WELCOME to two new Followers: PMichelleTaylor and CJsKidsClub.com! Thanks for following Me and My Dog. You don't list blog sites, so I'll just say welcome, and I hope you enjoy following along with me and Katie as we venture into Full-Timing!
I have an appointment to pick up the Sunseeker on Friday at 9:30 for the walk through. Just to let you know, I had some comments concerning making sure the tires are good (by the numbers on the tires), the generator and other things working well, etc. I talked to my Service Adviser yesterday and he said they put the new tires on when they did the first detail/check of the coach. So they literally ARE brand new. I asked him if they would make sure she was tuned up, had an oil change, etc., and he said everything is done before they put her on the lot for sale. Everything on her, mechanical and otherwise, is examined and it has to be at least 80% or it's replaced. I'm assuming that's why they put on new tires. So that made me feel better. They seem really service oriented. Hopefully I'll feel that way down the road, but so far, so good. In fact, I've been very impressed. : )
I decided on Progressive for the insurance, mainly because the response was much quicker than the other carriers and the first year's quote was lower. So that's done.
This is a short post because I have a couple of questions for you guys, and I'm not getting much from the forums I've checked.
I would like to get an extended warranty - the gal I talked to at the dealer is going to see what she can do to get me something less expensive, but I decided to get some quotes on my own. I've got one from Good Sam so far and it's much less than the dealer's.
I'd appreciate any comments about who you have, recommend, would NOT recommend, etc. There are lots of sites when I Google Extended RV Warranty, and I'd like just three more quotes. I'm not sure if the companies listed in my Google search are reputable.
One thing that bothered me with the Good Sam quote was that the last page is a disclaimer from Good Sam in large type that the insurer is not licenced by the State of California. These companies are called "Nonadmitted" or "Surplus Lines" insurers. Any opinions about this?
I've submitted my application for a storage facility that is 1.5 miles from my house, that will be nice and close.
I'll keep you updated as things progress. Should have more info tomorrow.
From me and Katie, have a great Tuesday, everyone! : )
Full-timing in our 24-foot 2006 Forest River Sunseeker 2200 as of June 1, 2011, I've added solar panels and a catalytic heater so that we can camp off-grid comfortably. My dog, Katie, is great company. We traveled a bit in the Western States our first year, and visited the deserts of Arizona and most of the New Mexico State Parks the next four. This year - 2016 - I'm hoping to find a park model to buy so we will have a home base, but we'll continue to travel, too. What a life! :)
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Sunday, March 27, 2011
RV Insurance
Welcome to our new Follower, DoreenP! Hi Doreen, thanks for following along with Me and My Dog, Katie. You didn't list a blog, but let me know if you start one.
I followed lots of RV blogs before I started mine, so I'm thinking some of my recent followers who aren't showing blogs might be thinking about it, or planning to RV in the future.
I'm still working on my insurance for the RV. So far Progressive seems the best, AARP/Hartford is very close to them, so they are still in the running. I've heard about Miller Insurance in Oregon, and Roxanne from The Good Luck Duck mentioned them, too, so I sent in an on-line request for quote, and we'll see what comes back. Maybe working with an agent instead of directly with the companies will bring in a lower quote.
I keep looking at my photos of the RV, she actually looks better in person, which is more than I can say for most of the RV's I went to see after going through on-line photos. I don't know why, but the dirt and wear and chips didn't show in the photos, and I was disappointed when I went to see them, but that was probably part of the grand plan. If I loved them, I wasn't ready to buy, anyway, and it would have been really hard to walk away if they were clean and nice and smelled good. Or at least didn't smell bad. : (
I wish I could keep her here at home, but I need to find a storage facility, which is my next task. I'll probably store her for two months, hopefully somewhere nearby so I can visit. : ) And I want to start storing things inside her, so my condo will be ready for the estate sale.
No photos today. But I saw this joke and I thought it was funny:
A young man in Tennessee came running into the gas station and said to a stranger, "Mister, somebody just stole your RV from the gas pump!"
The RVer replied, "Did you see who it was?"
The young man answered, "I couldn't tell, but I got the license number."
Later...
I lied about "no photos." I just saw this and thought I would add it. It's a little late for San Diego Aztecs, but here's the latest Cardiff Kook outfit:
From Me and My Dog, Katie, have a great Sunday, everyone! : )
I followed lots of RV blogs before I started mine, so I'm thinking some of my recent followers who aren't showing blogs might be thinking about it, or planning to RV in the future.
