Questions and Answers

It is hard to believe that we have been living full-time in The Bus for two years.  In June 2015, we sold our home in Maryland and hit the road expecting that we might be full-timers for 2-3 years.  Now at the two-year point, we feel like we have seen and explored only a small portion of what we set out to do.  One of our relatives asked, “How long do you expect to do this?”  We don’t have a good answer for it other than "until we get tired of it".

The numbers are the number of times we have live there.

This is one of several questions we are often asked when people find out we are full-time RV’ers.  Another question that we have probably always been asked but never gave it much thought is, “Where are you from?”  For a quick reply, we often say Auburn, AL since that is our current legal residence.  There are certain Federal and State legalities that require residents to have established residency.  However, it is more difficult for us to answer since we lived in several different locations during my military career.  As times moves on, we may or may not retain a residence in Auburn, AL and it may become harder to answer what is typically a simple question.

Speaking of states and maps, it has been about 10 months since we added a new sticker to our RV map.  Many RV owners add these maps to their rig to show where they have been.  Some people ask, "Are those all the states you have been too?"  There are no hard and fast rules on what qualifies as sticker worthy.  Some people add stickers if they drive through a state while others add them if they stay overnight in the state.  We decided that we would only add a state sticker if we actually spent a night in The Bus there.  Just because we visited a place in the past and may have even camped there in a previous RV, we felt The Bus needs to qualify its own experiences. 

We left Alabama after having new Koni shocks installed on The Bus at Red Bay Diesel and made a short stop at the National Corvette Museum in Kentucky.  I appreciate all types of cars, and even though Corvettes are not my thing; I enjoyed seeing the beautiful examples on display.  It was sad to see the ones on display that were crushed by the sinkhole under the museum a few years ago.

We selected a campground near Frankfurt, KY and paid for a week.  This would give us enough time for me to get my work hours in and also see a few of the distilleries along the Bourbon Trail.  The official Bourbon Trail passport is more of a marketing gimmick where several of the large producers award a t-shirt for visiting all the ones listed in the passport.  There are many other distilleries in the area that you can also visit and all of them offer tours to the public.  We picked out a few to tour and called it good.  Hey, they are all making booze and its pretty much the same process.  It was surprising how much Bourbon and Whiskey is made in this area.  There are literally more barrels of whiskey in Kentucky than residents.

Another question we get asked is “Do you cook in your RV?”  Certainly, we do. We have a full kitchen including a dishwasher.  The convection/microwave oven took a bit of getting use to as it cooks differently that a typical oven.  Pattie was given some sourdough starter by my mother recently and decided to try and bake fresh bread.  She followed my mother’s recipe and the results were fantastic.  

This was our first overnight stay in Kentucky so we were able to add the Kentucky sticker to our map.  From here, we plan to head north to cooler weather.

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RV Tip:  Knowing the tire pressures and temperatures on your RV and anything it tows can alert you to trouble before it becomes a crisis.  We added the EzTire monitoring system to The Bus and the Jeep this month.  It is easy to install and wirelessly receives data that is presented to the driver on a small screen.  Now if the Jeep develops a flat tire, I should know before a motorist pulls along side blowing their horn and waving frantically.

The Flexible RV Life

One of the reasons Pattie and I chose the RV lifestyle was to have flexibility to go where we wanted when we wanted.  Sometime the “when we want” part of that is influenced by events.  This does not cause us to question our choice; but rather reaffirms it.  The past six weeks provide a couple good examples.

As I mentioned before, I returned to the workforce for a company that allows me the flexibility to work remote.  Some travel to remote work locations is required and in my last blog entry I wrote about the trials of air travel.  Another trip was required to Titusville, FL to meet with a customer this month.  I submitted a cost comparison of flying vs. driving to my boss that showed driving from the Ft Benning area to Titusville and staying in the RV was cheaper than flying/hotels/rental cars.  So, Pattie plotted a course for us and we set sail. 

Horse Creek Winery Georgia

Some people are curious on how we plan a route.  I may write a dedicated blog entry on that subject one day as it is worthy on its own.  Here I will just say that when several days of travel in a row are required, we look for easy in/out and low cost/free camping sites along the route.  We recently joined Harvest Hosts that allow us to stay a single night at participating farms, wineries, and breweries.  We look there first, then look for Passport America campgrounds where we can get 50% off normally on Mon-Thur nights.  After those, we look for military campgrounds or even Wal-Marts that allow you to stay overnight.

Camp Blanding Florida

For this trip, Pattie found Horse Creek Winery on the Harvest Host app and called for permission to stay.  It was a beautiful setting right off the Interstate that made nice wines and even had a café.  We met the owners, sampled some wine and ate dinner there.  OK, the “parking spot” was free, but we did spend some money on a few bottles of wine and dinner.  

The next leg of the trip took us to Camp Blanding in Florida.  It is a military campground on a near perfectly round lake.  

