Women RVers

Beat the mouse continued

2009-05-06T14:19:00.000-07:00

The mouse has decided to stay. For those who suggested fabric softener sheets as a deterrent, they didn't work. My RV smells like laundry and the mouse just ran right over them in his dashes around the floor.

I pulled out the kitchen drawers revealing a large open space under the counter all the way to the exterior wall behind the sink. The most noxious chemical I have in the RV is Lysol, so I sprayed it liberally inside the opening. He was next to it this morning.

As I was working, he boldly ran out onto the carpet from under the shelf on the desk. As I stood up, he ran back under the shelf. I sat down. He came out. I didn't want to keep playing this game so I stood up again and stayed standing. He peeked, crept out again and dashed to the bedroom. Great: now I won't be able to sleep tonight.

The guys in maintenance are going to bring me a humane trap and that should take care of him before he brings additional family and friends to join him.

No traps in maintenance but Beat came running out of the bedroom and went under the desk again to hide. At least I'll be able to sleep.

I told my friend about the lack of mousetraps and he immediately found a company to ship a humane trap to me here. He reminded me to release my mouse companion to an area where he can hide and feel safe. At least I know what to bait the trap with: peanut butter and cheese.

Update: this morning at 5:40, I heard the plastic bag lining the paper garbage sack rattling and realized I had forgotten to hang the sack off the floor on the key hook. I turned on the kitchen light and expected the mouse to run out of the fallen bag. Somehow, he had found a way into the bag without knocking it over and must have been nibbling on the popcorn kernels I had dumped there last night. I picked up the bag by the handles, opened the door and threw the bag outside next to the trees. Plenty of places to hide and feel safe in the bushes. Now I wait to see if he was alone.

Beat the mouse

2009-05-01T20:50:00.001-07:00

I have a mouse in my RV. Again. He's small, brown, very fast and clever.

I have headphones with small earbuds that I use when I watch DVDs or listen to music on my laptop. Occasionally, one of the foam covers will come off and I have to search for it. A couple of days ago, it was missing and I looked everywhere with no luck.

The next night as I was watching a DVD, I noticed a small brown blur running across the floor and making a sharp right behind the desk. Drat. As I peeked behind the desk, he ran next to the wall, across the driver's floor mat and disappeared behind the dashboard. Swell. Now I know what happened to the foam cover.

I have no mousetraps so I tried to think of a way to catch him. I do have super-sticky wide Velcro strips. I cut a six-inch section of each side, turned the sticky sides up, overlapped the fuzzy side slightly across the looped side, and pushed the looped side into the carpet to hold it in place. I took the remaining ear foam, pressed it open side up into the middle of the tape, filled it with peanut butter and pressed a small piece of Monterey jack cheese about two inches away.

The following morning, I found the ear foam empty, the peanut butter and cheese missing, and no mouse. My friend started laughing when I told her about my trap and I was a little miffed at her. She said, "I have a picture of this small mouse full of peanut butter and cheese shaking his leg trying to get the Velcro off." OK, it's funny. I picked up the useless trap.

My friend said if I had the mouse for a roommate, I would have to name him. His name is Beat. Since he does nothing around here, I was going to name him Deadbeat but he's not dead. Yet.

Yesterday, I hadn't seen him so I started the engine. If that didn't get him to leave, nothing would. I haven't seen him since but when I took out the coffee filters from the lower cabinet this morning, I found mouse poop in the filters. Gee thanks.

It's raining and I want him gone before he brings the rest of his family and friends inside. Tomorrow, I'm getting a couple of traps.

F-word R.I.P.

2009-04-18T17:44:00.000-07:00

Today is April 18. On this date in 1775, Paul Revere made his famous ride warning the colonists that the British were coming. A rather large earthquake shook San Francisco, California, on April 18, 1906. 40 years later, my mother married my father for which I am very grateful.

Today, April 18, 2009, I declare a moratorium on the F-word. I don't want to hear it any more. It's used as a noun, a pronoun, a verb, an adverb, an adjective, a preposition, an interjection and a conjunction. It's an interrogative and an expletive. Can you tell I was an English professor in a former life?

Today, I heard it in many forms from adults as well as teenagers of both sexes in several sites in the campground. There were small children riding bicycles and playing in the immediate vicinity, and they heard the word used too. Children should not be subjected to a word with such a vile connotation. I don't think anyone should.

The English language is rich with words to cover any utterance. Why aren't we using them? My friends and I used to play a game where we would make up a curse without using curse words. It was fun and we thought we were pretty clever. What happened to the clever phrase? The bon mot? The witty retort?

The first time I heard the F-word was in college (no really--child of the 60s and all that, we never used that word at home) and I was a bit surprised. I understood its context and it seemed appropriate under the circumstances: the photographer had just accidentally exposed an entire roll of film. But the word itself has been watered down to cover everything. I wonder: what does a person say when they're really hurt, angry and frustrated? Does the person say the word twice as loud? Twice as much?

When we were kids, we dared you, double-dog dared you, and then the ultimate: triple-dog dared, from which you did not retreat unless you looked forward to the remainder of your childhood living as a chicken. Anyone who has ever seen "The Christmas Story" knows about the triple-dog dare and about what happened to our hero when he uttered the F-word. By the way, Lifebuoy tastes awful (that was my triple-dog dare).

Why is the constant use of the F-word acceptable? And if it's not acceptable, why are we creating a generation who would rather ignore our extensive vocabulary and replace it with one ugly word? To me, that's a sign of stupidity and low class.

I'm not perfect by any means and yes, I have used the word before as an expletive. I was alone and I said it under my breath. I would never say it around children and try to restrict its usage to situations of extreme stress. I have substituted "Aarrgh!" and "Gah!" and "Duh!" and "Grrr!" with good results.

Maybe I'm old but hearing a 14 year-old woman using the F-word repeatedly makes me angry and a little sad. She may be the finest young woman I could ever meet; however, the perception of her character changes with the words she says and I want nothing to do with her. She is selling herself short to fit in and that's wrong. We're smarter than that. Aren't we?

