property valued amount, so the institution would have 60% equity. Humm, guess banks still only prefer risky deals. So, wanting only to pay cash for a home, we have suspended an active search until the bank account sees a rare entry in the DEPOSIT column.

We are back in the same locale near the animal shelter I used to volunteer at before departing, so I am returning to help them out on Saturday. Also fortuitous is the opening of a new bike trail last week which can take us miles into the suburbs and starts right outside of the campground. Ran 3.1 miles today on it to make sure it could handle my weight. It did, unfortunately, my knees can't much longer. Time for pedals. Also, our best friends are now 10 minutes away and we are 10 miles closer to our youngest son. Most importantly, our favorite Mexican food place is 29 miles closer to us.

"Hey Dave, how is that job hunting going?" Glad you asked. So excited this morning as I saw an entry level aviation job open up at a nearby, but rather busy municipal airport, with an open deadline. I completed their application, adjusted my cover letter and uploaded my aviation-specific resume. Went to look for the "Submit" button. Huh--where did it go? Refreshed the job home page. Gone. What? Yup, per the City, it was closed while I was working on my app. Face meet palm. Funemployment continues.

Hey, who is all in for a hot tub on these cool Texas winter evenings? OK, put your hands down cause it's not happening here. Yup, open April 1st-October 31st, cause everyone loves soaking their sweaty loins in a pot of boiling water in late July as the sun sets. Their explanation--only one heater that serves pool and hot tub, all run on propane, so it becomes too expensive to operate during colder months. KOA recognizing something as TOO EXPENSIVE--that there is some irony, aint it?

Alex, I will take "Program Ideas Not Well Thought Out" for $200. Really--bring your own chili slop and we will blend it all together and have a good ole' time? Mr. and Mrs. Flip Flop Vector will be bringing a crock pot and labeling it "Barf Bucket". Seriously, there must be some kind of investment relationship with a nearby urgent care center. We are passing and heading to the In-Laws. The rest of the campground will be passing, too--gas.

I have no idea why you stop by, but thanks regardless.

The journey continues, approaching 10 months of life on axles....

9 month budget report

2013-01-20T13:30:00.000-08:00

Time for the 9 month fiscal check-up. I sincerely believe in 3/4 of a year, you are going to experience enough of life's ups and downs to give you a pretty good picture of what RV full-timing is going to cost you per month.

For those new here, we have just started our second half century of life, have no children with us and no pets. On average, we moved a little more often than once per week, which weighs heavy on the budget. Officially, we gobbled up 11K miles, 34 states and 50 campgrounds during this budget time period. When we sold our paid off home, we used proceed to buy our RV equipment, so no financing for us--cash outlay for truck and RV--$32,000.

I struggle with Excel, so I manually charted all the data, I call it my "Exasperate" spread sheet. The footnote section with corresponding numbers below the budget section will offer a bit of elaboration for clarification purposes. And no, I am not BWI (blogging while intoxicated), Blogger and making columns are not a happy couple. Take some Vertigo meds and you will be fine.

       ITEM                                       BUDGETED                       ACTUAL

1.    Aetna-                                             190                                    190
2.   Samaritan-                                        150                                    150
3.   VSP Eye care-                                     9                                        9
4.   Cell Phone-                                        80                                       80
5.   RV Parks-                                        600                                     723
6. Diesel-                                             600                                     419
7. Truck/RV Maintenance-                   500                                     311
8. Groceries-                                        369                                     362
9. Entertainment-                                  176                                     174
10. Incidentals-                                       87                                        84
11. Health-                                             15                                      14
12. Tolls-                                               15                                       19
13. Laundry-                                        30                                       32
14. Veh Insurance- (Full coverage)         41                                       41
15. RV Insurance-                                  28                                         28
16. Life Insurance-      33     33

TOTALS:                      $2,923                     $2,669

Footnotes:
1- Wife's private health insurance plan. 100% coverage after $5k deductible is met. As of Jan, this amount goes up 12% to $214, thanks to the Affordable (LOL) Health Care Act--thank you Americans for being fooled TWICE.
2- I chose not to participate in conventional insurance, instead opting for a Christian health care sharing ministry where we help with each others' health related costs. Check out Samaritan Ministries. Message me if you want more info.
3. Leftover benefit from my COBRA program. Cheap enough eye care insurance for 18 months, so why not.
4. Wife's Iphone has the lowest data plan offered on her older phone. I have the plain vanilla plan--rings, I answer-- sometimes.
5. Only boondocked 3x, otherwise we stayed at RV parks, most would have been rated 8+ or better. In the nine month period, only stayed 2 places long enough to get their monthly rate, so it was easy to exceed this line item. Passport America, Good Sam and KOA discount cards helped.
6. The trade off for an average price of 3.75 gal. during the journey was 13 mpg with our diesel rig. Again, moving often often had us in the red.
9. Our entertainment is eating--out. Otherwise, Duck Dynasty suffices.
10. Incidentals-- "Catch all" or "Misc" category. LPG refills, haircuts, postage, gifts, mail fwd., clothes,etc.
11. Health- over the counter meds,ie, aspirin, eye drops,condoms--I kid, I kid--just seeing if you are still awake.

The bottom line to the bottom line: if you are having budget problems-- slow down, travel less, stay monthly and keep up to date with preventative maintenance.

There you go, our final round of budget posts as we venture back toward conventional living. Coincidentally, our next post will tackle one of the biggest curiosities of the RV full-timing lifestyle---which is cheaper, living on cement or on axles? Yes, the good ole Sticks/Bricks vs. RV'ing budget battle. Stay tuned!

In case you missed it, our Fiver and Truck are looking for a good home!

Wife's giveaway ends tomorrow morning, so if interested in something useful this time of year, check it out here.

For the working folk, enjoy your 3 day weekend and MLK's birthday.

Day 285 on the road....

A home in need of a good home....

2013-01-16T16:00:00.000-08:00

Like a Twinkie, we will keep this short and sweet.

It looks like we are set for closing as our buyer feels 99% sure she has found conventional financing and will be paying off her lender---which happens to be us. So, we will now have the proceeds to return to a life of permanent hot water, soaking baths and a permanent foundation. Oh yeah, barking dogs, the same view and property taxes. Give and take, such is life.