Willow Lakes RV Resort Florida

Our final leg got us to Titusville where we stayed at Willow Lakes RV Resort under the Passport America program.  We have read about these RV resorts, but never stayed at one.  There are several in Florida for snowbirds and they become easy to rent as soon as the weather warms up and the owners go back north.  We enjoyed seeing how they have built port homes on their lot to protect their RV and expand their living space.

Mom and me

So getting back to the flexibility topic, the RV lifestyle allowed us to spend time together, sleep in our own bed, and still meet work obligations.  We had just finished my work in Florida when we received a call that my mother was ill and being admitted to a hospital in Tuscaloosa, AL.  We had already planned to visit her on Mother’s Day, so we just expedited our trip and arrived in time to care for her the day she was released to go home.  

She is entering that time in her life when it is best she does not live alone and my sister and brother-in-law added on a suite to their house for her to live with them.  With the construction just finished it was time to move her in.  Pattie and I stayed a little over three weeks helping with work around my sister’s house, taking care of mom, and moving her in to her new home. 

Extreme Yard Makeover - I love hydraulics!

Time to Move

The flexibility of the RV lifestyle was a true blessing for us during this time.  Had we followed the normal paradigm of buying a bricks and sticks home it would not have been in Tuscaloosa, AL.  We would have been traveling to and from our residence to help as we could on weekends.  The RV lifestyle allowed us to be on location, in our own home, and able to support our loved ones. 

Mom's new place

Getting settled

Where to next?  Well, we will head north to escape the heat stopping in Red Bay, AL to replace our shock absorbers along the way. 

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Other Notes:  Before we left Ft Benning, I adjusted the new headlights on The Bus and replaced the factory fog lights with these PIAA driving lights.  PIAA is known for high quality off-road lights and these new LED versions live up to the reputation. Let me describe it this way, I can have the new projector beam headlights on at night and when I turn the PIAA driving lights on, they wipe out the low beam illumination.  If you want performance, replacing the factory fog lights is a easy do-it-yourself upgrade. 

Back on the Road Again

From the middle of January to the end of March, we camped on a friend’s farm as caretakers.  We enjoyed the time there and accomplished our goals of exploring North Alabama and keeping a regular fitness routine.  I suppose we can check the box that we have Workamped now.  Not bad, but hitch itch had us ready to move on.

Our first stop was Brannon Hutchinson’s Custom RV Shop in Red Bay, AL.  We needed the annual maintenance on the AquaHot system that kept us warm all winter and we wanted Brannon to do a couple upgrades to The Bus.  Unfortunately, when we tried to retract the bedroom slide, it did not move.  After checking all the electrical circuits, I looked under the bed and found the electric motor and gearbox for the slide mechanism had broken in half.  The owner’s manual describes how to manually retract the slide, but that assumes the motor and gears are in one piece.  What would MacGyver do?  I removed the remaining gearbox assembly and used a flat drill bit and electric drill to retract the slide.  It was not pretty, but it worked.  I called Tiffin Service Center and asked if they had a replacement assembly.  They said yes, but they have two different parts (one was $530 and the other was $245) and they were not sure which one I needed.  We grabbed the broken pieces and took off in the Jeep for Red Bay, AL.  The parts counter showed us both parts and they were identical except on had a fitting on the end of the main shaft that allows you to use a socket and wrench to move the slide manually.  I chose the one with the fitting and was happy that it was the $245 one!  Once back, we installed the new assembly liberally applying blue Loctite to all bolts and lubricating the slide mechanism.  It works great.  Since the failure probably occurred because the bolts became loose, I decided to check the bolts in the front slide.  I found one bolt about to fall out and the other three finger tight.  I removed each, applied blue Loctite, and reassembled them as well as lubricating the slide mechanism.   

With the slides in good shape, we headed to Red Bay to see Brannon.  He quickly cleaned and serviced the AquaHot system then began converting our oven/stove range fan to exhaust externally rather than internally.  He removed the oven and cut a hole in the exterior wall to fit a new duct and vent cover.  He reversed the fan and bolted the oven back in place.  We really like this upgrade as we do a lot of cooking and it keeps the inside of The Bus cleaner and smelling fresh. We took the opportunity to upgrade the porch light to the 2017 style LED light. 

Bruce Deaton painted the vent cover to match.

Next, he replaced our cloudy headlights with new projector beam and LED headlights.  The new lights give the old coach a fresh look and we hope we will get more usable light from them.

With this work complete, we headed back to camp near Huntsville, AL since I had a business trip to Orlando, FL the following week with a flight out of Huntsville.  With a day to spare, we visited the Huntsville Space and Rocket Center and really enjoyed the history and glimpse into future space operations.