Another reason I'm glad to be an RVer

2009-04-16T22:57:00.000-07:00

We had a windstorm in northern California on Tuesday that affected several counties. Outside the state park where I camp host, a tree fell and blocked one lane of the access road. The Marin County Fire Department removed the tree and the two state park rangers directed traffic around it, finishing in 30 minutes. However, there was other damage: the power lines into the park were down as were several others in the neighboring counties. The electricity in the majority of the campground was out. My rig sits just outside the grid and I had power.

I was feeling pretty good about being able to work on the computer and sip a cup from my freshly perked pot of coffee. Then the heater shut off and the screen dimmed. Uh oh. I still had some electricity but it was around half power, 15-20 amps perhaps.

Out came the 400-watt inverter and I plugged in the laptop to finish what I was working on. The batteries were fully charged and I wouldn't need the generator for hours. The electric heater drew too much power so I turned on the electric blanket and it warmed the bed. The refrigerator beeped to let me know there was low AC and since it was set to Auto, it transferred to running on propane. I finished my work and went to bed.

At 7, I turned on the water heater, took a shower, dressed and went to the office to check the reservations. With the computer down, I could only go by the previous day's printout. I had to post signs with the incoming reserved sites listed so drop-in campers would know what sites were available. This was the last spring break week and many decided to visit the park. The sign was set up in Excel, I took it home, looked it over, created a similar sheet and entered the names. I plugged in the 800-watt inverter with its two connections, added the printer to the laptop and printed the copies. I used the copier to dupe the reservation list and went back to the office to post the signs. I left the list on the counter and noticed PG&E was there to work on the power.

Returning home, I heated water on the stove and poured it through the one-cup Melitta drip. I could have made an entire pot but this would do. I watched the campers go in and out of the dark restrooms and take showers. I worked on the computer and at 12:30, the refrigerator beeped. The power had returned--for me. I warmed a sandwich in the microwave and reset the clock. I checked the reefer. It had returned to the AC setting. I unplugged the computer from the inverter and plugged it into the power strip. All was well.

Thursday morning at 7, I was at the office squinting at the Post-It notes on the monitor. I found the campground reservation website and access codes, and brought them home. Success: I printed the new 7-day reservation list and that day's incoming reservation list for the buildings. Now I could post the reserved signs on the sites and address the drop-ins with confidence about which sites were available.

The campground power was restored on Thursday at 2 with the exception of the restroom building next to me. I watched the campers emerge from the cold showers and they didn't look happy at all. The electricity in the building should be restored on Friday morning.

The RV back-up systems worked perfectly. Power outage? Reefer, hot water and stove on propane; computer and printer on inverter; and all else on batteries. Food stayed chilled, coffee was hot and work was completed. With an RV, a power outage is an inconvenience easily handled.

Dining in Point Reyes Station

2009-03-30T13:08:00.000-07:00

Now that I'm a volunteer camp host at Samuel P. Taylor State Park, I am six miles from Olema Ranch RV Resort and Campground where I began my workamping experience. My friend who lives in Inverness and whose husband, my former co-worker and supervisor, is now the manager at the campground, picked me up and took me to Point Reyes Station. The small community is two miles north of Olema and has many fun places to visit: Toby's Feed Barn, the Cowgirl Creamery, the Pine Cone Diner, the Station House Cafe and now, Stellina.

What a lovely and delicious surprise! We were greeted at the door by the owner, a former chef, and our waiter recognized the Good Samantha on my windbreaker. The restaurant is on the edge of upscale without making you feel you should dress up to dine there. We had lunch so I can't vouch for breakfast nor dinner. It was terrific.

We started with a potato soup with pesto and nettles accompanied by bread from the local bakery. Most of the menu consisted of local and organic food. My friend was happy with a bite from my entree: penne pasta with cannellini beans and sun-dried tomatoes with asiago cheese. For dessert, my friend had a Meyer lemon ice cream sandwich while I enjoyed a coffee pot de creme with chopped walnuts and Straus Dairy whipped cream. I can duplicate the soup and entree at home, but I would be hard-pressed to create the desserts.

If you decide to drive the California coast and camp at either Olema RV Resort and Campground or Bodega Dunes (another state park), you'll find Stellina on your way in Point Reyes Station.

No, I received nothing for this review but I love locally-grown organic food used well in creative dishes. Try it and I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

From my window March 24

2009-03-24T12:11:00.000-07:00

I arrived yesterday at Samuel P. Taylor State Park in Lagunitas, CA. Since I was feeling adventurous, I drove north on Highway 1. There are three ways to drive on Highway 1, none of them involving an RV: motorcycle, sports car or bicycle. Do yourself and any passengers a huge favor and don't drive your RV on that road unless you feel as adventurous as I did.

These are some views from my window at my new camp host site.

More tech stuff and a warning

2009-03-15T16:06:00.000-07:00

I read this and decided to pass it along as written.

How to tell, what to do if computer is infected
By JORDAN ROBERTSON, AP Technology Writer

(03-15) 14:19 PDT (AP) --

Computer-virus infections don't cause your machine to crash anymore
-------------------------------------------
Nowadays, the criminals behind the infections usually want your computer operating in top form so you don't know something's wrong. That way, they can log your keystrokes and steal any passwords or credit-card numbers you enter at Web sites, or they can link your infected computer with others to send out spam.

Here are some signs your computer is infected, tapped to serve as part of "botnet" armies run by criminals:

* You experience new, prolonged slowdowns. This can be a sign that a malicious program is running in the background.

* You continually get pop-up ads that you can't make go away. This is a sure sign you have "adware," and possibly more, on your machine.

* You're being directed to sites you didn't intend to visit, or your search results are coming back funky. This is another sign that hackers have gotten to your machine.

So what do you do?

* Having anti-virus software here is hugely helpful. For one, it can identify known malicious programs and disable them. If the virus that has infected your machine isn't detected, many anti-virus vendors offer a service in which they can remotely take over your computer and delete the malware for a fee.

* Some anti-virus vendors also offer free, online virus-scanning services.

* You may have to reinstall your operating system if your computer is still experiencing problems. It's a good idea even if you believe you've cleaned up the mess because malware can still be hidden on your machine. You will need to back up your files before you do this.

How do I know what information has been taken?

