1/28/2019. Crap, I pushed/pulled the wrong handles

By now emptying the Black and Gray tanks on the COW should be like getting dressed in the morning.  It should be a no brainer.  At least, YOU WOULD THINK this would be the case!!

  Well yesterday I dumped the Black Water tank without shutting the valve on the Gray water tank.  

So what you say??  What’s the big deal??

Well half the crap went down the tube to the sewer and the other half backed up into the gray tank.  What a mess.  I had to flush the gray tank 5 times with soapy water to get the gray tank clean.  I have read about others doing this, but now I can add it to my list of “What was I thinking”. :-)

Actually this MotorHome living is becoming more and more everyday for us.  We are enjoying it, but I have to laugh at myself when I pull these stunts.  

Check this one off my list of “been there, done that”!!  :-)

Pickle ball friends and fighting the wind

In the early days of our time here at Cypress Trails RV Resort in Fort Myers (we arrived here January 1), we attended a Pickleball session to learn more about playing this game since we have only watched you tube or read online of the rules and played a little on a tennis court with Pickleball court lines painted over top.  We were lucky enough to be 2 of four attendees, so had the instructor all to ourselves.  Dave and Melissa were our partners in the session, and boy was luck on our side.  We not only learned the rules and strategies of the game, but have gained some great friends.  After the instructor’s session, we stayed and put our new learning into action by playing the game with Dave and Melissa.  Then as the weeks have gone by and finding them super fun Pickleball partners (although none of us are taking the game or scoring seriously), we have made more plans for more and more games, and have played with them 3 out of 4 days so far this week.

As we travel, we have found several kinds of people living the RV lifestyle.  People on short vacations which usually just keep to themselves or friends and family they are vacationing with, people who are taking a longer vacations with limited time and are busy with their planned time but will stop to say hello and chat briefly, people who are traveling for extended periods of time but still have a house to return to who may be new to rv living or more experienced and more than willing to compare destination ideas and compare notes on rv equipment and experiences and make a few friends along the way, snowbirds (which we have become this year) who have been doing this seasonally for years, and those who have sold their house and taken the plunge to embrace the entire rv living experience and community and easily form friendships and bonds wherever they travel for as long a period a time as they are at a location and sometimes beyond.

Dave and Melissa fall into the last category.  Bill and I would love to also fall in the last category, constantly debating the merits of cutting ties with our home base of 24 years, but still waiting for it to feel completely ‘right’.  Dave and Melissa have been an inspiration and just downright fun to be with.  We have had such great laughs while playing Pickleball with some shots that would have us winning on America’s Funniest Home Videos if we had been filming.  Fighting the wind, which easily carries the lightweight plastic ball with holes in it (like a whiffle ball) wherever it chooses to take the it has made us all better players as we teamed up with Sandy and Dave playing against Melissa and Bill.  Bill and I both agree that playing with Dave and Melissa have made us better and stronger players.  I’m getting better by trying to hit the great shots like Dave, who has serious tennis skills in his background.

Dave and Melissa have a blog, which includes quotes that inspire them. One of them is:  “When you stop laughing, you stop living”.  Boy, have we been doing a lot of living with Dave and Melissa.

Jan 23, 2019
By Sandy

1/22/19. OH No. Our Home Thermostat Alarmed

Sandy and I both received an email from our Bryant Wireless Thermostat advising that it is calling for HEAT, yet the temperature in the house is still falling.  While we are enjoying 80 degree weather in Florida, our home in Medina Ohio is experiencing 0 to 10 degree weather with an abundance of snow.

THANK GOODNESS WE HAVE GREAT NEIGHBORS

And Thank Goodness I listened to the installing contractor when I had my furnace replaced with a new Energy Efficient furnace about 1 year ago.  He had told me that if the furnace exhaust ever gets covered in snow it will fault out and shut down due to the possibility of carbon monoxide being forced back into the house.  The furnace exhaust is approximately 2’ above the landscaping. When Northern Ohio receives a large snow storm with wind the drift along side my house can easily get above 2’.

  

I reached out to Jay Brown (one of our neighbors) and asked him to check out the furnace exhaust.  Sure enough it was buried.  Jay dug it out.  The furnace restarted.  Thank Goodness.

The balance of the neighbors then continued to snow blow my drive so it looks like someone is home.  This is how it is done in Medina, Ohio

Thank You to all of our neighbors.

12/19/2018. My new favorite Beach Campground.  Gulf Shores, Alabama

In the past two weeks we have stopped at Gulf Shores, Alabama and Henderson Beach State Park, Destin, Florida.

Years ago, my youngest daughter and I took a Father/Daughter trip to Henderson Beach State Park (maybe 20 years ago).  It was the prettiest Beach and Campground I had ever seen.  We had a great time.  

Shifting to my most recent trip I am disappointed.  The Beach is still beautiful and you can still walk from your camper to the Beach, but besides the State Park it is completely built up with Condo’s.  The traffic is crazy and the roads are being modified to handle more volume.  I don’t think I will be back.

On the other hand Sandy and I stopped at Gulf Shores, Alabama.  My new favorite.  Although the Campground is across a 4 lane road from the beach, you can get there by bike or car.  The campground has level/paved sites with full hook-up.  The state park has many paved/biking hiking trails.  You can bike to the beach or the local McDonald’s for lunch.  There are many snowbirds at the campground from Canada, Wisconsin, Michigan, and some from Ohio.  Pictures attached.