This leaves us with a need to sell both our fifth wheel and the truck located in Austin, Tx. Instead of going into all of the details, just click the link under each photo and you will be taken to the 2 web sites we created to sell them. Our desire is to sell it to another RV'er, so we will list it here and at other RV selling sites. If you know anyone, let 'em know--Austin as an airfare destination is one of the better bargains.We are trying to avoid the local Craigslist option---you know, scammers, low ballers, dealers and bad photographers.

Oh, and if you like the design of the selling websites and you have a big item (home, car, boat, plane, etc) you want to sell, contact me. End self-promotion.

2008 Jayco Eagle Superlite

2002 Ford F250 4x4 7.3 Turbo Diesel

And, of course, we would like to sell them as a pair, but will sell them apart. All you would need is new license plates--all other amenities to begin your travel immediately will be included!

As to what has been otherwise happening the past 7 weeks, the wife sums up well here. Oh, and speaking of her, she has a nice giveaway here.

Next post--the average budget for our previous 9 months on the road. Post after--a comparison of our final Sticks Bricks home (Jan 2012) budget vs. our life RVing---which is cheaper? Are you sure? Find out soon...

Day 288....life on wheels continues...

Craigslist--Some Skills Required

2013-01-08T16:57:00.001-08:00

Isn't Craiglslist hunting fun? I would suspect many of us RV'ers started our journey at their site. The only 2 RV's we seriously pursued were on Craigslist and ended up buying the second one. Even as we traveled I checked their local city listings, mostly out of curiosity, but at one point was seeking a men's bike as we trekked through AZ and CA.

Now that we have decided to stay in the Austin area, a search for a big city, economical car has begun. So, we are back spectating at the Cars and Trucks link over at Craigslist.

Anyone who knows me knows my strategy--I buy the person more than I do the item. I don't have a high standard for spelling, but I expect the 3 letter words to be pretty much spot on. If you are a "dealer" but list it over at the "by owner" link, you are immediately dismissed from consideration. If you can't state the basics which include year/make/model/mileage/price, the ax chops you.

Finally, my biggest peeve, pictures please. No pictures, no chance---this is Craigslist, not blind dating. And if you include photos, make an effort to present an informative image. In my most recent search, I snagged a few photos of sellers who couldn't spell KODAK if you spotted them the K-O-D-A. These pictures are completely unaltered. I came up with a caption I WANTED to email back to them, but because my 2013 resolutions of happier, gentler, kinder, more peaceful Dave are still fresh, opted not to.

Is the zoom lens back at the camera shop?

Can you let me know when the fog clears?

Awesome, I always wanted to buy a 1/4 ton truck stressed out by a 1/2 ton of hay.

You did set the parking brake, didn't you?

Thanks for demonstrating both car doors work. (This was the only image for the ad which had no description whatsoever).

I see the furniture in the background, was it easy getting your car into the living room?

Is it still available or did someone steal it over night?

Need some quarters for the car wash?

Is the car limited only to members of Little People of America?

I can't tell where your truck ends and darkness begins.

Fred Flintstone, is that you?

Expecting high winds tonight? (Listed as perfectly drivable car)

Your listing said "clean interior"--please define "clean" for me.

I am 6 ft 2 in., think I can squeeze in the cab?

I am convinced your car is clean. Grandpa included as a chauffeur?

If I pay full price, promise to buy Photoshop V 13.0?

There you go, sellers at Craigslist who have no idea how poor images influence the number of responses they receive.

Doan't even geet me starded on grumadical content that is scene with these adds, thats another hole post!'s

And what's up with the hyper-links? Blogger, where one never knows why changes are made, and perhaps, they don't even know.

The journey continues in monsoon Austin....

New Gadgheat

2013-01-02T10:14:00.001-08:00

...well, a tad bigger than the standard gadget...guess my radiant personality was insufficient to heat the big rig. I know one thing---if you folks in Portland are missing your weather, I believe we have found it in Austin. Please come and retrieve it.

While we were in Pennsylvania back in September, our furnace thermostat had a hiccup which prompted the need for a backup plan in the event of a continuous interruption or if we were to unexpectedly be depleted of our propane (like happened to us just the other night as reported by our RV neighbors). Off to Target to purchase us a cubed style, electric heater. For $20, it held up well---for 3 months. However, most recently, we noticed the cord beginning to get super hot after about 40 minutes of continuous interruption. Not wanting to test our fire insurance, it was time to activate my God-given skill--Research!

We doubled the budget to $40, because we are big spenders like that, and began exploring. The Pelonis, 3 speed, oil-filled radiator heater from Home Depot seemed to be the best reviewed in this price range. Off to Home Depot we went where the fun began. The only Pelonis heater in stock was the cubed, fan style like we already had. However, they had one by Cuori that appeared to be identical to the Pelonis model that had been seen on the Home Depot website. Pulled out the wife's Smartphone to review the Cuori----nada---not even a mention of Cuori on Google. Hummm.

We pointed out the discrepancy to the first Home Depot employee and indicated to him the website said the store had 95 units in stock. He checked the SKU# on the display rack and confirmed they had 95 in stock--all Cuoris, not Pelonis. Took another peek at the Smartphone and sure enough--the Pelonis SKU# on line and Cuori's in store were both the same. This pretty much prompted a store emergency as 2 more employees arrived to sort through the confusion. When it was all said and done--"Not sure, but they appear to be the same unit" was the best response we could get. So did Cuori buy out Pelonis and someone missed the memo? Who knows, perhaps CUORI is Chinese for PELONIS.

Got her home and fired up--improvement by about 3-5 degrees! Again, it is oil heat, so it is not instantaneous. It takes about 30 minutes to get the oil in the fins warmed up enough to bring adequate heat to the rig. The benefits:

Radiant heat---flowing out and up vs. the one direction of the cubed fan.
When turning it OFF, metal fins stay warm for about 30 minutes vs. immediate loss of heat with fan style.
Quiet--do not have to grab the TV remote control to raise the volume every time the thermostat kicks it on---it is a quiet "click".
Energy efficient. Good option if you are in a metered electric site at an RV park.
3 settings allow us to keep it on Low--less amp draw.
At $22 a bottle per 30 lb. propane tank, there will be some savings.
When your RV laundromat dryer fails you, it can serve as a nice towel dryer backup.
No noise at night when thermostat engages unlike the Space Shuttle launcher also known as an RV furnace.