* It's very hard to tell what's been taken. Not every infection steals your data. Some just serve unwanted ads. Others poison your search result or steer you to Web sites you don't want to see. Others log your every keystroke. The anti-virus vendors have extensive databases about what the known infections do and don't do. Comparing the results from your virus scans to those entries will give you a good idea about what criminals may have snatched up.

Believe me, you don't want to find out you've been hacked. Please run a virus and spyware scan now and frequently thereafter.

Menace to public safety?

2009-03-13T20:48:00.000-07:00

So I went to San Francisco and parked the RV at Ocean Beach like I usually do when I visit the city. I took the Muni and my friend and I met at the old Balboa Theater. We saw a terrific double feature: Frost/Nixon and The Wrestler. I recommend them both. After we had coffee, I returned to the RV and worked on the computer. I watched the sun set over the Pacific and looked at Seal Rock graying in the dusk. Then I realized it was getting too dark for me to drive comfortably. I looked through the kitchen window and saw a class C about 50 feet away. The couple seemed to be settled in for the night and I decided to spend the night, planning to leave early in the morning. I didn't pay attention to the signs since I had parked there many times.

At 5 am, the street cleaner went by in both directions. I rolled over and went back to sleep until 7:30. I turned on the computer to check emails and the overnight attempts by spammers to register on the forums, dressed and was making a cup of coffee.

Suddenly, there were three rapid knocks on the back of the RV. Then three more on the left side (the shade was still down), and a couple of knocks on the front (the curtains were closed across the windshield). I opened the door and saw a San Francisco police officer rounding the passenger side. "Oh. You're here."
"Yes. I'm making coffee."
She said, "The people across the street in the condos reported your license plate and said you were parked here overnight."
"Yes, I was. I don't like driving at night and there was another RV parked by me."
She looked through the kitchen window as I did and the class C was gone. There were several cars parked on the other side with surfers donning wetsuits.
She seemed surprised that I would admit spending the night. "You spent the night?"
I nodded. "Ocean Beach is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area so it's federal land. I thought it would be safe to park here."
While she stood there, I looked to my right and saw three black-and-whites with a total of five officers inside, her partner being the solo occupant in one of the cars.
"I'm having a cup of coffee and I'll be leaving within an hour, OK?"
She said that was fine. "If you do spend the night again, move down the beach to the other lot."
I knew about the other lot. There is a class C with a generator on the ground next to it plugged into the RV. The man has lived there for months.
I agreed, she walked back to her vehicle and I closed the door.

I was shaking my head at the commotion caused by complaints about an RV spending the night in the parking lot at Ocean Beach and six officers in three cars investigating before 8 am. Must not be much crime in the city at that hour. There was a knock at the door. I opened it and she said, "You have a ticket. I just wanted to let you know it's there and I didn't issue it. Must have been parking." I thanked her, she left and I finished my coffee.

The ticket was indeed from parking for being in the way of the street cleaner. My penalty for not reading the signs? $50. Expensive trip to San Francisco.

Can you imagine who would have arrived if the neighbors thought my RV and I were a threat to national security? Thank goodness my driver's license, registration and insurance have an actual street address listed and not a post office box. We all know Homeland Security suspects full-time RVers without a sticks-and-bricks address could be potential terrorists.

So for those of you who are planning to visit San Francisco and park as I advised in this blog a few months ago, you'll be fine as long as you don't boondock. If you do, park away from the condos and near the RV with the generator on the ground.

From my window March 3

2009-03-03T14:43:00.000-08:00

While I was reflecting on what would have been my grandmother's 98th birthday (she died much too soon in 1990 at 79), I thought I would show you what I see from my window at Brannan Island State Recreation Area during our latest rainstorm. I have a fresh pot of coffee, a PB&J sandwich and a crisp Granny Smith apple for dessert. Not a bad way to spend a day off.

Changing parks

2009-02-17T14:37:00.001-08:00

The maximum length of stay as a volunteer camp host in a California state park is six months. My last day as a camp host at the lovely Brannan Island State Recreation Area will be March 15. On March 16, I will be headed to Samuel P. Taylor State Park near Olema where I first began workamping in May, 2003, and where I also worked part-time as a postmaster relief in the Olema Post Office. The surrounding area will be familiar and I'm looking forward to seeing some old friends. The rangers at the park are delighted to have me on board and were happy to hear I could stay for the full six months.

Samuel P. Taylor doesn't have fishing and there are only 61 sites, none with hookups. There are trails to hike and bike, and there will be programs in the summer including the Junior Ranger program.

By the way, if you appreciate the flat-bottomed paper grocery bags, you can thank Samuel P. Taylor. He had a lumber mill which produced rag paper for newspapers and other products. The flat-bottomed bag was his invention, a novelty at the time.

To your health

2009-02-06T19:48:00.000-08:00

It's winter in California and the rain has finally arrived. At least we've had two days in a row with more than a few drops. We're still in drought conditions and will probably have to conserve water this summer. For now, I'm just enjoying the rain on the roof.

I was also thinking about my health. I have a daily regimen of vitamins to accompany the one prescription medication I need. If I have the slightest hint of the blahs, I tend to figure out what the problem might be and solve it myself:
Sniffles? What or who have I been exposed to?
Sore throat? Who else has one?
General achy body? Could be the arthritis gene acting up in the damp weather or it could be the onset of a winter cold.
Whatever the symptoms, I handle them myself.

The important thing I learned a long time ago was to listen to my body. Stress will override the calm I need to listen so if I feel stressed, I need to stop it immediately. After studying biofeedback and taking aikido for five plus years, I have conditioned my body to relax. My breathing will slow, my pulse will slow, my blood pressure will drop, and I will be calm.

Whenever I donated pheresis (white blood cells, not whole blood) at the blood center or Red Cross and I rushed in for my appointment from my job, sometimes my blood pressure would be too high for a safe donation. I would ask for a minute or two and then it was fine. Once I had the tech taking my pulse and slowed it five beats while she was looking at her watch. "Stop that!" she laughed.
"What would you like it to be?"
"72 would be nice."
"OK."
A minute later, it was 72. She shook her head.
I can't do that every time but I can come close.
The best part of donating pheresis is the terrific feeling I have after. Usually, I donate a double while watching a video. Two people can be helped. I know I have taken good care of my blood and a patient, perhaps a child, will have highly oxygenated, vitamin-enriched blood to fight their disease and place them in remission. It's happened before. When I worked at the blood center, I had the opportunity to take my donation along with others and deliver it to the local hospital. I tracked its use and it went to a child, a little boy with leukemia. He was in remission shortly after. You can imagine the smile on my face as I checked the computer and thought, "I did that."