12/11/2018. The Irish Jig in the middle of traffic on the Atlanta Georgia Bypass

Today Sandy and I were taking the loop around Atlanta via the Bypass on our way to Gulf Shores, Alabama.

As we made the loop in fairly heavy traffic Sandy got up to grab something in the back as I was passing the Rt 285 exit on my way to Rt 85 S.

When she came back to her seat a huge bug (Sandy says the size of her hand) was sitting on her armrest looking up at her as if to say “This is my seat, get your own”.  My interpretation :-)

Out of the corner of my eye (again while I’m driving the COW in fairly heavy traffic) I see her start to do a dance while saying “Gross”.  “Gag Me”.  

Picture added 12/19/2018

I am sure the bug was also very amused.

She then leaped back into the coach to grab a paper towel to kill the bug!

Now keep in mind I am doing 65 MPH, driving the COW around Atlanta at Noon and I am not sure if I should be Laughing, Video Taping (this has to be worth $100,000 on America’s Funniest Home Video), or concerned.

Needless to say the bug did not stand a chance :-).  

Sandy’s last statement to me as she sat back down in the seat was that I had to carry the carcass out in the trash at our next stop

R.I.P the big bug the size of Sandy’s hand.  He once thought he had control of the Passenger seat and Now he lies in wait in the Trash Can only to be disposed of at the next Rest Stop.

12/10/2018. Running from the cold and visit to Ninety Six, SC

We exited Gaffney, SC with snow snapping at our heals.  We landed for the next couple of days in Ninety Six, SC, just below the snow line.  Brrr, it has been cold in the 30’s and rainy.  

Wow, it didn’t take long for this Northerner to get soft.  Last year I would have been washing cars in the mid-40s.  Nope, not this year.

We had the opportunity to catch up with some past neighbors from Cleveland, Mark and Mary Ellen Valaitis.  Our kids grew up together and we shared some good times together.  They lived next door to us many years ago before they moved onto Columbus, OH, New York City, and now retired to Ninety Six, SC.  I have never heard of a city with numbers for its name.  Mary Ellen explained that the name derived from being 96 miles for the Indians to travel from another village to Ninety Six.  We had a great time catching up with each other.  It was just like we skipped right over the years of separation and started talking like we were neighbors again.

They were nice enough to cook us an amazing meal, and take us to a local community theater.  What fun we had together.  

I must admit that although I was skeptical about a city with a name consisting of numbers, I will be back.  What a great place.  Mark and Mary Ellen have built a beautiful home on Lake Greenwood.  Ninety Six, SC is definitely a hidden gem.  

Mark and Mary Ellen are great hosts and tour guides.  We truly enjoyed our visit.

Thanks Again to Mark and MaryEllen for the hospitality!!!  

12/7/2018:  Camp Freightliner 2.  Working with a Technician on my coach

Freightliner offers customers the opportunity to drive your coach into their factory service shop and work with a technician for $100.  Well it was well worth the expense. After all, I have worked on Gasoline Engines, but a Diesel is a different animal.  To work with a technician that knows what they are doing and learn what is involved is a great experience.  We worked together from 8:30 AM - 3:00 PM (lunch was included).  Although I was not able to pickup a tool, I was allowed to ask questions (& I took full advantage of this opportunity), take pictures, and keep notes for future reference.

During the time we did:

• Two factory torque recalls
• Fuel/Water Separator filter
• Fuel filter
• Air Filter
• Fixed a bent tire valve
• Torqued all chasis bolts to proper specs.  I was surprised at how many need retorqued
• Greased 12 fittings on the front and 3 fittings on the back
• Adjusted the Air Bag ride height.  I didn’t know there was such a thing
• Weighed all 4 corners of the coach and calculated the best air pressure for the tires (120 Lb in the front tires, 150 Lb in the rear tires)
• Changed Engine Oil (24 quarts)
• Changed Front Axle Oil. (Who new the front axle had oil instead of grease??)
• Adjusted the steering wheel by 9 degrees so it actually is straight while going down the road.
• Changed Generator Oil
• Changed Generator Filter
• Realigned rear mud-flap.

A couple of strange things that are different about Diesels

• The Air Filter is approximately 2’ in diameter by 3’ long and contained in a metal barrel.  You do not just replace the paper filter.
• The engine takes 6 gallons of oil
• When you take the Fuel/Water separator off, Diesel fuel continues to flow out of the filter opening.  It is lower that the Diesel fuel tank so the fuel drains from the tank until you screw on the replacement filter.  The technicians tie a rag around their wrist while reinserting the replacement filter to keep the Diesel fuel from rolling down their arm.
• Before reinstalling the Fuel and Fuel/Water separator filters you have to saturate them with diesel fuel so as to not create an air bubble in the fuel line.
• The Oil filter is about the same diameter as a similar filter that we would install on a gasoline engine, but the Diesel oil filter is approximately 12” to 15” long.
• The Oil filter also has to be filled with oil before installation
• The Diesel also has an Air Dryer Filter for the Air Brakes.