Drawbacks:

Unless you like the smell of burning dog fur or baby flesh, probably not the safest solution as the fins do heat up.
The "radiator-look" does not bring as much ambiance as a fireplace (although the instruction manual describes it as "beautiful"--it seriously does).
Does not give instant heat.
Pretty bulky size which never bodes well for the limited space of an RV.

You have to be realistic when it comes to RV heat. As I have commented several times before, most units are not "four seasons" by design containing single pane windows and almost no insulation. I am guessing Jo-Ann's yarn section is the supplier for RV insulation. Our all aluminum frame is a temperature retainer---when it has been in the 40s-50s as highs for several days with zero heat from direct sun, guess what temperature your walls are at? FRIGID. As a matter of fact, I drank from a can of soda that I retrieved from the cabinet below the sink and hardly noticed any difference from refrigerator temp. On the other hand, we can now buy more refrigerated groceries and can serve as a backup morgue. Yes, optimism is a 2013 goal.

Our 9 month anniRVersary is 3 days away--same number of days it is predicted when we will have 20% chance of snow.....the journey continues...send heat.

UPDATE: Made $22 investment and have solved our heating challenges--finished Reflectix installation--what a difference!

The Journey, Best Ofs/Worst Ofs....

2012-12-26T14:05:00.002-08:00

Apparently, this post never made it to you Google Reader subscribers, so here we go again, same version, new publish button....

Hat tip to CJ over at CozyGirl for suggesting a Best of/Worst of regarding our land yacht voyage. We had actually written all of the notes during one day of travel--yes, something to keep the RV chauffeur awake. We felt it was appropriate at the end of the calendar year as many other media outlets begin their "Best Of/Worst of 2012" exposes. As is common with most relationships, we did not always agree, so we noted each others names when our opinions differed.

This post is also dedicated to Debbie over at Great Escapes From NJ who said she loves blogs with links--more links here than the Johnsonville sausage factory. Oh, and a big howdy to our current neighbors, RoadmaptoNomad, who became full-time RVers just yesterday, how awesome is that.

I apologize in advance as to formatting---Blogger should rename itself to Booger--cause I get madder than snot when I use their app. Don't you love the message "An error occurred while trying to save or publish your post. Please try again. Ignore warning"--I thought the reason for WARNINGS was so they were not to be ignored. I don't see Tylenol putting on their labels "Keep out of reach of children. Ignore warning". I was within a razor's edge of renaming the blog to FLIP THE BIRD VECTOR.

So, if you see uncentered photos, text spacing, etc. where they don't belong, it is not due to the over indulgence of egg nog as I prepared this post. In the "Edit" post, all looks reasonably well. However, when I go to "Preview", it looks like someone riding the short school bus got a hold of my laptop. Also, since most of our readers made it beyond Kindergarten, not every picture will have a photo.

Rant off. Temporarily.

OK, the winners and losers area..............

MEMORIES:

Top Two Most Memorable Days:

A day in New York City (Teri)

Bucket List Checkoff-- Oshkosh Air Show with oldest son (Dave)

Top Two Most Scenic Memories:

Harper's Ferry, West Virginia (Teri)

Grand Canyon, Arizona (Dave)

Best single day, big city experience:

Broadway--Rock of Ages-New York City (Teri)--the day my man card virginity was taken.

San Franciso city tour (Dave)

Best single day experience, smaller city:

Cycling around Monterey Bay, CA

Prettiest single day drive:

Coastal South Carolina in the Fall

Prettiest sunrise:

Austin, TX.

Prettiest sunset:

Snake River/Twin Falls, ID in late May

Ogallala, NE amidst a storm brewing over a forest fire

Favorite non-Texas state:

South Carolina- Teri

Idaho- Dave

Worst day of the journey:

The crash

RV PARKS:

Top 3 RV Parks:

Ocean Lakes Travel Park- Myrtle Beach, S.C.

Cherry Hill RV Park- Washington DC.--Easy commute to the city.

Turning Stone Casino/The Villages RV Park- Oneida, N.Y.--Beautiful, well-layed out, trash can at every sight.

Worst RV Parks:

Century RV Park, Ogden, UT--park was fine, but office staff couldn’t spell RV.

Timberlane Campground, Clarksboro, NJ --- too much attitude, charging weekly for electric and dozens of square bugs that we still find alive in our rig 3 months later. Funny enough, this is where popular RV Blogger Cheddar-Yeti is holed up for the Winter.

Skyline RV Resort, Darrien Center, NY—park wasn’t too bad, but loud mouth seasonals were disruptive.

Best boondocking experience:

Perrine Bridge, Snake River, Twin Falls, ID. watching base jump divers and sleeping for free!

Well, just like RV'ing, things don't always go according to plan...

Big City with Best Choice of RV Parks:

Myrtle Beach, SC

Big City with Worst Choice of RV Parks

San Francisco, Denver and D.C.—flip a coin.

Most Unique RV Park Visited:

Hiway Haven, Sutherlin, OR.—yeah, drive-in movie screen included.

Most frustrating part:

Although not frequent, bad Wi-Fi--yeah,yeah, Verizon Mi-Fi blah,blah

oMost desired amenities:

Good Wi-Fi, Pull thru parking, walk-friendly

Favorite song that depicted the journey:

"FREE" Zac Brown Band

Favorite words:
No Regrets-- Dave
Enough (Contentment)-- Teri

Favorite two websites:

RV.net -almost any question you need answered can be found here. Hat tip to my virtual mentor, Newman, who has dedicated his life to making sure I didn't electrocute myself.

rvparkreviews.com-- The Yelp-like source for RV'ers!

FOOD:

Top 2 Dining Experiences:

Indochine- Wilmington, N.C., our first stab at Thai food, awesome!

Steamboat Bill's- Lake Charles, La.--Shrimp Pistolettes, the best!