When you find yourself rushing around or stressing, take the time to stop, sit and calm yourself. Stress can cause more problems than a temporary rise in blood pressure. If you're feeling a little depressed and if you can donate, find your local Red Cross and do so.

Take time for yourself. Take a nap. Curl up with a good book. Have a cup of green tea with honey and lemon. Treat yourself to a cookie or that piece of chocolate. Your health will improve, your attitude will improve, and you can avoid a visit from the winter cold demon--or worse.

Is good customer service appreciated?

2009-01-25T09:51:00.000-08:00

Maybe it's the economy or maybe it's the threat of losing one's job or maybe people are just cranky. It seems like good customer service is being ignored.

I'm a volunteer camp host at a CA state park. My job is to make the camping or fishing experience here the best it can be. From the time a visitor arrives at the kiosk until they drive out of the park, that experience should entice the visitor to return, perhaps with family and friends.

The state of California is in trouble. Our budget shortfall is in numbers so astronomical, I can't even begin to visualize it. Government offices are closed on Fridays. State income tax refunds will be IOUs. State workers must take two unpaid leave days per month. It's rough going and may continue for months.

One of the problems we've encountered has been a delay in the shipment of the state park annual passes. Visitors who want to purchase the passes cannot and must pay to enter the park. They're angry and frustrated. I understand that and offer the website for a faster receipt. The passes are shipped the same day and folks can have them in their hands within a couple of days. I apologize and explain the problem and solution.

So far this week, I've been called a Nazi, ignorant, stupid, and "not being very helpful" because I wouldn't issue a receipt so the visitor could present it after receiving the pass and get a refund. I'm not talking about a trillion-dollar item: it's $6. For the fishermen, the day use fee with fishing is $11. That allows you to launch your boat, park your vehicle, fish all day and night, and leave by 10 am the following day.

Two women, one following the other in her car, came to the kiosk and asked where she could let her dog run loose. I smiled, apologized and said that dogs were not permitted to be off leash in the state parks. "Well, that's stupid! Where can my dog run?" I told her I didn't know of any place nearby (true). She snapped, "Well, don't you think you'd better find out?" Then she sped through the stop sign, made a U-turn and went out the other side. The second car pulled up and the woman said, "I'm with her." She repeated the other woman's actions and went out the other side at about 25 miles an hour. Um. OK.

A man was in the day use area which is open daily from sunrise to sundown. It was dark so the host said, "I'm sorry but I need to close the gate. This area of the park is closed." He said, "Too bad. I'm staying." She replied, "I can't close the gate with you inside. You don't want the ranger to give you a ticket." His response? "There's no ranger on duty and it's not worth calling the sheriff." That was true, although we have no idea how he knew there was no ranger. She walked away and sat in her RV. After 20 minutes, he went to his car and drove out the gate peeling rubber at the entrance.

Whenever I'm out of the park dealing with folks at the gas station, grocery store or other service places, I find a hit-or-miss reception. My usual greeting is "Hi. How are you?" I wait for a response and listen. I make eye contact if I can and I smile. I want the persons serving me to remember that someone was nice, asked about their health, and actually looked at them. I'm not a transaction or an interruption. Most of the time, it works. Sometimes it doesn't, no matter how charming I try to be.

Have you noticed this lack of appreciation?

Random Spam Thoughts

2009-01-17T20:34:00.000-08:00

As a forum administrator, I receive a great deal of email, much of it accompanied by spam. Some days, I would dump 200-300 emails. None of them would reach my Outlook folders because I have filters through several software programs. It was a pain to delete them: I needed to check them all for an occasional valid email that would be sent to the spam folder. Every time there was an upgrade, the filters would "forget" and select a good message to file with the junk.

I have five email addresses and have been scratching my head about what to do. Then I found a solution: I went to the account that sent the most spam (now an unsupported webmail service). The list had been sold to pretty much everyone and my filter would report the origin of the forwarded email. Before I tracked down the webmaster to close the account, I forwarded the email to the Yahoo account I had set up years ago so I could read postings from the various groups I belong to. I never check my email on that account so there are probably thousands of messages from spammers waiting to hear from me (and my inbox is probably full. Drat).

Yesterday, I awakened to 129 overnight spam emails and deleted another 177 before logging off for the night. Today, I have had 22.

A friend I worked with in IT for a telebusiness corporation had a great method of handling spam. He figured out how to forward spam from one sender to another and remove his IP address to remain undetected. He would take a spam message about making money on the 'net and forward it to the person sending a spam message about holding funds for a Nigerian politician. Ukrainian Viagra? Forward the spam to the sender with the hot chicks just waiting to chat. Working from home? Send that to the spammer with the real estate lots with no money down.

I never learned how he did it. I should have brought pizza and Jolt to hang out with him while he taught me. Ah well. At least I found out how to reduce the spam I see.

-----------

I wonder how many of those poor souls sending out spam actually make a living out of doing so. Every day, I delete a dozen or so from the RV Travel and Free Campgrounds forums. Every day, they try another clever way to bypass the protection and every day, I send them careening into cyberspace. That's why you will very seldom see a spam post on either forum. The spammers on the other side of the planet will do their dirty work while I'm asleep (yes, I do occasionally leave the laptop and close my eyes). When I awaken and have had my first cup of coffee so I can at least focus, the first job is to check for spam. That way, when you're drinking your first cup, you can focus on reading and enjoying the forum.

-----------

If any spammer out there in cyberspace is reading this, please let me know how much you're making (ballpark is fine). I would be interested in finding out how lucrative it is.

Now watch me get spammed!

More tech stuff

2008-12-24T15:13:00.000-08:00

From my friends at the Lockergnome website: Vista includes an on-screen keyboard that is built-in with the operating system. You might find this feature handy if you have impairments or if your normal keyboard is under repair. You can easily access the on-screen keyboard by clicking Start, typing OSK, and pressing Enter. A nifty little keyboard will immediately appear on your screen.