I'm still working on my insurance for the RV. So far Progressive seems the best, AARP/Hartford is very close to them, so they are still in the running. I've heard about Miller Insurance in Oregon, and Roxanne from The Good Luck Duck mentioned them, too, so I sent in an on-line request for quote, and we'll see what comes back. Maybe working with an agent instead of directly with the companies will bring in a lower quote.
I keep looking at my photos of the RV, she actually looks better in person, which is more than I can say for most of the RV's I went to see after going through on-line photos. I don't know why, but the dirt and wear and chips didn't show in the photos, and I was disappointed when I went to see them, but that was probably part of the grand plan. If I loved them, I wasn't ready to buy, anyway, and it would have been really hard to walk away if they were clean and nice and smelled good. Or at least didn't smell bad. : (
I wish I could keep her here at home, but I need to find a storage facility, which is my next task. I'll probably store her for two months, hopefully somewhere nearby so I can visit. : ) And I want to start storing things inside her, so my condo will be ready for the estate sale.
No photos today. But I saw this joke and I thought it was funny:
A young man in Tennessee came running into the gas station and said to a stranger, "Mister, somebody just stole your RV from the gas pump!"
The RVer replied, "Did you see who it was?"
The young man answered, "I couldn't tell, but I got the license number."
Later...
I lied about "no photos." I just saw this and thought I would add it. It's a little late for San Diego Aztecs, but here's the latest Cardiff Kook outfit:
From Me and My Dog, Katie, have a great Sunday, everyone! : )
Your posts about food
WELCOME to our new follower, Tesjae! I appreciate you following along, and hope you enjoy reading about my adventures with my dog, Katie, as we are just starting on the dream. Let me know if you have a blog, so I can read your posts, too! : )
I never realized how often RVers blog about food, and how much I enjoyed seeing the delicious looking photos. I'm trying to lose some weight, and have lost 10 pounds so far on the Medifast plan. I'd like to lose 7 or 8 more. Good thing, too, since my new RV is so tiny. Otherwise I wouldn't fit in the shower!
That'll keep me in check. But your photos look so good I can almost smell them, especially the fresh baked cinnamon rolls!
Today I spent some time checking out RV insurance companies and applying for quotes. I should have them all tomorrow, and will pick the one that looks best. Probably Progressive or AARP/Hartford. Does anyone have an opinion on those two companies, or a suggestion for another company to check out?
I did e-mail the Finance Manager at La Mesa RV today to let her know I was only going to purchase the GAP insurance, not the extended warranty or tire/rim plan. After talking to my daughter and my ex-husband, it seems like it wouldn't be cost effective for me. The total cost over the 15 year loan, to which they would be added, was more than $8,000. I read what the policy covered, and there were so many things I don't have, it didn't make sense to purchase a warranty that included coverage for the large, expensive things that aren't a part of my RV. I just don't have many extra options. And the tires are brand new. Instead I'll put money every month into my RV Emergency Fund, and if something needs repair or replacement, I should have the money to take care of it.
Thank you for all you comments - I DO agree that an extended warranty is a good idea, especially for the larger, expensive RVs, and hopefully I'll never regret letting this one go. And I also appreciate all your good wishes and congrats on my new RV. It's so nice to feel that I'm not doing this alone.
It's been a tiring couple of days and it's late, so that's all for now.
From Me and My Dog, have a great Sunday, everyone! : )
I never realized how often RVers blog about food, and how much I enjoyed seeing the delicious looking photos. I'm trying to lose some weight, and have lost 10 pounds so far on the Medifast plan. I'd like to lose 7 or 8 more. Good thing, too, since my new RV is so tiny. Otherwise I wouldn't fit in the shower!
I don't know the dimensions, but it's tiny!
That'll keep me in check. But your photos look so good I can almost smell them, especially the fresh baked cinnamon rolls!
Today I spent some time checking out RV insurance companies and applying for quotes. I should have them all tomorrow, and will pick the one that looks best. Probably Progressive or AARP/Hartford. Does anyone have an opinion on those two companies, or a suggestion for another company to check out?
I did e-mail the Finance Manager at La Mesa RV today to let her know I was only going to purchase the GAP insurance, not the extended warranty or tire/rim plan. After talking to my daughter and my ex-husband, it seems like it wouldn't be cost effective for me. The total cost over the 15 year loan, to which they would be added, was more than $8,000. I read what the policy covered, and there were so many things I don't have, it didn't make sense to purchase a warranty that included coverage for the large, expensive things that aren't a part of my RV. I just don't have many extra options. And the tires are brand new. Instead I'll put money every month into my RV Emergency Fund, and if something needs repair or replacement, I should have the money to take care of it.