Favorite Cheap Eats:

Waffle House - (Southeast USA)

Culver's - (Northeast USA)

Favorite Campground Treat:

Snickers Ice Cream Bar

Least Favorite 2 Dining Experiences:

Cracker Barrel- Wilmington, NC. Spices must have been back-ordered while we were in town.

Ogallala, NE. Elevated the definition of “bland”.

Best Surprise Food:

Carolina BBQ--mustardy vinegary BBQ sauce= besty.

Most Frequent Meal Prepared In The Rig:

Pierogies with our own bacon and onion topping

NUMBERS:

Most Expensive Budget Month:

November (Crash Month): $3,766 (insurance deductibles + 4 new tires)

Least Expensive Budget Month:

August (Month in Bristol, IN.): $1960.00

Total Miles Driven:

11, 166

Number of States Visited:

Number of Campgrounds Visited:

Longest single day drive:

447 miles, Williams, Az to Bakersfield, Ca.

Shortest single day drive:

Golden, Co. to Littleton, Co., 21 miles

Highest price per gallon of diesel:

$4.49. California. No surprise.

Lowest price per gallon of diesel.

$3.39 Texas, in April 2012. No surprise.

MPG Towing:

MPG without RV:

Best investment under $100:

Table top grill.

Hottest day:

Ogallala,, NE-105, in June.

Coldest day:

Austin, TX- 27, in December. LOL.

Scariest weather moment:

Tornado warning, Bristol, IN. in August

There you go folks, hours of work, organizing photos and arm wrestling Blogger is complete! And, if you don't like this blog post, I am hiring Christy over at He Said/She Said to write a formal response---I hear she does a stand up job!

To our 60+ followers and 42,000 who have stopped by since April, we say:

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM DAVE AND TERI AT FLIP FLOP VECTOR!

Memories, Good and Bad, of The Journey...

2012-12-22T12:26:00.001-08:00

Hat tip to CJ over at CozyGirl for suggesting a Best of/Worst of regarding our land yacht voyage. We had actually written all of the notes during one day of travel--yes, something to keep the RV chauffeur awake. We felt it was appropriate at the end of the calendar year as many other media outlets begin their "Best Of/Worst of 2012" exposes. As is common with most relationships, we did not always agree, so we noted each others names when our opinions differed.

This post is also dedicated to Debbie over at Great Escapes From NJ who said she loves blogs with links--more links here than the Johnsonville sausage factory. Oh, and a big howdy to our current neighbors, RoadmaptoNomad, who became full-time RVers just yesterday, how awesome is that.

I apologize in advance as to formatting---Blogger should rename itself to Booger--cause I get madder than snot when I use their app. Don't you love the message "An error occurred while trying to save or publish your post. Please try again. Ignore warning"--I thought the reason for WARNINGS was so they were not to be ignored. I don't see Tylenol putting on their labels "Keep out of reach of children. Ignore warning". I was within a razor's edge of renaming the blog to FLIP THE BIRD VECTOR.

So, if you see uncentered photos, text spacing, etc. where they don't belong, it is not due to the over indulgence of egg nog as I prepared this post. In the "Edit" post, all looks reasonably well. However, when I go to "Preview", it looks like someone riding the short school bus got a hold of my laptop. Also, since most of our readers made it beyond Kindergarten, not every picture will have a photo.

Rant off. Temporarily.

OK, the winners and losers area..............

MEMORIES:

Top Two Most Memorable Days:

A day in New York City (Teri)

Bucket List Checkoff-- Oshkosh Air Show with oldest son (Dave)

Top Two Most Scenic Memories:

Harper's Ferry, West Virginia (Teri)

Grand Canyon, Arizona (Dave)

Best single day, big city experience:

Broadway--Rock of Ages-New York City (Teri)--the day my man card virginity was taken.

San Franciso city tour (Dave)

Best single day experience, smaller city:

Cycling around Monterey Bay, CA

Prettiest single day drive:

Coastal South Carolina in the Fall

Prettiest sunrise:

Austin, TX.

Prettiest sunset:

Snake River/Twin Falls, ID in late May

Ogallala, NE amidst a storm brewing over a forest fire

Favorite non-Texas state:

South Carolina- Teri

Idaho- Dave

Worst day of the journey:

The crash

RV PARKS:

Top 3 RV Parks:

Ocean Lakes Travel Park- Myrtle Beach, S.C.

Cherry Hill RV Park- Washington DC.--Easy commute to the city.

Turning Stone Casino/The Villages RV Park- Oneida, N.Y.--Beautiful, well-layed out, trash can at every sight.

Worst RV Parks:

Century RV Park, Ogden, UT--park was fine, but office staff couldn’t spell RV.

Skyline RV Resort, Darrien Center, NY—park wasn’t too bad, but loud mouth seasonals were disruptive.

Best boondocking experience:

Perrine Bridge, Snake River, Twin Falls, ID. watching base jump divers and sleeping for free!

Well, just like RV'ing, things don't always go according to plan...

Big City with Best Choice of RV Parks:

Myrtle Beach, SC

Big City with Worst Choice of RV Parks

San Francisco, Denver and D.C.—flip a coin.

Most Unique RV Park Visited:

Hiway Haven, Sutherlin, OR.—yeah, drive-in movie screen included.

Most frustrating part:

Although not frequent, bad Wi-Fi--yeah,yeah, Verizon Mi-Fi blah,blah

oMost desired amenities:

Good Wi-Fi, Pull thru parking, walk-friendly

Favorite song that depicted the journey:

"FREE" Zac Brown Band

Favorite words:
No Regrets-- Dave
Enough (Contentment)-- Teri

Favorite two websites:

RV.net -almost any question you need answered can be found here. Hat tip to my virtual mentor, Newman, who has dedicated his life to making sure I didn't electrocute myself.

rvparkreviews.com-- The Yelp-like source for RV'ers!

FOOD:

Top 2 Dining Experiences:

Indochine- Wilmington, N.C., our first stab at Thai food, awesome!

Steamboat Bill's- Lake Charles, La.--Shrimp Pistolettes, the best!