You can access this more easily by creating a shortcut to the program on your desktop. Simply right click your desktop, point to New and select Shortcut. Type in osk and click Next. Click Finish.

The on-screen keyboard runs in three different modes: clicking mode, scanning mode, and hovering mode. In clicking mode you simply click the on-screen keys. In scanning mode, you use a hot key or a switch-input device to type highlighted characters. In hovering mode, you can simply use your mouse to point to a key which is then typed. You can change the mode by selecting the Settings tab, clicking Typing Mode and choosing the mode you want to use.

I also like a clean desktop so I right-click on the desktop screen itself, choose View in the pop-up box, and Hide Desktop Icons. Voila'! A clean screen.

Tech stuff

2008-12-15T11:50:00.000-08:00

Since I'm the forum administrator for RV Travel and Free Campgrounds/Free Stays websites, and a member of the web committee for RVing Women, I've received several emails asking how I stay online as a full-time RVer and what equipment I use. The products I will be showing you are what I use successfully. They are not an endorsement for any of the manufacturers--I don't receive any royalties nor commissions for mentioning them (although I wouldn't turn down the money if offered).

First, I use an HP DV6000 Pavilion Entertainment laptop. It has a wide screen, built-in microphone, 802.11 b/g wi-fi, three USB ports, a PS 2 port, a printer port, two phone jacks (one DSL), a firewire port, an aircard port, a TV tuner port, a CD/DVD player/burner, Altec Lansing speakers, a mike port, stereo headset ports, and infrared. There is a 160 GB hard drive, 1.6 gigahertz Intel processor, a GB of RAM, and the loathsome, disgusting Vista operating system which I have learned to tolerate. I use a Logitech cordless laser mouse.

To protect the laptop itself, I use Registry Manager, PC Tools Spyware Doctor and Norton Antivirus. To protect my email, I use MailWasher Pro which filters the messages after they are sent from the various email addresses I have and after they have been filtered by their email server. Since I started working with computers in 1972 when they were mainframes to the present day, I have had one virus which was immediately identified and the link offered to remove the virus. Total possession time of virus infection to removal: less than two minutes. I also have LoJack to protect my laptop if it's stolen.

Other cool software I use: Microsoft Office 2003 and 2007 (some government agencies and others are still using the older version), MS Streets & Trips and Delorme Street Atlas.

After watching the hackers in "Live Free or Die Hard," I thought the flexible vinyl keyboard they used was pretty cool so I purchased one. Now I'm not limited to the laptop keyboard. This one is full-size and washable.

If I'm in a fringe area for wi-fi connectivity, I use a Linksys booster antenna. It plugs directly into a USB port or I can plug in the stand and move the antenna to a window for better reception.

For backing up the data on my computer, I use three Maxtor drives: two 100-gigabyte drives and a Maxtor III with 500 gigabytes. I have over 100 gigs of music and spoken word files alone. There is also a complete system backup including all documents. That means if anything happens to my laptop, I can take the data from the three drives and load it into the new/different computer. For me, it's much easier than carrying multiple backup CDs.

To create and imprint the CDs of my books, I use an HP LightScribe drive that not only copies the data, it will inscribe the title, pictures or whatever I choose on the disk itself.

Printing, scanning and copying are done on an all-in-one HP 1200 printer. It also prints pictures on photo paper for instant image capture.

For pictures or short videos to upload, I have a Nikon Coolpix digital camera. Mine, however, is silver.

All the above doesn't take as much room as you might think. The three Maxtor and one LightScribe drives fit in a small box. The printer is attached to the top of the CD/DVD storage drawers. The camera is usually in the top zippered compartment of my backback. Everything else fits in a laptop case.

So that's what I have. How about you?

Ready for rain

2008-12-10T09:14:00.000-08:00

I'm in northern California and we're finally going to have several days of rain beginning Saturday. We're having a drought year and really need the showers. Since I'm working in a state park campground, there are several potential problems that need to be solved before the weekend.

It's been cold and foggy here (highs in the upper 40s and lows in the low 30s). The fog has been thick enough to warrant a northern state warning until 11 am most days. Rather than use the furnace that sucks up propane rather quickly and only has vents from the kitchen back to the bedroom, I use a small electric heater in the living area where I work. As much as I would like to keep all the heat in, the RV must be vented. It's not much of an issue in the living area where I keep the heater on top of a file box pointed directly at my knees (pretending it's a fireplace), but areas like the bathroom develop condensation on the ceiling and inside the medicine cabinet. The outside walls inside the cabinets in the kitchen and living area also become damp. The solution is to keep all the cabinet doors open. It looks a little strange but it's better than sponging the walls off and dealing with mildew. If anyone has any other suggestions besides the tubs of Damp-Rid, I'm all ears.

A couple of the volunteers who work here have cars and I can hitch a ride to do laundry. If I know a storm is coming, I like to have clean clothes folded and stashed indoors.

Another chore I try to handle before the rain falls is taking out the trash. The big covered can is only 25 feet away from the RV but it's under several trees and sits on dirt. When it rains, I need to be careful not to slip in the mud while lifting the heavy lid (to prevent our raccoon, fox, coyote and feathered friends from playing with the trash).

I'm a big fan of listening to the rain on the roof and have no problem hunkering down inside the RV for a few days. Rainy day activities include making soup or stew in the crockpot, alphabetizing CDs and DVDs (OK, I'm a little obsessive), tweaking the laptop and back-up drives (where the music and spoken word CDs reside), listening to all the Christmas music I've collected (minus "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" and Alvin and the Chipmunks), watching the Christmas DVDs and napping. I always sleep well when it rains. There are flannel sheets on the bed, a quilted bedspread and a sleeping bag rated to zero degrees on top. I don't use a heater at night and I'm toasty warm.

Usually, I start the day with coffee and I keep several types on hand. During the rain, however, I brew tea to have with shortbread cookies or scones. Baking the scones also warms the RV and keeps the moisture down.

What do you do during the rain?