Thank you for all you comments - I DO agree that an extended warranty is a good idea, especially for the larger, expensive RVs, and hopefully I'll never regret letting this one go. And I also appreciate all your good wishes and congrats on my new RV. It's so nice to feel that I'm not doing this alone.
It's been a tiring couple of days and it's late, so that's all for now.
From Me and My Dog, have a great Sunday, everyone! : )
Friday, March 25, 2011
Okay, now we're cooking! I have NEWS!
You're not going to believe this, but I bought my RV today! I was mainly thinking I'd like a Winnebago because I know the name and know they are reliable. I love those Minnie Winnies. But so far, I haven't seen the right one for me.
Forest River isn't a manufacturer I know anything about, but the funny thing is, I have always dreamed of retiring in a small cabin in the forest by a river. With enough room between the trees to get enough sun through. And that's exactly what I bought!
It's a 2006 Forest River Sunseeker.
It's 22 feet long, kitchen in the rear, nice bathroom, upper bunk bed, large couch, and dinette that seats four. No slides. It's newer and cleaner than what I expected to buy, and has exactly the layout I've wanted from the beginning.
It has 8,000 miles on it, 8 hours on the Onan generator, 2 house batteries, two-door Dometic fridge. It's in perfect condition - I could have moved in today. A little age related wear on the outside decals - just fading I think - but not too much.
It has a TV, some sort of special antenna box attached to the TV - it's in an adjacent cupboard - so I won't need a "dish," Serius radio ready, tow package, and an after market tow system that's attached under the steering wheel. It's for going downhill when you're towing something, which I probably won't, but you never know. I might decide to get a toad someday. The salesman said it's a $4,000 item - it's a "Premier"? Nice if I ever need it.
The RV also has a switch for "arctic" so that if it's cold, the tanks are kept warm. Since I'd love to camp in the snow, I think, that would be good.
It has an outside electrical outlet, hot/cold outdoor shower, I forget everything now. Almost NO outside storage, just three very small compartments. One will be for my tool box, I don't know what I'll put in the others. But the storage on the inside is much more than I was expecting to have. I think I'll be okay there. My bike and lawnchairs/table will have to be on the back of the rig.
Honestly, it doesn't look like it's ever been used, which I know isn't necessarily a good thing. 8,000 miles isn't much in 5 years. The tires look new, but I didn't check the numbers on them for age. I'll check them when I go for my run-through with them and make sure they are good tires.
Other dealers I've visited have said nothing is warrantied, but La Mesa RV has a 30 day warranty, and guarantees everything works when you drive it away. I'm going to see if I can drive up to visit my daughter and her family to make sure everything is in working order.
I've never driven an RV, so we went for a test drive in the parking lot, and it was really easy to drive. I backed up right into a parking space - aced it! I was surprised how easy it was to drive. In fact, I was surprised at how easy everything was in this rig.
I also purchased the 4 year warranty package covering the house, truck and tires/rims, and a GAP policy.
I don't get the extended warranty when I buy a car, but thought it would be a good idea since this is also going to be my house. What is your opinion on that? It's a 4-year warranty that covers pretty much everything, has a $200 deductible, or $50 if I take it to one of their shops.
I have to go over all the paperwork, I can change my mind about the warranties when I go back to pick it up and have my walk-through, but I'm thinking I'll keep them.
Camping world sent me a card for a free year's membership in Camping World's President's Club and I got some info last week. There were a couple of sales items, one was a back-up monitor, which might be a good idea, since I'll be driving and backing up alone. It looked like a good price.
Now I've got lots to do. I need to get insurance for the RV, find her a storage place for a couple of months, have my estate sale, rent my condo, and look around for an RV park where I can stay on a month-to-month basis until the end of the year when I retire.
One giant step... and isn't she a beauty?
From Me and Katie, have a great weekend, everyone! :)
Forest River isn't a manufacturer I know anything about, but the funny thing is, I have always dreamed of retiring in a small cabin in the forest by a river. With enough room between the trees to get enough sun through. And that's exactly what I bought!
It's a 2006 Forest River Sunseeker.
It's 22 feet long, kitchen in the rear, nice bathroom, upper bunk bed, large couch, and dinette that seats four. No slides. It's newer and cleaner than what I expected to buy, and has exactly the layout I've wanted from the beginning.
It has 8,000 miles on it, 8 hours on the Onan generator, 2 house batteries, two-door Dometic fridge. It's in perfect condition - I could have moved in today. A little age related wear on the outside decals - just fading I think - but not too much.