Favorite Cheap Eats:

Waffle House - (Southeast USA)

Culver's - (Northeast USA)

Favorite Campground Treat:

Snickers Ice Cream Bar

Least Favorite 2 Dining Experiences:

Cracker Barrel- Wilmington, NC. Spices must have been back-ordered while we were in town.

Ogallala, NE. Elevated the definition of “bland”.

Best Surprise Food:

Carolina BBQ--mustardy vinegary BBQ sauce= besty.

Most Frequent Meal Prepared In The Rig:

Pierogies with our own bacon and onion topping

NUMBERS:

Most Expensive Budget Month:

November (Crash Month): $3,766 (insurance deductibles + 4 new tires)

Least Expensive Budget Month:

August (Month in Bristol, IN.): $1960.00

Total Miles Driven:

11, 166

Number of States Visited:

Number of Campgrounds Visited:

Longest single day drive:

447 miles, Williams, Az to Bakersfield, Ca.

Shortest single day drive:

Golden, Co. to Littleton, Co., 21 miles

Highest price per gallon of diesel:

$4.49. California. No surprise.

Lowest price per gallon of diesel.

$3.39 Texas, in April 2012. No surprise.

MPG Towing:

MPG without RV:

Best investment under $100:

Table top grill.

Hottest day:

Ogallala,, NE-105, in June.

Coldest day:

Austin, TX- 27, in December. LOL.

Scariest weather moment:

Tornado warning, Bristol, IN. in August

To our 60+ followers and 42,000 who have stopped by since April, we say:

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM DAVE AND TERI AT FLIP FLOP VECTOR!

Closet-phobia

2012-12-16T18:08:00.003-08:00

Closetphobia--fear of small closets.

RV closets for rigs in our size range should have a sign denoting "Not suitable for men over 165 pounds". My shirts hang so low their lower portions serve as carpet scrubbers.The depth is not much better-- if your shoulders are wider than a stick figure of Gomer Pyle, the coat also will not fit.

I knew we were facing this conundrum as we headed out to get a sports coat for potential job interviews down the road.Where does the RV'er hang a jacket with an XL (Extra Lard) size tag on it? Well, lo and behold, it looks like we have a new purpose for extended cab pickups. Now if I can find a butler to run out to the truck to snag it when needed.

Day 254 of tin can camping continues.

Money Laundering

2012-12-09T07:42:00.000-08:00

I don't have a pet peeve, I have a zoo of peeves, all be it of the first world variety. In our current campground, they have two nice, well-equipped coin operated laundry areas. But guess what they do not offer--- C O I N S!

Imagine going to the bank teller and being told "Sorry sir, we don't provide change". Or, getting all situated at the car wash only to discover they have no way to convert your greenbacks to silver. How about if the soda machine had an illuminated sign reading "does not provide change". Like mustard to a hot dog, coins are to a coin-operated laundry--no?

I understand security concerns with 24 hour laundry rooms and change machines. But could you not place them at the office where there is constant presence for at least 8 hours a day. If you don't want to mess with change machines, then could you not at least make rolls of quarters available to your office staff. I mean---really---what is happening to the coins that are being inserted into their dozen machines? Seems like availability is not an issue.

So when I inquired as to where I can get change to use their laundry services, guess where I was told to go--"sir, 1 mile north of here there are change machines at the laundromat and the car wash. If that doesn't work, a bank". YA THINK??

Over and out.

Fixin' To Fix Something....

2012-12-04T08:01:00.003-08:00

"Fixin to" is a favorite Texas euphemism for "preparing to"--we are fixin' to leave for the grocery store. In the RV lifestyle, seems like you are continually in a "fixin to fix something" mode.

We have had several lingering issues in need of repair, but for the most part, they were of the intermittent variety--the worst kind for diagnosing. We have had the temperature relief valve of the hot water heater leaking periodically, the furnace thermostat acting up and a leak into the basement from the shower basin. So, after my limited problem solving skills failed, yet again, it was time to test out our extended warranty provider and a local RV tech who worked with such companies.

So a call was placed to RV Specialist mobile repair service in Austin. Their best response time was two days which was not an issue since 2 of the 3 issues (not the shower leak) have been plaguing us periodically for months and the other is solved by a 50 foot walk to the awesome compartment style (our favorite) showers at the campground.

After 2 hours of problem solving, although I suspected it was a shower faucet leak, it appears it was weakening caulk around the lower wall of the floor pan as a peek into the faucet cabinet showed it completely dry. It takes 24 hours to set and I am not fully optimistic that was the issue, but we will go from there. The furnace thermostat issue, as luck would have it when repair folks arrive of any nature, could not be reproduced. The water heater valve leak was demonstrated, so it was replaced.

Total bill before warranty was $253.00 including $75 service call for just bringing their smile to our RV park. The tech confirmed, as other RV repair folks I have asked, XtraRide is one of the easier warranty providers to deal with. The end result: Xtraride covered the service call fee plus the water heater valve parts and labor, minus $50 deductible, leaving us with a balance of $150. I figured they wouldn't cover caulking nor the "unable to duplicate" thermostat issue, so I would say we are satisfied with their coverage.

Oh, and yes, I had gone over it with caulk before they arrived, but APPARENTLY acrylic caulk, which I knew was not entirely waterproof, but thought it would have some value, is useless on showers and tubs.I am rapidly approaching putting the complete into complete idiot.

On somewhat of a related topic, we discussed in a prior post about Coach-Net, our roadside assistance program, which we had dealings with during our accident in Wilmington, NC. While there are only 2 major players in this provider category (the other being Good Sam's), we were pleased with our overall experience. They had a clause providing Trip Interruption benefits in the event, as an RV'er, we were involved in an accident and our rig was rendered inhabitable. They allowed for hotel ($400), rental car ($300) and meals ($400). I checked in with them on Friday and although the check has not been written, all of our paperwork has been received and the claim approved. We knew from the outset a 60 day waiting period was the norm and it has only been 30, so it is proceeding on course.

While we are on topic of repairs, for those that order online parts and comparison shop like Christie over at He Said She Said, give Tweetys a look. I have found them to be less expensive after pricing in item cost and shipping than both Amazon and Camping World.