Solo, vegetarian and thankful

2008-11-24T14:29:00.000-08:00

It's Thanksgiving again and here I am, a solo vegetarian working at the state park on Thanksgiving Day. When I was a carnivore in or close to the big city, it was easy to add me to a friend's table. If I were going to be in San Francisco, my friend and the co-author of my convection oven cookbook, a brilliant and talented chef, would invite me to her home, and prepare both turkey and a veggie entree. I would sit with family and friends to give thanks and share the delicious meal. Or I would head to one of the shelters to help serve dinner to those in need.

I'm not in San Francisco and my co-workers all have nearby families or dinner plans. This year, I'll make a special dinner for myself and have leftovers for a couple of meals. Here is the menu:

Black olives, carrots and stuffed celery
Baked butternut squash half stuffed with quinoa
Baked cranberries with diced Granny Smith apples
Baked yams
Chunky mashed red potatoes with mushroom gravy
Sauteed fresh mushrooms and baby peas
Squash tart with whipped cream (the other half of the butternut squash mashed with nutmeg and cinnamon in a tart shell)
Double Dutch chocolate coffee with white chocolate mint creamer

The whipped cream keeps the meal from being vegan.

One year, I tried eating Tofurkey as an alternative and I only had one objection: it tasted fine, but I was still chewing it at Christmas. Then the company offered Tofurkey jerky and I said, "Why?" So this year, it's squash and all the trimmings.

I will be thankful for my many blessings and toast absent family and friends. I hope all who read this will have a wonderful day and enjoy the bounty.

Fun at the gas pump

2008-11-17T16:34:00.000-08:00

I was driving through Antioch on my way to the Antioch Bridge and highway to the state park. It was Sunday morning about 11:30, the sun was out and it was 76 degrees. The gas station where I was going to fill up had a double trailer tanker truck parked on the outside corner away from the pumps. I drove in and turned around one of the fuel islands so I could line up my fill cap with the pump.

Too late. A couple of guys in a sports car swung around the other side and parked at the middle pump. I waited for a bit as the other pumps were occupied. My other choice was to squeeze between the tanker and the pump island to get to the other side.

More cars came in and took positions at the pumps. Many parked their cars and went into the store. Others opened their hoods, checked their oil, etc.

I decided to chance it. I backed up the RV a few feet, drove between the tanker and the island and came around the other side. The car at the middle pump drove away and I pulled up to the pump on the end. Not only was this the lowest price I'd paid for gas in months, I was able to fill the tank for under $100. I never thought I'd be grateful for that.

There was a car directly in front of me and another at the pump on the left. A man was standing at the open driver's door and seemed to be waiting for someone to come out of the store after paying for gas. I might have been able to swing around the car in front but I wasn't sure I would fit between the two cars.

I rolled down the window and with my best smile said to the waiting man, "Excuse me. Would you pull forward a couple of feet so I can get out, please?"

To my surprise, he glared at me, gave an exaggerated sigh, rolled his eyes, put his hands on the roof of his car and turned away.

OK. My turn to sigh. I checked both mirrors, looked at the driveway about 50 feet behind me, didn't see any approaching cars, and shifted into reverse. Back, back until I cleared the last pump. Then I turned left and was going to leave by the driveway when a car came in at about 20 mph, skidding to the pump in front of me.

Another sigh. I pulled forward and glanced to the left again, and then right. The tanker driver was talking to the man who wouldn't move. Hmm. I kept going forward and turned right between the tanker and the pump island. The tanker driver walked in front of me towards the truck, waved as he entered and said, "I saw what happened and I told him he should have let the lady through. That's rude."

I said, "Thanks," and drove out the other driveway past the man who was now pumping gas. He looked at me and I just smiled. The day was too nice to spoil it with rolling eyes, a big sigh and sticking my nose in the air.

But I really, really wanted to.

A weekend with RVing women

2008-11-17T14:07:00.000-08:00

Last weekend, I was finally able to connect with my home chapter of the RVing Women. Our gathering was at an RV park five miles away as the crow flies from the state park where I camp host. Since my RV is not a crow and does not have pontoons, it was 20 miles away by road.

For those of you trying to decide whether to join this great organization, let me tell you a bit about the weekend.

Those who arrived on Friday afternoon and evening gathered at the clubhouse for "munchies" at 6. The Friday evening munchies are much more than chips and dips, although there was a nice selection of everything from guacamole to fruits, vegetables and cheeses. I brought garbanzo beans marinated in olive oil with blood oranges and Italian seasoning. The board provided the wine and sparkling cider. Later that evening, members gathered for cards and games.

Saturday morning is the famous biscuits and gravy breakfast provided by two members, and the rest of us brought supplemental breakfast items ranging from several kinds of scrambled eggs, potatoes, fresh fruit, rolls, bagels, breads and juice. Following breakfast was the annual meeting which was more fun than work. At 3, another member hosts everyone at her RV for root beer floats. Dinner was a potluck and I couldn't begin to tell you about all the different dishes we had to choose from. I brought low sodium red potato and roasted garlic soup with chunks of red potatoes. After dinner, the All-Girl Band entertained us. They encouraged us to taste the wine because, "The more you drink, the better we sound."

Sunday morning is the clean-out-the-fridge breakfast with more amazing dishes to choose from. This Sunday, however, was different. At 10, we held a memorial service to say good-by to one of our members who passed away last month after a three-year fight against colon cancer. It was a beautiful way to let her go with poems, readings, songs, and our bagpiper playing "Amazing Grace" and "Ode to Joy." After the service, we said good-by to each other until next month's weekend getaway and drove away.

This is typical of my local chapter's weekend activities. I also belong to the Solo Travelers and the Fulltimers. Most of our get-togethers are by Roadside Rendezvous. We contact each other by email, see who's in the area or close by, and agree to meet in that location at a date and time. There will be a sizable gathering in Quartzsite in January.

So if you think you might like to join RVing Women for friendship, fun and food, and wanted to know more, here is the information. We'd love to have you with us!

Econ 101

2008-10-28T10:05:00.000-07:00

Money. Everyone has to deal with it in their own way. The economy is fragile right now and there are no signs it will recover any time soon. I have a strong suggestion to help us deal with the recession.

The price of gas has dropped significantly. This is a welcome relief. While we're celebrating, remember when you fill your tank to take the money you saved (perhaps a dollar per gallon) and put it aside for future emergency needs like when the price goes up again. Then make it difficult to use the savings for something else. The last time I filled up, the RV took 60 gallons. I bought a $50 gas card so I can only spend that "extra" money on gas. That's as it should be.