It has a TV, some sort of special antenna box attached to the TV - it's in an adjacent cupboard - so I won't need a "dish," Serius radio ready, tow package, and an after market tow system that's attached under the steering wheel. It's for going downhill when you're towing something, which I probably won't, but you never know. I might decide to get a toad someday. The salesman said it's a $4,000 item - it's a "Premier"? Nice if I ever need it.
The RV also has a switch for "arctic" so that if it's cold, the tanks are kept warm. Since I'd love to camp in the snow, I think, that would be good.
It has an outside electrical outlet, hot/cold outdoor shower, I forget everything now. Almost NO outside storage, just three very small compartments. One will be for my tool box, I don't know what I'll put in the others. But the storage on the inside is much more than I was expecting to have. I think I'll be okay there. My bike and lawnchairs/table will have to be on the back of the rig.
Honestly, it doesn't look like it's ever been used, which I know isn't necessarily a good thing. 8,000 miles isn't much in 5 years. The tires look new, but I didn't check the numbers on them for age. I'll check them when I go for my run-through with them and make sure they are good tires.
Other dealers I've visited have said nothing is warrantied, but La Mesa RV has a 30 day warranty, and guarantees everything works when you drive it away. I'm going to see if I can drive up to visit my daughter and her family to make sure everything is in working order.
I've never driven an RV, so we went for a test drive in the parking lot, and it was really easy to drive. I backed up right into a parking space - aced it! I was surprised how easy it was to drive. In fact, I was surprised at how easy everything was in this rig.
I also purchased the 4 year warranty package covering the house, truck and tires/rims, and a GAP policy.
I don't get the extended warranty when I buy a car, but thought it would be a good idea since this is also going to be my house. What is your opinion on that? It's a 4-year warranty that covers pretty much everything, has a $200 deductible, or $50 if I take it to one of their shops.
I have to go over all the paperwork, I can change my mind about the warranties when I go back to pick it up and have my walk-through, but I'm thinking I'll keep them.
Camping world sent me a card for a free year's membership in Camping World's President's Club and I got some info last week. There were a couple of sales items, one was a back-up monitor, which might be a good idea, since I'll be driving and backing up alone. It looked like a good price.
Now I've got lots to do. I need to get insurance for the RV, find her a storage place for a couple of months, have my estate sale, rent my condo, and look around for an RV park where I can stay on a month-to-month basis until the end of the year when I retire.
One giant step... and isn't she a beauty?
From Me and Katie, have a great weekend, everyone! :)
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Happiness, and Talking Cat
Here's another new app I just found. It's called Talking Tom (but I changed it's name to Millie). You talk to it, and it repeats back to you. It's drinks milk, you can hit it's toes and it'll complain, rub it's tummy and it'll purr, etc. Hit it a bunch of times, and it's a KO. Free. I made one for each of my kids' kids, and emailed it to them. Andrew and Lauren asked Kristy how she did that. Pretty neat, huh? (BTW, as you know, I'm not affiliated in any way with the things I post here.)
It's only 40 seconds:
Well, that made me happy. : )
On Oprah today, they were talking about happiness. One very interesting point was made that I've never heard before. There are a handful of things that make us happy - liking our work, marrying the right person, having enough money for the essentials, having friends, having enough sex... but one of the most important things, the expert said, is where you live.
I wish they had elaborated on that more, but the show was over right after he said that. I think this could be why full-timers seem to be so happy, at least the ones who blog seem to be pretty happy on a regular basis. You pick where you live all the time. If you love a place, you can stay for a while. If you don't like it, you move on. You get to live at the ocean, in the middle of the desert, up in the mountains, at a campground, anything you want.
I've never heard anyone say that where you live is that important for happiness. I can see how where you live could make you miserable, though. So I guess the reverse is also true. Don't you think?
From Me and My Dog, Katie, have a nice day, everyone! : )
It's only 40 seconds:
Katie's Friend, Millie
Well, that made me happy. : )
On Oprah today, they were talking about happiness. One very interesting point was made that I've never heard before. There are a handful of things that make us happy - liking our work, marrying the right person, having enough money for the essentials, having friends, having enough sex... but one of the most important things, the expert said, is where you live.
Oh, yeah...I definitely see Happiness here!
I wish they had elaborated on that more, but the show was over right after he said that. I think this could be why full-timers seem to be so happy, at least the ones who blog seem to be pretty happy on a regular basis. You pick where you live all the time. If you love a place, you can stay for a while. If you don't like it, you move on. You get to live at the ocean, in the middle of the desert, up in the mountains, at a campground, anything you want.
I've never heard anyone say that where you live is that important for happiness. I can see how where you live could make you miserable, though. So I guess the reverse is also true. Don't you think?
From Me and My Dog, Katie, have a nice day, everyone! : )
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)