There you go, a RARE, HELPFUL post on 2 of the hot button topics amongst RV'ers---warranties and roadside assistance providers, plus a tip on how to save a buck or two. It must be the giving season.

The journey is parked in Austin, TX as we celebrate 8 months of minimalist living in 2 days....

Settled

2012-11-28T12:54:00.000-08:00

We had to play "musical sites", but we are here for at least a month at Oak Forest RV Park in Austin, Tx. Staying five nights in our arrival spot then moving over a grand total of----one space---- on Friday. Love it when I can drag all of our property over to our next RV space, all be it the rig is a tad too heavy for this lightweight, so we will hitch up and haul it around the loop once and be done for 31 days.

When the bikes are down and the cargo box is out of the back of the truck, you know as an RV'er you are put for awhile. Good feeling!

Arrived at the In-laws on Friday only to discover our back plate had been stolen, so filed police report and put front tag on the back. As you might surmise, the back plate is entered as "stolen". Since the front plate has the exact same info on it, guess what Mr. Policeman sees on his car computer--"STOLEN LICENSE PLATE". With my background, an overzealous officer will sometime mistakenly read "STOLEN VEHICLE" and that is where the roadside entertainment begins with officers pointing guns at you and commanding you to exit the vehicle with your hands up, blah-blah. Of course, I would be tempted to start "signing" with them pretending I was deaf to test their training and it would probably go bad from there. So, limited driving til new tags arrive.

One of the very few possessions we did not thankfully sell--our home vacuum, which rested in the shop loft at the in-laws. Within hours, I had the RV basement reorganized to take quick possession of this MUST NEEDED tool. Even though Teri swept and vacuumed with the (useless) Walmart mini-vac, this was the result with the Dirt Devil---one third full in a rig that has about 50 square feet of carpet.

When we started this journey, one of Teri's desires was to be near a community farm or a farmer's market. Well, it took our final campground and lo and behold if we aren't parked across the street from Green Gate Farms. Oh, and those turnips right there, when Teri works her culinary magic, really do taste just like mashed potatoes!

"Happy, happy, happy" (for you fans of Duck Dynasty) when this boy is 5 miles from the touchdown zone of Austin Bergstrom International Airport. In Texas, we call this bird-watching.

May have to reactivate spam controls on the blog----sorry---- but a bit tired of vaginal bacteriosis prevention, penile enlargements and the best one--eyelash growth serums--promotional links. Although I am not a doctor, I don't believe we have a need for any of those at this stage.

As promised, we headed back to Texas to spend more time with family....

Day 237 of full-time RV living/leaving/loving, sometimes all of the above....

Home Sweet Home!

2012-11-23T13:51:00.002-08:00

*no words necessary*

Moving....Moving....Moving....Stopped.

2012-11-21T12:09:00.002-08:00

7 days, just shy of 1,100 miles, Myrtle Beach, SC-Lake Charles, LA, where we will rest for Thanksgiving on the road. We sit just shy of 35 miles from the Lone Star state border- good, stiff westerly breeze and we might just get a whiff of some home grown Texas BBQ.

Yellow means yield--as in stay 2 lanes over and 100 yards back. The two closest near hits in this 11K mile journey involved truck rentals, no doubt inexperienced yahoos who still think they are in their daily driver.

To the average eye, that appears to be a washboard. In reality, that is a picture of I-12, westbound, from Baton Rouge, La. to Lafayette. There were more bumps than an experimental group testing out a new cure for acne.

So you want to pay half-price via Passport America, then we will give you half a picnic table.

Ok, my astute wife spotted their nifty solution---they redeemed themselves--- combo picnic table and bench.

Rv'ers are an ingenious bunch. Hey, when you don't have kickstands, just grab the 6 ft aluminum ladder and convert it into a bike storage unit.

Nothing spells stability like drying off sitting on a bar stool on a wet floor in a campground bathroom.

Hat tip to Newmann, a faithful mentor I found over at RV.net and who is currently residing in La. for recommending Steamboat Bills, possibly the best meal we have had on this journey. A Boudin ball, red beans&rice, shrimp pistolettes and shrimp platter. All is well in the land of Cajun.

What the final journey will look like---those 16 states were the only ones Mr. Barnum and Ms. Bailey did not traverse through. There will always be next time...via a Gulfstream V business jet.

35,000

Here is wishing all of you who have stopped by since our journey began 7.5 months ago a Happy Thanksgiving!

Off to Texas on Friday, HookEm! Day 228.

Home for the Holidays!

2012-11-15T14:29:00.002-08:00

Decision time: We said we would give it 9 days once we arrived at Myrtle Beach, so we did what we always do--changed our mind--gave it 9 hours. We are moseying our way back to the Lone Star state to be home with friends and families for the holidays and will take an extended, if not permanent break, from being mobile. Yee-haw-ho-ho!

If you followed Teri's most recent post, there probably is no need for you to pick yourself off the floor.

We will continue to reside in the Lady Eagle for the foreseeable future. For those that do not know, we owner financed the home we sold for a year, so buyer has until March to seek funding, all be it the possibility exists it could be done in 2 weeks or so. So, our hands are tied until that point as we need the balance to purchase property. Additionally, I will probably try to find a career position and the RV gives us more flexibility to have a portable house to be close to employment until a sticks and bricks surfaces, or God reveals a different course of action. Austin is a traffic zoo and you don't want to commit to a home first and saddle yourself with a commuting headache.

Our motto was: "Cash is gone or we hit a year, whatever comes first". Are we out of money? No. Did we make it to a year? Time will tell. It is simply time to reunite with our friends and families for an extended basis and reevaluate in the stability of a known area and one that is as beautiful as any place we have visited.