Like most people, when I received a tax refund, I would use some of the money to pay bills and blow the rest on frivolous wants rather than needs. As I grew older and hopefully a little wiser, I began to really assess those wants.

Now I take any "extra" money I save and keep it in a fund to use for the same purpose. Recently, I shopped at two different stores, both of which had huge sales on clothing. I can buy a year's wardrobe for under $300. The money I saved on the clothes shopping, in this case $80, was just enough to purchase jewelry marked 60% off at a store that will be going out of business after the holidays. For those who haven't heard, Mervyns is bankrupt so you should be able to find some great closeout bargains in the next couple of months.

Grocery shopping has bargains throughout the year and with the extra I save, I purchase dehydrated and freeze-dried food as a back-up. I have meals for 90 days stored in the RV and supplement fresh food as needed.

I haven't watched television in months and I don't miss it. Even when I had a satellite dish, I found I wasn't taking advantage of all the channels I could receive. The monthly fee I save on TV is used toward purchasing items for electronic devices like my laptop since that is how I earn my living. New optical mouse and VOIP headset on sale? Batteries in bulk? No problem. If I want to watch a TV program, I can select it and watch it on the laptop at my convenience. If there is nothing I want to watch on TV, I have over 300 DVDs and many spoken word recordings I can listen to. Did you know all the Harry Potter books read by the versatile Jim Dale fit on one DVD?

The holiday shopping dilemma that would leave me with a high credit card balance in January was solved years ago when I became an RVer. I have no room to store presents in the RV. In a sticks-and-bricks, I would purchase a gift item any time I found a sale: a bargain in August? No problem. Buy it, wrap it and store it until December 1 when I would mail it. Now I find out where non-computerized friends and family shop, purchase gift cards throughout the year and send them in their holiday cards. I design the cards, print them and have them ready to mail during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. For those friends and family with computers, they receive an electronic holiday card with the online gift card to shop at home at their leisure. They can wait for the after-Christmas sales and make the best use of their gift.

These are all suggestions that have worked for me and may work for you. I'm not Suze Orman by any means. I just want to make the best use of the money I have so neither my friends and family nor I feel deprived.

The big weekend

2008-10-20T17:58:00.000-07:00

There is a big weekend coming up and everyone in the United States will be sharing some or all of it. It starts with Halloween.

October 31st is Halloween and on a Friday this year. That means the trick-or-treaters will be out in force and able to stay up late. Many Halloween parties will conclude after "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" is shown at midnight.

November 1st and 2nd celebrate El Dia de los Muertos or the Day of the Dead. The holiday takes place over the two days designated as All Saints Day and All Souls Day by the Catholic church. The 1st honors deceased infants and children; the 2nd deceased adults.

Also on November 1st before we retire for the evening (in every state except Arizona), we turn our clocks back one hour. Some of us also change the batteries in our smoke detectors, carbon monoxide and LP gas detectors.

On Monday, November 3rd, I (and probably a few others) will celebrate my 60th birthday. It's quite a milestone and I'm very glad to be alive and healthy enough to enjoy it.

And on Tuesday, November 4th, we go to the polls and elect a new president. We also express ourselves on our ballots, our approval or denial of issues, then watch and listen for the results to see what the future brings.

I'm ready. Are you?

The good old days

2008-10-09T13:09:00.000-07:00

I'm a Californian again. I had changed my mailing address to Texas with the Escapees mail service last year. As with many other RVers, however, I'm not traveling as much nor as far as I had planned. The problems with voter registration were frustrating. To me, it wasn't worth the hassle of having my RV registration and driver's license with a Texas mailing address, especially since I'm now volunteering with the California State Parks. The RV insurance was based in Texas because of the Texas address but the rig was here. So now, my address is in San Francisco, even if I'm not.

While I was changing my address, I thought about the good old days and how we had to handle it then. You went to the post office for change of address cards and bought post card stamps. Then you spent an afternoon or evening filling out a card for your bank account, each of your bills, your magazine subscriptions, your relatives, your distant friends, and finally, the big card for the post office itself. You ordered your new checks by phone (spelling every word carefully) and waited two weeks for them to arrive.

Weeks or months later, the yellow forwarding labels on your mail would begin to disappear. When you wrote the checks to pay your bills, the checks had the new address on them. You would cross out the incorrect address on the bill and print the new one. The entire process of "moving" took about three months longer than the actual move from one dwelling to another.

Now the entire process takes about 24 hours and only because I needed to wait for email confirmations during their business hours. I clicked on my Favorites, chose each company, group or organization, and changed my address online. Most took effect immediately. I receive six magazines by postal mail and while I was changing the address on them, two asked me to opt for an online version instead of printed. Of course I agreed. Two others are bimonthly (so the address change will be reflected in the next issue) and one other is in the process of converting to an online version.

The change from the Texas insurance carrier to the California agency was done by phone and email. Within a half hour of the initial contact, I had my complete policy sent electronically, printed it and inserted the proof of insurance into the ID case with the registration.

I changed my address online at the Department of Motor Vehicles for both my registration and driver's license. Since my license expires this year, the DMV wanted me to show up in person to have my 13 year-old picture replaced and test my vision. Thank goodness: the same great picture had been used for several updates to the license over the years but each time, my hair picked up more of the blue background. Hence, I had really become a blue-haired old lady.

Here was the only delay. The registration was issued immediately along with the tag (I had already paid online) and I took the vision test. My picture was taken. Now I wait for two weeks for the new license to be mailed to me and hope the picture turned out as well as the previous one.

Another aspect of the good old days I don't miss is actually going to the DMV. You can make an online appointment now. When I tried to do that for Monday, October 6, I was told the next available appointment was October 16. I don't have a toad and the RV would not fit in the parking lot nor on the street, so my friend drove me there. I decided not to tell her I didn't have an appointment.

From the time I walked in the door, registered the RV, took the vision test, had my picture taken and left, I had accomplished everything in 35 minutes.

My absentee ballot arrived, I have cast my vote and mailed it.

These are the good old days.