My business trip to Orlando reminded me why I don’t like to fly.  The trip down was fine with about 6 hours total travel time.  However, coming back I had to go through Atlanta on 5 April.  This was the day that recurring thunderstorms basically crippled the airport stranding thousands of travelers including me.  With no hotel rooms available and no rental cars available, my choices were limited.  I needed to get away from the city.  I remembered a shuttle bus that my sons use that goes to Auburn and caught one of them at 9:45 PM.  After a night in a Auburn hotel, my son picked me up and took me to get a rental car locally.  I drove back to Huntsville where my bag had magically appeared.  Pattie and I agree that we are spoiled by being able to travel and sleep in our own bed every night.

We left the Huntsville, AL area and relocated to one of our favorite spots at Uchee Creek Campground adjacent to Ft Benning, GA.  We like this area because we can take care of medical/dental appointments and visit our sons in Auburn as well as assist Pattie’s mother in Atlanta. 

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Enjoying North Alabama

In previous posts, we have talked about how different North Alabama is from most of the state.  It is mostly topography.  The culture is the same with more Alabama fans west of I-65 and Auburn fans east of I-65.  That’s how we measure culture down here.  Since we are staying still as caretakers for a fellow RVer’s farm, we decided to immerse ourselves in the local area. 

Due to poor planning on my part some 30 years ago, January and February bring about our Anniversary, Pattie’s birthday, and Valentine’s Day.  OK, two out of three I didn’t have much choice in the matter.  The chocolate investment alone can break the bank.  We have been good on our diet and joined a local gym where we workout 5-6 times a week, so some celebration was in order.  For Pattie’s birthday she had her heart set on a specific dessert sold at P.F. Chang’s called the “Great Wall of Chocolate.”   We made the short trip to Huntsville for dinner and she brought the slice of cake home and ate on it for a week. 

There are many fine dining opportunities in the Huntsville area and the old downtown area is really coming to life.  The Vaugh Braun Center downtown hosts attractions all year.  Pattie wanted to go see the Chinese ballet Shen Yun, so we got tickets and enjoyed the show. 

Not to be left out, I selected a spot to celebrate Valentine’s Day.  A local roadside café southeast of Huntsville on Hwy 431 called Galen’s offers a real country breakfast.  Nothing says I love you like biscuits, grits, and bacon. 

Now for her birthday, we went to the local Trek bike store and asked the helpful bike expert to fit Pattie to a bike.  You may recall that last August, Pattie had a bad accident on some bike trails in Maine and we have been wondering if her ten-year-old 17-inch frame Trek was the right size for her.  Apparently it is not.  She needed a 13-inch frame bike to ride comfortable and control it.  So, we came home with a new ladies bike for her birthday.  Our first ride was about 7 miles and she said the experience was much better.  We stopped by the local Wal-Mart and bought a 65 inch BBQ grill cover to put over the bikes since they live on the back of The Bus.  We will see how that works out.

Speaking of BBQ Grills, the farm owner said I could use his Traeger grill/smoker.  I tried it with a couple racks of ribs and we had a couple we know from our college days come over to help us eat them.  A few days later I tried some salmon.  Both meals came out edible and the grill works great. 

This local semi-stray dog named Maggie was ever present as the grill was going.  I have never seen any creature as happy to just be as this dog.  The world is her toy and every moment is made for fun. 

Maggie says, "If it ain't fun, don't do it."

We keep in touch with a few fellow Rv'ers we have met along the way.  Laura and Bruce have a coach the same year model as ours and we met them last year at a boon docking rally.  They were making a pilgrimage to Red bay, AL for service and we suggested meeting one Saturday at Dismals Canyon near Phil Campbell, AL for a day hike.  What a wonderful place this is.  You would never guess that Alabama had such rock formations.  We had a great time hiking the canyon and getting caught up on each others travels and plans ahead.

Hiking Dismals Canyon with Laura and Bruce

 RV Lessons/Tips

Our Samsung Blue Ray/surround sound receiver began shutting itself off flashing a FAN NGO warning.  I pulled it out of the confined cabinet where it lives on top of the DISH receiver and tried it our on the kitchen cabinet.  It worked fine there.   Suspecting it was shutting down due to excessive heat, I purchased four aluminum electrical outlet boxes to use as spacers to separate the components and disperse the heat.  I padded the boxes with anti-slip pads so they will not move around in transit.  The receiver stays on for now.  A friend of mine suggested a USB driven fan to move air through the cabinet.  I ordered a couple installed them to further improve cooling.  No issues so far.

When preparing to stay in one place for a long time, we put these covers over the mirrors and windshield wipers.  Why?  Because we found them in a cabinet of the coach when we bought it.  I suppose the ones over the wipers will help keep the rubber from deteriorating as quickly.  The ones over the mirrors keep them clean from bird droppings.  (A blue bird has shown up delineating his territory and he "fights" the bird in the mirrors- hence the droppings.) I’m not sure I would have run out and bought them, but since we have them, why not? 

Moon Rise

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