Other factors:

It was our plan to have our boys join us in FL. for a Christmas get together. We priced fares from Austin and Denver where our boys reside and they were price prohibitive. They are typical young adults with checking account balances that vary from "Slim" to "Pickens". If they would have bought plane tickets, they would have had zero monies left to lavish their parents with gifts. Unthinkable.
We have loose ends to tie up with settling post-accident matters, taxes to work on, etc.
Where gas prices have receded 25% from Summer highs, there has been almost no offest with diesel, still pumping it out at about $4 per gallon. Continuing to move would be budget crippling.
We are both ready to give back to our friends, families and community. It has always been a mental battle for me between "Enjoy this season of your life since you have been blessed with the resources to do so" versus "Are you really fulfilling God's path for your life serving the less of us". That was an epic struggle in this midget of a mind. Can you do both on the road--absolutely--so I don't want to take away from those that have found "their place" in the mobile community. There are wonderful organizations such as RV-Care-A-Vanners and such serving the locals. We just feel a tug toward longer term relationships.
I need a big dog to love. Yup, alot of you folks travel with them well, but I would have been right in our 2 week stay in a hotel and the hassle of trying to solve that with a canine in tow.
Need to get annual cholesterol tested. Results last time said: "Too much chicken fried steak". If you have followed our travels, put your money in the makers of Lipitor.
There is a Trader Joe's coming to Austin, so Teri can rest easy.
Driving 11,000 miles+ in tow is enough. Even though we had well maintained gear operating very safely and being driven likewise, I could not get rid of that 6th sense of uneasiness. Sadly, it manifested itself into 6 seconds of more excitement than we ever needed.
There is no 12 step program for brisket withdrawal and I need a fix.

The good news is Teri is back in her comfort zone as a co-pilot post North Crasholina. She actually napped during our brief ride today into Tallahassee. Thank goodness, that passenger brake was being worn out.

What does blogging foretell? What's not to love about making fun of ourselves and folks who are involved in this lifestyle. Of course, it continues until we hand over the title of the rig.

What about the RVing lifestyle? We still want a connection as we have met so many real and virtual friends. Teri even had a good idea to add an RV pad with power and water for ya'll to have a place to experience real Texas hospitality at no cost. Workkamping and even RV sales still is of interest to me, now that we have seen the inside looking out of the lifestyle.

When do we put on the cowboy hat again? Before Christmas. We know we will just mosey back on I-10 enjoying Turkey Day on the road. If you know of a cool town between FL and TX let us know. We have done Panama City, Mobile and N'awlins as recent as January, but are open minded to other hangouts.

Day 226...the journey slowing down to a crawl to the finish line.

Tally-ho from Tallhassee...

On The Road Again...

2012-11-11T07:21:00.000-08:00

After spending an unplanned 19 days in Wilmington, NC, this party of two is back on the road. A bit of uneasiness, as would be expected, on our 80 mile commute south on Friday to Myrtle Beach, but all in all, uneventful.

Before.....

After....

Yes, the first morning after arriving into Myrtle Beach--BLOWOUT on Teri's bike. Can we please revist the wooden wheel.

The good luck of finding payola, which I blogged about a few months ago, laying on the ground continues. Day #1 arriving at the repair center, now fondly known to us as Kollisions Of America resort, the crispy Georgy was on my path. On our departure date, a quarter appeared. We are now only $1,482.00 short of our out of pocket expenses from the accident. For the curious, GMAC on the truck and National Interstate insurance on the RV were very responsive. All total, including statuatowry rape, insurance covered right at $10,000.

Oh, almost forgot. The No Pot Squat streak is over. For the first time in 212 days, I had to stare at my kneecaps using the RV's bathroom as my dump station--pun intended. Yup, no facilities at the collision center after hours, other than a bush along side the state highway. Thanks for cheering me on as I did my best to honor all of you to keep the streak alive! But the good news, a new one has started.

Arriving at Ocean Lakes--voted America's favorite RV park in 2011-2012, Myrtle Beach, SC. YES, that is their campground map spread out on our floor. I informed the lady at the counter when she handed it to me that we only had an extended cab pickup and wasnt sure if I could open it up in our truck. 900 campground sites at this mega resort on the Atlantic Ocean. We are in the top left red section.

The sun coming up over the Atlantic from our bedrrom window. We are 167 feet away from the sand.

Yes, their camping cabins. Seriously.

Awesome Fun Center---pictured is Evil ~~Knivel~~.

One of 3....

Their own post office....

How Teri spells H-A-P-P-Y.

All for only $38 per night. Off season rate. Oh, and an off season that has 70 degree highs and 50 degree lows. Count us in on that plan.

But all was not joyful this week as with heavy hearts we lost 2 acquaintances, the first a police officer I worked with for 5 years who was tragically killed by another police officer in a case of friendly fire. Second, Sherry, who was a follower of our journey and a full time RVer, passed away after a 3 month struggle with complications secondary to a lung transplant. Keep them in your thoughts and prayers. Yes, emotions-heart strings-tugging for us over the past 3 weeks.

Day 220...with mixed feelings...some humor....some sadness.....like life....and death.

Checking In....

2012-11-06T07:24:00.001-08:00

Day 16 of the Wilmington, NC tour of 2012. Progress seemingly seems stuck between slow and stop. What last week was Friday or Monday for the truck to hit the paint booth has turned into Tuesday or Wednesday. Tis the way of the insurance and the collision worlds.

The RV has passed its inspection, been powered up and ready to go. We became inhabitants again this past Saturday. Full hookups, local TV and wi-fi---well, wi-fi is 2 miles away at the McDonalds, so we are arm wrestling for Teri’s I-phone once an hour. She has some nice biceps developing. Sort of miss the hotel cable networks, but it was becoming scary every afternoon watching “The First 48 Hours”, “I Almost Got Away With It”, etc. as I looked over at the wife discreetly taking notes on her laptop. Run Forest Run!

As seemingly has been our luck since the journey began, we seem stuck in the weather pattern of “unseasonable”, “above average”, “below average”, “historical”, “record setting” fill-in-the blank forecast. Hurricane Sandy kept us confined for a weekend, followed last weekend by T-storms and golf ball sized hail circling above us and now we have coastal beach temps at night in the upper 30s—in early Nov. But it’s supposed to be gorgeous--- after we leave. We would have been wealthy if there would have been a tip jar for us as we exited every town.

Oh, and small market news reporters, woah— it’s like they grab every girl who took 2^nd place in the local beauty contest and tell her “read this teleprompter, wear something low-cut and get those teeth whitened once a month”.

Remnants awaiting their final destination to the metal scrap heap.

“Alex, I will take Least Favorite Campgrounds for $400”. Oh well, free is easy on the budget.

Hoping to be out of here by Thursday, but not counting our paint gallons before they are shook.

Light...tunnel....

2012-11-01T15:06:00.000-07:00

Oh joy, where to start. Where we left off--truck would be ready in 10 working days will probably become a reality. We saw it with all of its bandaids being applied to it in its assigned bay yesterday. Shooting for no later than Monday.

The RV rig, which we thought was the easy part, arrived last Thursday at the collision center. The walk-around to start estimate process only took place yesterday and only because we arrived somewhat unannounced to check the status. But, they assured me it would be at least liveable by tomorrow, if you want to reside in a parking lot with full hookups in the middle of nowhere.We guesstimate we will stay in it Sat and Sun night to see if indeed all systems are "go".

I am sure there will be a couple tweeks needed, so let's target next Wednesday as a departure date. Destination--1 hour drive down to Myrtle Beach--close enough to return if issues arise and far enough away to see if we can get our RV groove back. When Teri asked me today "What part of RV'ing are you most looking forward to returning to", I, being fully transparent with our readers, could not provide an answer. Seriously. Scary. I then concurred with her when she suggested her cooking. Again, there is an R and a V in the word groove, so time will tell.

As to hotel living, the Holiday Inn Express has served us well. Free hot breakfast, friendly folks, solid wi-fi and and an excellent gym we walk by every morning. Hey, walking is exercise and we have been faithful about using the stairs up/down to the 4th floor. Oh yes, we did stop in earlier this week and I weighed myself---no results, the scale just blurted out "Oink". Yes, dining out can be brutal, and we are on day 12! We have hit every 4-5 star eatery on Yelp in Wilmington. Thai, Italian, American, Mexican--every category of food except "pet", I do believe.

Our emergency vacation expense/trip interruption clauses are right on the edge of their thresh holds. 2 more days in hotel, 3 days of eating and 4 days in the rental car are all that remain. And then the difficult part---collecting reimbursement. You know what is coming-- "Dave, we are sorry, but according to Article 8, Paragraph 19, Section 12, Subsection B, Stipulation ii, we won't be able to reimburse you any of your submitted items".

As to the outrageous tow bill, I have created this site, but yet to really propel it into the viral world. It is about 90% complete and I have been careful to stay away from the slander cliff. So far, the 2 insurance companies haven't seemed overly interested in taking on the fight. GMAC has talked to the owner a couple times and he just gives the typical, indifferent response of "We applied our standard rates". Uhh no, that would be applying standard rape.

Regarding the incredulous "unsafe tire" ticket, I finally looked at the details this week. Fine: $25. The Court costs for NOT going to court: $243.00. So, let me see, endorsing the check for deposit and marking "Paid" in the final disposition field of their records computer system will take maybe 3 minutes?? Little high on their hourly rate in North Carolina, dont ya think? Maybe they are in cahoots with the tow company.

Day 210, a flicker of light...

Hurry Up To Wait...

2012-10-28T04:21:00.001-07:00

As most insurance claims go, we are pretty much trapped playing the "Hurry Up and Wait" game. It is slightly more complicated involving 2 insurance companies, one for the truck and the other for the RV. The truck has been a bit easier since GMAC has a large presence including adjusters in Wilmington, NC where National Interstate has to send out an independent adjuster.

The accident occurred last Sunday and the truck arrived at Mikes Collision Center on Wednesday and the RV not until Thursday evening. The holdup--$3900 tow bill--color me not surprised. The insurance companies decided to split it. Although they don't seem very interested in the facts and my photos, I am taking on the fight in the interest of price gouging and deceptive information provided to the insurance folks. Yes, Yelp.com, Ripoffreport.com and the BBB are all part of the strategy, although I will give them the benefit of the doubt to correct their ways. Principles matter.

The truck damage when all is said and done will be at least $6100 and the estimated time frame is at least ten days. With the storm circling this area for the next few days, I am not sure how that will impact work and parts arriving from across the USA. The RV's adjuster played phone tag with me on Friday and no progress was made in even starting that process, so perhaps more on Monday. So, do the math--8 days and we have gotten the Lady Eagle from the accident scene to the repair shop.

Our depression meds....

Time to Google "laptop cemeteries"....rains, pours, and all that..

Spent Thursday away from insurance company jargon and hung out in downtown Wilmington. The Coast Guard Diligence, based here, was just leaving port after being docked for 30 days. Prediction: Population count to rise in 9 months. We stayed for 3 hours for one purpose--wanted to see how the bridge worked--draw or something else? Elevator bridge--real cool--as you can tell in the background, the span across the water separates and goes straight up to allow clearance for the Cutter enroute to the Caribbean for drug enforcement.

What the Atlantic looked like on Wednesday....a few days before Hurricane Sandy disturbs the scenery...

...and the gloom of Sandy arrives, four days of it on the forecast...

Because of the looming storm, we decided to return the rental car Friday night and will go without wheels for 4 days. We did not want another claim with the storm potential, debris flying around, etc. Our hotel has been great to us offering at 25% hardship discount and is proximate to eateries and WalMart.

We have eaten out more in the past 6 days than we have in the almost 7 months of this adventure. Not the way we planned it, but now for the first time, it feels like a vacation for Teri not having to cook! I am thankful for elastic.

What to do, what to do. In a bit of a quandary as I suspect most folks would be encountering such a drastic circumstance.We have learned patience is an asset when making a big decision on changing courses.

Our thoughts are in a holding pattern, but hard to expel the "what ifs"---what if it would have happened on the 2 lane road an hour earlier with families going out for a Sunday breakfast, what if my speed would have been 2 mph faster into the median cable, what if an 18 wheeler gas tanker would have been on my left side when the tire gave way---those are all thoughts that were realities that day, just not at the moment of the incident. We don't want to live a life in fear, sort of takes the joy out of it. So, we will trust we will be protected as we were 1 week ago today and move on. It is only 250 miles further back to Austin the way our course had us going, so why not go exploring rather than direct. Time and the checkbook balance hold the real clues.

Day #206---the journey remains parked in a hotel room in Wilmington, NC.