The right to vote

2008-09-24T10:17:00.000-07:00

I received my forwarded mail from Texas yesterday which is always a delight. Buried within the various magazines and bills was a notice from Sonoma County mailed to Texas with the residence address listed as the Cloverdale park where I worked. All I had to do was return the card to them with the address where I want my ballot sent. Best of all is the box to check that I want to be a permanent absentee voter.

Woohoo and hallelujah! I can vote.

Some of you may be wondering why all the fuss. I take my voting right very seriously. When I was in college at 16, it was 1965. My mother was a Republican and my stepfather a Democrat. We would have discussions at dinner about current events and politics: local, national and international. We covered communism, socialism, the peace movement, Vietnam, unions and the economy. Every time there was an election and they received their sample ballots, my parents would argue for weeks about their political preferences: "You Republicans don't care about the working man." "You'd vote for a monkey if he was a Democrat." Then they would go to the polling place, stick their chins out and cancel each other's vote. But they voted.

One of the worst problems I had being in college at 16 in the 60s was the fact that I couldn't vote until I turned 21. Five years was a long time to wait when you're politically active. I was thrilled when the voting age was lowered to 18: too late to help me when I needed it but a much more reasonable age.

Ever since I was able to vote in the 1972 election, I have never missed an opportunity to do so. My record is intact and my vote will be counted this year.

San Francisco by RV: free

2008-09-22T10:55:00.000-07:00

I know what you're thinking: how can I take my RV to and through San Francisco? It has hills and narrow streets and is RV unfriendly. Well, I travel there quite frequently, know where to park and where all the free stuff is. Since I was setting up my calendar for next year, I thought I would share.

First, there are two ways to enter San Francisco with your RV from the north and east: over the Golden Gate Bridge via 101 or the Bay Bridge via 80. If you go over the Golden Gate, the basic fare for a two-axle vehicle is $6 and each axle is charged another fee. My suggestion is to leave the city by that bridge and enjoy the view going across for free.

After you cross the bridge, take the 19th Street/Highway 1 exit and travel south to Geary Blvd. Turn right on Geary and drive until you see the ocean. Stay on the big sweeping curve onto the Great Highway past the Cliff House and turn right into the large parking lot on Ocean Beach. That is Golden Gate National Recreational Area property and part of the National Parks Service. It's safe to park there and falls under the jurisdiction of the park rangers so you won't have to worry about a parking ticket.

Walk to the intersection of Balboa and the Great Highway, turn right or south on La Playa, and continue walking one block to the bus stop across from the Muni turnaround. There is a Safeway store with a Wells Fargo Bank inside. Take the 38 Geary, give the driver $1.50 and take the transfer. It will usually be good for at least three hours. The 38 Geary will take you across the city and the route ends south of Market Street where you can catch just about any bus or streetcar to your destination.

If you enter by the Bay Bridge, the basic fare is $4 with fees for each additional axle. Take the Ninth Street exit, turn right on Ninth, following it to the left onto Hayes Street, and turn right onto Van Ness Avenue. Stay on Van Ness until you reach Geary Blvd. and turn left. Follow the directions above to reach Ocean Beach.

If you're traveling north on 101, take the Ninth Street exit and follow the instructions above.

All streets have Muni buses traveling on them so you can safely travel on them with your RV.

If you want to leave your RV outside the city and are traveling south on 101, take the Sir Francis Drake exit, turn right and go past the Larkspur Ferry parking lot. There is no RV parking in the lot but you can park safely across the street from the stoplight facing west on SFD. I make a U-turn at the light but my RV is only 27 feet. Once you're parked, go to the ferry terminal and purchase a round-trip ticket which will be around $15. Take the ferry to the San Francisco Ferry Terminal and when you exit, take a free Muni bus ticket for your round-trip back to the ferry. When you leave the building, walk two blocks to Market Street and you can take any bus or streetcar from there. http://www.goldengateferry.org

Now what can you do in San Francisco for free?

First Saturday of every month: from 8 PM to midnight, singing sea chanteys on the Balclutha, a three-masted sailing ship at the Hyde Street Pier, the world's only floating national park. Bring a mug for hot cider or cocoa (donation if you wish). The Maritime Museum across the street from the pier is free every day. http://www.nps.gov/safr/

First Sunday of every month: free day at the Asian Art Museum. http://www.asianart.org

Beginning around the first weekend in May until the last weekend in September, weekly Sunday concerts from 1-3 PM by the Golden Gate Park Band in Golden Gate Park. Bring a blanket or chair and a picnic lunch. http://www.golden-gate-park.com

Beginning the second week of June through the second week of August, weekly Sunday concerts from 1-3 PM in Stern Grove. Bring a blanket or chair and a picnic lunch. http://www.sterngrove.org

First Tuesday of every month: free day at the DeYoung Museum, Palace of the Legion of Honor and Museum of Modern Art. (MOMA) http://www.famsf.org or http://www.sfmoma.org

First Wednesday of every month: free day at the San Francisco Zoo, Exploratorium and California Academy of Sciences. http://www.sfzoo.org or http://www.exploratorium.edu or http://www.calacademy.org

That should get you started on your very economical visit to San Francisco.

Winter in California

2008-09-17T13:35:00.000-07:00

In my heart, I'm a Californian. I might have been born in New Jersey, lived in several other states, and my mail goes to Texas, but I'm here in California.

By practicing my frugal RVing tips and being very budget conscious, I've been able to take a position as a volunteer camp host at Brannan Island State Recreation Area on the Sacramento Delta. I work 20 hours a week selling firewood, helping at the kiosk, perhaps helping in the visitor center, and cleaning firepits. My perks are the RV site pictured below with free 30-50 amp electric, water and sewer. There is a phone connection if I want to add a land line.

The park is 17 feet above sea level, so just in case we have a problem with a levee break on the Sacramento River, it won't affect this location. It seems a bit strange to be concerned about flooding, but with the fires we had this year and the drought, it's a legitimate concern.

One of the best aspects of this locale is I'm three miles from Rio Vista with a grocery store, laundromat, propane and other services, so it won't be too bad to drive the RV for what I need. The nearest large store and bank are in Antioch 13 miles away across the bridge. Fortunately, one of the other volunteers does her shopping and banking there so I can hitch a ride with her.

I don't start working until Friday and I have time to enjoy this: